GCM says has had no notification from Bangladeshi govt over Phulbari mine

GCM Resources said on Friday that it has not received any notification from the government of Bangladesh of any change to its contract for the Phulbari coal project following speculation in the press that the government has decided not to go ahead with open pit mining at the Barapukuria coal mine.

The London-based resource exploration and development company pointed out that the mine in question in the media speculation is unrelated to the group.

“The company, through its subsidiaries, has a legally enforceable contract with the government of Bangladesh which gives it the right to explore, develop and mine in respect to the licence areas. GCM is awaiting Government approval of the Scheme of Development to proceed with mine development,” it said.

GCM added that the Phulbari coal project is expected to deliver over $2bn of inward investment into Bangladesh, supply high quality thermal coal to support up to 4,000MW, and provide $7bn of revenue to the government over the project's life.

At 1418 BST, the shares were down 22.6% to 12.19p.