B08 Metal Ore Mining

Top-grade iron ore may spike to $US100 on China clampdown

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Original article by Krystal Chia
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 17-Jul-18

The price of high-grade iron ore reached $US91 a tonne on 13 July, and there is speculation that it could reach $US100. The demand for high-grade iron ore, which is classed as ore with 65 per cent iron content, is being driven by steel mills in China, where there is a major crackdown on pollution. Using high-grade ore enables steel makers to cut back on pollutants, as well as allowing them to produce more steel. The price of high-grade ore is up since the start of 2018, while the price of benchmark ore – which has 62 per cent iron content – has declined by 14 per cent.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, VALE SA, WOOD MACKENZIE, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, IRON ORE RESEARCH PTY LTD, CRU GROUP LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE

Iron ore miners tipped to have record quarter

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 16-Jul-18

UBS estimates that Rio Tinto’s iron ore shipments from the Pilbara totalled 88.9 million tonnes in the June quarter. BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group are also expected to have had record quarterly shipments, at 71.7 million tonnes and 46.3 million tonnes respectively. Brazilian rival Vale is also expected to report record quarterly shipments, at 96.3 million tonnes. Meanwhile, UBS forecasts that BHP’s shipments from the Pilbara totalled 274 million tonnes in 2017-18, which is slightly below the resources group’s full-year guidance of 275-280 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, VALE SA, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE

Grasberg a done deal for Rio and Indonesia

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 13-Jul-18

Freeport McMoran has entered into a heads of agreement with the Indonesian Government to reduce its stake in the Grasberg copper mine from around 91 per cent to just under 50 per cent. Control over its divested stake will be assumed by the state-owned PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium Persero. Rio Tinto does not have a direct stake in Grasberg, but it owns the rights to a certain amount of the mine’s production, and it could potentially benefit from the change of ownership to the tune of more than $US3bn ($4.1bn).

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, FREEPORT-McMORAN COPPER AND GOLD INCORPORATED, PT INDONESIA ASAHAN ALUMINIUM, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM

Hancock hopes rising as Atlas bleeds cash

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 13-Jul-18

Atlas Iron held cash on hand of $57 million at the end of June, down from $78 million at the end of March. It shipped 2.1 million tonnes of iron ore during the June quarter, but lost an average of $3 per tonne on every tonne shipped. The amount owed by Atlas to lenders increased from $83 million to $85 million over the quarter. The rise in debt and the fall in Atlas’s cash position has boosted the likelihood that shareholders will accept Hancock Prospecting’s $390 million takeover bid.

CORPORATES
ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN

BHP’s shale sale to reap dividends

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 12-Jul-18

BHP Billiton chairman Ken MacKenzie has told shareholders that the resources group hopes to secure at least one deal for its US shale assets by the end of 2018. He said there has been strong interest in the assets due to factors such as US company tax cuts and a rise in the crude oil price. MacKenzie also signalled that BHP is likely to return some of the sale proceeds to shareholders via share buybacks or increased dividends. He also said there is still strong support at boardroom and executive level for BHP’s conventional oil assets.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, BP PLC, CHEVRON CORPORATION, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION

BHP’s 100-year Pilbara mines plan gets green light

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Original article by Ben Harvey
The West Australian – Page: Online : 11-Jul-18

Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority has approved BHP Billiton’s long-term plan for its iron ore operations in the Pilbara. However, the EPA’s deputy chairman Robert Harvey has stressed that BHP will still need to submit each development proposal for environmental approval. BHP’s Pilbara Expansion-Strategic Proposal includes the expansion of existing iron ore mines and the potential development of up to 13 new mines in the Pilbara.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AUTHORITY

Fortescue on Belt and Road to riches

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 17 & 18 : 9-Jul-18

Fortescue Metals Group’s CEO Elizabeth Gaines has urged Australian firms to make the most of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Countries that come under the BRI have a combined population of more than four billion. Gaines notes that steel is expected to underpin the infrastructure needed for the BRI, from which Fortescue could be expected to benefit as a major supplier of iron ore to China. Fortescue has been selling iron ore to China for 10 years, and Gaines notes that it supplies 17 per cent of China’s seaborne iron ore.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Rio looks to next iron ore play

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 6-Jul-18

A Rio Tinto spokesman has indicated that the resources giant expects to complete a pre-feasibility study on its Western Range iron ore deposit in Western Australia by mid-2019. Chris Salisbury, Rio Tinto’s head of iron ore, also recently described Western Range as an "important" project for the future of its Paraburdoo operations. Rio Tinto’s board is expected to approve development of the $US2.2bn ($2.98bn) Koodaideri project by the end of 2018, with initial production of 40 million tonnes a year.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Rinehart plans to share Pilbara riches

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 5-Jul-18

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart has launched a profit-sharing scheme for employees of her Roy Hill iron ore project. The share of profits to be distributed to Roy Hill workers will be linked to the company’s iron ore export volumes, with the first payment to be made in December. Roy Hill is seeking government approval to lift the mine’s capacity from 55 million tonnes to 60 million tonnes. Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, which has a 70 per cent stake in Roy Hill, has also formally opened its $A390m takeover bid for Atlas Iron.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO, REDSTONE CORPORATION PTY LTD, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, MARUBENI CORPORATION, POSCO

Rio nears sale of Grasberg mine stake

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 23 : 4-Jul-18

Rio Tinto is believed to have reached agreement on a deal to sell its stake in Indonesia’s Grasberg copper and gold mine to the state-owned Indonesia Asahan Aluminium. The Indonesian Government must still strike a deal with the mine’s operator, Freeport McMoran, as part of its push to take a minimum stake of 51 per cent in the project. Rio Tinto may gain around $US3.5bn from the sale of its interest in the mine, and the proceeds are tipped to be returned to shareholders via a buyback or increased dividend payout.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, PT INDONESIA ASAHAN ALUMINIUM PERSERO, FREEPORT-McMORAN COPPER AND GOLD INCORPORATED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, INDONESIA. DEPT OF STATE-OWNED CORPORATIONS