Melbourne-based Macarthur Coal confirms today it will not pursue talks with Noble Group regarding its Gloucester Coal takeover bid.

Macarthur's decision followed after Noble's shareholders on Monday agreed to reject Macarthur's bid for Noble's 87 per cent stake in NSW-based Gloucester.

In a statement released today, Macarthur's board is "currently considering the consequences" on the vote for the Gloucester bid.

"Macarthur's expectation is that given the result of the meeting, it is now unlikely that the Gloucester/Noble transactions will proceed in their current form," the statement said.

Gloucester's independent directors today advised its shareholders to take no action in regards to Macarthur's bid.

Gloucester's parent company, Hong Kong-based Noble Group on Monday told the media its frustration over the bidding war and shareholders' decision to back out of the plan to sell its Gloucester Coal business to Macarthur Coal.

If the deal pushed through, Noble would be receiving a 24 per cent stake for every Macarthur's stake.

"Noble Group wishes to announce that the merger proposal between Macarthur and Gloucester was soundly defeated by shareholders," a Noble statement said.

Noble's move last night was triggered by Macarthur's decision to postpone a shareholder's vote after US giant Peabody Energy revised its takeover bid for the third time.