Investor Tykac looks for more acquisitions in U.S., Australia

Salt Lake Potash

09/05/2023 13:03

By Jan Lopatka
       PRAGUE, May 9 (Reuters) - Czech billionaire Pavel Tykac
said in an interview he is looking for acquisitions in the
United States and Australia to continue his string of deals
involving power production, coal and mining rights that sought
high yield in sectors shunned by others.
    Tykac's Sev.en Global Investments this week announced it was
buying land, including mining royalty rights in Queensland,
Australia, adding to its purchases in the country, including
Delta Electricity and Australia Salt Lake Potash.
    The investor, whose net worth Forbes estimates at $8
billion, told Reuters he would look for similar deals in the
United States, Australia and Canada, where he said rule of law
and policy predictability were good for business.
    "The coal and fossil world is so badly financeable that it
leads to the assets being much cheaper, because they have to be
financed by equity," Tykac said in his Prague office.
    "We have crossed the critical weight, we have enough equity
that we can afford projects in the range of single billions of
dollars," he added.
    Fossil industries will be phased out, but for the time being
they offer strong returns, he said. 
    "Without doubt this will end one day, but at the moment
there are opportunities in this sector and we do not think there
is any great rush, that the power plants are needed," he said.
    Tykac grew wealthy from investments in the Czech Republic in
the 1990s and later in the energy sector domestically and
abroad. His Sev.en group includes coal-fired power plants and
lignite mines in the Czech Republic that he said may be closed
down in 2026 without government subsidies.
    The sister firm Sev.en GI also holds interests in Australian
coal power plants under Genuity Pty Ltd, and in the United
States has acquired Blackhawk Mining in Kentucky and West
Virginia. The company also owns 55,000 acres and more than
600,000 acres of mineral rights with 2.2 billion tonnes of
proven coal reserves in Wyoming, Ohio, Illinois and West
Virginia.
    Tykac said his group had earnings before interest, tax,
depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of about 2.5 billion
euros  ($2.75 billion) last year and expects a little lower or
similar result this year.
    "Projects we do have very strong cash flow... so we are
looking and when we do not do anything for a few months, or
stash fills up relatively quickly," he said.    
($1 = 0.9084 euros)

 (Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Gerry Doyle)
 ((jan.lopatka@thomsonreuters.com; +420 234 721 614; Reuters
Messaging: jan.lopatka.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))