The last great coal reserve in Africa by B. Ray Dinning tax lawyer

That is why I have been telling members of my Profit Hunter investment service about one forgotten corner of Africa that is emerging as the world’s new energy hotspot.

You see, the former Portuguese colony of Mozambique is sitting on the Southern Hemisphere’s biggest coal reserves.

In fact, this may be the last great coal reserve in the world.

And demand for coal among energy companies and steel producers is soaring…

So those reserves are suddenly receiving a lot of attention.

The sums involved are huge…

And here at Profit Hunter, we have found a backdoor way to get a slice of the action.

The last great coal reserve in the world

Mozambique isn’t one of the first places that comes to mind when you start thinking about investment opportunities. But the former Portuguese colony on the east coast of Africa offers huge opportunities for savvy investors.

The Moatize basin in the country’s remote Tete province may be the last untapped great coal reserve in the world. Moatize holds an estimated 2.5 billion tonnes of coal. That’s enough to keep producing for decades to come. And demand is set to keep rising.

Coal is already the world’s biggest source of energy for electricity production. And it will be the second fastest growing source of energy after natural gas between now and 2030.

So there is a real investment opportunity here.

Just consider: China is building new coal-fired power plants at a rate of about one per week! And then there is India. Asia’s other giant plans on adding more than 400,000 Megawatts of new capacity by 2030 – and the bulk of that is going to be powered by coal. So, the coal story still has a long way to go.

Because coal isn’t just a vital source of energy. It is also crucial for the production of steel.

And that has attracted some of the world’s biggest companies.

The world’s biggest iron-ore producer has invested…

Brazilian steel giant, Vale do Rio Doce, will spend $1.4 billion to build a giant coal mine at Moatize. And production is set to begin by 2011. The mine is expected to produce 8.5 million tonnes of coking coal and 2.5 million tonnes of thermal coal a year. So it serves both the steel and energy industries.

That could eventually rise to as much as 40 million tonnes per year. And there is enough coal in there to keep the mine going for the next 25 years.

Vale is the world’s biggest iron-ore producer. It supplies more than a third of the world’s iron-ore exports. So the sheer size of their investment in Moatize tells you how big a profit opportunity they have spotted here.

And so has the world’s biggest steel producer…

But Vale isn’t the only one trying to get its hands on Mozambique’s coal. Steel giant Arcelor-Mittal bought 35 per cent of the Rio Minjova company, which owns coal exploration rights in Tete. And it’s got the option to become the majority owner if exploration proves successful. Arcelor-Mittal is the world’s biggest steel company. It is controlled by Britain’s richest man – Lakshmi Mittal.

Then there is India’s Tata Steel. These are the chaps who bought Anglo-Dutch steel company Corus in 2006. Now it has teamed-up with Australia’s Riversdale Mining and is carrying out a feasibility study to produce coal from land on which it holds rights in Mozambique.

Welcome to Africa! B.Ray Dinning Tax and Business

INTERNATIONAL TAX PARTNERS

Practice Profile for Brian Dinning, JD, LLM (tax)

Brian Dinning’s has practiced international and domestic tax, business and mergers and acquisitions law since 1990.  Today, Mr. Dinning’s consulting practice focuses on domestic and international business entity taxation including corporate, non-profit, partnership and joint venture tax law, mergers and acquisitions, and business transactions.

Mr. Dinning advises clients on the formation, structure and taxation of business ventures, start-up enterprises and joint ventures between the tax-exempt and for-profit corporation. He has structured several multi-million dollar domestic and international joint ventures.  With specialized expertise in energy, energy tax credits and domestic and international energy transactions, Mr. Dinning represents small to large energy clients with tax credit opinion letters, energy ventures and tax credit syndication.

Mr. Dinning represents a diverse spectrum of clients: corporations; partnerships; limited liability companies; universities; energy and renewable energy projects; high-technology ventures; health-care entities; charitable and educational organizations; contractors and developers; syndications; and private individuals. He has assisted in tax administration and litigation at the federal, state and local level. He specializes in domestic and international tax and corporate planning.

 

Education

LL.M in Taxation, Georgetown University Law Center, 1993

J.D.  Regent University School of Law, 1990
B.A. Grove City College, 1987

Bar and Court Admissions

District of Columbia

Virginia
United States Tax Court
United States Court of Federal Claims

Points of Distinction

Mr. Dinning has structured numerous international companies and multi-national joint ventures including several for a Fortune 500 Company in the energy industry. This work includes traveling with the client, conceiving and organizing the business structure, negotiating the terms of agreement with the boards and/or officers of the foreign participant, leading a team of domestic and international lawyers, accountants and business advisors in drafting the agreements, solving any problems and closing the transaction.

Mr. Dinning has extensive experience in tax credit transactions under Section 29, Section 42, Section 45 and other energy related tax credits and tax incentive transactions.

Mr. Dinning’s experience in structuring the business activities of domestic and international organizations includes setting up asset protection strategies, tax minimization structures, international business entities, offshore trust companies, tax-haven manufacturing entities and licensing agreements.

Mr. Dinning was one of the key attorneys representing the developers of the Gallery Place/MCI Center Development providing guidance on District of Columbia Tax Exempt Bond Financing.

Finally, Mr. Dinning was the sole attorney in the merger of two Tax Law Specialty Law Firms in Washington, DC, which included negotiating the transaction, preparation of the tax-free merger documentation and closing the transaction to a successful conclusion.  Mr. Dinning has presented for several international charities to their major donors and has performed extensive and complex charitable, tax and estate planning for the major donors.  Clients include three universities, international charities, large hospital and international social venture organizations.

Activities

Mr. Dinning served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Regent University School of Law in Corporate Taxation, Business Planning. He has been Guest Lecturer on Non-Profit Organizations, Charitable Trusts and Mergers and Acquisitions.

Publications/Speeches

Mr. Dinning has conducted research and writing on non-profit organizations including significant research, drafting and editing of a treatise entitled, “Sanders, Partnership and Joint Ventures Involving Tax Exempt Organization,” (John Wiley & Sons 1994) and the First Supplement. This treatise is used as the primary textbook for non-profit organization at both Georgetown and George Washington LL.M programs.

Mr. Dinning was a Guest Speaker at the World African Growth Opportunity Act Conference for the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC and Dakar, Senegal. The topic was “Beyond Micro Enterprise: Structuring Social Entrepreneurship Ventures.”

Mr. Dinning was a Guest Speaker for the U.S. Department of Commerce on “Doing Business in Africa:

Structuring Partnerships and Joint Ventures that work.”

Previous Work

Mr. Dinning worked at law firms in Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia. Mr. Dinning was a Federal Judicial Law Clerk to the Honorable Paul T. Baird, United States Claims Court in Washington, DC. Mr. Dinning also served as a Staff Attorney and Senior Staff Attorney at the United States Court of Federal Claims.

Brian Dinning is an an avid photographer, safari enthusiast and world traveler who seeks to work with other cultures and people groups to create a safer, more green friendly world.

Brian Dinning has been working on an innovative sustainable resources and development model for use in developing countries around the world and especially in Africa.

Brian Dinning’s goal is to promote sustainability, professionalism and good stewardship in our project areas of expertise.

Brian Dinning works as a consultant to promote Sustainable Resource Development in Africa.  The Toronto Globe named this the “Century of Africa” and Africa has become the world focal point in this century.

Brian Dinning provides consulting and development services in three main areas:

*    Resource Security including Food and Water Security

*    Green Energy and Sustainable Development

*     Legal, Tax and Business Consulting Specializing in Africa