Sumitomo to sell stake in Rolleston coal mine in Australia to Glencore

Japanese trading house Sumitomo Corp said on Tuesday it has agreed to sell its 12.5% stake in the Rolleston thermal coal mine in Australia to its partner Glencore PLC for an undisclosed sum.

Glencore will own 100% of the mine after the deal, a spokesperson at Sumitomo said.

The move comes in line with the Japanese company’s policy to tackle climate change, which was revised in May and included a goal to cut its thermal coal output to zero by 2030, the spokesperson said.

Sumitomo’s remaining interest in thermal coal mines is a 37.13% stake in the Clermont mine in Australia, but the company plans to keep its stake as the mine life is expected to end by 2030, the spokesperson said.

(By Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Lincoln Feast)