Rio Tinto entered a binding agreement to sell its 75% interest in the Winchester South coal development project in Queensland, Australia, to Whitehaven Coal Ltd. for US$200 million.

The diversified miner will receive US$150 million on completion, while US$50 will be payable within 12 months.

The transaction is expected to complete in the second quarter, subject to regulatory approvals.

Rio Tinto said March 22 the process for selling its remaining Australian coal asset, the Kestrel underground mine, is ongoing.

Whitehaven was one of the bidders for the company's Australian coal mines, along with China Investment Corp., Glencore Plc, South32 Ltd. and Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd. unit Yancoal Australia Ltd.

Previously in the week, Glencore agreed to acquire the 82% stake in the Hail Creek coal mine and a 71.2% stake in the Valeria coal project for US$1.7 billion in cash.