Gujarat NRE Coke subsidiary India NRE Minerals has put a total of 30 million shares on offer at 50c each, which gives the company a market capitalisation of approximately $240 million following the offer.

Gujarat chairman Arun Kumar Jagatramka said the company bought NRE No. 1 colliery for $10 million in December 2004 and has since spent more than $90 million on upgrades and expansion plans.

He said the proceeds of the offer will be put towards continued development of the mine, and the completion of a feasibility study into longwall mining.

“The directors believe that the company is ideally placed to develop a world-class coking coal mine at the NRE No. 1 colliery,” he said.

The colliery has been in operation for over 100 years, and its coking coal carries a reputation for consistent high quality and low ash content.

Since its re-opening in September 2005, the mine has produced and sold 574,400 tonnes ROM coal, but with the future introduction of longwall mining, it could return to previous production rates of 3Mtpa.

“If the company is unable to proceed with the development of longwall mining operations, the directors will review the company’s position and assess alternative options and mining techniques, which at a minimum include the expansion of bord and pillar mining operations at NRE No. 1,” Jagatramka said.

“India NRE provides an exciting opportunity for investors to gain access to a colliery that has a history of producing premium hard coking coal together with strong links into the ever growing Indian marketplace.”

Gujarat NRE Coke will remain the major shareholder of the company following listing.