Endocoal, which considers the tenement prospective for the Dysart Coking Coal measures, formed a 50:50 joint venture agreement with Carabella and entered into an agreement with a third party to acquire the tenement.

The tenement lies near Carabella’s Prospect Creek prospect and Endocoal’s Sullivan Creek and Talwood tenements.

Exploration activities are currently being planned for the Pretoria Hill area once the tenement is granted, Endocoal managing director Rod Austin said.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Endocoal as it positions our northern Bowen Basin tenement areas into a known coking-coal opportunity,” he said.

“We see significant upside in sharing exploration knowledge, resources and infrastructure with Carabella who have already defined a JORC-compliant resource at their adjoining Grosvenor West coking coal project.”

Pretoria Hill comprises an area of approximately 410 square kilometres in the northern Bowen Basin. It is also immediately to the southwest of Mabbin Creek, which contains Carabella’s 91.7 million tonne JORC Grosvenor West coking coal project.

Endocoal also has an additional nine tenements in the Bowen Basin region which will be subject to further drilling and exploration, with a priority to the Rockwood tenement, which is prospective for pulverised coal-injection coal. Endocoal currently has JORC resources of 41.2Mt.

Carabella also has entered into an agreement to acquire a 100% interest in an exploration area known as Bell Lagoon.

Bell Lagoon covers an area of approximately 390sq.km and is located immediately to the west of Mabbin Creek tenement and the Pretoria Hill tenement area. Carabella’s desktop geological analysis of the area has identified a low-density area in the northeastern corner of Bell Lagoon which appears to be prospective for coals in the Collinsville Coal Measures.

That area will be investigated as part of the Company’s 2D seismic program commencing in the June quarter of this year.

Carabella managing director Mitch Jakeman said the acquisition of Bell Lagoon and a 50% joint venture interest in Pretoria Hill represented a major strategic step in the consolidation of Carabella’s northern Bowen Basin interests.

“The tenements represent further prospective target areas for our ongoing exploration activities and will also give the company greater capacity to build strategic infrastructure to support any associated or adjoining mining operations.”