MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA

MinRes chairman in line for $11m windfall

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Original article by Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 19 : 24-Sep-25

The annual salary of Mineral Resources’ non-executive chairman Malcolm Bundey comprises $750,000 in cash and shares. However, Bundey will also be entitled to 780,000 stock options, subject to approval by shareholders at the iron ore and lithium miner’s AGM in November. His stock options will vest between $30 and $40 a share, and they have an exercise price of $25.40. Bundey’s options will be worth about $11.39m if the company’s shares remain above $40 at certain points over the next three years. Mineral Resources’ shares are currently trading at around $40, having reached a low of $14 in April.

CORPORATES
MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN

Northern Minerals bets on non-China premium

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Original article by Peter Ker, Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 17-Sep-25

Northern Minerals has released the definitive feasibility study for its Browns Range rare earths project in Western Australia. It estimates that the project will cost about $592 million and have a mine life of 11 years. Browns Range will produce rare earths such as dysprosium, terbium, neodymium and praseodymium. The latter two are currently fetching about $US70 per kilogram, but Northern Minerals says it hopes to receive about $US107/kg for the rare earths it produces at Browns Range; it adds that prices could potentially rise to around $US138/kg if the world moves to aggressively decouple from Chinese supply chains.

CORPORATES
NORTHERN MINERALS LIMITED – ASX NTU

BHP chief issues warning on impact of Australia’s inflated energy costs

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Original article by Perry Williams
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 16-Sep-25

BHP CEO Mike Henry has told a shareholder forum that the cost of electricity in Australia is much higher than in countries that it is competing with for investments, with Henry citing the US as a prime example. He said that Australia needs to have "stable, reliable and affordable energy on the path to net zero"; he also noted that the resurgence in demand for nuclear power has boosted demand for uranium, with BHP among the world’s top 10 uranium producers. On the question of copper, BHP is aiming to more than double production in South Australia over the next decade, although a final investment decision on a major smelter upgrade at its Olympic Dam mine is not expected until 2028.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

Rio Tinto in sweetheart tax deal with Guinea junta

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Original article by Peter Ker, Mark Wembridge
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 18 : 10-Sep-25

Rio Tinto and its partners have negotiated a corporate tax rate of just 15 per cent for the rail and port component of the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea. This tax rate will apply for the first 17 years of operation of the port and rail infrastructure, before rising to 25 per cent; this compares with the standard corporate tax rate of 35 per cent in Guinea. The iron ore mines will have a different tax arrangement. Rio Tinto, Singapore-based Winning International and Chinese steelmaker Baowu are investing $US23.2 billion ($35.1 billion) on the two Simandou iron ore mines and the associated rail and port infrastructure. Iron ore shipments are slated to commence in November.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, WINNING INTERNATIONAL, CHINA BAOWU STEEL GROUP CORPORATION LIMITED

BHP pays $110m to settle dam class action

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 15 : 10-Sep-25

BHP has reached an out-of-court settlement over a class action that was launched on behalf of Australian investors who bought its shares in the three years or so before the collapse of an iron ore tailings dam in Brazil on 5 November 2015. BHP’s shares fell by 22 per cent in the wake of the disaster; amongst other things, BHP was accused of failing to disclose material information to the market and engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct by claiming that safety was its highest priority. BHP agreed to pay $110m shortly before the case was scheduled to be heard by the Federal Court. However, US-based litigation funder G&E KTMC Funding is expected to be entitled to a significant share of the payout.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, G&E KTMC FUNDING

South32 chief in blast over green tape

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 17 : 3-Sep-25

Diversified miner South32 battled the bureaucracy for more than seven years to secure approval to continue operating its Worley bauxite and alumina business in Western Australia. Meanwhile, difficulty in gaining approval for an extension to the Dendrobium coal mine in the Illawarra region of NSW prompted South32 to sell the asset in 2024. South32 CEO Graham Kerr says the Trump administration has made it much easier to gain environmental approval for US mining projects compared with Australia. The company is on track to gain all approvals for its Hermosa critical minerals project in less than four years; it was the first project to be added to the FAST-41 list.

CORPORATES
SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32

Trump slams activists over Rio, BHP copper mine delay

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Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 20-Aug-25

The US Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service division gave final environmental approval for the Resolute Copper project in June. However, the US 9th Circuit Court has granted a temporary administrative injunction to block the transfer of land that is necessary for the BHP and Rio Tinto project in Arizona to proceed to its next stage. President Donald Trump has criticised the coalition of activists that had sought the injunction; he has stated on the Truth Social platform that the activists are "anti-American" and represent other countries that compete in the copper sector. Trump also targeted the "radical left" court for delaying the copper project.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, RESOLUTION COPPER MINING LLC, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE. FOREST SERVICE, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

BHP cuts spending, warns of job losses to weather slide in earnings

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 20-Aug-25

BHP has posted a 2024-25 underlying net profit of $US10.15bn ($15.63bn), which is 26 per cent lower than previously and slightly below analysts’ expectations. The result was marred by lower prices for iron ore and coal, although this was partially offset by a higher copper price. Meanwhile, BHP has advised that it will reduce capital expenditure by $US3bn between 2028 and 2030; a decision on the proposed expansion of its Olympic Dam copper mine in South Australia will also be pushed back to 2028. CEO Mike Henry has flagged the potential for job cuts, particularly at its Queensland coal mines due to the impact of lower prices and the state government’s royalties regime.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

‘No regrets’: Rio Tinto’s outgoing CEO marks his scorecard

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Original article by Eric Johnston
The Australian – Page: 13 & 14 : 13-Aug-25

Rio Tinto’s head of iron ore Simon Trott will formally succeed Jakob Stausholm as CEO on 25 August. Stausholm says he is proud of what he has achieved at Rio Tinto since taking up the role in 2021; amongst other things, he addressed the resources group’s cultural issues, rebuilt trust in the company in the wake of the Juukan Gorge scandal and increased its exposure to the copper and lithium sectors. Stausholm has defended Rio Tinto’s move to ramp up exposure to lithium, arguing that it is very clear that the world needs more lithium.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rinehart a winner in rare earths move

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian – Page: 14 : 6-Aug-25

Shares in Lynas Rare Earths and Iluka Resources rose strongly on Tuesday, in response to the federal government’s plans to create a floor price for rare earths. Resources Minister Madeleine King has indicated hat the government is also open to taking equity stakes in rare earths companies, as part of its proposal to establish a critical minerals strategic reserve. Arafura Rare Earths’ CEO Darryl Cuzzubbo says an Australian floor price would disrupt China’s dominance of the rare earths sector; he adds that any strategic reserve for rare earths should be linked to a non-China controlled price index. Mining magnate Gina Rinehart has an eight per cent in Arafura and a similar stake in Lynas.

CORPORATES
LYNAS RARE EARTHS LIMITED – ASX LYC, ILUKA RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX ILU, ARAFURA RARE EARTHS LIMITED – ASX ARU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE AND RESOURCES