Western Australia-based miner and coal and metal processor Coal of Africa has announced that a prospecting mining rights swap agreement with giant Australian miner Rio Tinto has been approved by the South African Department of Mineral Resources.
The agreement will let the miner make a new order mining right application for its Makhado coking coal project, expected to be lodged before the end of 2010. In addition, in the context of the project, Coal of Africa has also gained three new potentially significant coking coal projects, namely Mount Stuart, Voorburg and Jutland.
The rights have been acquired from Kwezi Mining and Exploration (Proprietary) Limited and Chapudi Coal (Proprietary) Limited, joint venture companies held by the Rio Tinto Group and the Kwezi Group of South Africa, as announced on October 29, 2009.
In return Coal of Africa has ceded to Chapudi prospecting rights and interests over certain other farms located in the Limpopo province.
"This farm swap agreement between Rio Tinto and Coal of Africa gives both companies the potential to develop significantly larger scale contiguous and economic coal projects," said Coal of Africa's Chief Executive John Wallington.