It’s back to business as usual for Australian goldminer Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd following the clarification of Thai media reports that surfaced last week, causing a share trading suspension in Kingsgate.

Custom Mining Ltded the Thai Government had suspended applications for gold exploration and production licences.

Kingsgate chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk, managing director Gavin Thomas and Australian Ambassador to Thailand William Paterson undertook a series of meetings with Thai government officials last Thursday and Friday.

They were assured Kingsgate’s current mining operations and activity on 52 exploration leases are unaffected by a new review process. Nine mining lease applications at Kingsgate’s Chatree North are also unaffected.

After suspension last week, Kingsgate’s shares resumed trading Monday morning.

In news on the coal front, Queensland coalminer Macarthur Coal has announced its intention to purchase Custom Mining Ltd in a share sale agreement worth $275 million.

Custom Mining has a 70 per cent holding in the Middlemount coal project and a farm-in agreement for up to 70 per cent of the Dingo West prospect.

Paway Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hong Kong trading house Noble Group, owns the remaining 30 per cent of the Middlemount project.

Bulk sampling points towards a 70 to 30 per cent mix of hard coking to low volatile PCI coal.

Macarthur Coal CEO Nicole Hollows described the purchase as having “a strong fit with Macarthur Coal’s existing operations by expanding our market share of LV PCI coal and diversifying our product range with semi-hard coking coal in the future”.