Adani Enterprises in talks to buy Australia’s Linc Energy’s coal assets for $1 billion

The $6.4-billion diversified Adani Enterprises, one of India's largest trading houses, is reported to be in talks with Australia's coal-to-liquids company Linc Energy to acquire its coal mine assets in Queensland for $1 billion.

The Economic Times reported citing two independent sources that the Gujarat-based Adani Enterprises' Singapore subsidiary Adani Global is close to finalising a deal worth $1 billion to acquire the coal assets in Queensland of Linc Energy.

The paper said that of the $1 billion, Adani is expected to give the first tranche of $435 million in the next few days, while the remaining will be paid over the next few months.

Based on The Economic Times report, Brisbane-based Linc Energy said in a statement that it is conducting negotiations with a several parties for the sale of its non-core Queensland coal tenements, but has not concluded any binding contract or finalised any material terms with any party.

Linc has been trying to hive-off its Emerald coal tenements known as Teresa located in Queensland since September 2008, and had then announced that it had signed a $1.5 billion heads of agreement with China's Xinwen Mining, but the global recession led to the deal collapsing.

By late April 2009, apart from Emerald coal tenements, Linc added its Galilee and Pentland coal assets to the sale.