Author: Chloe Coutinho

Final approval for Alcoa’s Alumina acquisition The Federal Court of Australia has approved the Alcoa Corporation’s acquisition of Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC). The acquisition is now legally effective, making July 23 the last day of trading for Alumina shares on the ASX. The acquisition is expected to be implemented on August 1 in line with the first day of trading for new Alcoa shares on the NYSE. Following implementation, eligible Alumina shareholders will receive 0.02854 new Alcoa CDIs for each Alumina share held on the scheme record date of July 25. In a June 11 statement, Alcoa president...

Karora shareholders approve Westgold merger Westgold Resources (ASX: WGX) expects to complete its transaction of Karora Resources by August 1 after securing approval from Karora shareholders. Karora chairman and chief executive Paul Andre Huet says the shareholder approval was essential to proceeding with the transaction. “The approval by approximately 99% of the votes cast on the resolutions regarding the proposed merger transaction with Westgold along with receipt of Financial Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval, represent two important milestones towards the closing of this transaction,” he said. “We thank Karora shareholders for their overwhelming support of...

South32 appeals WA EPA over Worsley Alumina South32 (ASX: S32) will appeal the WA Environmental Protection Authority’s (EPA) recommendations for the Worsley mine expansion. The South32 project proposal includes expansion of the existing bauxite mining area, development of a bauxite transport corridor and a contingency mining area and maintenance work at the Worsley refinery. The WA EPA recommendations, released on July 8, outlined strict conditions, including limitations to alumina and bauxite production, exclusion zones and emissions caps in line with the...

Anglo American reports promising Q2 results Anglo American reports increased steelmaking coal and copper production for Q2 alongside record performance for the Minas-Rio iron ore mine in Brazil. Anglo American chief executive Duncan Wanblad says the company will continue to embed operational excellence across the asset base. “In May, we announced our plan to accelerate our strategy by simplifying the portfolio and focusing on our world-class assets in copper, premium iron ore and crop nutrients,” he said. “We are working at pace to execute on the asset divestments, including steelmaking coal with the intention of optimising value for our shareholders, while minimising frictional...

A golden Q2 for Evolution Mining Evolution Mining (ASX: EVN) released its Q2 results, with record group cash flow up 171% from Q2 following strong gold and copper production. FY24 was a foundational year for Evolution’s gold production following its acquisition of the Northparkes mine. The company’s Q2 gold production was up 14% from Q1 to 212,070oz with copper production remaining consistent 20,318t. Sustainability performance was achieved in all key areas, with a 13% improvement from the prior year in total recordable injury frequency. Evolution reports a 14% reduction in emissions from May 31, 2024, showing progress towards its 2030 emissions reduction target...

Alcoa Alumina acquisition approved alongside strong Q2 results Alcoa stockholders have approved the Alumina (ASX: AWC) acquisition, as the mining giant today posts strong second quarter results. Alcoa expects the acquisition to be completed by August 1, 2024, subject to approval by the shareholders of Alumina. Alcoa president and chief executive William F. Oplinger says this is an important milestone for the company. “The strong support from our stockholders reflects their recognition of this strategic step to enhance Alcoa’s global position as a leading pure-play, upstream aluminium company," he said. This closes a productive Q2 for Alcoa, that saw a 12% revenue...

FIRB approves Westgold-Karora merger The Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) has issued its approval of Westgold’s (ASX: WGX) acquisition of Karora. The enlarged Westgold will have a $2.4b market cap with combined ore reserves of 3.2moz and mineral resources of 13moz, which Westgold says will place it solidly among the top 5 ASX-listed gold producers operating predominantly in Australia. The company will be well funded, with financial resources of about $160m and dual listing on the ASX and Toronto stock exchange (TSX). Westgold expects to complete the transaction by the end of...

Vale, Sir Roderick Carnegie Former Conzinc Riotinto of Australia Limited (CRA) chief executive, chairman and managing director Sir Roderick Carnegie passed away on July 14, aged 91. Under his leadership in the 1970s and 1980s, Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) discovered the Argyle diamond mine in WA rapidly doubling world diamond production and supplying virtually the entire world’s source of rare pink, red and violet diamonds. The company also forged strong relationships with China and continued to develop its flagship iron ore business in the Pilbara, including...

Record-breaking year for BHP iron ore and copper BHP (ASX: BHP) released its FY24 operational review, showing record iron ore production and its highest copper production in over 15 years. BHP chief executive Mike Henry says BHP had a strong finish to the year. “We finished the year with a strong fourth quarter, achieving several production records and we are meeting current production and unit cost guidance for all commodities,” he said. BHP looks to continue this year’s record production and decarbonisation efforts to drive results in FY25. Record production BHP achieved FY24 production guidance for...

Rio Tinto continues to improve in Q2 Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) has released its Q2 production results, emphasising significant upgrades to safety and operations. The report highlights investments in HSE, the energy transition and decarbonisation. Rio Tinto also reported improving iron ore production in the Pilbara for Q2, with 79.5mt produced, up 2% from Q1 of 2024. Safety Rio Tinto chief executive Jakob Stausholm says the company’s operational performance is continuing to progress. “While there are still significant improvements ahead, we are beginning to see a step-change in production, including from our Queensland bauxite business following the roll-out of the Safe Production System...

Rio Tinto moves forward with $9.2b Simandou investment All conditions have now been satisfied for Rio Tinto’s (ASX: RIO) investment to develop the Simandou high-grade iron ore deposit in Guinea. This investment will be the largest greenfield integrated mine and infrastructure investment in Africa. More than 600km of new co-developed rail with port facilities will allow the export of up to 120mtpa of mined iron ore by Simfer and WCS from their respective Simandou mining concessions. Rio Tinto Guinea and copper executive committee lead Bold Baatar says they are thankful for the Government of Guinea, Chinalco, Baowu and...