Linc Energy shares surge as Indian group eyes coal assets ELISABETH BEHRMANN July 15, 2010
THE Queensland coal-to-liquids player Linc Energy is in ''advanced'' talks with three buyers, including India's Adani Enterprises, to sell coking coal assets in Australia.
Adani is in talks to buy the Galilee tenement valued at more than $1 billion, the chief executive of Linc, Peter Bond, said yesterday. He did not identify the two other groups, citing confidentiality agreements.
Linc shares rose their highest in 16 months yesterday, up 31 per cent to $1.38. The stock soared after India's Economic Times said Linc was close to selling a coal tenement to Adani.
Advertisement: Story continues below''Adani is pushing very hard in Australia,'' Mr Bond said.
''They need coal. I was in India as part of this sales process and India needs to manage the process of getting the coal over in the coming years.''
Linc is seeking to sell the Galilee tenement, the Teresa tenement, valued at more than $500 million, and the Pentland tenement, worth between $50 million and $100 million, Mr Bond said.
The company has been planning to sell the assets since September 2008. It was then that Linc announced a $1.5 billion deal China's Xinwen Mining. But that fell over, as did later talks with China's Yanzhou Coal Mining.
At yesterday's closing price the company was being valued at $675 million. But its market value has swung wildly in recent years, usually in response to the latest speculation on the planned sale of the coking coal assets.
In March the stock traded at close to $1.80 a share when the sales process was said to be close to delivering a new deal. The broker BBY rated the stock a ''hold'' on March 31 when it was trading at $1.66 a share.
The broker said at the time the planned sale of the non-core coal assets was something of a distraction to what should be a focus on its underground coal-to-liquids interests.
with Barry Fitzgerald
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald
LNC Price at posting:
$1.36 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
