Mining giant Rio Tinto has completed the sale of its Australian Coal & Allied thermal coal

business to China's Yancoal, and has adjusted its 2017 thermal coal production accordi

ngly, the company said on Friday. 

"With production from all Hunter Valley coal operations transferring to Yancoal from toda

y [Friday], the group's guidance for thermal coal production in 2017 has been revised to 

13-14 million mt, from 17-18 million mt previously," Rio Tinto said in a statement to the Au

stralian Stock Exchange. 

Rio Tinto's thermal coal production stood at 4.95 million mt in the April-June quarter, up 1

5% from January-March, with 3.93 million mt coming from the New South Wales Hunter Va

lley operations, Mount Thorley, and Warkworth, which are all part of the Coal & Allied busi

ness. 

Yancoal fended off rival bids from Glencore to secure Rio Tinto's Coal & Allied business. 

"We look forward to maximising significant operational synergies from the combination of 

Coal & Allied's world-class assets with our existing portfolio," Yancoal's  chief executive of

ficer, Reinhold Schmidt, said on Friday.