Bathurst successfully raised more than $100 million of capital in 2010 and the UBS appointment could indicate that more corporate transactions are on the horizon.

The explorer fully owns the Buller project after finally completing its acquisition of L&M Coal Holdings for $US35 million in November.

In the same month, Bathurst also expanded the Buller project area by acquiring Galilee Energy’s Eastern Resources Group for $35 million.

ERG’s Cascade and Takitimu mines collectively produce around 200,000 tonnes per annum of thermal coal for the domestic market.

But the big drawcard for Bathurst was ERG’s Whareatea West coking coal project, near its Cascade mine on the South Island and surrounded by Bathurst’s Buller project.

Much of the tenement is yet to be fully explored but it already has resources of 25.7 million tonnes with 18Mt in the measured category.

“We are delighted to appoint UBS to the role of corporate adviser for Bathurst,” Bathurst chief executive Hamish Bohannan said.

“The board and management are looking forward to working closely with UBS as we look to bring the Buller project into production later this year, with first high-grade coking coal sales expected in the December quarter of 2011.”

Before the ERG transaction, Bathurst announced plans to start mining the Escarpment deposit in the project in the December quarter of 2011 to produce about 650,000 tonnes of hard coking coal in an area containing old workings.

A ramp-up to 1Mtpa was expected in 2012 when mining would move into an area of virgin coal.

In the 2012-13 financial year, Bathurst expected the Deep Creek prospect of the project to start up, doubling production to 2Mtpa.

Two years later, the explorer aimed to kick off another open cut operation at the North Buller prospect to ramp up to 4Mtpa of product coal.

Less than a year ago the company’s shares were less than 10c, before it successfully moved away from small-scale mining in the Appalachian Basin in Kentucky, US.

Bathurst shares were up 5.6% to $1.125 this morning.