VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – US coal miner Peabody Energy has completed the sale of its stake in its Burton mine and related infrastructure, located in Australia’s Queensland, for $11-million.
The buyer, Lenton joint venture (JV), in which ASX-listed New Hope Corporation holds a 90% interest, has also assumed Peabody’s asset retirement obligation pegged at about $41-million.
Following the sale, Peabody will unlock about $30-million of restricted cash in support of the asset retirement obligation, which combined with the company's recently announced revolving credit facility, is expected to free up about $300-million in cash.
Peabody placed the Burton mine under care, maintenance and rehabilitation in December 2016, and announced the sale of the mine in September. The Lenton JV controls mining tenements that adjoin the Burton mine, in Queensland's Bowen basin.
The St Louis, Missouri-based company has reported a net profit attributable to shareholders for the three months ended September of $201.4-million, or $1.47 a share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $137.6-million, or $7.53 a share.