B08 Metal Ore Mining

BHP buys Solgold stake as battle with Newcrest heats up

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 6-Sep-18

BHP Billiton has purchased a 6.1 per cent stake in Solgold, which operates a copper-gold project in Ecuador. It had previously sought to acquire a 10 per cent in Solgold in late 2016, but lost out to Newcrest Mining. Newcrest Mining is currently Solgold’s largest shareholder, owning around 14.5 per cent of the Brisbane-based company. BHP and Newcrest both have interests in Ecuador apart from their Solgold investment, while Fortescue Metals Group and Hancock Prospecting also have exploration tenements in Ecuador.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, SOLGOLD PLC, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, GUYANA GOLDFIELDS INCORPORATED

Gold production beats forecasts to hit highest level in 20 years

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: Online : 3-Sep-18

Australia’s gold miners produced 310 tonnes of the precious metal in 2017-18, according to consulting firm Surbiton. This represents the highest output since 1997-98, while production for the June quarter totalled 81 tonnes, nine per cent up on the previous quarter. Newmont’s Boddington mine in Western Australia was the biggest gold producer in 2017-18, with output of 733,000 ounces. The federal Industry Department’s Office of the Chief Economist is forecasting gold production will increase to 322 tonnes by 2019-20.

CORPORATES
SURBITON ASSOCIATES PTY LTD, NEWMONT AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, BARRICK GOLD OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, DACIAN GOLD LIMITED – ASX DCN, GASCOYNE RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GCY, GOLD ROAD RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GOR

Woodside blasts Rio’s call on wage rise

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Original article by Peter Ker, Julie-anne Sprague
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 31-Aug-18

Woodside Petroleum CEO Peter Coleman contends that recent comments by Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques about rising labour costs in Western Australia’s Pilbara region have alarmed investors. Coleman says he can see no signs that "cost inflation" is rampant in the region, while BHP Billiton CEO Andrew Mackenzie said that while there were indications of inflation in the Pilbara, he was not "fazed" by it. Coleman says any talk that the new investments in the region can be likened to the previous mining boom are way off the mark.

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Ellison puts halt to speculation of BCI bid

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 28-Aug-18

BCI Minerals plans to divest its iron ore assets in the Pilbara in order to focus on its salt and potash assets. Mineral Resources MD Chris Ellison has indicated that the company will not bid for the BCI assets, which could fetch around $100m, preferring to focus on its existing Pilbara assets. Mineral Resources recently secured a joint venture agreement regarding Brockman Mining’s Marillana project, while it bought the Koolyanobbing mine from Cleveland-Cliffs earlier in 2018.

CORPORATES
BCI MINERALS LIMITED – ASX BCI, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, BROCKMAN MINING LIMITED – ASX BCK, CLEVELAND-CLIFFS INCORPORATED, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, WROXBY PTY LTD

BHP slashes global growth forecasts as tariff tensions bite

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 18 : 27-Aug-18

BHP Billiton now expects global economic growth in 2019 and 2020 to be within the range of 3.25-3.75 per cent, compared with its previous range of 3.5-4 per cent. The resources giant attributes its growth downgrade to the US-China trade war, although BHP’s Huw McKay says demand for most of its commodities is likely to rise in the medium-term. The International Monetary Fund has maintained its growth forecast of 3.9 per for 2018 and 2019, although it recently indicated that the tariff war could prompt a downgrade of its forecast for 2020.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Northern Star not budging on cash stash

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 24-Aug-18

Gold miner Northern Star Resources has posted a 2017-18 net profit of $194.1m, which is three per cent higher than previously. EBITDA rose by four per cent to $442.9m and revenue was up 11 per cent at $964m. The company has spent $212m on exploration in the last five years, and it has allocated a further $60m for exploration in 2018-19. Northern Star Resources has cash reserves of $443m, but CEO Bill Beament has downplayed talk of capital management initiatives. He says a healthy balance sheet is desirable given that the company is in growth mode.

CORPORATES
NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX NST, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, S&P GLOBAL MARKET INTELLIGENCE

Lihir gold output to hit 1 million oz: Newcrest

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 23-Aug-18

Newcrest Mining has posted a 2017-18 net profit of $US202m, which is 34 per cent lower than previously. A $US155m insurance payout arising from seismic events at the Cadia mine partially offset impairment charges associated with other assets. Newcrest has also advised that gold production at its Lihir mine is expected to be within the range of 950,000 and 1.05 million ounces in 2018-19. Rival gold miners St Barbara and Saracen Mineral Holdings have reported net profits of $227m and $75.6m respectively.

CORPORATES
NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, ST BARBARA LIMITED – ASX SBM, SARACEN MINERAL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SAR

BHP’s copper king looks past volatility

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 23-Aug-18

BHP’s Escondida copper mine in Chile had record throughput in 2017-18, while the mine’s underlying EBIT rose by 136 per cent to $US3.3bn. Danny Malchuk, the head of BHP’s Minerals Americas division, has downplayed concerns about a sharp fall in the copper price in the last two months, arguing that BHP’s focus is on the long-term outlook. He says that while global trade tensions have contributed to the pullback in the copper price, the lack of strike action at the world’s major copper mines has also had an impact on prices.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, MINERA ESCONDIDA LIMITADA, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA

BHP frees cash for shareholders

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 22-Aug-18

BHP Billiton has posted a 2017-18 underlying profit of $US8.93bn, which is 33 per cent higher than previously. The resources giant boasted free cash flow of $US12.5bn for the financial year, and it expects to return about $US20bn to shareholders in 2018-19, including the proceeds from the recent sale of its shale assets in the US. Shareholders will receive a full-year dividend of $US1.18 per share for 2017-18, including a record final dividend of $US0.63.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, PENDAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX PDL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Fortescue delivers payday to Forrest

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 20 : 21-Aug-18

Fortescue Metals Group chairman and founder Andrew Forrest will be paid a total of $239m in dividend payments for the 2017-18 financial year. Forrest has received total franked dividend payments of $1.3bn before tax since 2011, with the bulk of these dividends being invested in his philanthropic organisation, the Minderoo Foundation. His 33.36 per cent stake in Fortescue is worth $4.33bn, based on the stock’s closing price of $4.26 on 20 August.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MINDEROO FOUNDATION, AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL ENERGY, SQUADRON ENERGY, HOEGH LNG