There’s movement within the top echelons of Taurus Funds Management’s coal mine Foxleigh, bought from Anglo American in 2016 and soft-sounded for a sale last year.
Foxleigh’s holding company, QMetco, is expected to be run by a new mining executive as Michael Rosengren prepares to vacate the CEO role. Rosengren, who previously had responsibility for Poitrel and South Walker Creek mines under BHP’s ownership, had led QMetco since 2019.
The departure was announced to QMetco staff and joint partners, POSCO and Nippon Steel, this month. Taurus has hired Andrew Boyd, the former chief operating officer of ASX-listed coal miner New Hope, as Rosengren’s replacement. Boyd left New Hope in early 2021 to join privately owned met coal producer Baralaba Coal Company, which owns the 2 million-tonnes-a year Baralaba North.
Taurus and Baralaba, alongside Olive Downs-owner Pembroke Resources are sizeable private capital players in Australian coal assets.
For Taurus, Bowen Basin-based Foxleigh is the last private equity asset in its stables, after it pivoted away from buying stakes to providing debt financing for mid-tier and junior miners. As an example, last year it was bankrolling Silver Lake Resources’ unsuccessful tilt at gold miner St Barbara.
Street Talk reported in May that Taurus had fielded inbound interest for its 70 per cent stake in Foxleigh. At the time, it was understood to be open to engaging with potential buyers, but hadn’t launched a formal sale process.
The open-cut operation has traditionally exported to South Korea, Taiwan and Japan. POSCO owns 20 per cent, while the remaining 10 per cent is with Nippon Steel. Anglo-American paid $US620 million ($933 million) for its 70 per cent stake in Foxleigh in 2007.
In November, Phil King’s Regal Partners acquired a 50 per cent stake in Taurus, which was founded in 2006 by Michael Davis, Gordon Galt and Rohan Menon.
Source: AFR
