Brisbane company Ambre Energy plans to raise up to $200 million over the next year, possibly through an Australian stockmarket float, as it builds a US coal business targeting Asian markets.

The company plans to spend more than $100m turning the [Longview, WA] site into the first US west coast coal export port, servicing the growing demand from China and India.

Big US producers such as Peabody Energy and Arch Coal are turning to the Asian markets. Arch, the second-biggest US coal producer, has paid Ambre $US25m for 38 per cent of what Ambre is calling the Millennium Bulk Terminal.

From the Australian