Lanco Infratech Ltd of India has acquired one of the leading coal mines in western Australia, formerly owned by the failed Griffin Coal, for as much as $850 million.
KordaMentha, the administrators of the Griffin Coal Mining Company, and Lanco announced an agreement under which Lanco will acquire the assets of Griffin Coal.
Griffin Coal is an independent thermal coal producer with established operations and substantial export growth potential. The company produced more than 4.0 mpta of coal during the year ended 2010 and is the largest supplier of coal to west Australia’s domestic industrial coal market.
The production can be ramped up to over 15 mpta in the near term, post development of evacuation infrastructure. The mining tenements contain over 1.1 billion tonne of JORC compliant thermal coal resources.
Brian McMaster of KordaMentha said, “Griffin Coal is a major contributor to the South-West economy and currently employs over 400 people. Lanco’s ownership is expected to bring substantial investment as a result of the expansion of the mine operations and associated infrastructure”. The mine is strategically located in the western coast of Australia, hence closer to India compared to the mines in New South Wales and Queensland. Significantly, the Griffin coal mines are well connected to two ports through both rail and road. The nearest port being the port of Bunbury located at a distance of 85 kilometers from the mine.
Source: Indian Express