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A major fire broke out at Viva Energy’s (ASX: VEA) Geelong oil refinery just after 11pm last night, with the blaze now contained to the area of origin.Fire Rescue Victoria says all emergency response personnel and Viva employees had been accounted for and there had been no reported injuries. The Country Fire Authority says the fire is still being fought by fire fighters but there is no threat to the public.Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen says the incident will impact petrol production, with diesel and jet fuel production continuing at the refinery.Minister Bowen told the ABC that the incident appears to be an accident and there were no suspicious circumstances, although the cause remains under investigation.Viva Energy said there was no immediate impact to fuel supply and the company expects to replace any lost production through its fuel import program. The refinery is now running on reduced production rates.The incident comes as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits Brunei and Malaysia as part of the Federal Government’s efforts to secure more fuel amid a global fuel crisis.At normal rates of consumption, Australia had 38 days of gasoline, 28 days of kerosene and 31 days of diesel as of April 7.WA has also moved to secure its own fuel security, with the WA Government striking a deal with Cambridge Gulf to purchase and store 4 million litres of diesel. The stockpile will be owned and controlled by the WA Government.

When looking for an answer, is the universal response not “just Google it”?Well, you may have noticed a rewiring of our curiosity instincts, with some now ditching the well-loved search engine for AI.In a world that worships productivity, AI is hailed by many as our saviour — increasingly automating boring and monotonous daily tasks, while humans reap the productivity gains.The internet era, ushered in by the likes of Google, expanded the breadth of information we can access at any given time. Like its predecessor, AI has revealed similar concerns around complacency and cognitive decline. The Google effect, or digital amnesia, is a tendency to forget information that is easily accessible on the internet. A 2011 study highlighted how this altered the way people process information: when we no longer use our memory to its fullest extent our neural pathways atrophy, resulting in shortening memory, reduced concentration and declining analytical skills. It could be seen as an erosion of critical thinking.The growing preference for ChatGPT as a search engine is taking this a step further. Instead of using these tools to free up space for thinking, some are now using it as a substitute.If you find that after less than a minute of mental effort your subconscious is nagging you to “just ask ChatGPT”, you may be letting go of your cognitive wheel and becoming a passenger to the “thoughts” of your LLM of choice.A recent MIT study, Your brain on ChatGPT, reported that excessive reliance on AI-driven solutions may contribute to cognitive atrophy like that seen in the Google effect. But the way people use generative AI is fundamentally different to the way they consume the internet. They aren’t looking up the definition of a word to use in an essay and then immediately forgetting it. They are outsourcing their thinking completely.Sure, cognitive outsourcing has its place. I’m from the generation that pretty much can’t get anywhere without a GPS. And I definitely don’t remember anyone’s phone number.But deep thinking was never meant to be efficient; it is a messy and often tedious process. That is what makes it so effective. When we problem solve, our brains traipse through complex challenges, wrestle with opposing sides, sift through possible outcomes and deduce the best course of action.Thinking is part of what makes us human. By removing this human element and streamlining this process with AI, we risk turning into passive consumers rather than active creators.Think of how Waymo, a self-driving car service in the US, is wreaking havoc for commuters.The AI can’t navigate basic — I mean, complex — scenarios like construction zones or how to not hit a cat crossing the street. When faced with such difficult manoeuvres, the cars end up blocking traffic or causing severe emotional distress for pet owners.From Google Maps to inbuilt assisted parking, anyone who drives a car these days outsources some of their thinking. I’m all for the added safety assists in my car, but I am far more comfortable in the driver’s seat than in the backseat of a driverless car.Though I do love my GPS, if the internet imploded today, I like to think I have enough critical thinking skills to read a map and follow street signs. And if world leaders decided to abolish AI tomorrow, I’d maybe be a little annoyed that I had to actually think about how to spell bureaucrat, but I’d get over it.Maybe it’s time we take back control of the wheel and get our brains to do the driving.I’m not suggesting that you refuse to interact with any form of AI and go off the grid. All that will do is isolate you from the future of the modern world. I am suggesting that if you’re struggling to make a decision or come up with an idea, try to remember you don’t need to ask the omniscient being in your computer to do it for you.And watch out for cats when you’re driving.Off the Record is The Australian Mining Review’s weekly column. 

