Exit Macmahon, enter Barminco
April 17 - 23, 2013
BARMINCO has replaced Macmahon as the underground development and mining contractor at the historic Renison tin mine in Tasmania after the latter completed a one-year extension of its original two-year, $A65 million contract last month.
GSM wins $A160m Fortescue contract
April 10 - 16, 2013
APRIL 16: Low profile mining contractor Global Surface Mining (GSM) will operate and maintain 29 Wirtgen and Vermeer continuous surface miners at Fortescue Metals Group’s Christmas Creek operations under a new $A160 million contract with the Pilbara iron ore producer.
SA driller on the right course: CEO
March 27 - April 2, 2013
MARCH 27: RAISE drilling specialist Master Drilling Group (JSE-MDI), which listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange December 20 last year, this week reported a 10.2% increase in profit to R100 million ($US11.9 million) for the year to December 31. The company has also announced a new R1 billion drilling contract with Kumba Iron Ore in South Africa.
Shaw gets green light for Riley mine
March 27 - April 2, 2013
MARCH 26: VENTURE Minerals (ASX: VMS) has nominated Tasmanian company Shaw Contracting as its preferred mining contractor for the Riley iron ore project in the state’s mineral-rich north-west. The proposed small-scale surface mine is about 10km from Venture’s flagship Mt Lindsay tin and tungsten project.
The right moves
February 27 - March 5, 2013
FIRST-MOVER is a term mining types like to use to label prescient types who zip into new territories ahead of others, or take a punt on a new technology. For Delta SBD’s Stephen Bizzaca it has extra significance – he’s in the longwall moving game.
The going gets tougher
February 13 - 19, 2013
STEVE Coughlan, managing director of Australian-based international mining services leader Byrnecut Mining, talks to HighGrade Briefing about portals, prospects, pills and politics.
SMS R&D sends clear message about future drilling path
February 6 - 12, 2013
KENT Swick has had some success lately in rebuilding investor confidence in the predictability of Swick Mining Services’ revenue and earnings growth. Ironically, the company is drilling lots and lots of metres for underground mining clients who must know exactly what’s around the corner.
Pybar preferred at Ivanhoe sites
November 28 - December 4, 2012
DECEMBER 3: PRIVATELY owned contracting group Pybar has commenced ramping up its presence at Ivanhoe Mines sites in north Queensland after being granted preferred contractor status to manage the consolidation of Ivanhoe’s underground mining and maintenance activities of Kulthor, Osborne and Starra 276.
The rush that's nearly ended
November 14 - 20, 2012
UNHAPPY Macmahon shareholders focused their ire at the company’s abysmal share price on the board at the company’s AGM last week. But between the apologies, qualifications and assurances, what the hour-long meeting really highlighted was the existential threat posed to contractor boards by a resources boom.
Byrnecut Group expands across the world
October 24 - 30, 2012
AUSTRALIAN-based Byrnecut Mining, one of the world’s largest underground mining contractors, is the flagship business of the Byrnecut Group. Managing director Steve Coughlan tells HighGrade Briefing here about the group’s latest expansion initiatives and growth forecasts, and what turning 25, corporately, meant to the 59-year-old company boss.
Layne duo start spreading the news
September 5 - 11, 2012
SEPTEMBER 10: DRILLING contracting and product company Layne Christensen’s CEO Rene Robichaud and senior finance executive Jerry Fanska are on the road this week selling, or at least explaining, mixed FY2013 second quarter and interim six months financial results, and an uncertain outlook for key parts of the business.
Byrnecut strikes gold at Kibali
August 8 - 14, 2012
AUSTRALIAN-based Byrnecut Mining is understood to have secured another major contract in Africa, a $A350 million, six-year mine development contract at the Randgold-AngloGold Ashanti owned Kibali gold project in DRC, taking the value of group work in hand past $A2.2 billion.
St Barbara changes Gwalia mine contractor
July 4 - 10, 2012
GOLD miner St Barbara, in the midst of a $A550 million takeover of Allied Gold, has confirmed it is switching underground mining contractors at its flagship Gwalia operation near Leonora in Western Australia.
Watpac embraces drilling technology at Hill 50
July 4 - 10, 2012
NOT long ago the type of contract, or ability to swing new equipment and/or the best operators to a new job, went a long way to determining a contractor’s competitiveness and financial returns. Now people like Watpac’s Brendan Vaughan see an increasing role for technology in the equation.
Iron ore work is mining services proxy, says report
June 27 - July 3, 2012
THE advantages of incumbency to mining service providers working in iron ore construction hot-spot, the Pilbara region in Western Australia, will be apparent over the next two years as pressure to break into the market increases, according to analysts with a brokerage who have just paid a visit to WA.
Small contractor has big ambitions
June 27 - July 3, 2012
FOR many small companies the leap from resource build to production is not only a financial bridge too far but also a technical one. Underground mining expertise, in particular, can be thin on the ground for a minnow. John Johnston is waiting for their call.
Exporting mining excellence … and egalitarianism
June 21 - 27, 2012
FIFTY-PERCENT expansion of Macmahon’s mining and civil contracting business in the past 12 months has been achieved largely off its domestic base, says CEO Nick Bowen. But for the next 12-18 months the focus will switch offshore, putting Macmahon on a growth trajectory similar to other Australian mining services leaders.
Holding back to move forward
May 30 - June 5, 2012
IN good times contractors often tender for every job and pay whatever they need to to get workers on site – the upshot being escalating costs and over-extension. It does take a lot of guts though to step back and put a halt on new tenders for a year to ensure the right systems are in place to make certain growth doesn’t strip out quality. One Australian underground mining contractor has had the foresight to do just that.
Private firm rides investment wave
February 29 - March 6, 2012
A COMPANY grabbing more than its share of South Australia’s nascent mining boom is Kanmantoo mining contractor Exact Mining Services, which recently added new work at Olympic Dam to a bulging order book.
Ausdrill picks up manufacturing speed
February 29 - March 6, 2012
FEBRUARY 27 - HOLDEN Barinas or high-tech car seats they are not, but Ausdrill’s drill rigs and dump truck trays are in demand and the company is expanding production. A self-made Australian manufacturing success story? Surely not. Ausdrill, though, is less sure about its future in the underground contract mining arena.