Bowen Coking Coal marked an important milestone in its transition from coal explorer to producer with the acquisition of the Bluff Mine in Queensland.
The company said in a statement that it has successfully completed an $11m placement and signed a term sheet for $15m of debt financing from a private credit institution to support the restart operations at the Bluff Mine.
“The financing follows a significant list of achievements over the past 12 months,” reads the statement.
“Furthermore, Bowen has sufficient cash resources to commence mining at the Broadmeadow East Project, pending final environmental approval which is expected before the end of 2021.”
Bluff Mine hosts a 13.5 million tonne (Mt) JORC Resource of Ultra Low Volatile PCI (ULVPCI) coal and is expected to be mined at a rate of 1.0 ? 1.2 Mtpa Run of Mine (ROM) over four to six years to supply the global steel industry.
Bowen Managing Director, Mr Gerhard Redelinghuys, said company has engaged CMC Group in association with Comiskey Mining Services as contractors to execute an operational readiness program and to prepare the Bluff Mine for coal production.
According to Mr Redelinghuys, off?site work has already commenced and mobilisation to site is expected before the end of the year with first coal production from the Bluff Mine planned for Q1 2022.
“We look forward to recommissioning and operating the mine in a safe and responsible way to deliver high quality ULVPCI coal to our customers in the steel industry,” Mr Redelinghuys said.
“Furthermore, we are delighted with the strong reception we received from the market for our inaugural debt facility and capital raising which positions Bowen well as it transitions from coal explorer to multi?mine coking coal producer.”
