Riversdale Mining is an Australian mining

Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...

 company, listed on the S&P/ASX 200

S&P/ASX 200

The S&P/ASX 200 index is a market-capitalization weighted and float-adjusted stock market index of Australian stocks listed on the Australian Securities Exchange from Standard & Poor's...

. It specialises in coal mines in Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

.

Tata Steel owned a stake of approximately 24% in Riversdale; Passport Capital and Brazilian steelmaker CSN also have a stake. In April 2010, Rio Tinto Group

Rio Tinto Group

The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...

 gained a majority stake.

Operations

In June 2010, Riversdale Mining signed an agreement with Wuhan Iron and Steel

Wuhan Iron and Steel

Wuhan Iron and Steel Corp. Gōngsī) was founded in 1958 in Qingshan, Wuhan, Hubei, China. It was China's first supergiant iron and steel complex. Annually, the company produces ten million tons of iron and steel each...

 to jointly develop Riversdale's Zambeze coal reserves in Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

, one of the world's largest undeveloped coking coal areas; Wuhan will also buy coal from Riversdale's nearby Benga

Benga

Benga may refer to:* Benga tree, another name for the Indian Kino Tree Ethnonym:* Benga people, an indigenous ethnic group of Equatorial Guinea* Benga language, spoke by the Benga people...

 mines. The Benga mines are expected to produce 20 million tonnnes per year. These mines are near Moatize

Moatize

Moatize is a town and district located in Tete Province in Mozambique. It is located near the town of Tete and near the Zambezi River.- Economy :...

 in Mozambique

Mozambique

Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...

.

Riversdale also has the Zululand anthracite mine in northern KwaZulu Natal in South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

.

Takeover

Riversdale has been in takeover talks with Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto Group

The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...

, valuing it at A$3.5 billion; the government of India

Government of India

The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...

has also considered bidding.