Mining

Fortescue Metals Group is home to two of Western Australia’s wealthiest company directors, or so it was believed until a surprise disclosure last month.

SPECIAL REPORT: For the second year running, the value of shares held by company directors in WA has fallen sharply, though some operators defied the trend.

Iron ore miner BC Iron has continued its run of cost saving initiatives at its Nullagine operation by awarding a $40 million road haulage contract to QUBE Holdings.

Commodity prices are expected to rebound in the next two years, according to forecasts by the Economist Intelligence Unit, led by a sharp rise in the crude oil price and a lift in base metals.

Local explorer RNI has sold its shareholding in Metals X for $23.4 million to pay off all its debt and fund new drilling work on its copper tenements in the Bryah Basin.

Two Western Australian organisations have become the second and third in the nation to secure unmanned aerial vehicles its manufacturer says can fly 300 per cent longer than its competitors’.

Atlas Iron says it achieved its annual production rate target four months early while reducing costs during the September quarter, and has started working towards a new iron ore mine in the Pilbara.

A dispute over the future of the failed Ellendale mine might not be the worst event in the downturn hurting the state’s once-brilliant diamond industry, because the much bigger Argyle mine is also facing a fresh threat to its future.

BHP Billiton spin-off South32 aims to cut group costs by 25 per cent this financial year, as part of a broader target to strip costs amid a slump in commodities prices.

Perth-based GR Engineering Services has won a $7 million contract for work at Eldorado Gold Corporation’s Olympias project in Greece.

BHP Billiton has posted solid production growth in the first quarter of the financial year, lifting iron ore output by 7 per cent.

The major shareholder in Octagonal Resources is planning to privatise the company after concluding there is no value in its ASX listing, and has proposed a capital reduction that ties in Andrew Forrest-backed A1 Consolidated Gold.

Paul Vogel has used his last Environmental Protection Authority annual report to highlight concerns about growing traffic congestion and vehicle emissions, as well as support plans that promote greater uptake of cycling and public transport.

Newcrest Mining shares have fallen 5 per cent as the gold miner's quarterly production fell, in part due to two deaths at its mines.

From mining to agriculture, technology and finance, 40under40 award winners have been making news this year.

Mining equipment supplier Emeco Holdings says its improved quarterly revenue and cash flow came in spite of operating difficulties in Western Australia.

Former Sirius Resources boss Mark Bennett’s new gold company, S2 Resources, has made a mediocre debut on the ASX with shares closing at 17 cents.

Former Gindalbie Metals boss Tim Netscher has joined the board of uranium miner Toro Energy as a non-executive director, replacing chair Fiona Harris, who is retiring for personal reasons.

Sheffield Resources has entered into an access agreement for the use of the bulk handling facility at the Derby Wharf as an export hub for mineral sands mined from its $271 million Thunderbird project.

SPECIAL REPORT: Earnings for the state from the powerhouse minerals and energy industries have softened, but agriculture, among other sectors, will create opportunities. Business News also takes an in depth look at Bunbury port, where a big expansion plan needs community backing and solid regional demand growth.

Phoenix Gold has reiterated shareholders should reject a cash and scrip takeover offer from Evolution Mining, even though a rise in Evolution’s share price has boosted the value of the deal.

Mining giant Rio Tinto looks set to achieve its annual iron ore shipment target after posting a 17 per cent jump in shipments during the September quarter.

Andrew Forrest's Fortescue Metals Group is in no rush to offload assets as it steams ahead with cost cutting and debt relief to shore up its future.

Perth company Metals X has made a surprise takeover offer for embattled copper miner Aditya Birla Minerals, in a bid which values the target at about $86 million.

Copper miner Metallum is selling its Chilean assets and restructuring its board, after determining that it wouldn’t be viable to restart operations at the El Roble project in the short or medium term.

Woodside Petroleum has fine-tuned its project portfolio as it deals with the impact of weak oil prices, selling one of its mature assets, deferring a new oil field development but proceeding with evaluation of another new development.

Mining services company Ausdrill has been named the preferred contractor for a $US300 million ($A415 million) contract at Kefi Minerals’ Tulu Kapi gold project in Ethiopia.

The chairman of a state inquiry into the impact of fly-in, fly-out work practices on mental health has highlighted several missed opportunities following the state’s announcement it will enact half of the 30 recommendations.

The billionaire Rinehart and Wright families have scored a multi-million dollar High Court win against mining giant Rio Tinto over iron ore royalties derived from the Pilbara.

Millennium Minerals has kicked off a $21 million capital raising to pay off its debt and fund an ‘aggressive’ exploration campaign at its Nullagine gold project in the Pilbara.

The state government has announced it supports half of the 30 recommendations stemming from a parliamentary inquiry into the impact of fly-in, fly-out work on the mental health of those in the resources industry, after considering the findings for nearly four months.

Mining services group Ausdrill has developed technology that allows it to drill for gold and other minerals in salt lakes and difficult-to-reach areas with deep mud covering.