backLONDON, September 8, 2014 — King & Spalding represented international mining company IchorCoal on a complicated cross-border M&A instruction for the purchase of a stake in Universal Coal.
IchorCoal announced on September 2 that it will invest A$24.5 million (£13.75 million) for a 29.9 per cent stake of Universal Coal. The funds will be used by Universal Coal to complete the financing for its acquisition of the New Clydesdale Colliery in South Africa and part fund the development of the combined New Clydesdale/Roodekop complex in South Africa.
IchorCoal is an internationally operating mineral resource company specialising in investments in coal production and currently holds substantial equity positions in several South African mining companies. Universal Coal is headquartered in the UK and listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. It focuses exclusively on the development and operation of coal mines in South Africa.
Additional details of the transaction can be found here.
King & Spalding advised IchorCoal on UK law matters for the acquisition. London corporate partner William Charnley led the King & Spalding team, which included senior associate Ilan Kotkis and associate Susanna Marshall (corporate) and senior associate Elizabeth Lyon (finance).
“This deal saw a Dutch entity with securities listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange purchase a stake in a UK company that is listed in Australia and that has central management and assets in South Africa,” Charnley explained. “As such, it was a highly-sophisticated, international transaction that involved corporate and finance law advice across a number of jurisdictions.”
IchorCoal was also advised by Minter Ellison (Australian law) and Werksmans Attorneys (South African law).
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