MINING CORPORATIONS – AUSTRALIA

Brazil mine ruling brings doubt

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 21-Mar-19

The iron ore price fell sharply on 20 March after a Brazilian court ruled that Vale can resume production at its Brucutu mine, whose annual capacity is 30 million tonnes. The ruling also weighed on the share price of Fortescue Metals Group, which has been a major beneficiary of reduced output in Brazil in the wake of the Brumadinho tailings dam disaster in January. Fortescue COO Greg Lilleyman has told a conference in Perth that Chinese demand for the company’s lower-grade iron ore remains strong, and stockpiles of its ore at Chinese ports have been falling.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, VALE SA, MOUNT GIBSON IRON LIMITED – ASX MGX, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

Delays imperil 300 mining jobs

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 20-Mar-19

New Hope Corporation has posted a 2018-19 interim net profit of $159.8m, which is 33 per cent higher than previously. The result was boosted by its increased stake in the Bengalla coal mine in New South Wales. Meanwhile, MD Shane Stephan has warned that the company will have to retrench workers at its New Acland mine in Queensland if it does not gain approval for its third-stage expansion by the September quarter. New Acland boasts 300 direct employees and 500 contractors.

CORPORATES
NEW HOPE CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX NHC, MORGANS FINANCIAL LIMITED

As decision looms, BHP’s potash passion play fades – for now

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 22 : 18-Mar-19

It is estimated that commencing production at BHP’s Jansen potash project in Canada will require a capital investment of about $US5bn ($7bn). BHP has yet to make a firm commitment to the project, and observers say the resources group cannot continue to postpone a decision indefinitely. On one hand, potash is likely to be a boom commodity in coming years as demand for agricultural crops in regions such as Asia grows. However, the Jansen project will deliver relatively low returns for BHP investors, while global supply of potash is increasing.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, POTASH CORPORATION OF SASKATCHEWAN INCORPORATED

Newcrest focus turns to Canada

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 22 : 13-Mar-19

Barrick Gold will not proceed with a takeover bid for Newmont Mining Corporation. The two groups will instead combine their gold mines in Nevada via a joint venture arrangement. Newcrest Mining had been touted as a likely bidder for Newmont’s Australian assets if the merger had proceeded. Meanwhile, Rahul Anand of Morgan Stanley says Newcrest’s expertise in block cave mining makes the Red Chris gold mine in Canada a ‘natural fit’ for the company. Newcrest CEO Sandeep Biswas has indicated that the Red Chris deal does not preclude further acquisitions.

CORPORATES
BARRICK GOLD CORPORATION, NEWMONT MINING CORPORATION, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, HARMONY GOLD MINING COMPANY LIMITED, LUNDIN MINING CORPORATION

BHP’s epic rail fail: crew on wrong train

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 & 22 : 13-Mar-19

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released its preliminary report into a November 2018 incident in which BHP was forced to deliberately derail an iron ore train in the Pilbara. It has revealed that BHP dispatched a maintenance crew to the train after its emergency braking system failed. However, the maintenance team went to a second train that had been stopped as a precaution, so the manual handbrake on the faulty train was not engaged. BHP contends that it would not have prevented the "roll-away", which is estimated to have cost the company about $300m in lost revenue.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, AUSTRALIAN TRANSPORT SAFETY BUREAU

Gindalbie accepts $39m takeover

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 20 : 12-Mar-19

Directors of iron ore junior Gindalbie Metals have recommended that shareholders accept a $39m takeover offer from China-based Ansteel. Gindalbie and Ansteel are joint venture partners in the Karara magnetite mine in the Mid-West region of Western Australia, and Gindalbie wrote down the value of its 48 per cent stake in the project to zero in 2014. Gindalbie also intends to demerge its Coda Minerals subsidiary.

CORPORATES
GINDALBIE METALS LIMITED – ASX GBG, ANSHAN IRON AND STEEL COMPANY, CODA MINERALS LIMITED, ATLAS LEAD GENERATION PTY LTD, BCI MINERALS LIMITED – ASX BCI

Newcrest’s $1.1bn North American bet

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 20 : 12-Mar-19

Newcrest Mining CEO Sandeep Biswas says more acquisitions are possible following an $US806.5m ($1.1bn) deal to acquire a 70 per cent stake in the Red Chris gold-copper mine in Canada. Red Chris is currently an open-cut mine, but it has the potential to yield significantly more gold and copper by using block caving. Newcrest is also widely considered to be a contender to acquire from Barrick Gold and Newmont Mining if their proposed merger proceeds.

CORPORATES
NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, BARRICK GOLD CORPORATION, NEWMONT MINING CORPORATION, IMPERIAL METALS CORPORATION, NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX NST, OCEANAGOLD CORPORATION – ASX OGC, EVOLUTION MINING LIMITED – ASX EVN, ST BARBARA LIMITED – ASX SBM

Rio Tinto predicts new copper mine will be built in Western Australia

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Original article by Darren Gray
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 9-Mar-19

Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques is confident a copper mine will be constructed at the site of its discovery in Western Australia’s Paterson Ranges. However, Jacques said he is unsure whether it will be Rio Tinto that builds that mine. Jacques was speaking at the official opening of its new $2.6 billion Arum bauxite mine on Cape York. Jacques said much more drilling needs to be undertaken at its copper discovery in WA to determine what lies beneath the surface.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Fortescue investor reduces stake

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Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 7-Mar-19

Hunan Valin Group has capitalised on the recent rally in Fortescue Metals Group’s share price by cutting its stake in the pure-play iron ore miner by 1.14 per cent, reducing it to 13.06 per cent. China-based Hunan Valin is Fortescue’s second-biggest shareholder, and acquired its initial stake of 17.4 per cent in 2009. The company last reduced its Fortescue stake in 2016.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, HUNAN VALIN IRON AND STEEL GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

High gold price drives production to record level

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 19 : 4-Mar-19

Data from Surbiton Associates shows that Australia’s gold production rose to a record 317 tonnes in 2018. Based on the average spot price for the year, the record output was worth some $17bn. The previous annual production record was 314.5 tonnes in 1997, while output had reached an all-time low of just 220 tonnes in 2008. Surbiton director Sandra Close notes that Australian-listed producers ramped up their gold hedging in 2018, particularly in the final quarter.

CORPORATES
SURBITON ASSOCIATES PTY LTD, GOLD FIELDS LIMITED, GOLD ROAD RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GOR, KIRKLAND LAKE GOLD LIMITED – ASX KLA, NEWMONT MINING CORPORATION, BARRICK GOLD CORPORATION