[miningmx.com] – JUNIOR coal miner Wescoal Holdings said it had
signed a three-year, R700m supply deal with Eskom, effective from June 1, 2012.
In terms of the transaction, announced to the JSE on September 6, some 3.2 million
tonnes (Mt) of coal would be supplied to Eskom from Wescoal’s Khanyisa and Intabane
mines.
“Demand for coal in South Africa is massive; Eskom alone needs about 130Mt of coal
each year to ensure stable power generation,’ said Andre Boje, CEO of Wescoal.
“Our vision has always been to secure quality assets that will lead to increased
productivity, thus ensuring we remain a reliable supplier to all clients, one of which is
Eskom,’ he said.
“The recent conclusion of a four-way multi-million rand deal with Xstrata is another
step in ensuring that we increase coal output at Wescoal from the current 1.2Mt to
four million tons over the next four years,’ he added.
“Eskom has previously raised concerns about the amount of coal being exported from
South Africa to outside markets. However, Wescoal’s focus has always been to
provide quality coal to the local inland market; the coal supplied to Eskom will be
from our Khanyisa and Intabane mines,’ Boje said.
