On the surface, the sale of a 51 per cent stake in Coronado Global Resources to Czech-based resources house Sev.en Global Investments for about $1.6 billion is a story about the unwillingness of Australian investors to support pure-play coal miners in an ESG-focused world.

Coronado was floated by private equity firm The Energy and Minerals Group five years ago, but always traded well below its $4 offer price. Even with the rise in metallurgical coal prices in recent years, Coronado’s price-to-earnings multiple has remained stuck well below that of coal peers and the broader resources sector.