Widjaja Family’s Golden Energy And Resources Completes $1.2 Billion Acquisition Of BHP’s Australian Coal Mines

Golden Energy and Resources—controlled by the Widjaja family—has completed its acquisition of an 80% stake in coal miner BHP Mitsui Coal for $1.2 billion, according to a filing to the Singapore Stock Exchange on Tuesday. The remaining 20% stake in the joint venture is owned by Japan’s Mitsui.

“With this successful completion, GEAR (Golden Energy and Resources) will become one of the largest global producers of metallurgical coal,” Fuganto Widjaja, executive chairman of Golden Energy and Resources, said in the company’s statement.

GEAR’s Australian-listed unit, Stanmore Resources, said it will fund the acquisition through a combination of cash and debt.

BHP Mitsui Coal has three coal mines in the Bowen Basin in Queensland, Australia. The company said it had combined marketable metallurgical coal reserves of 180 metric tonnes and revenue of $989 million for the year ended September 30, 2021. Metallurgical coal is the high-grade coking coal used in the production of steel.

“Metallurgical and PCI coal prices remain at historically high levels and Stanmore will benefit from those prices with the addition of production of approximately 10 million tonnes of marketable metallurgical quality coal,” Marcelo Matos, CEO of Stanmore Resources said.

According to the latest report from research firm Wood Mackenzie, the Russia-Ukraine crisis has sent prices soaring on supply chain disruptions and counter-party risk due to sanctions.

Prices in the Asian market have also been rising with Newcastle physical prices reaching $400 per tonne, according to Wood Mackenzie. Metallurgical coal spiked with PCI prices leaping to an unprecedented level and nearing $400 per tonne.

Golden Energy and Resources is part of the Sinar Mas group, which has has interests in paper, real estate, financial services, healthcare, agribusiness and telecom. The Widjaja family inherited the group from the late Eka Tjipta Widjaja who passed away in 2019. The family was ranked second on the list of Indonesia’s 50 Richest that was released in December.