Dendrobium mine expansion on the cards as potential new owner speaks out

In the first interview since inking the deal, Mr Latimore told the Mercury the Illawarra should anticipate his ownership of the Appin and Dendrobium mines would be long-term.

Mr Latimore and executives from his partner in the deal, Singapore-based Golden Energy and Resources (GEAR), were in Wollongong on Friday visiting the two mines and the Port Kembla Coal Terminal, which the group will also take over running.

Their investment strategy is bullish on the future of metallurgical coal, having accumulated multiple mines in Queensland and into NSW, and it was a tune Mr Latimore continued after his Wollongong visit.

They were "very tidy, well-run operations", he said.

"We feel very strongly about the future of metallurgical coal - we believe in that story, take a long term view.

"We believe in the demand profile for met coal - for steelmaking, particularly. It was a role in steel applications, whether it's electric cars, transmission grids, whatever it is. We think that demand is going to be strong.

"We're very happy.

"Good mines, high quality product - one of the best quality coking coals in the world. [There is] infrastructure in place with a good port and strong operations - and very, very good people, from what we've seen."

Dendrobium back on agenda

The Dendrobium mine has a licence to operate until 2030 but there had been indications South32 would close it by 2028. South32 withdrew its $700 million expansion bid in 2022 after being unable to win approval for extended longwall mining underneath the environmentally sensitive drinking water catchment.

Asked whether he would pursue the extension of Dendrobium, Mr Latimore said he was was limited in what he was able to say, but his answer clearly showed it was on the agenda.

"What I can say now is that when we buy assets, we're looking at assets for the long term, we're looking at assets we can continue to grow," he said.

"We're very excited to have inked the deal but there are certain [people], a lot of stakeholders and government agencies we want to work closely with.

"We're very keen on growth and long-term focus for the assets we buy."

Fortune against the flow

Mt Latimore was working selling coal from Wesfarmers in 2011 when he established M Resources, sinking his bets into coal while others were getting out in the face of concerns over climate change.

He would soon make a fast fortune - last year estimated at $450 million - playing to his strengths in marketing and selling coal.

Unlike international resources behemoths whose agendas cover differing priorities and commodities, M was able to focus solely on coal.

And Mr Latimore well understood the fundamental difference - and thereby difference in demand - between the climate-villain brown (thermal) coal burned for emissions-intense energy, and the black coal needed to make steel, for which demand remained high.

In 2021 M Resources and GEAR's Stanmore Resources teamed up to buy the Millennium coal mine from Peabody, while the US miner was facing bankruptcy at home.

The following year M and GEAR (with Stanmore) bought two Queensland coal mines BHP was unloading, a $1.6 billion investment which soon paid itself off.

And in South32's Illawarra Metallurgical Coal, M and GEAR have snagged another former BHP operation for a price they like.

Mr Latimore said the Illawarra could expect a mine owner who would be engaged for significant time.

"We take the assets very seriously - we work very closely with the communities we operate with ... and I think that's proven though all the operations we have and the investments we have throughout Australia," he said.

"It's good to have an owner that's passionate about the coal industry, the metallurgical coal industry.

"We certainly are not a company that thinks coal is a sunset industry.

"I'm looking forward to working with the local government and community in taking this forward."

The Ferraris

Mr Latimore, 51, a father of six whose collection of Ferrari sports cars has featured in enthusiast and collectors' pages, grew up on a farm at Wingham, near Taree.

An Italian exchange student who stayed on the farm when Latimore was 15 sparked his interest with a Prancing Horse hat and poster. Decades later he found in coal a way to fund his passion.

He prefers to play down the Ferrari aspect of his activities, but the contrast between the high-speed, high-pitched scream of the legendary Italian motor, and the millions of years in deep stony silence that go into the formation of coal, is striking.

"True, but a 1960 250 GTO Ferrari is worth probably 2000 times more what it was back then," Mr Latimore said.

"It's a bit like red wine. With age they get even better - if they're the right ones."

Like a coal seam?

"If you hold it long enough, it will be diamond."

Millions of years in the making perhaps, but once the coal has been brought above ground his goal is to shift it out of his hands quickly, under contract and onboard ship.

BlueScope veto unlikely

The Illawarra coal deal is not yet final, as Port Kembla steelmaker BlueScope, a major customer and former corporate sibling of South32, has a veto option.

But this would require BlueScope to buy Illawarra Metallurgical Coal itself, and while a process of due diligence will take place before a formal decision, BlueScope is not expected to change its stance that it is a steelmaker, not a coal miner.

Golden Energy and Resources is a Singapore-based company owned by the Widjaja family, one of Indonesia's wealthiest.

Postscript: Latimore's office also wanted to clarify his status after being referred to as a "Queenslander" in the Mercury's reporting last week, saying he was born and raised in NSW and remained a Blues supporter.