The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that Glencore PLC's proposal for Teck's coal business is worth $8.2-billion (U.S.), but it comes with contingencies that may reduce the ultimate figure. The Globe's Niall McGee and Eric Reguly write that the headline number is identical to what Swiss-based Glencore was willing to pay for Teck's coal business under an earlier plan that would have seen it buy all of the Canadian mining company. Earlier on Monday, Glencore and Teck confirmed they have entered discussions centred around a possible sale of Teck's coal business, a major pivot from Glencore's months-long efforts to buy all of Teck, which would include its copper and zinc mines. The Vancouver miner had earlier rebuffed two Glencore buyout proposals for the entire business. Teck had consistently declined to even sit down with Glencore's management, so the development that the two have now engaged is a breakthrough. Teck in a statement said the Glencore proposal is "preliminary in detail, conditional and non-binding." Even if Teck and Glencore can eventually land on a mutually agreeable buyout proposal for solely the coal business, there is no guarantee the deal will close because it needs federal approval.