MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA

BHP’s robot trucks head to coal mines

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 17 & 24 : 13-Nov-19

BHP has advised that it will commence the roll-out of driverless haulage trucks at its Goonyella Riverside coal mine in 2020. The resources giant will eventually operate a fleet of 86 autonomous trucks at the mine, but it has stressed that the move will not result in any forced redundancies. BHP already uses driverless trucks at its iron ore mines in the Pilbara, but Goonyella will be the first large-scale use of the technology in the coal sector.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, BM ALLIANCE COAL OPERATIONS PTY LTD, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC

Rio knew of project woes, UK court told

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 20 : 13-Nov-19

Rio Tinto advised earlier in 2019 that the underground expansion of the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia could cost up to $US1.9 billion more than previously forecast. It also indicated that the expansion project may take up to 30 months longer than expected to complete. However, a former general manager at the mine has claimed that he raised concerns about a blowout in the cost and completion date for the expansion in July 2018. He has filed an unfair dismissal claim against Rio Tinto in the UK.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GREAT BRITAIN. EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL, TURQUOISE HILL RESOURCES LIMITED

Riches keep rolling in for Rinehart

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian – Page: 22 : 12-Nov-19

Hancock Prospecting posted a net profit of $2.6bn in 2018-19, compared with just $443m in 2016, while its revenue increased from $1.6bn to $8.4bn over the same period. Hancock, which is controlled by mining magnate Gina Rinehart, benefited from a sustained rally in the iron ore price in 2018-19. The Roy Hill iron ore project was a major contributor to Hancock’s earnings for the financial year, with a profit of $1.38bn and revenue of $5.16bn. Rinehart’s wealth was estimated at $13.12bn in March.

CORPORATES
HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD

The $10bn tax company

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 44-45 : 12-Nov-19

BHP’s tax bill in Australia was $US4.72bn ($6.79bn) in 2018-19, compared with $US1.79bn ($2.33bn) two years earlier. BHP contends that when state government royalties on its iron ore and coking coal exports are taken into account, its total economic contribution in Australia was about $US7bn ($10bn) in 2018-19. BHP’s relations with the Australian Taxation Office have improved in recent years, and second commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn recently praised the resources giant’s annual economic contribution report.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALIA

Orocobre swims as its lithium rivals experience sinking feeling

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 11-Nov-19

The share price of lithium miner Orocobre has fallen by just 13.7 per cent so far in 2019, while some of its peers have shed more than 50 per cent of their value. Orocobre also defied the general downtrend in the lithium sector by posting an underlying profit of $US24.8m ($36m) for 2018-19 and cashflow from operations of $US8.48m. Orocobre’s focus is on lithium carbonate, the price of which has not fallen as sharply as that of spodumene concentrate, which is produced by its major rivals.

CORPORATES
OROCOBRE LIMITED – ASX ORE, GALAXY RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GXY, PILBARA MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLS, ALTURA MINING LIMITED – ASX AJM, MINERAL RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX MIN, ALITA RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX A40, LIVENT INCORPORATED

Drought may force mines to shut down

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 20 : 11-Nov-19

Aeris Resources has warned that lack of sufficient water supply may force the closure of its Tritton copper mine in New South Wales. Aeris has advised that the mine may not have enough water to keep operating beyond February, and it will seek state government approval to access the Nyngan to Cobar pipeline. Aurelia Metals has also indicated that the drought in NSW may result in the loss of its Peak gold and base metals mine’s entire water allocation in early 2020. The mining sector is a major employer in the state’s Cobar region.

CORPORATES
AERIS RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX AIS, AURELIA METALS LIMITED – ASX AMI, GLENCORE PLC, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, EVOLUTION MINING LIMITED – ASX EVN, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, COBAR SHIRE COUNCIL, AUSTRALIA. BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY

BHP chiefs defend its green push

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Original article by Peter Ker, Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 8-Nov-19

BHP held its annual meeting of shareholders in Sydney on 7 November, at which over 27 per cent voted in favour of a resolution that called for the mining firm to quit groups that do not support the Paris climate agreement. The strong vote was despite CEO Andrew Mackenzie saying that industry associations were better able to achieve solutions to global issues than companies acting on their own, while chairman Ken MacKenzie claimed environmentalists should welcome its plan to spend $US400 million on climate change mitigation

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

BHP succession once again in the spotlight

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 20 : 7-Nov-19

BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie took the helm in May 2013, with his appointment having been announced at the resources giant’s half-year results presentation in February of that year. The position of former CEO Marius Kloppers had already come under scrutiny at BHP’s 2012 annual meeting in Australia; given Mackenzie’s tenure, shareholders at the 2019 annual meeting may be seeking guidance on succession planning. However, Mackenzie’s position is much more secure than Kloppers’ was in 2012.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

Independence makes $312m hostile bid

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 5-Nov-19

Nickel miner Independence Group is offering one of its shares for every share in Panoramic Resources, valuing the takeover target at $0.476 per share. Independence MD Peter Bradford says Panoramic had previously rejected several approaches regarded a friendly merger, prompting the hostile bid. Bradford anticipates further consolidation among nickel miners, and he expects the recent rise in the price of nickel to be sustained.

CORPORATES
INDEPENDENCE GROUP NL – ASX IGO, PANORAMIC RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX PAN, ZETA RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX ZER, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

Rio Tinto could hit iron ore goal in 2022

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 1-Nov-19

The head of Rio Tinto’s iron ore division, Chris Salisbury, has told investors that production at its Koodaideri mine in Western Australia is slated for late 2021. He also said the mine will give Rio Tinto the capacity to ship 360 million tonnes of iron ore from the Pilbara each year. This target was first set in 2013, but to date the most Rio Tinto has shopped from the Pilbara in a single year is 338.2 million tonnes. Analysts expect its Pilbara shipments to total 325.5 million tonnes in 2019.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, VUMA FINANCIAL LIMITED