Author: Chloe Coutinho

AREEA calls for FWC reform amid surge in workplace claims  Australia’s resources and energy employer group has urged the Federal Government to take urgent action to reform the Fair Work Commission (FWC), citing performance concerns amid a surge in workplace claims.   This follows significant increases in case load for the FWC in recent years.  In an address to the Tattersalls Club Workplace Relations Group in Brisbane, AREEA chief executive Steve Knott warned that the Commission is ‘drowning in employee claims,’...

South32 posts 33% manganese uplift  South32’s (ASX: S32) FY26 production guidance will remain unchanged after a quarter marked by better-than-expected manganese output.  Manganese production increased by 33% in Q1, following Australia Manganese’s successful operational recovery plan and ramped up export shipments.   South Africa Manganese saw a 7% decrease in production, reflecting underground development activity.   South32 chief executive Graham Kerr comments on the Q1 results.  "Production highlights included a 12% increase in payable copper equivalent production at Sierra Gorda and a 33% uplift in manganese volumes, as we successfully executed the operational recovery plan at Australia Manganese,” he said.  “Our financial position remains...

BHP stays quiet on China in Q1 results BHP (ASX: BHP) achieved record material mined at its WA Iron Ore operations amid reports that China has told its major steelmakers and traders to temporarily halt purchases of all cargoes from the miner. Despite record material mined, iron ore production decreased 1% to 64mt. FY26 iron ore production guidance remains unchanged at 258-269mt. BHP says the first quarter was a period of significant planned maintenance for WAIO. Iron ore sales were broadly in line with the prior year, with a 5% increase in sales of...

Opinion: China may have the upper hand in iron ore dispute with BHP A largely unknown site has said the quiet part out loud.  On Friday evening, SteelOrbis, a small website based in Istanbul, published a story suggesting that BHP (ASX: BHP) would settle 30% of its spot iron ore sales to China in RMB instead of US dollars starting in Q4 2025.  The report, while attention grabbing, has yet to be confirmed, as both BHP and China’s state-run iron ore buyer CMRG...

China tightens rare earth exports, cracks down on information China has introduced new export controls on rare earths and related technologies ahead of trade talks with the US, barring its citizens from unauthorised overseas mining. This brings the total count of export-restricted rare earth elements to 12, as China tightened restrictions on seven in response to tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration earlier this year, stalling key defence, energy and automotive sectors. The new controls, effective immediately, require exporters to obtain permission for technologies used for rare...

Peabody and Anglo American enter arbitration Anglo American has launched arbitration proceedings against Peabody Energy over the failed $5.7b sale of its Queensland steelmaking coal mines. Peabody pulled out of the sale by invoking a material adverse change (MAC) in August following a fire at Anglo American’s Moranbah North mine. Anglo American believed the event did not constitute a MAC under the definitive agreements due to the lack of damage to the mine or equipment and the clear progress being made within a rigorous and structured regulatory process towards restarting the mine. The buyer says it remains confident that a MAC occurred,...

Federal Government to bail out Mount Isa The Federal and Queensland Governments will provide a $600m support package to maintain operations at the Mount Isa copper smelter and Townsville copper refinery. The agreement will allow the smelter — which provides half of Australia’s copper smelting capacity — and the refinery to continue operations until the end of 2028. Australia has only two operational copper smelters — Mount Isa and BHP’s at Olympic Dam — but they face huge competition from China. China has invested heavily in copper smelting and now has 44 smelters, with the surge in Chinese production creating an unprecedented decline...

US Department of War has an unlikely target: Australian critical minerals In early September, the Trump Administration rebranded the US Department of Defence (DOD), restoring the moniker last deployed in the 1940s. The executive order for the name change says the update conveys a stronger message of readiness and resolve compared to Department of Defence, which emphasises only defensive capabilities. At the signing of the executive order, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said the country would “go on offence, not just on defence. Maximum lethality, not tepid legality. Violent effect, not politically correct.” One unlikely manoeuvre is taking shape with...

Gold prices pushed to their peak by US Government shutdown The US Government shut down yesterday amid a funding standoff, temporarily shuttering government agencies and leaving about 750,000 workers facing furlough. Immediately following the shutdown, the spot price for gold reached a record high of $5904.61/oz. The spot price for gold has climbed nearly 50% since this time last year. US Government shutdowns occur when there is a funding gap — when Democrats and Republicans cannot pass a bill funding government services into the new fiscal year...

BHP invests $840m in Olympic Dam BHP (ASX: BHP) is investing in a series of growth-enabling projects at Olympic Dam in a move to strengthen the foundations of underground mining productivity. According to BHP chief operating officer Edgar Basto, the miner expects to grow its copper base from 1.7mtpa to about 2.5mtpa. “Achieving that scale requires significant copper growth and we are fortunate to have a world-class copper province right here in South Australia to do just that,” Mr Basto said. “The South Australian copper province is already performing strongly, consistently...

Rio Tinto may retire Gladstone coal-fired power station early Queensland’s oldest and largest coal-fired power station — the Gladstone Power Station (GPS) — could retire in 2029, six years earlier than expected. Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) says no final decision has been made to retire GPS, which has operated since 1976, and there is potential to extend the life of the power station should market and other factors allow. The miner says there is no immediate impact on operations and existing power supply contracts, including to Boyne Smelters, will remain in place until their scheduled expiry in March 2029. The GPS JV participants recognise the contribution of the power station to the Gladstone community and are committed to work with...