Newmont (ASX: NEM) has halted underground operations at its Cadia gold mine following a 4.5-magnitude earthquake in the area last night.In a statement, Newmont said there had been no reported injuries.“Safety procedures functioned effectively and all underground personnel were accounted for and progressively returned above ground,” the company said.Underground operations have been paused while specialist teams undertake inspections and assessments.Two aftershocks of magnitude 2.4 and 2.2 were recorded in the area after the initial earthquake.

Hancock Prospecting (HPPL) will have to pay royalties from Hope Downs to one of its biggest rivals after the WA Supreme Court upheld Wright Prospecting’s claim involving legacy deeds signed by Gina Rinehart's father. The decades-long legal battle has culminated in a ruling from Justice Jennifer Smith, who found HPPL is the beneficial owner of the Hope Downs share but upheld Wright Prospecting’s claim to royalties.The proceedings were concerned with formal agreements made decades ago between Lang Hancock, Peter Wright and Don Rhodes. A major consideration was who held the beneficial ownership of the Hope Downs and East Angelas exploration licenses when they were acquired in 1988 and 1989, and who now holds the beneficial interest in the 50% share of the Hope Downs mining lease. Following the ruling, Hancock Prospecting framed the central issue as ownership of the Hope Downs and East Angelas tenements, rather than “the far less significant issue of royalties”. “HPPL welcomes the WA Supreme Court decision which decisively confirms HPPL’s rightful ownership of these tenements firmly rejecting the baseless ownership claims of John, Bianca and Wright Prospecting Pty Ltd (WPPL) in their entirety,” executive director Jay Newby said in a statement. Hope Downs today generates hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes and royalties for the WA Government. “The remaining Rhodes royalty claim historically attributable to HPPL amounts to approximately $4m per annum for Rhodes and for WPPL approximately $14m per annum,” Mr Newby said. Hancock does not expect to shoulder that burden alone. Mr Newby said any amounts payable in royalties and interest are a shared responsibilities with Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO), its partner in Hope Downs.  “ a further royalty contribution in this regard, which will lessen contribution,” he said.  “We will consult with our partner and consider our position on these matters.” Counsel on both sides will have 21 days to lodge their appeals.

Yancoal (ASX: YAL) will acquire an 80% interest in the Kestrel coal mine as part of its acquisition of KCG.Kestrel, the largest producing underground coal mine in Australia, has a 25 year mine life underpinned by 164mt marketable coal reserves, according to Yancoal.Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) previously held an 80% stake in the mine, which it sold in 2018 for US$2.25b.Yancoal chief executive Sharif Burra says the acquisition is a strong strategic fit for Yancoal, adding another high-quality, long-life mine to the company’s portfolio.“Kestrel delivers increased scale and diversification to Yancoal’s portfolio and is expected to contribute premium metallurgical coal into our product mix,” he said.“The acquisition positions us to deliver greater value to our shareholders and consolidates Yancoal’s position as a leading Australian coal miner.”On completion, Yancoal will pay an upfront cash consideration of $2.5b (US$1.85b) plus contingent cash consideration up to a maximum of $771m (US$550m) in total.Completion of the acquisition is targeted for the end of Q3 CY26.

Element 25 (ASX: E25) has secured commitments for an $18m share placement to fund the expansion of its Butcherbird manganese project in WA to 1.1mtpa of manganese oxide concentrate.This follows the June 2025 announcement that the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) would support the project with a $50m investment.Element 25 managing director Justin Brown comments on the expansion.“Expanding Butcherbird is an important part of our strategy to sell manganese concentrate to steel industry partners as well as using it as feedstock in our plans to produce HPMSM,” he said.“We are pleased with the support from new and existing shareholders in this placement, particularly in light of the challenging market backdrop.”Under the placement, the company will issue 60 million fully paid ordinary shares at an issue price of $.30/share, representing a 9.1% discount to the last close price on April 8. The placement is expected to settle on April 22.

