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Katie Jackson has been appointed to lead Rio Tinto’s (ASX: RIO) copper business, succeeding Bold Baatar who will become chief commercial officer. Ms Jackson is currently the president of National Grid Ventures and is responsible for the development and operation of large-scale energy infrastructure assets. Rio chief executive Jakob Stausholm welcome Ms Jackson to the company. “Katie brings diverse experience from across the energy sector. Her leadership will be invaluable as we shape our copper business for a successful future,” he said. “As we continue the ramp up of Oyu Tolgoi to become one of the world’s largest copper suppliers, we are also looking to the future with new opportunities across the world. “We are very excited that Rio Tino…

Fortescue (ASX: FMG) will be slashing the roles of 700 employees, stating it must ‘continually evolve to ensure it remains lean and is best positioned to deliver on its strategy’. These redundancies will be finalised by the end of July and Fortescue stated it’s grateful for the contribution of those affected. Coinciding with the redundancies, Fortescue also announced the appointment of a chief financial officer, chief operating officer and company secretary. After serving 11 months in the role, acting chief financial officer Apple Paget will move into the position of group chief financial officer. Ms Paget joined Fortescue in January 2023 as group manager finance and tax, and has more than 25 years of experience as a finance executive. Chief…

Aboriginal Heritage surveys have begun at Buxton Resources’ (ASX: BUX) Centurion project in WA. The heritage survey comprises of members from the Parna Ngururrpa and Ngurra Kayanta traditional owner groups who speak for the land on which Centurion is located. A helicopter is being used to help in the inspection of the drill sites and around 50km of access tracks. Buxton chief executive Marty Moloney commented on the surveys. “We’re very pleased to be working in partnership with the Parna Ngururrpa and the Ngurra Kayanta, the Native Title custodians of the land which hosts the Centurion project,” he said. “We would also like to thank the survey team and Central Desert Native Title Services for their efforts in coordinating this…

Mineral Resources (ASX: MIN) celebrated 2024 NAIDOC Week with a range of cultural activities across its sites and local communities. This year’s theme was Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud & Proud, and employees and the community were invited to engage in dialogue about the stories, traditions and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Across its regional sites, teams recognised NAIDOC Week with Welcome to Country events, flag raising and smoking ceremonies, sports and social events as well as live performances by local Aboriginal musicians. At its Perth head office, an address by MinRes managing director Chris Ellison began celebrations and senior Noongar man Danny Ford did the Welcome to Country. MinRes non-executive director Colleen Hayward made a…

Stellar Resources (ASX: SRZ) has begun an extensive infill and extensional drill program at the Heemskirk tin project in Tasmania. The first of two drill rigs is onsite to complete a planned 24-hole program at the Seven and Queen Hill deposits. The program is designed to help make the Heemskirk project development ready by providing key technical inputs for the pre-feasibility study. The drilling will also upgrade additional resources to the indicated category, provide samples for metallurgical testwork, extend mineralisation along trend and provide a platform for downhole electromagnetic surveys. Stellar executive chairman Simon Taylor commented on the drill program. “This is a pivotal moment for Stellar Resources as we commence a significant infill and extensional drilling program at our…

The Federal Government is rolling out the initial phase of the internationally-recognised Guarantee of Origin (GO) scheme to measure and certify emissions intensity across supply chains and support the development of Australia’s green industries. A crucial component of the $22.7b Future Made in Australia program, the scheme will replace the RET in 2030 as the framework for certifying renewable electricity. NSW Assistant Climate Change and Energy Minister Jenny McAllister says “the Guarantee of Origin scheme is the most important green industry program you never heard of”. “As the world decarbonises, it will be increasingly important for businesses to be able to account for the carbon emissions associated with their products,” she said. “Guarantee of Origin is a key to new…

Underground mining contractor PYBAR has been awarded a four year contract to provide services at the Eloise copper mine complex in Queensland. Valued at $149m, the contract involves delivering the 3km underground link drive for the Jericho and Eloise decline which lies 125m below surface, plus 600m of development for stockpiles. Owned by AIC Mines (ASX: AIC), the Eloise mine was commissioned in 1996 and since then has mined over 13.5mt of ore grading 2.8% copper and 0.8g/t gold to produce 350kt of copper and 180koz of gold in concentrate. Current operations consist of an underground mine accessed via decline. The upper levels are extracted by longhole open stoping while the lower levels are extracted by sublevel caving. The Eloise…

Round two of Pilbara Minerals’ (ASX: PLS) community grants program has opened with community groups eligible to apply for up to $10,000 in funding. Designed to empower local groups that make a difference in their community, the grants program targets projects and events that will improve access to education, build healthy communities and enable the energy transition. Pilbara Minerals managing director and chief executive Dale Henderson says the company is pleased to continued its annual grants program. “We invited applications for grants of up to $10,000 for community projects that align with our priority investment areas of education, community resilience and the energy transition,” he said. “No-one knows what the community needs more than the people who live and work…

The Federal Government’s Powering the Regions Fund is injecting $91m into six new projects to help cut heavy industry emissions, after its $330m investment into nine projects in April this year. The projects will lower energy use, swap out fossil fuels with cleaner alternatives and cut more than 1mtpa climate pollution, equivalent to removing over 240,000 cars off the roads. These include projects in the aluminium, mining, fuel refining and chemical production industries, which will create new jobs and support existing jobs in regional communities across Australia. Federal Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen says the grants will support technologies that have not been deployed at scale in Australia, including cutting methane from the ventilation air shafts of underground…

The proposed $798m Vecco critical minerals project in Queensland is one step closer to development after receiving coordinated project status. Queensland’s coordinator general for Vecco has given ‘coordinated project’ declaration to the project, paving the way for multiple environmental approvals from the Queensland and Federal governments. The Vecco project would see an open-cut mine built around 70km north of Julia Creek along with a critical minerals processing plant which would supply minerals for use in the manufacture of rechargeable batteries for grid scale energy. Queensland coordinator general Gerard Coggan commented on the declaration. “The declaration fosters a whole-of-government approach to developing critical mineral projects and to support positive outcomes for North West Queensland communities,” he said. “There is a reason…