Mining

Local gold miners continue to prove there is still money to be made in Western Australia’s resources playground, with Northern Star Resources, Metals X, Ramelius Resources and Saracen Mineral Holdings all closing higher on the ASX.

NRW Holdings emerged from a trading halt this morning with its share price nearly tripling in value on the back of news yesterday that its joint venture with Salini Impregilo had been named the preferred contractor for the $2 billion Forrestfield-Airport Rail link.

Shares in miner and contractor Mineral Resources were up 13 per cent today after it announced dividends of 8.5 cents per share, about 60 per cent larger than what it committed to in November.

Watpac has revealed the financial impact of a dispute with BC Iron and declining work at Pluton Resources’ Cockatoo Island project, including $41.7 million worth of write-downs.

Evolution Mining expects to benefit from higher gold prices and renewed interest in the sector despite swinging to a $15.5 million half-year loss.

Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources has made good on its commitment to invest further in UK technology company Metalysis, announcing today a $12.2 million injection into the business with plans for another $8.1 million soon.

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering says it has won $20 million in new contracts and extensions since the start of the year, including a contract for work at BHP Billiton’s Jimblebar iron ore mine in the Pilbara.

Gold and nickel miner Independence Group has posted a first-half loss of $78 million on the back of impairments and the acquisition of Sirius Resources late last year.

Iron ore miner Mount Gibson Iron has booked another half-year loss, but it’s a substantial improvement on its performance in the previous year, despite recording a $23.6 million impairment.

Northern Star Resources says it will consider the sale of its Plutonic gold mine near Meekatharra after receiving a number of unsolicited offers from interested parties.

Metals X has once again stepped up its pursuit of Aditya Birla Minerals, announcing today that its off-market $68 million takeover offer is now unconditional, with a quarter of Aditya shareholders already accepting the offer.

Engineering company Monadelphous Group has posted sharp falls in profit and revenue for the six months to December, but says there is a growing pipeline of work in its maintenance services division.

Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources will make about 33 redundancies when it suspends activities at its Jacinth-Ambrosia operation in South Australia.

Diversified contractor AusGroup has shocked the market with a $69.8 million quarterly loss, admitting it has been forced to write off long-standing contractual claims in order to boost its cash reserves.

Employment prospects for geoscientists in Australia deteriorated in the last quarter of 2015, with unemployment in the sector reaching a record high.

Subiaco-based gold miner Perseus Mining has posted a fall in half-year profit to $12 million on the back of the weaker Australian dollar, but grew revenue by 5 per cent.

Listed companies Alliance Aviation Services and Virgin Australia have teamed up to help grow their respective charter businesses in the national fly-in, fly-out market.

Shares in Perth-based explorer Apollo Consolidated have surged on news it has struck an agreement with gold miner Newcrest Mining for its Seguela project in West Africa.

Special Report: Falling commodity prices have led some mining contractors to circle the wagons, but others are cautiously targeting opportunities.

Newcrest Mining's first-half profit has fallen 55 per cent due to lower gold and copper prices and a shutdown at a major mine.

It’s likely more nickel operations will need to be closed before there’s any improvement in prices for the steel-making commodity.

Potash explorer Elemental Minerals has received a $123.1 million cash takeover offer from a Hong Kong investment group, but the company was quick to list a number of reasons why the proposal wouldn’t succeed.

WorleyParsons has denied a media report that it is considering an equity raising to offset rising debt levels.

Mining giant Rio Tinto has reported an $US866 million ($A1.2 billion) annual loss, and has responded by cutting its future dividends, operating costs and capital spending, though the long-planned Silvergrass mine in the Pilbara is shaping up as one of the company's few big projects to proceed.

Highly indebted mining companies with limited cash flow need to make brave decisions as they face a protracted period of low commodities prices, Deloitte says.

Gold Road Resources has appointed GR Engineering Services to undertake a lead engineering role in a feasibility study for its Gruyere gold project near Laverton.

The state government has officially commissioned the $140 million Eastern Goldfields Pipeline, which will support the ongoing development of mining projects in the region and benefit operators of existing mines due to reduced costs

Shares in Perth-based gold and nickel explorer Nickelore doubled in price today after the company announced it would acquire a Brazilian renewable energy provider.

Iron ore miner Roy Hill has officially taken control of its mine, rail and port operations in the Pilbara from lead construction contractor Samsung C&T, with the company now commencing ramp-up of production to target the nameplate 55 million tonnes per annum capacity.

Construction and contract mining firm CIMIC Group is set for a solid 2016 after lifting its underlying annual profit by 20 per cent.

A custom mouthguards maker that boasts AFL coach John Worsfold as a director has announced plans to list on the ASX through the reverse takeover of Perth-based explorer Mount Magnet South.

Mincor Resources has reported a half-year net loss of $34.7 million while fellow nickel miner Panoramic Resources has cut its directors’ fees and board size to further slash costs.