Australia/New Caledonia/Papua New Guinea Mining – Page 44

RPT-Wesfarmers’ soft bid for Kidman spotlights lithium’s financing issues – by Melanie Burton (Reuters U.S. – May 5, 2019)

May 6, 2019

https://www.reuters.com/

MELBOURNE, May 3 (Reuters) – Wesfarmers Ltd’s bid for Australia’s Kidman Resources undervalues the lithium miner, analysts said on Friday, reflecting the financing difficulties the sector faces even as electric car makers warn of raw material shortages.

Wesfarmers offered a 47 percent premium for Kidman, which is developing the Mount Holland project in Western Australia through a joint venture with battery chemicals maker Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM).

But even that offer, which valued the company at A$776 million ($543 million) or A$1.90 per share, undervalued the company, said analysts at J.P. Morgan and Canaccord Genuity.

U.S, allies propose financing for power plant for Papua New Guinea gold mine – by Colin Packham (Reuters U.S. – May 6, 2019)

May 6, 2019

https://www.reuters.com/

SYDNEY (Reuters) – The United States and a group of Pacific allies are proposing to finance a power plant to kick-start the Wafi-Golpu mine in Papua New Guinea, one of the world’s largest untapped gold resources, two sources familiar with the plan said.

The proposal would be the first to be funded by a partnership of the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Japan that pledged to support electricity projects in Papua New Guinea (PNG) during the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation Summit held in November in the capital of Port Moresby.

The countries promised to fund projects to provide electricity for up to 70 percent of the PNG population by 2030, a centerpiece of efforts to undercut Chinese influence in the Pacific.

Opinion: Australian mining mourns the gentlest of its giants – by Matthew Stevens (Australian Financial Review – May 2, 2019)

May 2, 2019

https://www.afr.com/

On Wednesday morning, Australia lost one of its greatest citizens. Sir Arvi Parbo died at his home in Vermont South in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs. He was 93.

The last time I chatted to Sir Arvi at any length he was shrouded in sheaves of paper. The ageing mining knight was coursing through drilling data offered to him by one of his family of Western Mining Corporation proteges.

The geological data revealed nothing to me. But the great man’s eyes flitted from line to numerical line, drawing knowledge from data as they danced past the numbers. As he flipped back the last interlinked page of print out, he smiled encouragingly and said: “We still have a long way to go then.”

Wesfarmers bets on electric cars with $544 million bid for Australian lithium miner Kidman – by Tom Westbrook and Melanie Burton (Reuters U.S. – May 1, 2019)

May 2, 2019

https://www.reuters.com/

SYDNEY/MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australian retail conglomerate Wesfarmers Ltd offered A$776 million ($544 million) to buy lithium miner Kidman Resources Ltd on Thursday, its second bid in two months to deepen its exposure to high-tech minerals.

The offer, which has the backing of Kidman’s board and major shareholders, was pitched at a 47 percent premium to Kidman’s last closing price and the stock soared to just below the A$1.90 offer price at the start of trade.

For Wesfarmers, which last year sold out of coal mining and in March bid A$1.5 billion for rare-earth producer Lynas Corp Ltd, it is its firmest bet yet on future demand for raw materials behind products from electric cars to wind turbines.

RPT-COLUMN-Poor April for global seaborne coal exporters masks overall resilience – by Clyde Russell (Reuters U.S. – May 2, 2019)

May 2, 2019

https://www.reuters.com/

LAUNCESTON, Australia, May 2 (Reuters) – Coal exporters suffered a poor April with seaborne volumes dropping from the previous month amid slack demand, but the overall picture for the industry so far this year isn’t quite as gloomy as it may appear.

April is not traditionally a strong month for coal demand as it falls between the winter and summer power demand peaks – declining seaborne volumes are to be expected. It’s also worth noting that the world’s top coal exporters have managed to boost shipments on a year-on-year basis, not just in April but also for the first four months of the year.

