MELBOURNE -(Dow Jones)- Rio Tinto (RTP) unit Coal & Allied Industries Ltd. (CNA.AU) said Wednesday that it has agreed to sell its undeveloped Maules Creek Coal project in the Gunnedah Basin to Aston Resources Ltd. for A$480 million in cash. In a statement, Coal & Allied said it will report a profit of A$340 million from the sale. "The Maules Creek Coal Project did not form part of Coal & Allied's short-term or medium-term development plans," Coal & Allied's managing director, Bill Champion, said. The group will consider how to use the proceeds from the sale once the transaction is completed, which is likely in early 2010. The deal remains subject to a number of conditions, including regulatory approvals. -By Lyndal McFarland, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-3-9292-2093; lyndal.mcfarland@dowjones.com
