Table of Contents
Key Points
- ARM to invest $3.3 million in Surge Copper, lifting its stake to nearly 20 percent of the Canadian explorer.
- The South African miner has spent $6.2 million on Surge since April 2024, signaling a stronger bet on copper.
- Copper demand tied to clean energy and electric vehicles drives ARM’s expansion into Canada’s development-stage assets.
African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), the diversified mining group led by Africa’s first Black billionaire Patrice Motsepe, is deepening its bet on copper through a new investment in Canada’s Surge Copper Corp. The move comes as demand for the red metal grows with the global shift toward cleaner energy.
Motsepe’s ARM boosts Canadian copper stake
The Johannesburg-based company has agreed to buy 25.78 million common shares of Surge at CAD0.175 ($0.13) each, for a total of about CAD4.5 million ($3.3 million). The private placement will lift ARM’s stake in the Vancouver-listed explorer to nearly 20 percent of its outstanding shares.
Before this latest deal, ARM held 42.96 million Surge shares, or about 13.4 percent of the company. In July, it also bought 1.58 million additional shares at CAD0.15 ($0.11) each, spending about CAD237,000 ($171,500). Once the new placement is completed, ARM’s stake will rise to 68.74 million shares, or 19.9 percent.
Altogether, ARM has spent about CAD8.6 million ($6.2 million) on Surge since first buying into the company in April 2024 through a CAD3.9 million ($2.9 million) placement. The company said its investment is strategic, though it may raise or reduce its holding depending on market conditions.
ARM deepens copper bet for growth
Founded in 1997 by Motsepe, ARM has long been a major South African mining group with interests in iron ore, manganese, coal, copper, gold, and platinum group metals. While iron ore and PGMs have traditionally anchored its earnings, the group has been widening its portfolio as commodity markets shift.
The latest move increases its exposure to copper, a metal seen as central to electrification, renewable energy, and electric vehicles. Surge Copper’s flagship Berg project in British Columbia carries a preliminary economic assessment with multi-billion-dollar potential, giving ARM a foothold in a promising development-stage asset within a stable jurisdiction.
For Motsepe, who holds 45.9 percent of ARM, the deal reflects a longer-term view that copper supply will tighten in the years ahead. Though relatively modest in financial terms, the investment gives ARM access to Surge’s exploration pipeline and more options for growth.
