The Commission has received an application from Solid Energy New Zealand Limited seeking clearance to acquire the entire share capital in Newvale Coal Co Limited.

Solid Energy is a state-owned enterprise that has coal mining operations in the Waikato, the West Coast and in Southland. Solid Energy primarily supplies bituminous and sub-bituminous coal to both domestic and international customers.

Newvale Coal is a private mining company owned by the Highstead family. It operates the Newvale opencast mine, which is located in the Waimumu coal field in Southland. The Newvale mine primarily supplies lignite coal to domestic customers.

In considering the application, the Commission's role is to determine whether the acquisition has the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.

A public version of the application will shortly be available on the Clearances Register.