Exxaro Resources has agreed to sell the Moranbah South coking coal tenements in Queensland’s Bowen Basin to Stanmore Resources for $105m, about R1.68bn, in a transaction that first requires it to buy the half of the project it does not already own.
The structure follows from Anglo American’s decision in May to dispose of its Australian steelmaking coal assets to Dhilmar QLD, a privately held British company, for $3.86bn including $2.3bn in upfront cash. Moranbah South formed part of that package, and the sale triggered pre-emptive rights held by Exxaro under its joint venture with Anglo Coal (Grosvenor). Exxaro has exercised those rights. On completion the joint venture terminates, leaving Exxaro holding the full tenement package immediately before it transfers to Stanmore.
Exxaro has not disclosed what it is paying Anglo. Without that figure the net cost or gain from the round trip cannot be calculated from the published numbers, and the $105m headline reveals little about what the exit is worth to shareholders.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Asset | Moranbah South tenements, Bowen Basin, Queensland |
| Seller | Exxaro Resources (JSE: EXX) |
| Buyer | Stanmore Resources (ASX: SMR) |
| Price | $105m, about R1.68bn |
| Exxaro’s current holding | 50%, via joint venture with Anglo Coal (Grosvenor) |
| Trigger | Anglo’s $3.86bn sale of Australian coal assets to Dhilmar QLD |
| Resource | 724Mt measured and indicated, plus 19Mt inferred |
| Design capacity | About 18Mt a year |
| Additional buyer benefit | Up to $60m of deferred consideration extinguished |
| Approvals required | FIRB, ACCC, ministerial consent; Exxaro–Anglo deal first |
| Expected completion | Before the end of the fourth quarter of 2026 |
For Stanmore the attraction is geography. The tenements sit immediately adjacent to Eagle Downs, which it acquired from South32, and to the Isaac Downs Extension near the producing Isaac Plains Complex. They hold 724-million tonnes of measured and indicated coal resources in the Goonyella Middle Seam, expected to be premium hard coking coal quality, with a further 19-million tonnes inferred. Stanmore has said the resource could potentially be reached through existing Eagle Downs infrastructure if that project proceeds, subject to further technical and feasibility work.
The purchase price also overstates the cost. The transaction extinguishes up to $60m in deferred and contingent consideration that Stanmore owed under a 2024 designated area agreement, which had given it access to the Isaac Downs Extension across Moranbah South ground. On that basis the effective outlay is materially below the headline figure. Stanmore will fund the purchase from existing cash and liquidity, and the deal does not require shareholder approval.
Completion is expected before the end of the fourth quarter, conditional on Exxaro finishing its purchase from Anglo and on clearance from the Foreign Investment Review Board, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and indicative ministerial approval for the transfer of the tenements.
For Exxaro the case for exiting is straightforward. Moranbah South was its only offshore mining interest, an undeveloped underground project with resources supporting a mine life of roughly 30 years and design capacity of about 18-million tonnes a year, but no production and a standing claim on management attention. The asset was classified as non-core at the group’s capital markets day.
Under chief executive Ben Magara, who joined the executive in April last year, Exxaro has narrowed its focus to South African coal, improved access to export markets, renewable energy and future-facing metals. It sold its ferroalloys business in October, holds a stake in Tshipi in manganese and is pursuing a 51% interest in Mokala, and has signalled interest in copper. In July it commissioned a R1.7bn solar plant at Lephalale.
Anglo, meanwhile, continues its retreat from coal, having sold its Eskom-tied South African mines to Seriti in 2018 and demerged its remaining thermal coal operations into Thungela in 2021. Its portfolio now centres on copper, premium iron ore and crop nutrients while nickel and diamonds are separated out. Its merger with Teck Resources is expected to close between September and March, creating Anglo Teck, headquartered in Vancouver with more than 70% copper exposure.