Australia’s competition watchdog has raised concerns over the potential impact of Pacific National or Aurizon buying the Hunter Valley rail business of mining giant Glencore. Global commodities giant Glencore is selling its Hunter rail operations business, GRail, as part of consolidation and debt reduction efforts. Pacific National and Aurizon – the two biggest bulk haulage
Read MoreBlueScope Steel has reported a successful FY16, after a $947 million move to acquire 100% of a North American steel mill paid off big time. The company announced a 160% improvement in statutory net profit after tax to $354 million in FY16, after reporting $136 million in FY15. BlueScope said sales revenue was boosted due
Read MoreMore than $20 million in maintenance work is being delivered in the Hunter Valley during a 60-hour planned shutdown by the Australian Rail Track Corporation this week. ARTC executive general manager for the Hunter Valley Jonathan Vandervoort said around 1000 contractors would join ARTC staff this week to deliver dozens of maintenance projects on the
Read MoreFortescue Metals Group has welcomed an upgrade from ratings agency Moody’s, after the ASX-listed iron ore miner announced a net profit of AUD$1.3 billion on August 22. FMG announced to the stock exchange on Monday it had boosted its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) by 27%, despite a 17% drop in revenue.
Read MoreIan Ackerman reports. Cargo throughput at the Port of Dampier has seen a decrease over the past year, according to statistics recently released by Pilbara Ports Authority. Dampier’s throughput for the past month of July stood at 13.8m tonnes – a decrease of 1.9m tonnes, or 12% over the same month in 2015. Imports into
Read MoreA bauxite shipment from Tasmania has been hailed as a sign of the overall efficiency of the Port of Bell Bay, on the island state’s north coast. ASX junior Australian Bauxite on August 8 announced a shipment of 35,913 tonnes had departed the port, the second such shipment since nearby Bald Hill mine reopened on
Read MoreThe Australian Rail Track Corporation has accused the Rail Tram and Bus Union of breaking a ceasefire, with disruptions impacting the corporation’s NSW network despite the union agreeing to put industrial action on hold. The ARTC, which manages 8500 kilometres of track across five states, including the NSW interstate and freight networks, is negotiating with
Read MoreA Sydney Morning Herald report this week suggests the Roper River mine in the Northern Territory could be set to reopen, after its liquidator reportedly found a buyer interested in restarting exports out of the Port of Darwin. Roper River was mothballed when its operator, Sherwin Iron, went into administration in June 2014, after iron
Read MoreA potential $200 million write-off on gas contracts has resulted in a 37% decline in the share price of Australian engineering and services group UGL. UGL announced on June 6 “substantial delays” in talks with the joint venture in charge of construction of the Ichthys LNG plant in the Northern Territory. JKC Australia – a
Read More$100m in additional funding announced in the budget will help map mineral, energy and groundwater potential in northern Australia and South Australia, resources minister Josh Frydenberg has said. The federal budget, handed down on Tuesday night, included $100m of new funding for Geoscience Australia. “The $100m Exploring for the Future programme will produce pre-competitive geoscience
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