Another delay for Bathurst, price steady
Coal miner Bathurst Resources faces a Supreme Court challenge as it battles another court appeal.
Bathurst Resources announced today another appeal that may delay its resource consent to mine the Denniston Plateau.
The Supreme Court has granted leave for an appeal by the West Coast Environment Network and the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society against an earlier High Court judgment, which disallowed climate change evidence about adverse effects from mined coal in resource consenting applications.
A date for the appeal is yet to be set.
However, the share price (NZX: BTU) of the listed stock was unchanged at 46 cents, suggesting investors may have already factored in such delays.
The stock has dropped 45% this year.
At the same time, the international price of coal continues to fall. Therefore, speeding up the consenting process may be less of a concern than if the price was rising.
Against these events, Bathurst is currently arguing its case in an Environment Court appeal.
The Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society is appealing the resource consents granted earlier this year to create an open-cast mine at Denniston.
The two parties have marshalled their economic experts to argue the economic benefits as well as the environmental issues.
In a Weekend Review story, NBR ONLINE will explore the evidence put forward by Bathurst and Forest & Bird.
Chris Hutching
Thu, 29 Nov 2012
Thu, 29 Nov 2012
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Another delay for Bathurst, price steady
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