Black Cat Syndicate’s (ASX: BC8) Lakewood processing facility has begun processing ore from the Fingals open pit and Majestic underground mines in WA.In February last year, Black Cat acquired the facility from Westgold Resources (ASX: WGX), in a move that brought forward Kal East by 15 months.Across the next 12 months, the company will invest $20m of operating cashflow to expand the processing facility’s capacity from 1.2mtpa to 1.5mtpa.Meanwhile, the Fingals open pit and Majestic underground mines continue to ramp up, with an estimated 183kt stockpile of ore currently available for processing.Black Cat managing director James Bruce comments on the milestone.“The successful ramp-up of the Fingals and Majestic mines within twelve months and within budget is a credit to the ‘can-do’ culture and experience of the Black Cat team,” he said.“The capital-efficient expansion of Lakewood will unlock further value from our Kal East operations for years to come.“Securing sufficient contracted fuel is an important outcome at a time when uncertainty persists across Australian fuel supply networks.”Black Cat says it is not currently experiencing supply issues with diesel or fuel. Lakewood is grid connected and does not require fuel for the vast majority of its power requirements.

Fortescue (ASX: FMG) expects to save US$100m in fossil fuel costs next year as it fast-tracks its delivery of a fully integrated green energy grid. Unlike other large renewable hubs, which feed intermittently into national or other power systems, Fortescue’s off-grid system is expected to be the largest of its kind dedicated to decarbonising major industry. Fortescue anticipates the 290MW of installed renewable capacity to meet the fixed energy requirements of its ore processing facilities, enabling daytime “green processing” across its Pilbara operations, by early 2027. The system is expected to ramp up to power all of Fortescue’s operations for 24-hour periods completely without fossil fuels by the end of 2027 — well ahead of the companies previous Real Zero by 2030 target. Fortescue is expecting full completion of its Pilbara green grid by the end of 2028, which includes 1.2GW of solar capacity, more than 600MW of wind generation and 4-5GWh of battery energy storage. Fortescue says the deployment of its accelerated green grid infrastructure timeline has commenced within its approved decarbonisation budget.  At the completion of its decarbonisation program, Fortescue expects to demonstrate that eliminating fossil fuels is not only achievable but economically superior by achieving a further reduction in C1 unit costs of at least US$2 - 4/wmt. Fortescue sees a clear pathway to expand its green energy system by a further approximately 2GW of power generation capacity, firmed with 4GWh of advanced batteries. This would be enabled by Fortescue’s proprietary know-how, patented technologies and exclusively developed AI, and is expected to be delivered for less than US$2.5b.  The company anticipates this capacity could be progressively delivered over an 18- month timeframe — an unprecedented delivery of firmed energy generation in speed to market, capital costs and operating costs. The company has also marked another major operation milestone with the shipment of its 2.5 billionth tonne of iron ore. 

Monadelphous (ASX: MND) has been awarded new contracts and contract extensions with Rio Tinto, BHP, Queensland Alumina and Harmony Gold.The contract with Rio will see the engineering company undertaking fabrication, supply, installation and commissioning of a new dust collector and ventilation system for the coarse ore stockpile tunnels at Paraburdoo iron ore mine in WA.Work is expected to be completed in Q1 CY27.Monadelphous has also been awarded a two-year extension to its existing maintenance services contract at BHP’s Olympic Dam operations in South Australia. The extension includes mechanical and electrical maintenance, shutdown works and project services.At Queensland Alumina’s operations in Gladstone, Monadelphous has secured a two-year extension for the provision of mechanical maintenance and shutdown services. The scope of the contract has been expanded to include demolition and power generation work.Monadelphous has also secured work with Harmony Gold on the construction of a cyclone dewatering plant and associated pipeline at Hidden Valley gold mine in Papua New Guinea.