Indonesia’s wealthy Salim family has scooped a near $US180 million ($273 million) dividend from a coal mine it bought from Rio Tinto for $320 million, even as the operation’s annual profit nearly halved as coal prices came off record highs.

The payout comes eight years after Mach Energy – owned by the family’s Salim Group conglomerate, better known for making instant noodles – snapped up the Mount Pleasant mine in the coal-rich Hunter region in NSW.