Miner drops London from its roll call of possible exchanges

Lubel Coal Company, a Ukraine-focused miner, is set to snub London for Warsaw or Hong Kong when it lists on public markets later this year.

The company has long harboured plans to raise between $150m and $200m by joining the Alternative Investment Market, London's junior stock exchange. But, it now believes that it would not be a popular listing in the UK, as the mine it plans to develop could take five years to reap strong returns.

Most successful 2010 London listings are expected to be by companies with strong cashflow, which will therefore soon show share price growth.

Lubel's finance director, David Swan, said: "I have the view that London will not happen for us this year. Certainly, a [flotation] is our biggest challenge." The company needs about $700m to fully finance the project, including overhead costs.

Lubel's sites, which could contain 74 million tonnes of coal, are located close to the Polish border, making the Warsaw exchange geographically convenient. Lubel's advisers include Unicredit and JP Morgan Cazenove.