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Miners Anglo American (AAL) of the United Kingdom and %TeckResources (NYSE: $TECK ) of Canada have announced a merger that will create the world's largest %Copper producer.

The combined mining company will have a market capitalization of about $53 billion U.S.

The merger is one of the biggest ever in the mining industry and comes as miners focus on copper, an industrial metal that is essential to the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.

Copper is also viewed as an essential component in the building and powering of %ArtificialIntelligence (A.I.) data centres.

Both companies had previously rejected takeover offers from other companies and have sought to restructure their businesses.

London, England-based Anglo American rejected a $50 billion U.S. takeover offer from %BHPGroup (NYSE: $BHP ) last year.

Vancouver, British Columbia-based Teck Resources shot down a $23 billion U.S. takeover bid from Glencore (GLEN) in 2023 before selling its steelmaking assets to that rival company.

Commodities analysts were quick to call the deal between Anglo American and Teck Resources a "merger of equals" and to applaud the combination as a solid arrangement.

The new company will be called "Anglo Teck" and will have its global headquarters in Vancouver, with corporate offices in London, England and Johannesburg, South Africa.

The merger is expected to be completed within 18 months, subject to regulatory approvals.

Both Anglo American's stock and the stock of Teck Resources are up 10% on news of the merger.

TECK stock had previously declined 14% this year to trade at $35.11 U.S. per share.