MC Mining (MCM), the Johannesburg-listed thermal coal producer and development firm, excluded itself from possible suitors for Universal Coal. “It’s not us,” said David Brown, CEO of MCM in response to a query from the South African Coal Report.
Universal Coal announced on September 17 that its shares had been placed in a trading halt pending the release of an announcement which is thought to consist of a possible offer for the company. MCM, formerly called Coal of Africa, attempted to buy Universal Coal two years ago before calling off the deal after Universal Coal failed to conclude a coal sales agreement with Eskom.
Universal Coal announced sales tonnes for the 2018 financial year of some 4.7 million tonnes (Mt) of which 2.9Mt was attributable to shareholders and compares with total sales tonnes of 3Mt in the 2017 financial year. The majority of this increase was driven by New Clydesdale Colliery’s first full year of name plate production volumes.
