Padbury delays detailing port funding

Padbury Mining on Thursday failed to reveal the investors behind a more than $6 billion port and rail project in Western Australia's iron ore belt, asking for its shares to remain suspended until it can provide details on the huge deal.

The small Australian exploration company, with a market value of A$111 million ($104.37 million), said last week it had won funding from unnamed wealthy Australians for its Oakajee port project, prompting an order from the Australian Securities Exchange for the parties to be named.

Padbury had been expected to make the announcement earlier this week but said it now planned to reveal details of the investors and funding agreement by April 23.

After Padbury announced the deal last week, more than 200 million shares were traded, and the stock rose from 2 Australian cents to more than 5 cents at one stage before trading was suspended. It last traded at 3.3 cents.

A port in the Indian Ocean coastal stretch of Oakajee in Western Australia state has long been seen as the trigger to unearthing billions of tonnes of iron ore stranded by a lack of transport and export routes.

Previous attempts by various parties to get a plan off the ground have failed owing to the massive investment needs.

Reporting by James Regan and Lincoln Feast; Editing by Ed Davies)

($1 = 1.0635 Australian Dollars)