MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA

Coal contract prices expected to stay high

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 9-Nov-16

The spot price of premium hard coking coal has risen to more than $US289 per tonne in early November 2016. Coal producers and buyers recently settled on a contract price of $US200/tonne for the December quarter. Whitehaven Coal CEO Paul Flynn says the spike in the spot price should ensure that contract prices rise again in the March 2017 quarter. He also anticipates a rise in the price of thermal and semi-soft coking coal.

CORPORATES
WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, GLENCORE PLC

SA power threat to copper project: OZ

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 8-Nov-16

OZ Minerals’ pre-feasibility study for its Carrapateena project in South Australia shows that annual copper and gold output would be 15 per cent and 19 per cent higher respectively than previous guidance had indicated. Production is expected to begin in the March 2019 quarter, assuming OZ Mineral’s board gives final approval to the project in the first half of 2017. However, OZ Minerals has warned that SA’s energy supply is a major risk to the project.

CORPORATES
OZ MINERALS LIMITED – ASX OZL, ELECTRANET SA, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS

BHP will shake up hiring to get to 50 per cent women

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Original article by Joanne Gray
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 8-Nov-16

BHP Billiton employs about 28,000 people worldwide, but only about 17.5 per cent of them are women. BHP’s Mike Henry concedes that it will be a challenge to lift the proportion of women in its workforce to 50 per cent by the target date of 2025. However, women now account for some 38 per cent of new hires at BHP, and Henry notes that the group was able to widen the field of applicants for jobs at its remote operations centre in Brisbane by waiving the requirement for 15 years’ experience in the mining sector.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, LINKEDIN CORPORATION

Jervois Mining and the great scandium battle

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Original article by Trevor Skykes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 4-Nov-16

Jervois Mining’s three directors were paid $A580,000 in salaries and fees in 2015-16 which is a generous sum, considering that the board met only seven times. The directors’ remuneration contrasts with Jervois Mining’s negative cash flow and a pre-tax loss of $A941,000. Jervois Mining’s scandium deposit made the company attractive to Scandium Developments International which urges Jervois Mining’s shareholders to support its attempt to remove the board of the mining company.

CORPORATES
JERVOIS MINING LIMITED – ASX JRV, SCANDIUM DEVELOPMENTS INTERNATIONAL, AUZEX RESOURCES LIMITED, NORTON GOLD FIELDS LIMITED, BLOOM ENERGY, EXPLAURUM LIMITED – ASX EXU, PLATYPUS MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLP, AUSTRALIAN MINES LIMITED – ASX AUZ, AUSTRALIA. TAKEOVERS PANEL

Fortescue shares slide on Hunan Valin bonds report

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Original article by Tess Ingram
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 3-Nov-16

Bloomberg has reported that China-based Hunan Valin Group is seeking buyers for up to $US369m worth of Fortescue Metals Group’s convertible bonds. The bonds, which are slated to mature in five years, can be converted into some 65 million shares in the pure-play iron ore producer. Hunan Valin has a 14.2 per cent stake in Fortescue, whose shares closed 4.7 per cent lower at $A5.22 on 2 November 2016.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, HUNAN VALIN IRON AND STEEL GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, BLOOMBERG LP, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, HARBINGER CAPITAL PARTNERS, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rio Tinto moves jobs to Singapore

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Original article by Tess Ingram, Matthew Stevens
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 3-Nov-16

Rio Tinto plans to shift more non-operational roles from Australia to Singapore, as part of a strategy to streamline its global organisational structure. The resources giant plans to centralise roles such as market analysis and economics in Singapore, where it currently boasts about 300 employees. Rio Tinto has also relocated a number of marketing roles in Perth to Singapore during 2016.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Power a risk for Olympic game plan

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Original article by Michael Owen
The Australian – Page: 8 : 2-Nov-16

Mike Henry, the head of BHP Billiton’s iron ore and coal operations in Australia, says the resources giant will not proceed with an open-cut expansion of its Olympic Dam mine in South Australia. He adds that BHP may expand the existing underground mine, but he cautions that any further investment may be affected by uncertainty regarding the state’s electricity supply and the cost of electricity. Production at Olympic Dam was disrupted by the state-wide power outage in September 2016.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ELECTRANET SA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

AutoHaul fix nearing for Rio Tinto

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 2-Nov-16

Andy Barr, the CEO of Italy-based Ansaldo STS, says the group is close to completing some major projects in Australia. Ansaldo is a key supplier for Rio Tinto’s AutoHaul project to automate trains at its iron ore mines in Western Australia. Although Barr did not name Rio Tinto, the resources giant is believed to be one of the customers to which he was referring, The AutoHaul project has been delayed by software problems, which have prompted Rio Tinto to scale back its iron ore export forecasts for 2016 and 2017.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ANSALDO STS, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, QUEENSLAND RAIL

BHP stalwart stands down after 40 years

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 21 : 28-Oct-16

BHP Billiton veteran Dean Dalla Valle is expected to seek other roles in the corporate sector when he steps down as COO in March 2017. He does not intend to retire when he ends a four-decade career with the resources giant, and may opt for a senior executive position at a smaller company. BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie has praised Dalla Valle’s contribution to the company. He had been regarded as a candidate to eventually succeed Mackenzie.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ORICA LIMITED – ASX ORI, TRANSURBAN GROUP LIMITED – ASX TCL, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, MAVERICK DRILLING AND EXPLORATION LIMITED – ASX MAD, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA, VALE SA

Iron ore won’t drop to $US40: Fortescue CEO

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Original article by Tess Ingram
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 28-Oct-16

The iron ore price has rallied to more than $US60 per tonne, compared with just $US38/tonne in late 2015. Fortescue Metals Group CEO Nev Power says his company expects the price of the steel input to trade within a range of $US40-$US60 in 2017. He adds that an improvement in sentiment could prompt a further rise, adding that there is unlikely to be a large enough fall in demand for iron ore in China for the price to retreat to around $US40. Morgan Stanley forecasts that iron ore will average $US42 in the December 2016 quarter.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, VALE SA