Brazilian mining company Vale has signed an agreement to sell its thermal coal operations in Colombia Colombian Natural Resources, a privately held company, for $407 million in cash.
The thermal coal operations in Colombia constitute a fully-integrated mine-railway-port system consisting of the El Hatillo coal mine and the Cerro Largo coal deposit, both located in the Cesar department; Sociedad Portuaria Rio Cordoba (SPRC), a coal port facility in the Atlantic coast of Colombia; and an 8.43% equity participation in the railway Ferrocarriles del Norte de Colombia S.A. (FENOCO) that owns the concession and operation of the railway connecting the coal mines to SPRC. According to the company, the sale of the thermal coal operations in Colombia is part of its continuous efforts to optimize the asset portfolio.