The strength in export volumes so far in 2019 hasn’t been matched by prices, with benchmark Australian thermal coal trending weaker since reaching a seven-and-a-half-year peak of $119.74 a tonne in July last year.

The Brash Billionaire Who Wants to Make Australia Great Again – by Andrew Heathcote and Ed Johnson (Bloomberg News – April 25, 2019)

April 26, 2019

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Half a world from the White House, another big-talking billionaire wants to make his country great again. Clive Palmer, who made his fortune in mining, is running for the Senate on his right-of-center United Australia Party ticket. Billboards of his smiling face and raised thumbs are spread across the country in advance of next month’s election.

The 65-year-old, whose last foray into politics saw his party implode amid infighting and acrimony, has spent more than $30 million — a significant sum in a country with a population less than 25 million — attempting to win influence with an agenda that includes slashing taxes and doing more to tap Australia’s mineral wealth.

While he’s nowhere near as popular as Donald Trump — polls show he’s unlikely to win any lower house seats — Palmer has enough support to influence the crucial swing state of Queensland.

Digging up Broken Hill’s mining and union history which tells of life and death underground – by Gayle Ball (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – April 25, 2019)

April 26, 2019

https://www.abc.net.au/

For mine workers in Broken Hill buried in the city’s cemetery, “accidentally killed” was an all-too-frequent epitaph. The headstones at Broken Hill’s cemetery tell the story not only of the city’s colourful history, but the progression of workers’ rights.

Broken Hill’s union movement is widely celebrated as playing a pivotal role in securing better working conditions, as well as the eight-hour working day.

Local historian Christine Adams led a tour during this year’s Broken Hill Heritage Festival focusing on graves which highlighted the city’s union and mining past. More than 800 men were killed on silver, lead and zinc mines in the city.

Government approved controversial uranium mine one day before calling the election – by Michael Slezak (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – April 26, 2019)

April 26, 2019

https://www.abc.net.au/

The Morrison Government signed off on a controversial uranium mine one day before calling the federal election, and did not publicly announce the move until the environment department uploaded the approval document the day before Anzac Day.

The Yeelirrie Uranium mine, located 500 kilometres north of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, requires both federal and state approval. The state approval of the proposed mine is still being fought in the state’s Supreme Court by members of the Tjiwarl traditional owners.

In 2016, the West Australian Environment Protection Agency advised the mine not be approved, concluding it posed too great a risk of extinction to some native animals. The former Liberal Barnett government controversially approved the mine in 2017, just weeks before it lost the West Australian election.

BMW to Source Cobalt Directly From Australia, Morocco Mines – by William Clowes (Bloomberg News – April 24, 2019)

April 25, 2019

https://www.bloomberg.com/

BMW AG will buy cobalt directly from mines in Australia and Morocco to ensure the metal purchased for its electric vehicles is sourced responsibly, according to the head of procurement at the German automaker.

The measure comes as the London Metal Exchange carries out a supply-chain review to address concerns that cobalt stored in its warehouses may be linked to child labor. The supply of the commodity, mostly mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo, faced scrutiny in recent years as humanitarian groups said it’s being produced in unethical conditions.

The newly sourced metal will be used in BMW’s next generation of electric vehicles that will be built from 2020, Andreas Wendt said at a briefing in Paris on Tuesday. The company won’t buy directly from small-scale Congolese mines in the short-term, he said.

What could Newmont Mining’s $14b merger with Goldcorp mean for Australian gold mines? – by Matt Brann (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – April 24, 2019)

April 24, 2019

https://www.abc.net.au/

Two of the world’s biggest gold mining companies have merged in a $US10 billion ($14.2 billion) deal, which some analysts are tipping will have ramifications for gold mines in Australia.

Newmont Mining has finalised its merger with the Canadian based Goldcorp to become, it said, the world’s leading gold business with an unmatched portfolio of assets, prospects and talent. In a video statement from the company now known as Newmont Goldcorp, it said, “we’re not looking to be the biggest, we’re determined to be the best”.

