October 2, 2026 - White Energy has reached a deal to acquire the South Galilee coal project from the AMCI Group for $500,000 plus milestone and royalty payments of up to $19.5 million.

It fits the company’s strategy of building a 100Mtpa Queensland thermal coal empire, according to White Energy executive chairman Nathan Tinkler.

 

The South Galilee site, about 11km west-south-west of Alpha, is earmarked for an open-cut and underground thermal coal operation.

 

Tinkler said the acquisition complemented the company’s Tin Hut Creek project by adding potential large-scale thermal coal resources suitable for development for export markets.

 

“We believe these assets will prove to be well received by the market, being in the top 20 per cent of thermal coal quality in the seaborne market, while aiming to be in the lowest cost quartile, making them suitable for long-term investment by our offtake partners, and playing a role in delivering new export capacity for Queensland in a declining Australian coal export market,” Tinkler said.

 

“The global seaborne market for thermal coal continues to grow each day, with cost-efficient power generation receiving a stronger focus, especially in light of the expected demands of AI and associated data centres.

“Coal will long continue to be the cheapest source of energy in South-East Asia, which is also home to some of the fastest growing developing markets in the world.

 

“While Australia as a whole reduces its focus on coal as a reliable source of power generation, our seaborne neighbours continue to demand cost-efficient and reliable energy.

 

“Australia’s world-leading high-quality thermal coal exports are the best, and cleanest, source available to them.

“The acquisitions of the Tin Hut Creek and South Galilee coal projects fit well with White Energy’s strategy of identifying, acquiring and developing greenfield thermal coal projects in Queensland over the next 10 years to be producing a targeted 100Mtpa of high-quality thermal coal to meet continued growth in seaborne demand.”

 

In addition to the cash purchase price of $500,000, AMCI Investments will be entitled to a further cash payment of $1.5 million upon granting of a mining lease and a royalty of $2 per tonne of coal sold from the project tenements to a maximum of $18 million.

 

Completion is expected to occur four business days after satisfaction of the limited conditions precedent.

Development of the South Galilee coal project received Commonwealth environmental approval in 2015.

The ground consists of two granted exploration permits, EPC 1049 and EPC 1180, and mining lease application MLA 70453.

 

White Energy said it would now conduct a broad drilling campaign designed to support an updated mineral resource estimate and technical and economic studies in order to evaluate capital and infrastructure options for the development of the project.