HMS

What HMS does

HMS Bergbau AG is a Berlin-based, publicly listed international commodities trading and marketing company founded in 1995 and majority-owned by the Schernikau family. The company's core business is the global purchase and sale of energy commodities (hard coal, metallurgical coal, liquid fuels), ores, cement and other raw materials, delivered on a just-in-time basis to industrial customers in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Americas and Asia, with revenue of EUR 1.22 billion in FY2025 (IFRS). HMS operates an integrated value chain combining physical trading, multi-modal logistics (sea, rail, truck), consulting for power plants, ports and mines, and — since 2026 — controlling equity stakes in coal mines in Botswana (Maatla Resources, 51%) and South Africa (HRV, 75%), as well as a controlling stake in TSX-V listed Belmont Resources Inc. (50.9%).

The business model is transaction-based commodity trading with margin economics, supplemented by marine fuels and lubricants distribution (via a December 2025 MOU with ENOC Group covering Spain and Turkey) and chrome ore marketing (via an exclusive 8-year offtake with Mantengu Ltd. for the Langpan mine). Capital is sourced through corporate bonds (EUR 95 million outstanding on the 10.0% 2025/2030 plus an announced EUR 50 million 8.00% 2026/2031) and a lower-three-digit million USD Vietcombank credit facility. The GTM motion is enterprise direct sales to industrial consumers, with subsidiaries in Singapore, Indonesia and the UAE and representatives across China, Malaysia, India and Vietnam.

The stated FY2026 outlook projects EUR 2.0 billion in revenue and EUR 55 million in EBITDA. The company is recognized in Time Magazine's World's Growth Leaders 2026 list. Management is led by CEO Dennis Schwindt, CFO Jens Moir, and Supervisory Board Chairman Heinz Schernikau, with Henry Werkmeister newly elected to the Supervisory Board in 2025.

Name

HMS

Legal name

HMS Bergbau AG

Website

https://hms-ag.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

HMS Bergbau AG is a Berlin-headquartered, publicly listed international commodities trading and marketing company selling coal, liquid fuels, ores, cement and other raw materials on a just-in-time basis to industrial customers across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commodity Trading Services

NAICS

Coal Mining (2121), Metal Ore Mining (2122)

SIC

Wholesale-Metals & Minerals (No Petroleum) (5050)

akta.pro primary industry

Battery & Critical Minerals Trading (Lithium, Cobalt, Graphite, Manganese, Rare Earths) (IMAKAJAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Exploration & Production Drilling Services (RC, Core, Directional, Sonic, Auger) (IMAKAKAB), Bunker Procurement, Contracting & Risk Management (Hedging, Claims) (TLAHAKAE)

Keywords

• Commodity trading
• Coal marketing
• Industrial raw materials
• Marine fuels
• Mining operations

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Commodity Trading and Marketing: HMS Bergbau generates revenue through the international purchase and sale of commodities including coal products, liquid fuels, ores, cement, and other raw materials. Revenue is generated on a transaction basis through trading margins.
2. Mining Operations: Revenue from ownership stakes in mining operations including Maatla Resources in Botswana and Hoshoza Resources Vryheid in South Africa. HMS markets 100% of coal production through exclusive marketing agreements.
3. Marine Fuels and Lubricants: Revenue from trading and distribution of marine fuels and lubricants, including partnership with ENOC Group for distribution in Spain and Turkey.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

HMS Bergbau AG is a German commodities trading and marketing company that supplies coal, raw materials for power generation, and industrial inputs to customers across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The firm also operates its own mining assets in Botswana (Maatla Resources) and South Africa (HRV), supplies marine fuels and lubricants, trades chrome ore, and provides logistics and consulting services tied to international commodity supply chains.

