Yanzhou Coal Mining Co Ltd, a subsidiary company of Yankuang Group Co., Ltd. in Shandong Province, announced on Dec. 22, that it will acquire the Australian miner, Gloucester Coal Ltd., to further its overseas expansion.

The merger will help its Australian assets to be listed in the country, and is likely to create Australia's biggest coal miner.

Gloucester will sell 77 percent of its shares to the Shandong buyer for US$ 2 billion.

In 2009 the group bought Felix Resources, another Australian coal miner, at 3.2 billion Australian Dollars.