IRON MINES AND MINING – WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Qube benefits from Brockman’s maverick move on Pilbara

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 30-Mar-16

Australian-listed iron ore group Brockman Mining still aims to gain access to the rail network of Fortescue Metals Group in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Brockman has secured an agreement for logistics group Qube Holdings to transport iron ore from its Maverick project by road to Port Hedland, but large-scale production will require transport via rail. Brockman estimates that the project’s operating costs will be around $US35 per tonne.

CORPORATES
BROCKMAN MINING LIMITED – ASX BCK, QUBE HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX QUB, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, COURT OF APPEAL (WESTERN AUSTRALIA)

Fortescue shrugs off ratings hit

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 20 : 16-Mar-16

Shares in Fortescue Metals Group closed just 1.55 per cent lower on 15 March 2016, following a decision by Moody’s to downgrade the iron ore producer’s credit rating. In contrast, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto shares both fell by 3.4 per cent. Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley has reduced its share price target for Fortescue from $A2.10 to $A1.90 and downgraded its recommendation on the stock to "underweight".

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Russian sells off FMG stake

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Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 20 : 15-Mar-16

Shares in Fortescue Metals Group closed 2.6 per cent lower at $A2.58 on 14 March 2016, after the iron ore price retreated from recent highs. Meanwhile, Russia-based Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel has trimmed its stake in Fortescue by 0.64 per cent. The group is believed to have sold 20 million shares at $A2.55 apiece. The transaction follows recent speculation that Magnitogorsk could reduce its stake to capitalise on Fortescue’s share price rally in 2016.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MAGNITOGORSK IRON AND STEEL WORKS (MMK), MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, STANDARD AND POOR’S CORPORATION, FITCH RATINGS LIMITED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, VALE SA, BLOOMBERG LP, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

700 jobs to go as Rio strips its costs

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 20 : 3-Mar-16

Rio Tinto has declined to comment on media reports which suggested that it plans to shed between 500 and 700 workers at its iron ore mines in Western Australia. The job cuts are part of its goal to reduce global costs by $US2bn ($A2.6bn) over the next two years. Rio Tinto previously reduced its Western Australian iron ore headcount by 800 in 2015, and its costs have been slashed by $US6.2bn over the last three years.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Iron ore price descends towards Roy Hill’s break-even threshold

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 2-Feb-16

POSCO has estimated that the Roy Hill iron ore project’s break-even price is currently in the low $US40 per tonne range. The South Korean steel producer, which has a 12.5 per cent stake in the project, expects Roy Hill’s marginal cost of production to fall to the mid-$US30/per tonne range when it reaches full capacity in 2017. The benchmark iron ore price has fallen below $US42/per tonne in early February 2016. Fortescue Metals Group’s break-even price is said to be between $US28 and $US32 per tonne.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL IRON ORE PTY LTD, POSCO, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, CHINA STEEL CORPORATION, MARUBENI CORPORATION, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Rio eases off its iron ore expansion

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 18 : 20-Jan-16

Rio Tinto expects to produce 350 million tonnes of iron ore in Western Australia and Canada in 2016, which is slightly below market forecasts of 355 million tonnes. Total production was 327 million tonnes in 2015, with the Pilbara region accounting for 310 million tonnes. However, Rio had initially flagged Pilbara output of 330 million tonnes. The latest guidance suggests that Rio Tinto may not achieve its Pilbara production target of 335 million tonnes in 2016.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, IRON ORE COMPANY OF CANADA, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Gindalbie ‘at risk’ of collapse

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 18 : 13-Jan-16

The future of Gindalbie Metals is uncertain following Ansteel’s decision to cease providing funding for the Karara magnetite ore mine in Western Australia. The Chinese group has a 52 per cent stake in the mine, which has a workforce of 1,000. Gindalbie has advised that there now are doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern, prompting its shares to fall to a record low of $A0.08 on 12 January 2016. The stock traded at $A1.40 in 2011, when the iron ore price was around $A180 per tonne.

CORPORATES
GINDALBIE METALS LIMITED – ASX GBG, ANSHAN IRON AND STEEL COMPANY, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Fears grow for 1000 mine jobs

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Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 17 : 11-Jan-16

Shares in Gindalbie Metals went into a trading halt in the week ended 8 December 2016, ahead of an announcement regarding the Karara magnetite mine. Gindalbie has a 47.84 per cent stake in the Western Australian mine, which is operating at a loss due to the downturn in the iron ore price. China-based Ansteel owns 52.16 per cent of the mine, and its continued support will be essential for the mine to remain open.

CORPORATES
GINDALBIE METALS LIMITED – ASX GBG, ANSHAN IRON AND STEEL COMPANY, KARARA MINING LIMITED, BC IRON LIMITED – ASX BCI, GRANGE RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GRR

Rinehart dreams, rival falters

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Original article by Peter Ker, Julie-anne Sprague
The Age – Page: 23 : 11-Dec-15

Bulk carrier "MV Anangel Explorer" departed Port Hedland with the first shipment of iron ore from Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill project on 10 December 2015. Despite the downturn in the iron price, Roy Hill CEO Barry Fitzgerald is confident that the $A10bn project will be profitable, while executive director Tad Watroba notes that the bulk of its output will be sold via supply contacts rather than on the spot market. Meanwhile, BC Iron has advised that a review of its Nullagine iron ore mine will have no impact on its other mines.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL IRON ORE PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, BC IRON LIMITED – ASX BCI, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, POSCO, MARUBENI CORPORATION, CHINA STEEL CORPORATION, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

On eve of triumph, Rinehart lashes out at sceptics

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Original article by Julie-anne Sprague
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 10-Dec-15

Bulk carrier "MV Anangel Explorer" is scheduled to leave Port Hedland with the first shipment from the Roy Hill iron ore project on 10 December 2015. Exports had initially been slated to commence by the end of the third quarter, and mining magnate Gina Rinehart has criticised the media for unduly focusing on the delays at Roy Hill rather than the project’s achievements. Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting holds a 70 per cent stake in the project.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL IRON ORE PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, SAMSUNG C&T CORPORATION, POSCO, MARUBENI CORPORATION, CHINA STEEL CORPORATION