SouthGobi Resources boosts coal freight with completion of new highway

Mongolian coal miner SouthGobi Resources has completed the construction of a paved highway from its flagship Ovoot Tolgoi coal mine to the Shivee Khuren Border Crossing.

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“[The completed highway] will significantly increase the safety of coal transportation, reduce environmental effects, and improve the efficiency and capacity of coal transportation,” SouthGobi president and ceo Ross Tromans said in a filing to the Hong Kong Exchange (HKEx) on Sunday September 28.

The new highway has capacity to transport 20 million tpy of coal, SouthGobi said.

The company produced 550,000 tonnes of raw coal during the second quarter of this year, down from 640,000 tonnes in the first quarter.

It sold 400,000 tonnes of semi-soft coking coal and 110,000 tonnes of thermal coal in the June quarter.

In July 2014, SouthGobi’s major shareholder, Canada’s Turquoise Hill, agreed to sell a 29.95% stake in the company to Hong Kong-listed National United Holdings for C$25.6 million ($22.9 million). Turquoise Hill has retained a 26% holding in SouthGobi.