Bruce Avery Transport

RESOURCES giant BHP Billiton and subcontractor HWE Newman Services have been fined more than $200,000 for a fatal incident in August 2008. Mobile maintenance supervisor Paul Sparkes, 29, was killed while working at BHP’s Yandi iron ore mine, (then operated by HWE) near Newman in the Pilbara. Mr Sparkes was hit in the arm by a tyre-handling device, which had broken off the machine body after the tyre of a heavy earth mover overinflated. Five years after the incident, the Perth Magistrates Court found BHP and HWE guilty of failing to provide sufficient training for Mr Sparkes’ position, and for failing to provide the necessary equipment for safe tyre assembly. BHP was fined $102,000 and HWE $136,000. Both companies will…

Jundee gold mine operations. Image: Northern Star Resources. By Elizabeth Fabri AREAS of high-grade mineralisation have been discovered at Northern Star Resources’ Jundee gold mine, up to 800m from existing operations. The newly-identified resources were found in Northern Star’s first exploration campaign at the mine since it purchased the asset in 2014. While the company was only 15 per cent through its drilling campaign, the early results suggested Jundee would continue to operate at or around current production levels for many years. New discoveries included the Armada and Revelation trends, and the expansion of known parameters of seven mining areas. The Gateway-Gringotts trend produced positive drilling results including 2.8m at 598 grams per tonne, while Westside recorded 0.8m at 3933g/t. Northern Star…

The State Budget decision will see gold miners pay an increased royalty rate of 3.75 per cent when the Australian gold price is above $1200. BY ELIZABETH FABRI THE McGowan Government’s decision to increase royalty rates for WA gold miners has been labelled a “disappointing move” by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of WA (CME) and a “baffling cash grab” resulting in potential job losses and mine closures by the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC). Under the Budget, from January next year gold miners will pay a tiered royalty rate of 3.75 per cent when the Australian gold spot price is above $1200, or the current rate of 2.5 per cent if at or below $1200. Australian…

GEELONG, Victoria’s largest regional city with a population of 270,000, is 75km southwest of Melbourne in Corio Bay. A large engineering and manufacturing support industry has developed around Geelong’s traditional automotive, petrochemical, aluminium, fertiliser and cement industries. An impressive network of 46 engineering related companies, the Engineering Network Geelong (ENG), was formed in 2009, auspiced by the Geelong Manufacturing Council (GMC). “With Geelong’s traditional industry base in transition, a key role of ENG is to provide linkages for Australian companies to utilise Geelong expertise, capacity and skill sets,” GMC executive officer David Peart said. “Attracted by outstanding quality and service, companies Australia-wide are increasingly using ENG.” With its own major port, airport and easy rail and highway access, Geelong’s transport…