(EnergyAsia, March 6 2013, Wednesday) — Canada’s Challenger Deep Resources Corp said its wholly owned subsidiary, PT Bestindo Energy, has signed an exclusive agreement to fully acquire privately-held PT HAAS which owns the rights to mine and market coal from the Alam Bahteria Barito Raya (ABBR) project in Central Kalimantan as well as its mining infrastructure.

Challenger said it has an exclusive 60-day right to conduct due diligence on HAAS’s coal mining operation-production agreement for the ABBR project and the mining infrastructure, and to purchase HASS shares if it is satisfied with the due diligence review.

Located in the Murah Teweh district, ABBR is 12 km east of the Barito River, which provides the main route for the project.

Earlier last month, Calgary-based Challenger also secured a similar exclusive agreement on the nearby KEM coal project through subsidiary Bestindo Energy.

Both sites are deemed to contain multi-seam high-quality thermal coal reserves, with ABBR undergoing a successful trial production trial in 2009 and 2010.

According to Challenger, HASS’s ownership of a 12km haul road and jetty facilities on the Barito river will enable an early start to production while giving the operator complete control and security of the coal transport process.

By combining the KEM and ABBR projects, Challenger said it aims to increase the area’s production capacity and marketing synergy.

Challenger said it has launched an extensive desktop review of ABBR’s database and begun a full assessment of the infrastructure assets as well as dispatched a geological team to evaluate and interpret ABBR’s coal quality.

Challenger Deep Resources Corp, an exploration company focused on the Indonesian coal industry, plans to acquire, explore and to bring its viable coal projects into production. The company has an experienced Indonesian exploration and mining team with offices in Calgary, Singapore and Jakarta.