Anglo American is not seeking to add any more Australian coal mines to its list of assets for sale, company spokeswoman Vanessa Davies said Wednesday.
The announcement comes one day after Anglo American CEO Mark Cutifani told a London investors gathering that it would undergo "an accelerated and more aggressive strategic restructuring" that would reduce its asset holdings by 60%.
In February, Anglo American announced it would be selling its 51% stake in the Dawson mine and 70% interest in the Foxleigh mine, both in Queensland's Bowen Basin, in addition to the previously announced Callide and Dartbrook assets.
"These [four coal assets] form part of the reductions Mark Cutifani announced with no further Australian assets earmarked for sale or closure," Davies said in an emailed reply.
"These assets for sale are well-run, and highly productive and it is business as usual for our workforce at these mines," she added.
She declined to reveal any information about the sale process saying that it was "commercially confidential."
Dartbrook is an underground mine for thermal coal in New South Wales that has been mothballed since 2007.
Dawson in central Queensland produces thermal and coking coal for export to customers in Asia. The coal is shipped through Gladstone port.
Foxleigh is one of three open-cut mines in Anglo American's Capcoal mining complex in central Queensland and produces 2 million mt/year of pulverized injection export coal for the steel industry.
STREAMLINING COAL PORTFOLIO
Announcing the decision to sell the stakes in Dawson and Foxleigh mines last February, the head of Anglo American's coal business, Seamus French, said that the company was "streamlining our coal portfolio to focus capital on our priority assets to strengthen our business."
The Callide, Dartbrook, Dawson and Foxleigh operations were "no longer aligning with our core business portfolio in Australia and our broader global coal business," French added. Anglo American hoisted the "for sale" sign on its Callide mine in Queensland several years ago, and Dartbrook was put on the market more than a year ago.
Callide is a huge open-cut operation that produces low sulfur, sub-bituminous thermal coal for Queensland's electricity generation sector and is located 120 km southwest of Gladstone port.
Together, the four mines represent 12.2 million mt/year of coal production for export and 8.4 million mt/year for the domestic market.
They have a combined coal resource of 2 billion mt, the company had said in its February statement.
Anglo American said then that it was seeking expressions of interest from experienced operators better placed to invest in the operations.
DRAYTON MINE TO CLOSE
Separately, Anglo American announced late November that 500 jobs would be cut at its sole mine for export thermal and PCI coal in New South Wales, Drayton, following the rejection of its planning application to extend the mine's production footprint.
The New South Wales Planning Assessment Commission had recommended last month that the Drayton South extension project, adjacent to the existing Drayton mine, should not proceed as it could interfere with local horse-breeding farms.
Drayton mine was due to run out of coal next year and without additional resources, was highly likely to be shut, the company said.
Currently, Drayton mine produces 3 million mt/year of thermal coal and PCI.
Anglo American has an 88% interest in Queensland's Moranbah North mine producing coking coal. The mine is not affected by the recent changes.
