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Major construction works have commenced on the HumeLink in NSW — one of Australia’s biggest electricity transmission infrastructure projects.  The delivery of this project will reinforce NSW’s southern electricity grid and enable the integration of more renewable generation into the National Electricity Market (NEM), forming the backbone of the power transmission network from South Australia through to northern Queensland. The link will connect at Wagga Wagga with EnergyConnect and form the energy infrastructure needed to help bring cheaper, cleaner renewable energy online from solar and wind generators in south-west NSW.  It will also unlock the full capacity of Snowy 2.0, Australia’s largest pumped hydro renewable energy project, which will provide an additional 2200MW of on-demand energy into the grid.  The…

Mineral Resources (ASX: MIN) has commenced a new joint venture, Yardi Mining Services, to place Traditional Owners of the Onslow Iron project at the centre of sustainable economic participation.  The partnership with wholly owned subsidiary CSI Mining Services (CSI) and Robe River Services (RRS), which represents the Robe River Kuruma (RRK) community in WA, creates pathways for RRK members to gain skills across a diverse range of mining services — from operating heavy machinery such as excavators and dump trucks, to roles spanning safety and administration.  RRK Aboriginal Corporation and RRS chairperson Kelly Slattery says Yardi was created to deliver more than a contractual arrangement and resets the standard for Aboriginal economic participation.  “At its core, this partnership is about…

Metso is introducing a groundbreaking Life Cycle Services (LCS) framework to reflect the shift toward outcome-based partnerships and performance-driven business models, while addressing customers’ different levels of support requirements.    Metso has offered LCS for more than 15 years and the new LCS model includes solutions for parts, equipment and process island scopes as well as three partnership levels focusing on stability, optimisation or growth.  Metso integrated service solutions senior vice president Miika Tirkkonen says customers aim to improve efficiency and profitability, although their needs vary greatly.   “Metso is committed to supporting different customer requirements and to helping them with long-term, continuous improvement,” he said.  “The new LCS framework spans from basic parts supply to full equipment lifecycle management, labour…

Lynas Rare Earths (ASX: LYC) is establishing a $180m separation facility in Malaysia to secure a reliable source of heavy rare earth (HRE) oxides outside of China.  The new facility will have the capacity to separate up to 5000tpa of HRE feedstock which will come from the miner’s high-grade Mt Weld rare earths deposit in addition to other sources to be developed.  The phased construction of the facility will see priority projects delivered first. First production of samarium from Mt Weld feedstock is planned for April 2026.  Processing capacity will be progressively added with the initial suite of separated HREs planned to be available within two years.  Lynas chief executive and managing director Amanda Lacaze says the new facility is…

Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting has committed $125m to Arafura Rare Earths (ASX: ARU) as part of a recent $425m capital raise, bumping Rinehart’s holding to about 15.7%.  The capital raise brings Arafura closer to the full funding of $2.3b required for the development of its Nolans rare earths project, located 135km north of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Nolans is set to be Australia’s first integrated rare earths mine and processing facility.  The Nolans raise follows Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s visit to the US last week where he signed a $13b Australia-US investment framework for rare earths and critical minerals with US President Donald Trump.   As part of the framework, Export Finance Australia pledged $150m to the project…

BHP (ASX: BHP) will be winding down operations at its Yandi iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of WA as the ore body nears depletion. The company has begun informing its workforce, about 650 direct employees and 200 contractors, that operations will be scaled back over the next year before ceasing altogether. BHP first proposed scaling down operations at Yandi in 2017 but strong demand for iron ore led to multiple life-of-mine extensions. The Western Mineworkers’ Alliance (WMWA), representing more than 100 members at Yandi, says the announcement comes as a major blow to workers, their families, and the surrounding communities that have long supported the site. “This is a deeply unsettling time for hundreds of hardworking people who’ve given…

Liontown (ASX: LTR) is nearing a break-even point as the miner ramps up its underground production and with the open pit nearing completion at its Kathleen Valley operations.   The underground operations achieved a 1mtpa run-rate in September, six months after first stoping. 225kt of underground ore was mined in Q1 FY26, marking a 105% increase from Q4 FY25.   Liontown also saw a 77% increase in open pit ore mined for the quarter with a total of 292kt mined at a weighted average grade of 1.3% lithium oxide.  Liontown managing director and chief executive Tony Ottaviano says the company is entering the next phase at Kathleen Valley.   “As cleaner underground ore increasingly feeds the mill, recoveries will improve and we…

Tomago Aluminium has started consulting more than 1000 workers at its Tomago aluminium smelter in NSW as changing operating economics potentially affect the smelters viability. The Tomago Aluminium venture, controlled by Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO), has been working to identify an economically viable energy solution for when its existing electricity supply contract with AGL expires in December 2028. However, the venture has yet to identify a pathway that supports commercially sustainable operations. As the largest energy consumer in NSW, electricity currently accounts for more than 40% of Tomago Aluminium’s operating costs. Based on market proposals received to date, the cost of both coal-fired and renewable energy options from January 2029 would fundamentally change operating economics, according to Tomago Aluminium. Tomago…

Mount Gibson Iron (ASX: MGX) will close its Koolan Island mine operations following a significant rockfall.  Production from Koolan Island was previously planned to conclude around September 2026.  Remediating the affected area and resuming mining is not viable given the safety risks and potential future instability, according to Mount Gibson Iron.  Mount Gibson Iron will retain about 75 site personnel for continued processing and rehabilitation activities. The company expects about 250 redundancies and the loss of 200 contractor roles.  Mount Gibson chief executive Peter Kerr comments on the closure.   “It is extremely disappointing for the company and its people that we must prematurely ramp down operations at Koolan Island. However, the physical safety of our personnel is our prime consideration,”…

Two workers died after an explosion occurred at an underground mine in Cobar NSW this morning. Emergency services were called to the site, located about 450km east of Broken Hill, at about 3.45am after reports two people had been critically injured in a workplace incident, the NSW Police confirmed in a statement. According to the statement, officers attached to the Central North Police District were told on arrival a man was confirmed dead after the explosion and two women were brought to the surface. One of the survivors has since died and the second woman was airlifted to hospital and is being treated for hearing damage and shock. NSW Premier Chris Minns comments on the incident. “This is a heartbreaking…

Mineral Resources (ASX: MIN) will receive a $200m contingent payment from Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners (MSIP) in early November as part of the private haul road transaction.  As announced in September last year, investment funds managed by MSIP paid an upfront consideration of $1.1b for a 49% interest in the Onslow Iron Road Trust, which generates a life-of-mine CPI-adjusted tolling fee per tonne of iron ore loaded at the port from MinRes’ Onslow Iron project in WA.  Between 1 August 2025 and 27 October 2025, 8.75mt of iron ore was loaded onto MinRes transhippers at the Port of Ashburton, which satisfied the contingent payment condition by achieving a 35mt per annum run rate over three months.  MinRes managing director Chris Ellison…