B08 Metal Ore Mining

BHP green push all about profit

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 9-Oct-19

BHP’s head of external affairs Geoff Healy has told investors in London that embracing social and environmental issues is "good business". He argued that demonstrating a commitment to such causes is essential for mining companies, to ensure that they can both secure the rights to new deposits and retain control of existing projects. Healy says BHP believes that its commitment to social value was a key factor in securing a stake in Mexico’s Trion oil field.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, INVESTOR GROUP ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Doubts about Fortescue’s Simandou bid

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 21 : 9-Oct-19

Lyndon Fagan of JP Morgan has expressed reservations about Fortescue Metals Group’s bid for blocks 1 and 2 of the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. He says a successful bid may not be welcomed by shareholders, given the sovereign risks associated with the West African nation. He adds that given Simandou’s high-grade iron ore and the fact that it is likely to be developed, Fortescue may be taking the view that it is better to participate in a project that will compete with Fortescue’s own Pilbara operations.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Fortescue in race for Simandou

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 8-Oct-19

Fortescue Metals Group and the SMB-Winning consortium are said to be the only remaining contenders to acquire the right to develop blocks 1 and 2 of the Simandou iron ore deposit in Guinea. Fortescue CEO Elizabeth Gaines says details of the pure-play iron ore miner’s bid are confidential and there is no guarantee that any bid will be successful. Simandou is estimated to hold more than two billion tonnes of iron ore, with average grades of about 65 per cent iron content.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, UMS, SHANDONG WEIQIAO ALUMINIUM POWER COMPANY LIMITED, WINNING SHIPPING, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BSG RESOURCES LIMITED, VALE SA, ALUMINIUM CORPORATION OF CHINA LIMITED, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

BHP, South32 lead in tackling climate change

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 3-Oct-19

The Climate Change 100+ group has released a new report on the abatement strategies of the 161 companies globally that generate the most carbon emissions. The report notes that 70 per cent of these companies have adopted emissions reduction targets, although just nine per cent have set targets that are consistent with the Paris climate agreement. Australian-listed mining groups BHP and South32 are among relatively few of the 161 companies that have set zero net emissions targets.

CORPORATES
CLIMATE CHANGE 100+, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD

Iron ore forecasts tumble, resources giants downgraded

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Original article by Robert Guy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 2-Oct-19

Credit Suisse has scaled back its benchmark iron ore price forecasts for the next three years, due to expectations that Chinese steel production will peak in 2019. The firm now expects iron ore to fetch $US80 a tonne in 2020, which is six per cent lower than its previous guidance. Its price forecast for 2021 has been cut by 13 per cent to $US65/tonne, while the iron ore price is now expected to average $US60 a tonne in 2022. Credit Suisse has also reduced its share price targets for BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group, while its rating on the latter has been downgraded from ‘neutral’ to ‘underperform’.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Rio puts Canada IPO plan on hold

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Original article by Rhiannon Hoyle
The Australian – Page: 20 : 1-Oct-19

Mining giant Rio Tinto has advised that it is longer seeking to divest its controlling stake in Iron Ore Co of Canada via a trade sale or IPO. The recent volatility in the price of iron ore has affected the potential sale price of the business, in which Rio Tinto has a 59 per cent stake. Rio Tinto first flagged plans to sell the Canadian business in 2013, and CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques indicated in 2017 that the resources giant would not hold a "fire sale" of unwanted assets.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, IRON ORE COMPANY OF CANADA, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, LABRADOR IRON ORE ROYALTY INCOME CORPORATION

Mining earnings heading for peak

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 30-Sep-19

Resources Minister Matt Canavan says the latest Resources and Energy Quarterly report underlines the importance of mining to Australia’s economy, noting that the sector contributed a third of GDP growth in the June 2019 quarter. He has urged lenders to continue to provide financing for resources and energy projects, at a time when local mining companies intend to increase their annual investment expenditure for the first time in six years. The report forecasts that resources and energy exports will top $282bn in 2019-20, eclipsing the record $279bn in 2018-19.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE

Market Forces maintains the rage against Rio Tinto

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 27-Sep-19

Activist investor group Market Forces is still planning to target Rio Tinto with a shareholder resolution that would require it to set targets for reducing emissions for customers if successful. Such emissions are known as Scope 3 emissions. Market Forces had been planning to hit BHP with a similar resolution, but backed away from doing so after BHP stated it would act on scope 3 emissions created by its customers when using coal and iron ore to make steel. Market Forces’ intentions regarding Rio Tinto come despite Rio and Chinese steel maker Baowu Steel Group unveiling a joint commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

CORPORATES
MARKET FORCES RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP BAOWU STEEL GROUP

Stavely’s copper discovery multiplies family court settlement

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 27-Sep-19

Shares in Stavely Minerals rose to as high as $0.93 on 26 September after it reported it had made a highly promising copper discovery near the Victorian town of Dunkeld. Its shares ended up closing at $0.86, compared to a close of just $0.24 on 25 September. Stavely’s discoveries were made at depths of less than 100 metres, with shallow discoveries seen as more valuable than deeper ones because they are cheaper to mine. Stavely’s announcement came a few weeks after it was disclosed the Family Court had directed Stavely founder and MD Chris Cairns to give away six million of his shares in the company.

CORPORATES
STAVELY MINERALS LIMITED – ASX SVY

Rio Tinto teams with China to cut emissions

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 26-Sep-19

Rio Tinto has signed a memorandum of understanding with China Baowu Steel Group and Tsinghua University to develop strategies aimed at reducing carbon emissions across the steel industry. Steel-making accounts for the bulk of Rio Tinto’s scope 3 emissions, which totalled 536 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent gases in 2018. In contrast, its scope 1 and 2 emissions totalled 28.6 million tonnes. BHP also recently revealed plans to address its scope 3 emissions.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, CHINA BAOWU STEEL GROUP CORPORATION LIMITED, TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MARKET FORCES, FRIENDS OF THE EARTH