Liontown sees strongest quarter since start of production

WA coal miner given 5-year lifeline as state-owned coal exit looms The WA Government will extend Griffin Coal’s State Agreement from July 2026 by up to five years, allowing the Ewington Mine in Collie to continue supplying coal to industry and the privately owned Bluewaters Power Station.The WA Government says it has been in “advanced negotiations” with Griffin’s major direct and indirect customers, and that the new commercial arrangements are expected to significantly reduce the subsidy required from July 1.Details as to the reduced subsidy are not yet available, with the WA Government saying they will be provided to Parliament once new commercial arrangements are finalised.Despite the agreement extension, the WA Government maintains it is on track to retire all State-owned coal-fired power stations by 2030.In May 2025, WA Minister for Regional Development Stephen Dawson indicated that support would end in mid-2026 and that any continuation would be industry-led without ongoing government funding.“Continuation beyond 30 June 2026 will need to be industry-led on a commercially sustainable basis without ongoing WA Government funding and underpinned by Griffin Coal's customers paying a fair price for coal,” he said at the time.“If this is not achievable, coal mining operations may cease.”The extension builds on the WA Government’s $220m allocation to support continued operations at Griffin until June 2026. Announced in December 2023, the WA Government warned at the time that sudden closure risked immediate job losses and electricity system stability.The WA Government says it has now provided $308m in support to Griffin Coal since 2022, and that the extension will support energy security during the transition."Collie remains critical to our government's vision of becoming a renewable energy powerhouse, with coal fired power generation underpinning energy security and affordability as we build our major new transmission lines to connect large scale wind and solar to the grid,” WA Premier Roger Cook said."The extension of the Griffin Coal State Agreement will provide certainty to the Collie community and underpin energy security for households and businesses across the South West Interconnected System, including Perth, as we deliver the energy transition."WA Energy and Decarbonisation Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson says the commitment to retire State-owned coal by 2030 remains.“Renewables firmed by batteries and gas is the least cost mix for households and businesses — and that is what we are delivering,” she said."Extending the State Agreement is a sensible, pragmatic step to provide certainty for industry, the Collie community and the power system as we deliver the energy transition."The WA Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) backed the extension, with CME chief executive Aaron Morey saying it is a pragmatic step.“Not only does coal remain an important source of power generation in the SWIS, key resources operations rely on coal as a reductant or heat source in their production processes,” he said.“Industry supports the pursuit of net zero by 2050 but the pathway is not linear. It will require adjustments along the way to ensure the viability of our existing operators and to safeguard high-paying jobs in our regions.”The Mining and Energy Union (MEU) also welcomed the announcement, saying it delivers long-overdue certainty for coal workers and families in Collie while supporting energy security during the transition.MEU WA District President Greg Busson says the announcement addresses the uncertainty workers have been living with as existing funding arrangements near their end.“With the current funding arrangements coming to an end, the Government’s commitment to extend support for a further five years is a practical and responsible intervention that will keep people in jobs and give workers and the Collie community the certainty they need during the transition,” he said.“Importantly, this extension comes alongside a significant reduction in the level of subsidy required from taxpayers, while still bridging the gap in a way that keeps the lights on and workers in jobs as the transition continues.“That five-year commitment gives everyone the clarity they need to plan for an orderly and just transition, rather than facing ongoing uncertainty year to year.”Alongside the extension, the WA Government will also immediately form the Collie Basin Consolidation Taskforce.The taskforce will develop a proposed future structure for the coal assets in the basin, exploring whether the basin's two mines — operated by Griffin and Premier Coal — would be more efficiently mined by a single entity.The taskforce will be required to report back to the WA Premier within six months.

Deloitte: Australia’s mining industry ‘in the eye of the storm’ The mining industry is at a critical crossroads — produce more while decreasing spend, using less and working faster.These expectations are real and miners need to learn to walk the tightrope as the entire world watches from the stands.Companies are redefining how they create and share value as governments seek to strike balance between industrial, defence and energy security strategies while communities call on miners to contribute meaningfully and uphold stringent ESG standards.With minerals and metals for the energy transition and advanced technologies more in demand than ever, the question is no longer whether the industry can supply the materials that power global progress, but how it can do so in a way that improves all global systems.Deloitte’s 18th annual edition of Tracking the trends, explores how mining and metals organisations and their broader ecosystem of collaborators can harmonise using practical pathways to evolve from simply extracting value to collectively creating it.Identified as the trend most likely to impact the industry over the next 12 to 18 months, critical minerals are now at the centre of national security discussions worldwide.Over the past decade, mining and metals companies have come under mounting pressure to meet heightened minerals demand generated by global electrification and now, national security imperatives layer urgency and complexity onto those expectations.Combined with rising geopolitical pressures, market signals are now increasingly entangled with political considerations. For governments and companies across the globe, this has emphasised how fragile supply chains have become.Trade fragmentation is also accelerating, as global growth was projected to slow to 2.3% in 2025 due to rising barriers and policy uncertainty and the World Economic Forum estimates the cost of global financial system fragmentation to currently sit between $.85t and $7t .True transformation will likely depend upon cooperation across sectors — creating the trust, agility and shared vision needed to turn complexity into collective progress.Deloitte Australia mining and metals leader Nicki Ivory says the trends impacting the mining and metals sector feel almost unprecedented, and Australia is in the eye of the storm.“Our abundant critical mineral supply, once seen primarily as an energy transition enabler, is now at the centre of global national security discussions,” she said.“Companies are expected to balance powering clean energy with reinforcing defence strategies, all while meeting growing consumer demand.”ESG factors are now more than just corporate buzzwords. They have become business-critical priorities, as investors, regulators and customers demand greater transparency and accountability on sustainability metrics.Companies that align commercial ambition with societal and environmental value creation tend to perform better, innovate faster and endure longer. This means collaborating to reduce emissions in operations, regenerate nature, strengthen regional infrastructure and develop future workforces.Companies are increasingly expected to play a dual role to power the energy transition and simultaneously reinforce national defence strategies all while maintaining pace with ever-increasing consumer demand and abiding by industry ESG standards.Advanced technology integration, including the use of AI systems, is also expected to have a dramatic effect across the sector, from redefining exploration to the next evolution of human resources.“The exponential growth of AI is presenting transformative opportunities to elevate operational resilience and competitiveness by boosting productivity and revolutionising mineral discovery,” Ms Ivory said.“Off-site, the arrival of agentic AI is forcing a rethink of how workforces should be structured in a world where humans and agents work side by side.“Together with other technologies, AI is accelerating the impetus for organisations to optimise their own performance through smart operations — fully connected ecosystems where assets, systems and people work together in real time to make mining safer, faster and more reliable.”The industry has been out of step with many community and environmental expectations due to the traditional focus on producing high volumes for as little cost as possible.In this new era of heightened scrutiny, shifting societal values and rapid technological transformation, mining companies increasingly recognise that a clear purpose that aligns with stakeholder values is crucial for business growth.With shifting market demand and rapid new advances in technology and exploration, opportunities are limitless for the future of the Australian resources sector — if miners can reach an equilibrium.

Anglo American and Teck shareholders have approved the merger of equals to form Anglo Teck.A majority of votes, 99.7%, were cast in favour of the merger resulting in an all-stock, nil-premium $53b transaction.