KOLKATA (miningweekly.com) – The board of Coal India Limited (CIL) has given the go-ahead for an agreement with South Africa’s State-owned African Exploration Mining and Finance Corporation (AEMFC) to acquire coal mines in that country.
A CIL official has said that the board had directed management to convey the decision to AEMFC and to seek a date for signing an official agreement.
Indian Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal had already informed Indian Parliamentarians of the government-owned and -operated CIL’s keenness to tie up with the South African government-owned mining company to acquire and develop coal assets in a joint venture (JV) in the African nation.
It might be recalled that in 2011, CIL concluded an agreement with the provincial government of Limpopo in South Africa to acquire coal assets in the province.
However, despite a proposal for floating a JV between CIL and the provincial government of Limpopo, no headway had been since the signing of the memorandum of understanding.
The AEMFC owns and operates the Vlakfontein colliery, near Ogies, in Mpumalanga, and the company has stated its intention to expand its project portfolio.
The AEMFC was established in 2007 to secure South Africa’s energy supply, primarily through the mining and supply of coal for electricity generation, and through securing other key minerals for beneficiation in the energy and steel value chain.
Edited by: Mariaan Webb
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online
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