SK Networks Co., the trading arm of SK Group, said Monday that it is seeking to
buy a 40 percent stake in an Australian coal mine developer in a bid to expand
its overseas resources development.
South Korea's No. 3
family-controlled conglomerate SK Group said that its trading affiliate SK
Networks is considering purchasing Cockatoo Coal Ltd., a deal worth some 300
billion won (US$267.7 million) to 400 billion won. The takeover may be completed
in the first half, it added.
Cockatoo Coal has been involved in
exploring 13 coal mine blocks in Australia, including Queensland, which are
estimated to hold about 1.5 billion tons of coals. South Korea annually imports
100 million tons of bituminous coals.
SK Group, which is making
efforts to boost its overseas resources development business, said that it has
secured 2 million tons of coals per year via its mining business operations in
Australia and China.
Cockatoo Coal is expected to produce 3 million
tons of soft coals per year by 2015 and 12 million tons by 2019, the group
said.
Resource-starved South Korea is ramping up efforts to
participate in overseas resources development projects in a bid to boost the
country's energy self-sufficiency rate and make South Korea more resilient
against global commodity price volatility.
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