B06 Coal Mining

Adani says Australia to get taxes despite haven

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 2-Nov-17

Adani executive Muthuraj Guruswamy has confirmed that its companies that are registered in Australia are controlled by entities that are based in tax havens. However, he has stressed that Adani will pay its full tax liabilities and mining royalties in Australia. Guruswamy also indicated that Adani has started building the infrastructure for its Carmichael coal mine, which is slated to commence production in 2020. Anti-coal protestors attempted to disrupt his speech at the International Mining and Resources Conference on 1 November.

CORPORATES
ADANI MINING PTY LTD, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY

Rio hit with class action over Mozambique

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 25-Oct-17

US law firm Hagens Berman has filed a class action against Rio Tinto regarding the valuation of the resources group’s coal assets in Mozambique. Several Australian law firms are also considering a class action lawsuit, while the US Securities & Exchange Commission recently launched legal action against Rio Tinto. The company is also facing class actions over corruption allegations in Guinea.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, HAGENS BERMAN SOBOL SHAPIRO LLP, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, GREAT BRITAIN. SERIOUS FRAUD OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

ASIC defends silence as US class-action lawyers circle Rio

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker, Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 20-Oct-17

Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson has criticised the Australian Securities & Investments Commission over its tardiness in responding to allegations against Rio Tinto and its former executives. This follows a move by the US Securities & Investments Commission to file fraud charges over the valuation of Rio Tinto’s former coal assets in Mozambique. US lawyers are preparing a class action against Rio Tinto, although they say disgruntled investors should be mindful of the statute of limitations and act quickly. Some Australian law firms are also considering a class action.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, HAGENS BERMAN SOBOL SHAPIRO LLP, BANNISTER LAW, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Yancoal strengthens coal position

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Tess Ingram
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 28-Sep-17

Yancoal Australia will lift its stake in the Warkworth coal project in New South Wales to 84.5 per cent. The Chinese-backed company will acquire a 28.9 per cent stake in the project from Mitsubishi Development after exercising an option. The deal requires approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board. The Warkworth joint venture is part of the Hunter Valley coal assets that Yancoal bought from Rio Tinto for $US2.69bn earlier in 2017.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, MITSUBISHI DEVELOPMENT PTY LTD, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, GLENCORE PLC, POSCO, NIPPON STEEL AND SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Yancoal’s $3 billion raising shunned

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 21 : 29-Aug-17

Institutional investors subscribed for only $US59m worth of shares in Yancoal Australia’s $US1.3bn entitlement offer, which is part of its $US2.35bn ($A3bn) capital raising to finance the acquisition of Rio Tinto’s New South Wales assets. The response to the retail component of the share offer was also subdued, with existing shareholders applying to buy just $US4m worth of shares. As a result, parent company Yanzhou Coal and the bookbuild’s underwriters will be required to meet the significant shortfall.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, YANZHOU COAL MINING COMPANY LIMITED, CHINA SHANGDONG INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED, CINDA ASSET MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, GLENCORE PLC, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, NOBLE GROUP LIMITED, CONTANGO ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX CGA, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Glencore still on acquisition trail

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 11-Aug-17

Glencore has posted 68 per cent growth in EBITDA for the first half of 2017, to $US6.74bn, while its net debt has fallen by 11 per cent to $US13.9bn. CEO Ivan Glasenberg says the diversified resources and commodity trading group is always looking at potential acquisitions, and it would consider another bid for Rio Tinto’s Hunter Valley coal mines if Yancoal Australia’s $US2.69bn deal to buy the assets is blocked. Yancoal trumped Glencore’s own bid.

CORPORATES
GLEDHILL, BURRIDGE AND CATHRO, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. TAKEOVERS PANEL, SENRIGAN CAPITAL GROUP LIMITED, FIRST QUANTUM MINERALS LIMITED

Noble Group to challenge Yancoal raising

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 3-Aug-17

Glencore will buy $US300m worth of shares in Yancoal Australia via the latter’s $US2.5bn ($A3.1bn) equity raising, which will be used to finance its acquisition of Rio Tinto’s coal assets in the Hunter Valley. However, Noble Group claims that the capital raising will "oppress" minority shareholders such as itself, with their stakes to be diluted as a result of the new capital. Yancoal estimates that acquiring the Rio Tinto assets will generate synergies of $A120m to $A145m.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, NOBLE GROUP LIMITED, SENRIGAN CAPITAL GROUP LIMITED, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, YANZHOU COAL MINING COMPANY LIMITED, SHANDONG TAIZHON ENERGY COMPANY, GENERAL NICE DEVELOPMENT LIMITED, CINDA ASSET MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, SHANDONG LUCION INVESTMENT HOLDINGS GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Glencore nears $1.4bn deal on Rio coalmines

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 28-Jul-17

Yancoal Australia is set to on-sell some of its newly-acquired New South Wales thermal coal assets to Glencore in a deal worth $US1.139b ($A1.42bn). Glencore will acquire a 49 per cent stake in the Hunter Valley Operations from Yancoal and Mitsubishi following the completion of Yancoal’s acquisition of Rio Tinto’s NSW coal mines for $US2.69bn. Yancoal had trumped Glencore in a bidding war for the Rio Tinto assets.

CORPORATES
YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, MITOLO GROUP PTY LTD, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, COAL AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES LIMITED, YANZHOU COAL MINING COMPANY LIMITED

Canavan crisis is bad for Adani

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matthew Stevens
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 27-Jul-17

Matt Canavan’s decision to step aside as Resources Minister over dual citizenship concerns could have implications for Adani’s proposed Carmichael coal mine. Canavan is a keen advocate of both coal and the Carmichael project, and he is highly likely to have approved a federal loan to Adani via the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. A final investment decision on the first stage of the Carmichael project is conditional on NAIF funding for the rail line component of the project. The question of whether the Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism will be triggered in 2018 is also uncertain after Canavan stood aside.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIAN PETROLEUM PRODUCTION AND EXPLORATION ASSOCIATION LIMITED, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

Coking coal customers not ditching quarterly prices just yet

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 14-Jul-17

Australian-listed Whitehaven Coal expects the quarterly contract pricing system to account for 40 per cent of its semi-soft coking sales in the next three months, and MD Paul Flynn says this could eventually rise to 70-80 per cent. He has downplayed speculation that coal buyers could eventually shift to a spot pricing system, noting that Whitehaven’s customers show no signs of wanting to make such a move at present. Glencore also intends to retain the quarterly contract system.

CORPORATES
WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, GLENCORE PLC, NIPPON STEEL AND SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED