Young rich list member Nathan Tinkler tipped to launch $1.5 billion float

Wealthy young coal baron Nathan Tinkler is set to enjoy another big pay day, with the float of his new mining company Ashton Resources.

According to a report in the Australian Financial Review, commodities groups Itochu and Noble Group have agreed to take cornerstone stakes in the float, which will see about $400 million worth of shares offered.

It has been reported the two trading house will take about $100 million in stock. The company is tipped to have a market capitalisation of $1.5 billion when it floats, with the IPO pricing expected to be decided next week.

Tinkler is expected to retain around 40% of the company, which means his stake would be worth $600 million.

That would give Tinkler’s total fortune a big boost. In May, his total wealth was estimated at $355 million in BRW magazine’s Rich 200 list.

The 34-year-old Tinkler, who started his career as an electrician, has made the bulk of his fortune in just four years.

In 2006, he borrowed $1 million and raised another $30 million from investors to buy a coal deposit through his company Custom Mining.

A year later, Macarthur Coal bought Custom Mining for $275 million in cash and in mid 2008 Tinkler sold out of Macarthur Coal for about $400 million.

Tinkler has proved to be as adept at spending money as he is at making it. He has plunged millions into the thoroughbred racing industry and his stable Patinack Farms has quickly become a fixture on Australia’s racetracks.

But not all of Tinkler’s investments have gone smoothly. He is currently embroiled in a legal battle with former managers of a luxury car club called Supercar International, in which be bought a stake in December 2008.

That case is continuing.