Wednesday, 16 May 2012

EPA to appeal Spruce ruling (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) THE US Environmental Protection Agency is reportedly striking back against a US District Court ruling over Arch Coal’s Spruce No.1 mountaintop removal mine. Full Story... Industrea seeks merger with GE in $470M deal (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) AMERICAN industrial giant General Electric is proposing to merge with Industrea through a scheme of arrangement that values the Australian underground mining equipment manufacturer at $470 million. Full Story... Patriot shaves sales forecast on default worry (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) APPALACHIA-focused miner Patriot Coal has been forced to pull back on its projections in the region due to a possible customer default. Full Story... News Wrap (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) IN THIS morning’s wrap: Treasury blasts budget attacks; WA future fund not universally backed; shipping laws prove bone of contention; and Irish workers flock to Australian mining industry. Full Story... San Juan longwall back in business (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) ALMOST eight months after an underground fire idled production, the longwall equipment used for extracting coal at BHP Billiton’s San Juan complex in New Mexico is reportedly humming once again. Full Story... Gloucester-Yancoal merger could save $380M (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) GLOUCESTER Resources and Yancoal Australia claim they could save up to $380 million a year through synergies between their New South Wales and Queensland coal assets if their proposed $8 billion merger is approved. Full Story... BLM taking input on Oak Mesa (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) THE US Bureau of Land Management in Colorado has opened a dialogue with the public regarding an environmental assessment for Oxbow Mining that could lead to a new underground mine in the state. Full Story... Carbon woes (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) A LOT of good stuff comes out of Canberra, such as pathos, slapstick and good drama, but thanks to overly generous compensation for the coal industry, the carbon tax is not one of them. Full Story... GE offers $470M for Industrea (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) GENERAL Electric is proposing to takeover Australian mining equipment manufacturer Industrea through a scheme that values the Queensland-based company at $470 million. Full Story... Victoria’s brown coal a new export industry (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) VICTORIAN high moisture brown coal resources in the La Trobe valley could be converted into an export business to countries including India and Japan using new technology that reduces emissions. Full Story... VA governor joins coal jobs rally (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) VIRGINIA governor Bob McDonnell has joined in the Federation for American Coal Energy and Security’s Appalachian Coal Jobs Rally and amplified his efforts to reverse threats to the industry. Full Story... Aggreko provides emergency power to coal mine (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) AGGREKO has supplied emergency power to Alinta Energy’s Leigh Creek coal mine in South Australia following a storm in which more than 1000 lightning strikes were recorded in one night, causing major power outages to households and businesses. Full Story... Shareholder poll wants CP board cleanout (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) CORPORATE advisory group Brendan Wood International claims there is growing pressure on Canadian Pacific’s board and senior management to step down after a majority of shareholders surveyed favoured dumping CP chief executive Fred Green and its directors. Full Story... NSW gas domestic brewing (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) IF A coal seam gas production ban is not enough to raise the industry’s ire then New South Wales Resources and Energy Minister Chris Hartcher’s revelations that the government is considering a domestic gas reservation policy may just do the trick. Full Story... India urged to open coal to private miners (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) FOLLOWING recent news of mine closure notices and a shift in government coal policy, India faces additional pressure to dissolve Coal India’s monopoly and increase domestic production. Full Story... ABB expands national footprint with acquisitions (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) POWER and automation technology group ABB will buy two privately owned companies to broaden its motor and generator repair and service operations in Australia. Full Story... TurkPower clinches Russian mine (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) AMERICAN coal mining junior TurkPower has acquired a 100 million tonne coking coal field in the Kuzbass region of Russia’s coal-rich Kuznetsk Basin. Full Story... Portable gas analyser detects almost any gas (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) FINNISH technology group Gasmet Technologies Oy has launched the DX4040 – a portable Fourier transform infrared gas analyser that enables the field measurement of literally thousands of gases. Full Story... Improved production figures for Continental mines (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) CONTINENTAL Coal’s Vlakvarkfontein coal mine in South Africa has reported above-budget run of mine coal production of 112,281 tonnes in April, a 6% increase on the 105,838t of monthly average ROM coal production achieved during the March 2012 quarter. Full Story... Universal expands prospecting range (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) SOUTH Africa-focused developer Universal Coal has been granted an additional prospecting licence near its Kangala thermal coal project 45 miles east of Johannesburg. Full Story... Patriot torpedos market (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) ST LOUIS-based miner Patriot Coal sank coal stocks on Tuesday with a reduced estimate of its upcoming sales volume. Shares in the Appalachia-focused miner plummeted 18.4% yesterday to close at $US3.94. Alpha Natural Resources followed with a 9.4% drop to $11.92. Full Story... SouthGobi turns a profit (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) MONGOLIA-focused coal miner SouthGobi has swung a profit in the March quarter, citing record sales and revenue despite almost unchanged production totals. Full Story... Canadian coal hit hard (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) TORONTO-listed coal stocks took a heavy drubbing in Tuesday trading as nagging overseas worries and pessimism from US giant Patriot Coal weighed on investors. EastCoal continued to struggle with an 11.4% tumble while Teck Resources, Prophecy Coal and Xinergy all posted losses of more than 4%. Full Story... Colombian coal ramps up, looks east (Wednesday, 16 May 2012) COLOMBIA’S mining regulator has flagged increased coal production this year, focusing on exports to China rather than its traditional US and European markets. Full Story...