Newmont Goldcorp is on track to become the world’s biggest gold producer, but the ABC understands the title is currently held by Barrick-Randgold, another mega gold-mining merger which occurred earlier this year.

COLUMN-Australia’s pro-coal lobby should heed South Korea warning – by Clyde Russell (Reuters India – April 24, 2019)

April 24, 2019

https://in.reuters.com/

LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 24 (Reuters) – A change in South Korea’s energy policy should have absolutely no bearing on the current Australian election campaign, but it should, as it’s a stark warning to politicians who still see a rosy future for coal mines and exports.

Australia is the world’s largest exporter of coal and South Korea has been a reliable customer for decades, taking 43.4 million tonnes of the polluting fuel from Australia in 2018, according to vessel-tracking data compiled by Refinitiv.

However, South Korea is now shifting its energy policy to effectively punish coal and promote both renewable energies and the use of cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Inside Australia’s deepest gold mine — how deep can history go at Gwalia? – by Jarrod Lucas (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – April 21, 2019)

April 23, 2019

https://www.abc.net.au/

A truck driver working at the bottom of Australia’s deepest gold mine gets loaded up with about 55 tonnes of precious cargo — hard rock blasted from the Earth and containing small specks of the yellow metal.

For every tonne trucks cart to the surface there might be only seven grams of gold, the equivalent of about one teaspoon. Driving at the speed limit of 30 kilometres an hour, it takes drivers just under two hours to make their way to the surface to dump their load and head back down.

This is Gwalia in Western Australia’s remote northern Goldfields. Today, it is the deepest trucking mine in the world and can trace its history back to the 1890s when former US president Herbert Hoover was mine manager.

Generalisations about coal are fraught with risks – by Neil Hume (Financial Times – April 17, 2019)

April 17, 2019

https://www.ft.com/

Underlying drivers for fuel prices remain intact despite a softening in Europe’s market

All fossil fuels are not created equal. Take thermal coal, which is burnt in power stations to produce electricity. It almost defies categorisation as a commodity because differences in quality vary markedly from region to region.

Coal produced in Australia’s Hunter Valley, for example, commands a higher price than material mined in Indonesia or some parts of South America because of its high calorific value and low impurities.

That makes generalisations about the near 1bn-tonne-a-year seaborne thermal coal market — an important source of income for miners including Glencore, Anglo American and BHP Billiton — fraught with risk.

UPDATE 1-Eramet gets go-ahead to boost New Caledonia nickel exports, shares rise (Reuters U.S. – April 16, 2019)

April 17, 2019

https://www.reuters.com/

PARIS, April 16 (Reuters) – French mining company Eramet said its loss-making SLN nickel division had received a boost from the New Caledonia government approving a sharp rise in SLN’s nickel ore exports. Eramet shares rose around 5 percent in early trading.

The company said the decision would allow SLN to export its lower-grade nickel ore, which in turn would allow SLN to cut its costs. It added the move would help it execute a broader strategy plan to reduce SLN’s cash cost by $1.30 per lb by 2021.

“I would like to thank the government of New Caledonia and all the stakeholders who contributed to this decision,” said Eramet Chairman and CEO Christel Bories. “This is a sign of confidence in the successful implementation of the SLN rescue plan.”

Adani A Step Closer To Constructing Its Controversial Australian Coal Mine (Bloomberg News – April 9, 2019)

April 9, 2019

https://www.bloombergquint.com/

Indian mining conglomerate Adani has taken a step closer to the construction of its controversial coal mine in Australia after the federal government gave a green light to the billion dollar project’s groundwater management plans.

Adani group entered Australia in 2010 with the purchase of the greenfield Carmichael coal mine in the Galilee Basin in central Queensland, and the Abbot Point port near Bowen in the north.

The massive coal mine in Queensland state has been a controversial topic, with the project expected to produce 2.3 billion tonnes of low-quality coal.