AngloGold Ashanti Limited: the Integration

Description

AngloGold Ashanti Limited: the Integration: Abstract

On 20 February 2004, Ghana’s parliament approved the merger between AngloGold and Ashanti Goldfields Company (Ashanti) and, on 26 April 2004 − a year after Bobby Godsell announced that negotiations had commenced − the parties concluded the details of the arrangement. It was the largest such deal ever on the African continent, and was widely considered a triumph for Africa. In October 2007, when Australian Mark Cutifani succeeded Godsell as chief executive of AngloGold Ashanti, the African empire had seen the departure of Sir Sam Jonah and several years of turmoil in the Ghana operations – and specifically Obuasi, the mine with the deep-level ore bodies that had originally attracted AngloGold’s interest. Faced with declining productivity, financial losses and low morale at the Obuasi mine, Cutifani had three options: close the mine; sell it to a willing buyer; or intervene to give it a last chance.

Teaching objectives

This case is the third in a series on the merger and integration the gold mining organisations, AngloGold and Ashanti. Each case intends to generate learning on various aspects of strategy as they related to international mergers and acquisitions.

• See Case A: Anglogold: Choosing a Merger Target
• See Case B: AngloGold: Winning Hearts and Minds