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A free trade agreement with South Korea (KAFTA) is anticipated to boost Australia’s economy by $653 million per annum, and with roll out anticipated before the end of the year. Federal Trade minister Andrew Robb said the agreement would eliminate or phase out tariffs on 99.8 per cent of exports to Australia’s third-largest export market and fourth-largest trading partner. The deal would help level the playing field for Australian exporters competing with the US, the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which have already signed trade deals with Korea. “This is a comprehensive, world-class agreement that will deliver lasting benefits to the Australian economy,” Mr Robb said. “It forms part of the Abbott Government’s ambitious trade...

THE on-site construction workforce has doubled at Gina Rinehart’s $10 billion integrated iron ore mining operation Roy Hill, after substantial funding from global and national sources consolidated confidence in the project’s future. Australia’s richest person contributed the latest $251.6 million lump sum payment in mid January via a subsidiary of her company Hancock Prospecting, Hanrine Holdings. The payment followed several significant loans secured in December: particularly a US$694.4 million loan approved by the Export-Import Bank of the US, to Roy Hill Holdings, on the condition that equipment would be purchased from US companies such as Caterpillar, Atlas Copco and GE. Joint venture partners, Japanese company Marubeni and China Steel Corporation – whose ownership at Roy Hill totals 30 per cent...

AN acquisition deal with Barrick Gold Corporation has set Northern Star Resources on the fast track to doubling its annual gold production. The deal, expected to be finalised this month, will see Northern Star acquire the Plutonic gold mine for $25 million – equal to $14 per ounce of resources. The acquisition will be funded from Northern Star’s existing cash reserves, which stood at $45 million at the end of September 2013. The mine, 180km northeast of Meekatharra in WA, produced 86,000oz of gold during the first nine months of 2013, at an all-in sustaining cost of $1110/oz. As of the end of 2012, it had proven and probable reserves of 206,000oz of gold and resources of 1.75 million ounces...

COLOMBIA has fined Alabama-based coal company Drummond Company US$3.6 million after it allegedly dumped up to 1900t of coal into the Caribbean Sea, and failed to report the incident to authorities. A week after the announcement, the Colombian Government stated Drummond would be forced to close its Colombian mines within two weeks, following a five-day suspension of its port operations. Drummond – Colombia’s second largest coal producer – received the fine in late December after one of its barges on the Santa Marta coastline took on water due to high wind and wave conditions experienced earlier in the year. According to a Drummond statement, the incident occurred at night and was not discovered until early the next morning. The company’s...

THE NSW Government is set to cancel lucrative exploration licences in the Hunter Valley and refuse compensation to owners NuCoal Resources and Cascade Coal, following corruption findings by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). Late in 2013, the ICAC found former Primary Industries and Mineral Resources minister Ian Macdonald corrupt for granting a licence to Doyles Creek Mining, chaired by friend and former union boss John Maitland, for coal exploration in the Hunter Valley. Mr Macdonald was also found corrupt for creating a mining tenement at Mount Penny in the Bylong Valley on land owned by the family of former Labor minister Eddie Obeid. In its report released on December 18, the ICAC stated that the granting of the licences...

VICTORIAN gold miner Newcrest has announced the third round of job cuts since July at its Telfer gold mine in East Pilbara. Newcrest did not release formal figures for the redundancies, stating it would first inform affected employees, but referenced the ongoing depressed gold market, high Australian dollar and costly production as primary factors behind the decision. “ is a challenging environment for gold miners at the moment,” a Newcrest representative told The West Australian. “Obviously with the reduced level of mining, it means some workforce reduction.” Newcrest employed more than 1800 people at Telfer before the gold price’s midyear crash. The company’s current 1200-strong workforce, including both employees and contractors, was expected to take a significant hit in the...

WITH declining commodity prices and rising costs creating a challenging investment environment, the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics (BREE) has predicted Australia is unlikely to see a repeat in the high levels of investment experienced in the last five years. Instead it suggested that production would boom, with investment likely to decline in the medium-term. Even accounting for the cyclical nature of commodity prices, BREE stated it was unlikely that prices would rebound to the very high levels experienced at the peak of the most recent mining boom. The Resources and Energy Major Projects report, a biannual snapshot of the stock of investment in Australia’s resources and energy sectors, provided a projection of the capital stock of expenditure over...

With ongoing concerns over the toxic effects of mercury, a global commitment consisting of some 139 territories and nations have dedicated themselves to making the UN’s Minamata Convention on Mercury an international law. According to a recent news report*, the treaty gives these governments 15 years to put a stop to mercury mining. It has been signed by 92 governments, and shows their intention to follow the treaty, adjusting national law if and where necessary. The document is unlikely to be ratified until 2016 at the earliest - 50 governments will need to signatories in order for the law to be passed - and will not affect mining...