Ann: Surat Basin Coal Project update, page-2

MARKET CLARIFICATION – STRATEGIC REVIEW SURAT BASIN COAL PROJECT
Moreton Resources Limited (ASX:MRV) (“Moreton”, “the Company” would like to clarify to the market
and potential bidders, that whilst the Strategic Review has been announced and is underway, the Surat
Basin Coal Project continues to progress through the current process, in agreeing a Terms Of Reference
(TOR) for the anticipated Environmental Impact Assessment (EIS) process and Mining Lease Application
(MLA).
We have had a number of enquiries upon the granting of ATP2031, which is an authority to prospect for
Coal Seam Gas and the company is aware of that grant. The Company was notified by the relevant
Department prior to taking this to tender and awarding this ATP. This ATP does not curtail the rights of
Surat Basin Coal Pty Ltd to continue advancing its activities through the EIS and MLA processes, which
the company announced in late 2017, and has been advancing throughout late 2018.
For clarity we make note of MRV Surat Basin Coal Pty Ltd current position:
Surat Basin Coal Pty Ltd has been in talks with potential JV partners, with a focus upon the gas
opportunities within this lease as early as 2014, having progressed to a form whereby we had determined
a mechanism to advance the Mineral Development Lease (MDL) to Mining Lease Application (MLA) and
how that might be subsequently lead to a potential application for a petroleum lease, to assist a potential
JV partner access the Coal Seam Gas opportunities.
Since that time, we have been keeping fully informed of the recent amendments in the resources sector
legislation in Queensland and advise of the following, in our view upon our current position:
• The current legislative changes have in our view made the application process more streamlined
and the overlapping ATP issues are more favourable to Mining Lease holders.
• The holder of an ML now has greater rights in relation to Incidental Coal Seam Gas (ICSG),
including the right to use it beneficially and to sell it, when the holder of an overlapping petroleum
authority does not require it. (That is the ML holder must give a “right of first refusal” to the ICSG
to any overlapping ATP holder on reasonable terms, which in our view is commercially
competitive pricing).
• This right is prescribed within the current Legislative amendments and hence does not require an
additional PL application
• If the ATP holder does not accept the offer, the ML holder can use it for other purposes including
selling to a third party upon commercial arrangements.
Whilst these new additions in our view favour the ML holder, to which we are currently progressing to a
MLA, and what would be hoped to be a subsequent grant of a ML, it also under the new amendments
does not curtail our rights, as per our 2014 and 2015 negotiations which were focused upon moving the
MLA to a PL, and hence we believe these avenues still exist.
Under the new Legislative changes, the economics of the potential Coal advancement in our view are
deemed to be considerably enhanced, with the new prescribed rights to ICSG