Coal miner New Hope's half year net profit has fallen by two-thirds to $22.7 million. Source: AAP
MOST Australian coal miners have been struggling for two years but New Hope has $1.1 billion in the bank and plans to capitalise by making acquisitions.
The Queensland miner was up for sale itself two years ago.
New Hope's first half net profit slumped 67 per cent to $22.7 million, due mostly to low thermal coal prices for 3.0 million tonnes sold, it announced on Tuesday.
That compares to peers, such as Whitehaven Coal, which have been posting losses since 2012.
New chief executive Shane Stephan said it was a good result given the challenging market conditions, and dismissed current anaemic prices as cyclical and certain to rise.
Mr Stephan said he expects prices to remain low in the second half due to an oversupply of coal but says that will change, pointing to South Korea's plans to bring on more than 10 gigawatts of new coal-fired electricity.
He dismissed predictions that China wanted to invest in cleaner technologies than coal and that it would lead to a permanent downturn.
"It will take some time for demand to catch up with current supply but there's still a very good, strong future for thermal coal exports into Asia," he told AAP.
"Japan had similar problems (to China) with air quality in the late 1960s-1970s ... They put on proper pollution controls and dramatically improved their air quality whilst increasing coal consumption."
He said ongoing low coal prices also meant well-priced coal assets would, inevitably, become available.
Mr Stephan's predecessor, long-term CEO Robert Neale last year complained that resources giants such as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto needed a reality check about their asking prices for coal mines.
"M and A (merger and acquisition) is all about timing and opportunity," he said.
"It is fair to say that with the current downturn in coal pricing, one would expect, over the next couple of years, there should be better priced opportunities available than what has been in the past."
New Hope's increasing Australian oil and gas assets were acting as a natural hedge against coal prices, with its Bridgeport Energy business already earning cash through oil production, he said.
The company is also the largest shareholder, with a 16.4 per cent stake, in Australian company Dart Energy, which is focused on UK shale assets at a time in which North Sea production is declining.
New Hope shares were down 3.0 cents at $3.16 at 1345 AEDT.
AAP gr/cdh
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
New Hope plans to acquire coal miners
Dengan url
http://beritasementara.blogspot.com/2014/03/new-hope-plans-to-acquire-coal-miners.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
New Hope plans to acquire coal miners
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
New Hope plans to acquire coal miners
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar