Czech tycoon buys mining rights to over 2 billion tons of US coal

Czech company Sev.en Global Investments has bought the mining rights to more than 2 billion tons of coal in the U.S.

Founded by billionaire financier Pavel Tykač, a subsidiary of the investment firm Golden Eagle Land Company recently bought the rights from U.S. Coat and Ruger Coal for an undisclosed fee as reported in iDnes.

“Purchasing land and mining rights is an area of ​​particular interest to us both in the U.S. and in Australia…ownership allows us to collect payments for the mined material,” said the current CEO of Sev.en Alan Svoboda.

Tykač is the sixth-richest man in Czechia. He currently owns two other companies that operate in four coal mines in different U.S. states. Collectively, these areas contain over 200 million tons of coal. 

Sev.en also focuses on steel and petrochemical production. Today, the company operates in Europe, Australia, and the U.S. Tykač is currently seeking similar acquisition opportunities for mining rights – including for natural gas, uranium, or lithium.

At the beginning of this year, Sev.en left the British energy market, selling his stake in four gas-fired power plants to fellow Czech Pavel Hubáček, who owns the Czech Creditas Group. Billionaire Daniel Křetínský is another example of a Czech investing in international energy markets – in January he completed a purchase of two major gas power plants in the Netherlands.

In 2021, Sev.en’s gross (pre-tax) profit was about CZK 59 billion. 

In an interview earlier this year, Tykač explained that the introduction of a windfall tax on profits in Czechia prompted him to conduct more business abroad. 

In Czechia, Sev.en operates the Chvaletice and Počerady lignite power plants, the Kladno and Zlín thermal plants, and two North Bohemian lignite quarries. 

The firm also hopes to invest in photovoltaic and wind power plants – toward the end of last year, Tykač announced his plans to build five new photovoltaic power plants in Hradec Kralove by 2025.

Tykač also has financial interests in non-energy sectors – he is a 10-percent shareholder in Moneta Money Bank and is considering the purchase of the Mafra publishing house, which belongs to former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.