Product overview

HMS Bergbau AG is a single, unified commodities trading and marketing platform offering physical commodity trading, mining operations, and logistics services. The core offering is international commodities trading (coal, liquid fuels, ores, cement) complemented by wholly-owned mining operations (Maatla Resources in Botswana and HRV in South Africa), marine fuels and lubricants distribution (via ENOC Group partnership), and chrome ore marketing (via Mantengu offtake agreement). Logistics and consulting services support the core trading and mining activities. The company operates as an integrated commodity house along the entire value chain.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Coal and Industrial Raw Materials Trading

Quantifiable outcome

• Ship capacity utilization increased from 197 to 228 ships (+16.0%) in 2024
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Mantengu Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 May 2026Exclusive offtake agreement with South African listed mining company Mantengu Ltd. for its Langpan mining project. HMS secured the entire production volume for a minimum of 8 years as exclusive global principal marketer of chrome ore concentrates. Initial production of 40,000 tonnes per quarter, expandable to 70,000 tonnes per quarter. The agreement replaced RWE AG subsidiary as distributor.
• Belmont Resources Inc.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 May 2026HMS Bergbau acquired approximately 50.9% controlling stake in Belmont Resources Inc., a TSX-V listed issuer, through purchase of 43.3 million shares from three vendors for total proceeds of $1,737,940. The acquisition represents HMS taking control of a Canadian mining entity.
• ENOC Group (Emirates National Oil Company)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 18 December 2025HMS Bergbau AG signed MOU with ENOC Group to serve as partner for distribution, marketing, and trading of marine lubricants in Spain and Turkey maritime corridors. Founded in 1993, ENOC Group is wholly owned by the Government of Dubai and operates across refining, lubricants, storage, aviation, and retail sectors with revenues exceeding USD 20 billion in 2024. ENOC aims to expand marine lubricant supply coverage to over 900 ports worldwide.
• Surefire Resources NLminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025HMS Bergbau AG is progressing offtake discussions with Australia-based Surefire Resources NL for Victory Bore critical minerals supply to Europe. The discussion involves potential supply of vanadium-titanium project outputs from Australia to European markets.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Mercuria Energy Trading: Global commodity trading group active in coal, oil, metals and freight. Comparable in independent-commodity-trader business model serving industrial customers, although Mercuria is much larger and more energy-weighted.
• ITOCHU Corporation: Japanese sogo shosha with major coal, metals and minerals trading divisions. Comparable peer in the international commodity marketing space with similar end-customers (cement, steel, power plants) across Asia where HMS also operates via Singapore and Indonesia subsidiaries.
• Vitol: Largest independent energy and commodities trader with significant coal and metals marketing operations. Comparable in business model—physical commodity trading for industrial customers—though Vitol is energy-focused and vastly larger.
• Gunvor Group: Independent global commodity trader with coal, oil and metals operations. Similar trading-and-distribution business model targeting industrial buyers, although Gunvor is predominantly energy-focused and substantially larger.
• Glencore: One of the world's largest diversified commodity traders and miners with extensive coal marketing operations. Glencore competes with HMS in international coal trading and metals marketing but operates at vastly greater scale across many more commodities and geographies.
• Trafigura: Global commodity trading house trading coal, oil, metals and minerals worldwide. Trafigura is a broad incumbent peer with similar enterprise sales model targeting industrial consumers, although at much larger scale than HMS.

Direct peers

• IchorCoal: European-headquartered coal mining and marketing company with operations in South Africa. Direct peer: HMS had a coal marketing agreement with IchorCoal (2015) and competes in the same Richards Bay coal export and European industrial supply market.
• Xcoal Energy & Resources: US-based international coal marketing and trading company specializing in thermal and metallurgical coal supply to industrial customers worldwide. Closest direct peer to HMS in coal-focused commodity trading model and customer base.

Emerging players

• Tharisa plc: South African-listed chrome and PGM miner and marketer. Partial overlap with HMS's Mantengu chrome offtake and broader critical-minerals positioning; comparable as a junior-to-mid-tier African mining/marketing player in the same commodity space.
• Walter Energy / Warrior Met Coal: Metallurgical coal producer and marketer serving global steel industry. Comparable peer in metallurgical coal specifically—one of HMS's core commodities via Maatla and HRV acquisitions—though focused on US production.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/HMSBergbau
• Instagraminstagram.com/hms_bergbau_ag
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCjRZgRu3H1VHMye5R6a5V0w
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hms-bergbau-ag

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HMS