Miners at Goedehoop colliery inspect the teeth on the front of a machine's rotary cutters
Thermal Coal operates in South Africa and has a one-third interest in Cerrejon in Columbia. In South Africa, Thermal Coal wholly owns and operates nine mines and has a 50% interest in the Mafube colliery and Phola washing plant. Five of the mines collectively supply 22 Mtpa of thermal coal to both export and local markets. New Vaal, New Denmark and Kriel collieries are domestic product operations supplying 32 Mtpa of thermal coal to Eskom, the state-owned power utility. Isibonelo mine produces 5 Mtpa of thermal coal for Sasol Synthetic Fuels, the coal to liquids producer, under a 20 year supply contract.
Anglo American Inyosi Coal, a broad based black economic empowerment (BBBEE) company valued at approximately $1 billion, is 73% held by Anglo American: the remaining 27% is held by Inyosi, a BEE consortium led by the Pamodzi and Lithemba consortia (66%) with the Women's Development Bank and a community trust holding the remaining equity. Anglo American Inyosi Coal, in turn, owns Kriel colliery, the new Zimbulo multi-product colliery (previously known as the Zondagsfontein project) and the greenfield projects of Elders, New Largo and Heidelberg. The outstanding conditions precedent to the Anglo American Inyosi Coal transaction were fulfilled by the end of May 2010 and the transaction became effective from 1 June 2010.
Thermal Coal's South African operations currently route all export thermal coal through the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT), in which it has a 27% shareholding, to customers throughout the Med-Atlantic and Asia-Pacific regions. Within South Africa, 62% of total sales tonnes are made to the Eskom power utility, of which the majority are on long term (i.e. life of mine) cost-plus contracts. A further 8% is sold to Sasol and 2% to industrial sector consumers. The remaining 28% is exported through RBCT.
Find out more about our thermal coal operations