Category: Features

By Mark Scott AT Northern Star Resource’s 2013 annual general meeting, chairman Chris Rowe told shareholders the company was on the lookout for WA acquisitions to help meet its goal of becoming a top ASX-listed gold producer. At the time, Northern Star was producing about 100,000 ounces per annum of gold from its Paulsen gold project in the Pilbara region and had a market capitalisation of $301 million, with its share price at $0.71. A year later, Mr Rowe could tell an entirely different story. The company was on track to becoming a 600,000ozpa producer; was the...

Cobre Montana managing director Adrian Griffin spoke to Mark Scott about the company’s new focus on lithium and its recent advancements in the industry. What is your experience in the industry? My experience in the industry commenced with Mt Lyell Mining and Railway company, then owners of the Mt Lyell copper mine in Tasmania. I worked there in exploration prior to working for BHP Billiton in iron ore and the Australian Antarctic Division in the 1970s. Like many others I branched out into gold in the early 80s as carbon in pulp (CIP) technology created the opportunity for juniors to become producers. I spent four years as chief geologist and open pit superintendent with Kia Ora Gold Corporation at Marvel...

POSITIVE assay drill results at West African Resources’ wholly-owned Sartenga copper-gold discovery within the Boulsa project are expected to lead to both tonnage and grade resource upgrades by the end of the year. Two diamond drill rigs are in operation at the Burkina Faso project, focussed on defining higher grade breccia zone along the south-eastern margin of the deposit, where strong copper, gold and molybdenum grades have been indicated. Recent results include 231m grading 0.6 per cent copper equivalent from 100m, with a 21m interval from 201m grading 1.1 per cent copper equivalent, and will be used to upgrade the 174,000t copper and 651,000oz gold inferred resource announced in June 2012. Definition air core drilling also began at the Moktedu...

EXPLORATION at the Corunna Downs project has yielded large quantities of iron ore for Atlas Iron, bolstering the company’s recent success in the Pilbara. The first five holes drilled in the 18-hole program intersected up to 60 per cent iron at 42m, with 56.6 per cent iron found at 146m and 56.9 per cent iron at 114m. Corunna Downs is part of the company’s North Pilbara greenfields exploration program and has a resource estimate of 25 million tonnes at 56.5 per cent of iron. Atlas Iron managing director Ken Brinsden said the project would become a major part of the company’s iron ore portfolio. “In a matter of a few months, the team have delivered our first resource at Corunna,...

WA’s annual Diggers and Dealers Conference is widely recognised as one of the most important gatherings on the mining industry’s calendar. A celebration of mining achievements, technology progress and new mineral discoveries, Diggers and Dealers attracts a delegation of hundreds of mining and exploration companies, brokers, bankers, investors, financiers and mining service industries from across the Southern Hemisphere. Beyond the traditional powerhouse companies and their acclaimed projects however, the forum gives the opportunity for junior explorers to display their own burgeoning projects, and to gain recognition within the wider Australian and international mining arenas. Having won the Diggers and Dealers Best Emerging Company award at the 2013 conference gala dinner in Kalgoorlie, Sheffield Resources is one such company that has...

AFTER leading Rio Tinto’s record-breaking Pilbara-based iron ore division for nine years, new chief executive Sam Walsh found his January appointment to be an exciting but challenging proposition. One month after his appointment – when the company posted its first ever full year loss – Mr Walsh announced that it would pursue a hard line cost-cutting regime comprising decreased exploration expenditure, the sale of non-core assets, and smarter capital allocation. “The dynamics of the global economy are changing,” Mr Walsh told Rio Tinto’s M2M magazine. “The world is more volatile than it has been and we need to be certain that our projects will deliver the value we – and our shareholders – expect. “That’s why it’s important to get...

ENVIRONMENT, Heritage and Water minister Mark Butler has deferred a decision on the controversial Abbot Point expansion for another three months, just weeks after telling media the Federal election would not delay the issue. If approved, 3 million cubic metres of dredged material from the Abbot Point Coal Terminal, near Bowen Basin in Queensland, would be disposed of in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park area. Mr Butler was due to decide by 9 July, however he “stopped the clock on department’s assessment of the Abbot Point Capital Dredging proposal for a period of three months”. “A number of reports have only just been delivered to me, which potentially impact on the Abbot Point assessment,” Mt Butler said. “Given...

THE Kenyan Government has revoked all mining licences issued in the months before and after the country’s March elections and announced it would increase royalties paid by companies undertaking mining operations. “I have today revoked all licences (Prospecting, Exploration and Mining), issued between 14 January, 2013 and 15 May, 2013,” Mining minister Najib Balala said in early August. The decision was made following a number of complaints about the issuing process. Following his election, President Uhuru Kenyatta set up a mining ministry to overhaul the country’s mining regulations and broaden its economy. “Though Kenya is not generally known as a mining investment destination, recent developments have proven that the country actually holds a significant potential for mineral development, and is...

THE world’s largest private sector coal company Peabody Energy has actioned a second round of Australian job cuts, dismissing 170 positions – or 5.7 per cent of its total workforce – due to challenging market conditions. The cuts began on 22 July, and will reportedly affect all of the company’s Australian operations, including a total of eight projects in Queensland and three more in NSW. The Missouri-based coal giant announced the news just one month after its first round of cuts – which saw 450 contractor positions removed from its Australian projects – citing a need to streamline operations though aggressive cost-cutting initiatives. The company has cut more than 20 per cent of its workforce since the start of the...

LOCAL Goodyear conveyor belt manufacturer, Veyance Technologies, has announced a $4.5 million investment in establishing a network of company-owned conveyor belt services, training and repair facilities. This investment has confirmed ongoing company commitment to deliver owners their “lowest cost per tonne conveyed” benefit. The service centres, based at major mining hubs around Australia, will assist with all types of conveyor belting, both surface and underground. Veyance Technologies reported that its new conveyor service centres would provide global cutting edge technology in vulcanising, condition monitoring, training and conveyor belting maintenance. These ‘greenfield’ service centres would be staffed by qualified Veyance staff and remove the company’s current reliance on local engineering firms, to optimise, maintain and service conveyor belts. The initial centre...

WHEN the Argyle Diamond Mine finally closes, it will be remembered as one of the world’s largest and most successful mines of its kind. Aside from the sheer scale of the project, which opened in 1985, the quantity and appearance of its diamonds – including elusive red diamonds – attracted unprecedented attention to the Kimberley. Thirty years on, the mine is still entrenched in the fabric of WA mining; its name remains synonymous with the region. Since coming into operation, the mine has produced more than 800 million carats of diamonds, peaking in 1994 when 42mct were produced. While leading the world in terms of quantity, the quality of diamonds is relatively low, with only 5 per cent being considered...