COAL MINES AND MINING – QUEENSLAND

Adani’s end of year wait for loan decision

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Original article by Mark Ludlow, Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 8-Jun-17

Adani aims to finalising funding for the first stage of the $A16.5bn Carmichael coal project in December 2017. Adani still hopes to partially fill a $A3.3bn funding deficit via a concessional loan from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. Resources Minister Matthew Canavan says the NAIF’s board is not expected to make a decision on the loan until the end of the year. Wood Mackenzie estimates that the thermal coal price will need to average $U82 per tonne – compared with $US74 at present – for the first stage of the Carmichael project to achieve a 15 per cent rate of return.

CORPORATES
ADANI MINING PTY LTD, ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, AURIZON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX AZJ, WOOD MACKENZIE

Turnbull turns up heat on Shorten over Adani loan

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 2 : 13-Apr-17

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten still opposes granting Adani a concessional loan from the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility to build a rail line associated with its Carmichael coal project. He notes that Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull indicated in 2016 that the project would not receive financial support from taxpayers. Resources Minister Matt Canavan has also criticised Labor counterpart Jason Clare for claiming that Adani would have exclusive access to the rail line. Canavan says that several other coal miners would benefit from the rail line.

CORPORATES
ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, GVK INDUSTRIES LIMITED, WARATAH COAL PTY LTD, MACMINES AUSTASIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

Adani mine has huge economic benefits: Turnbull

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Original article by David Crowe
The Australian – Page: 4 : 12-Apr-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has highlighted the proposed Carmichael coal mine’s likely contribution to jobs growth and government revenue. Turnbull has held talks with Indian entrepreneur Gautam Adani, who believes that the project qualifies for funding from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. However, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says the Carmichael coal mine and rail project needs to be commercially and economically viable, and it should not receive financial assistance from taxpayers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY

BHP’s growth prospects still linked to oil

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 22 : 6-Feb-17

BHP Billiton’s announcement in 2016 that it would seek to increase annual coking coal production in Queensland by four million tonnes has proven to be an astute move, given the rebound in the price of coal. The Peak Downs mine achieved record output in the December quarter. BHP also advised that maintenance work on railway lines serving its Pilbara iron ore operations will be completed nine months ahead of schedule. Meanwhile, BHP is ramping up investment in its petroleum division in order to arrest a decline in production.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION

BHP considers selling Bowen Basin coal asset

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 5-Dec-16

A BHP Billiton spokesperson has downplayed speculation that the resources giant could seek a buyer for the Gregory Crinum complex in Queensland, which it owns in partnership with Mitsubishi. BHP had shelved plans to sell Gregory Crinum in 2013, due to a downturn in the coking coal price. However, talk of a possible sale has been prompted by the recent rally in the price of coking coal, which is fetching more than $US300 per tonne. BHP mothballed the Crinum longwall mine in 2015.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, BECHTEL PTY LTD, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GLENCORE PLC, BATCHFIRE RESOURCES, AUSTRALIAN PACIFIC COAL LIMITED – ASX AQC, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS

Newman takes aim at Grylls tax proposal

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 23-Nov-16

Former Queensland premier Campbell Newman has expressed concern about a proposed rise in Western Australia’s iron ore levy. He rates the sovereign risk level of the proposal by WA National Party leader Brendon Grylls as being "eight out of 10". In contrast, Campbell considers his government’s changes to coal royalty rates in 2012 as a four out of 10 in terms of sovereign risk. Coal producers will pay the highest coal royalty rate under Newman’s three-tier system for the first time, following the rally in coal prices.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

BHP Coal ordered to reinstate miner after scab comment

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 8 : 29-Sep-16

The Fair Work Commission has ruled that BHP Billiton’s coal division must reinstate an employee at its Saraji mine in Queensland, who was sacked for using the word "scab". A mine manager had argued that the use of the word "scab" was much worse in the industrial relations context than using certain swear words in the workplace.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Major derailment disrupts supply side of coking coal

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 16-Sep-16

Shipments from the Abbot Point coal terminal in Queensland will be affected by a derailment on Aurizon Holdings’ Northern train line in the Bowen Basin. The incident will affect Glencore’s Newlands coking coal mine and BHP Billiton’s Goonyella/Riverside mine. Damage to the train line is expected to take about a week to repair, and the reduced supply could put upward pressure on the coking coal price, which has risen by 100 so far in 2016.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, GLENCORE PLC, AURIZON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX AZJ, AURIZON NETWORK PTY LTD, ANGLO AMERICAN COAL, QCOAL PTY LTD, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, PACIFIC NATIONAL PTY LTD

Market backs BHP’s bid to buy Anglo coal

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 25-Jul-16

BHP Billiton has declined to comment on speculation that it is poised to acquire Anglo American’s coal assets in Queensland, with the auction process nearing its end. BHP is said to be the only remaining bidder for the assets, which initially attracted interest from companies such as Glencore and Yancoal. The Anglo American assets include the Moranbah North and Grosvenor metallurgical coal mines, and some market analysts say the deal should generate significant synergies for BHP.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, GLENCORE PLC, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, AMERICAN METALS AND COAL INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED, XCOAL ENERGY AND RESOURCES LLC, BM ALLIANCE COAL OPERATIONS PTY LTD, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, TRIBECA GLOBAL NATURAL RESOURCES FUND, AUSTRALIAN FOUNDATION INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED – ASX AFI, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Rio Tinto sells shuttered coal mine for $1

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 5-Jul-16

Australian-listed TerraCom will pay just $A1 for Rio Tinto’s Blair Athol thermal coal mine in Queensland. The deal was Rio Tinto’s third attempt to divest the mine, which was mothballed in 2012. However, Rio Tinto will contribute to the cost of rehabilitating some 50 hectares of land that has already been mined at the site. TerraCom aims to resume production at the mine by the end of 2016.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, TERRACOM LIMITED – ASX TER, LINC ENERGY LIMITED, BLAIR ATHOL COAL, J-POWER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, JAPAN COAL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, STANMORE COAL LIMITED – ASX SMR, VALE SA