MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA

Lithium stocks one deal away from rocketing, says broker

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 16-Oct-24

Data from S&P Global Platts shows that the spot price of spodumene is currently trading at around $US760 per tonne. However, E&P Financial Group forecasts that the price of spodumene will rise to $US850/tonne in the second quarter of fiscal 2025, and $US1,000/tonne in the third quarter. E&P analyst Adam Martin is also upbeat about the outlook for Australian-listed lithium stocks in the wake of Rio Tinto’s $9.9bn deal to acquire Arcadium Lithium.

CORPORATES
S&P GLOBAL PLATTS, E&P FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX EP1, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ARCADIUM LITHIUM PLC – ASX LTM

Rio Tinto’s red alert on green laws killing mining

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 2 : 16-Oct-24

Rio Tinto contends that the federal government must find a balance between protecting the environment and supporting the resources sector. Rio Tinto’s Australian CEO Kellie Parker has stressed the need to take into account different perspectives and practical thinking in the nation’s approach to environmental protection, as well as a regulatory system that supports and enhances the contribution that the resources sector makes to the economy and society. Parker adds that Rio Tinto is committed to meeting rigorous environmental standards.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Bat with bite puts end to ore plan

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 6 : 15-Oct-24

Rio Tinto has advised that it will not proceed with the Giles Mini iron ore mine, which was to be part of the broader Rhodes Ridge project in the Pilbara. Rio Tinto and its partners in Giles Mini have withdrawn their application to develop the deposit due to concerns about its impact on the habitat of the ghost bat, which is classified as a vulnerable species. However, the Rhodes Ridge project will still go ahead, despite also being home to a sub-population of the carnivorous ghost bat.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Market backs Rio’s $10bn Arcadium play

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Glen Norris
The Australian – Page: 19 : 11-Oct-24

Citigroup estimates that Rio Tinto’s $9.9bn deal to acquire Arcadium Lithium will generate annual synergies of about $125m. The firm expects Arcadium shareholders to back the deal, contending that the downturn in the price of the battery mineral means that is it is currently cheaper to buy lithium assets rather than build new mines. The deal will make Rio Tinto one of the world’s biggest lithium producers, and CEO Jakob Stausholm says he believes that the transaction is a "risk worth taking". He has also rejected suggestions that Rio Tinto is paying too much for Arcadium.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ARCADIUM LITHIUM PLC – ASX LTM

Green issues curb Hancock project target

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 9-Oct-24

Documents filed with the Western Australian government show that Gina Rinehart has significantly scaled back the size of her proposed Mulga Downs iron ore project. The Mulga Downs mine was initially slated to produce 20 million tonnes of iron ore each year, but this has been reduced to 12 million tonnes. The amount of vegetation to be cleared at site has also been reduced from 8,422 hectares to just 4,339 hectares. Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting has a 95 per cent stake in the subsidiary that is developing Mulga Downs.

CORPORATES
HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD

Rio Tinto’s Argentina dream gets investor OK

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker, Elouise Fowler
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 9-Oct-24

Shares in Arcadium Lithium have rallied in the wake of Rio Tinto’s takeover approach, and the company’s market capitalisation has risen to $6.5bn. However, some analysts regard the timing of the bid to be opportunistic, given that Arcadium’s market cap was $10.6bn in May, prior to a sharp fall in the lithium price. Arcadium has two lithium projects in Argentina, and investors are generally supportive of Rio Tinto’s bid, noting that the pro-business stance of the South American country’s new government will help to offset any sovereign risk.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ARCADIUM LITHIUM PLC – ASX LTM

Fortescue eyes $50m carbon free kick

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 8-Oct-24

The federal government has indicated that companies will be able to start trading its Safety Mechanism Credits from early 2025. The new carbon credit scheme will reward companies with one SMC for every extra tonne of carbon they cease emitting beyond their designated target. Given that Fortescue has a goal of achieving ‘real zero’ emissions across its iron ore mines by the end of this decade, it could be in line to earn about 1.4 million SMCs in 2030. Analysts suggest that Fortescue could gain additional revenue of between $50m and $150m by selling these credits to other emitters. However, chairman Andrew Forrest has been a vocal critic of carbon offsets in the past.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE LIMITED – ASX FMG

Arcadium move could cost Rio $9b: investors

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker, Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 19 : 8-Oct-24

Wilson Asset Management’s Matt Haupt is "broadly supportive" of Rio Tinto’s takeover bid for Arcadium Lithium. He argues that the target is worth more as part of a larger company than a stand-alone business. Rio Tinto confirmed the takeover approach on Monday, and emphasised that there is no certainty that the talks will result in a deal. Arcadium’s market capitalisation was about $US3.3bn ($4.85bn) on Friday. However, Rob Stein from Morningstar estimates that Arcadium is valued at around $US8.5bn, based on the sum ‘of its parts’; he adds that Rio Tinto may need to offer a control premium to reflect the synergies arising from combining the companies’ lithium projects in Argentina.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ARCADIUM LITHIUM PLC – ASX LTM, WILSON ASSET MANAGEMENT, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD

Paladin’s $1.5b uranium deal slowed by national security probe

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 3-Oct-24

Paladin Energy had expected to complete a deal to acquire Toronto-listed Fission Uranium by the end of September. However, the timetable for closing the $1.5bn deal is uncertain following the Canadian government’s decision to initiate a national security review of the transaction. A Chinese state-owned entity has a 25 per cent stake in Paladin’s flagship Langer Heinrich uranium mine in Namibia; another such company holds an 11 per cent stake in Fission and tried to block the Paladin deal.

CORPORATES
PALADIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX PDN, FISSION URANIUM CORPORATION

Green transition tailwind at our backs: Rio and BHP

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Cameron England
The Australian – Page: 20 : 2-Oct-24

Rio Tinto Jakob Stausholm says the energy transition is at the heart of the resources group’s strategy. He has used a London Metals Exchange speech to argue that while the transition to net zero emissions is underway, it is not occurring quickly enough; he adds that the energy transition will significantly boost demand for the minerals that Rio Tinto produces, including copper, aluminium, lithium and high-grade iron ore for ‘green’ steel. Meanwhile, BHP has forecast that the energy transition will boost global demand for copper.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, LONDON METAL EXCHANGE LIMITED