PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Diversified miner Glencore and Indian major Adani have agreed to terms on the future operation of the Abbot Point coal terminal in Queensland.
Abbot Point currently has one operating terminal, the Adani Abbot Point terminal. The Indian major in 2011 acquired a 99-year lease from the Queensland government for the terminal.
Since then, the terminal has been operated by Glencore subsidiary Abbot Point Bulk Coal (APB), under an operations and maintenance agreement.
Glencore this week agreed to sell its shares in APB to Adani’s Abbot Point Operations (APO), with the sale subject to the receipt of certain approvals. APB will continue to operate and maintain the coal terminal after the share sale, under Adani’s ownership.
Adani Australia CEO Jeyakumar Janakaraj said the transition was a key milestone in Adani’s plans for Abbot Point, and was another demonstration of the company’s commitment to building a long-term future with Queensland.
Adani is developing the $16.5-billion Carmichael coal mine, which will comprise an opencut and underground mine, running for a period of 90 years and producing an average 60-million tonnes a year of thermal coal. The project has hit several snags since inception, with environmental and conservation groups heavily opposed to its development.
The Indian firm has also invested more than $1.8-billion in the existing terminal at Abbot Point, which is integral to Adani’s plans to build a long-term future with the region.
Despite the change in ownership, Glencore will continue to supply export coal to the Abbot Point coal terminal from its opencut mines at Newlands and Collinsville, and third-party users at the port have been assured that the transition will not impact the day-to-day operations and management of the terminal.