By Rhiannon Hoyle
SYDNEY--U.S.-based coal miner Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) has
agreed to sell a shuttered Australian mine to a unit of Brisbane
coal-technology company Exergen Pty. Ltd. after a lengthy hunt for
a buyer, at a fraction of its original asking price.
Peabody valued the deal for its Wilkie Creek mine in Queensland
state at up to US$75 million, saying Exergen subsidiary Sekitan
Resources would pay cash of as much as US$20 million and assume
liabilities totalling US$55 million. It sought more than US$500
million for the asset when it was first put up for sale in early
2012.
A sustained downturn in coal prices has led many investors to
scale back exposure to Australian coal, either through closing
mines or selling assets.
Peabody purchased Wilkie Creek in 2002, but the mine was closed
in 2013 at a time when many coal producers were struggling to turn
a profit. The company said it expects the deal to be finalized this
quarter.
Exergen, a developer of "clean-coal" technology, is backed by
companies including India's Tata Power Co. Ltd. (500400.BY) and
Thiess, a division of Australia's Cimic Group Ltd. (CIM.AU), its
website says.
Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com
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