(Adds detail on offer, forecast, background) March 3 (Reuters)...

(Adds detail on offer, forecast, background)

March 3 (Reuters) - Coal explorer Stanmore Resources (SMR) said on Thursday it would raise about A$694 million ($506.06 million) to fund the acquisition of an 80% stake in BHP Mitsui Coal (BMC), a joint venture in Queensland, from global miner BHP Group (BHP) .

Stanmore said it would issue about 631 million shares through a proposed entitlement offer at A$1.10 per share, a 12% discount to stock's last close.

The $1.35 billion deal, which became unconditional last month https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02490944-6A1078564?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4, gives the Brisbane, Australia-based coal explorer majority control of BMC's two open-cut metallurgical coal mines in the Bowen Basin in Queensland.

Stanmore forecast output from the combined business of between 5.9 million tonnes (mt) and 6.5 mt of saleable coal on a 100% basis for the six months ended Dec. 31. That compares with saleable coal production of 2.1 mt logged in fiscal 2021 https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02480695-2A1353547?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4.

Stanmore said https://cdn-api.markitdigital.com/apiman-gateway/ASX/asx-research/1.0/file/2924-02495030-6A1080054?access_token=83ff96335c2d45a094df02a206a39ff4 its majority shareholder, Golden Energy and Resources Ltd GOLD.SI , will subscribe for $300 million worth of shares.

($1 = 1.3714 Australian dollars) (([email protected]; Twitter: https://twitter.com/sameer_manekar))