Glencore has announced its intention to spin-off its non-core 23.9% stake worth $367m in South African platinum producer Lonmin during the first half of this year.
The company has proposed to divest its ownership in Lonmin through an in-specie distribution to shareholders, enabling it to manage the investment for its own account.
According to Glencore, the distribution requires shareholder approval and the company plans to maintain its relationship with Lonmin until then.
Glencore CEO Ivan Glasenberg said: "Glencore’s investment philosophy is to hold investments in production assets in the commodities in which we trade and so we have always regarded the stake in Lonmin as non-core.
"As we do not trade platinum and have no special insight into the market, we believe that it is better to leave to our shareholders the decision as to how to manage the Lonmin shares. Our desire to distribute the Lonmin shares therefore reflects our philosophy, not a view on Lonmin or platinum."
The company also announced that it has cut capital spending by up to $1.4bn this year, citing a fall in commodity prices.
Of the anticipated investment of $7.9bn, the company plans to spend $6.5bn to $6.8bn to maintain or expand its base metals operations.
Glencore, which is said to have reported strong production numbers for last year, noted that the spending cuts were in response to the volatile market.
