re: Ann: Pacific Road Agrees to Acquire 10% o... PRRF takes 10%...

re: Ann: Pacific Road Agrees to Acquire 10% o... PRRF takes 10% stake in Carbon Energy

March 29, 2010 - 2:04PM

AAP

Private equity fund Pacific Road Resources Fund (PRRF) will take a 10 per cent stake in Carbon Energy Ltd by acquiring the interest from CSIRO in an off-market trade.

Carbon Energy owns or has exclusive rights to all the intellectual property rights to CSIRO's underground coal gasification (UCG) technology.

Brisbane-based Carbon Energy said it would continue to work closely with CSIRO, which was now a 4.8 per cent shareholder.

PRRF will be Carbon Energy's second largest shareholder, behind industrial explosives and fertilisers manufacturer Incitec Pivot Ltd, which holds an 11.3 per cent stake.

"Pacific Road's investment in Carbon Energy is a strong third party endorsement of the company's strategy and its UCG technology," Carbon Energy managing director Andrew Dash said in a statement.

"We believe that underground coal gasification will play a significant role in the energy mix not just in Australia but around the world."

The $US320 million ($A353 million) PRRF is managed by Pacific Road Capital Management and is understood to be backed by parties including the Singapore Government investment fund Temasek, Queensland's Sun Super and US-based entities.

PRRF invests in mining projects and related infrastructure and services businesses.

Shares in Carbon Energy were up two cents, or 3.88 per cent, at 53.5 cents at 1312 AEDT.

( Source: http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-business/prrf-takes-10-stake-in-carbon-energy-20100329-r73d.html )