WCC said its offer, which closed on September 23, resulted in the acquisition of 1.15 billion ordinary Firestone shares, which amounted to a 32.36% stake.

WCC also separately acquired 480,000 shares from Sekoko Resources that equated to a 13.52% stake of Firestone.

With feasibility work still underway, Firestone aims to start mining in the Waterberg coal region during the first quarter of 2014.