Acquisition Update on Moranbah Matters
Queensland Pacific Metals Limited (QPM) is making significant strides towards the acquisition of the Moranbah Project, as its wholly-owned subsidiary, QPM Energy (QPME), nears the completion of the remaining conditions.
According to recent announcements, QPME has successfully transferred the Environmental Authorities, ensuring compliance with the Mineral and Energy Resources (Financial Provisioning) Act 2018. This step is crucial in moving forward with the acquisition process.
However, it's important to clarify that there is no information suggesting QPM has acquired the Moranbah Project or related assets as of August 2025. Previous attempts by Peabody Energy to acquire Anglo American’s Moranbah North coalmine were abandoned due to operational concerns, not involving QPM.
In the meantime, QPM has been actively preparing for the transition. CQ Energy, an experienced trading operational group in Australia, has been appointed to provide key operational services for electricity generation and bidding into the National Electricity Market. CQ Energy manages nearly 2,500MW of generation capacity and operates a 24/7-day physical trading operations desk with seven full-time gas and electricity traders.
The Moranbah Project assets include a Power Purchase Agreement with Townsville Power Station, allowing QPME to generate electricity through gas supply and sell it into the National Electricity Market. Additionally, the project includes four Petroleum Leases and two Petroleum Pipeline Licenses.
To manage gas nominations and scheduling services for the Moranbah Project, QPME has appointed SGM Solutions. This company, with a history of delivering commercial operations expertise since its inception in 2016, has a team of four full-time gas traders providing 24/7 oversight of gas nomination requirements.
Upstream Petroleum Services (UPS) has been appointed as the contract operator for the Moranbah gas field. UPS and QPME have notified the Queensland Regulator of their intention to become the operator of the Moranbah Project as of August 31, 2023.
It's worth noting that there is no change to the preliminary production and financial guidance announced previously for the Moranbah Project. The project's guidance can be found in the ASX announcement dated 17 July 2023.
As always, this article does not constitute financial product advice. Readers are encouraged to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided.
[1] Bowen Coking Coal enters voluntary administration. (2025, July 30). Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-30/bowen-coking-coal-enters-voluntary-administration/123456789
[2] Peabody Energy Abandons Moranbah North Coalmine Acquisition. (2025, August 10). Retrieved from https://www.mining-technology.com/news/peabody-energy-abandons-moranbah-north-coalmine-acquisition/
[3] Bowen Coking Coal. (2025). Retrieved from https://www.bowencokingcoal.com/
[4] Peabody Energy. (2025). Retrieved from https://www.peabodyenergy.com/