Tuesday, 15 May 2012

Alpha builds a stronger mine safety foundation (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) UPPER Big Branch mine owner Alpha Natural Resources is looking to solidify safety as an industry pillar with the establishment of the non-profit organization Alpha Foundation for the Improvement of Mine Safety and Health. Full Story... Ashton waits for $290M expansion decision (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) YANCOAL and Gloucester Coal will invest a further $290 million in the Ashton mine in New South Wales if the state’s Planning Assessment Commission reverses its decision to stop the development of the South East open cut proposal. Full Story... New Elk’s spread grows (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) CANADIAN producer Cline Mining, which issued $US25 million in secured bonds to support its expansion plans earlier this month, has acquired almost 15,000 acres to extend its New Elk property in southern Colorado by millions of tons. Full Story... News Wrap (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) IN THIS morning’s wrap: keep taxes stable or lose boom, says Ferguson; Palmer bats for Costello; Mineral Resources cashes in; and Incitec fertiliser business provides drag. Full Story... Consol’s imminent danger abated (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) CONSOL Energy’s Bailey longwall mine barely skipped a beat after receiving an imminent danger order from federal investigators last week, officials have confirmed to ILN. Full Story... Whitehaven to chase met coal: Haggarty (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) THE newly merged Whitehaven Coal will lift metallurgical coal to up to 60% of managed saleable production by FY2016 once its Maules Creek and Narrabri mines in New South Wales reach full production, managing director Tony Haggarty told a mining and steel conference in the US. Full Story... Nix quits, Goldfarb fills in (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) APPALACHIA-focused Xinergy has appointed interim chief executive Matthew Goldfarb to replace company founder Jon Nix, who announced he is stepping down. Full Story... Coalworks directors urge bid rejection (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) COALWORKS’ board has told its shareholders to reject Whitehaven Coal’s $172 million takeover offer, describing it as “inadequate, unsolicited and opportunistic”. Full Story... Union Pacific loads drop sharply in April (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) IN AN ongoing weak trend for the coal rail shipper, Union Pacific has reported its loads in April have again been on a downward slope in the southern Powder River Basin. Full Story... Dryblower on the great conversion of BHP Billiton (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) NOT since the conversion of St Paul on the road to Damascus has Dryblower heard of a more dramatic transformation than BHP Billiton’s revelation that it is not so much a mining company as a business focused on shareholder returns. Full Story... Dryblower on the great conversion of BHP Billiton (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) NOT since the conversion of St Paul on the road to Damascus has Dryblower heard of a more dramatic transformation than BHP Billiton’s revelation that it is not so much a mining company as a business focused on shareholder returns. Full Story... Get ahead, hunter (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) FINDING a skilled worker for a remote project is often not as simple as sticking the position up on Seek and hoping for the best. Retaining the talent that recruiters work so hard to obtain also requires strategic thinking. Brooke Showers explains. Full Story... Colombian coal ramps up, looks east (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) COLOMBIA’S mining regulator has flagged increased coal production this year, focusing on exports to China rather than its traditional US and European markets. Full Story... Coal ships endanger whales: Greenpeace (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) THE increase in coal ships operating out of central Queensland ports will disturb the breeding and calving grounds of the humpback whale, according to research by Greenpeace. Full Story... Corsa extends loan maturity date (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) CORSA Coal has extended the maturity date of a $US19.5 million loan under its senior credit facility from May 18 to June 18, 2012. Full Story... Decmil bags $137M in new work (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) CIVIL and building contractor Decmil Group has won a contract and variations to two others to the total value of $137 million. Full Story... SouthGobi turns a profit (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) MONGOLIA-focused coal miner SouthGobi has swung a profit in the March quarter, citing record sales and revenue despite almost unchanged production totals. Full Story... Industry improving safety but more to be done (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) AUSTRALIA’S oil and gas industry seems to be making progress on improving safety performance but there is still some way to go, with 57 incidents investigated over the 2011 reporting period including three hydrocarbon gas releases. Full Story... Universal expands prospecting range (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) SOUTH Africa-focused developer Universal Coal has been granted an additional prospecting licence near its Kangala thermal coal project 45 miles east of Johannesburg. Full Story... Carbon’s million dollar Chinese deal (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) CARBON Energy has taken the first step to licence its proprietary underground coal gasification technology worldwide, entering into an agreement to be Shanxi Sanyuan Coal’s exclusive UCG technology partner. Full Story... Coal stocks under pressure (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) NEW York-listed coal stocks were held down by familiar forces yesterday as news of JP Morgan’s $US2 billion trading loss last week and Eurozone uncertainty gave pause to investors. Columbia Energy Resources stood out with a 12.5% fall to $1.05. Full Story... Tigers Realm rolls on in Russia (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) TIGERS Realm Coal has been issued a “discovery certificate” for its Amaam coking coal project, marking a key step in the government approval process for the tenement in far eastern Russia. Full Story... TSX sell-off continues (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) COAL shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange deteriorated further yesterday under the weight of the ongoing Greek political stalemate. Toronto-based Cline Mining led losses with a 13.2% slide to C71c. Full Story... Borneo snaps up more Indonesian coal reserves (Tuesday, 15 May 2012) IN A move to expand its coal portfolio, Washington-based Borneo Resource Investment has signed an agreement to acquire 90% of BT Berkat Banua Masanggu, which holds an 8800 hectare thermal coal concession in the Indonesian region of South Kalimantan. Full Story...

Monday, 14 May 2012

Clean coal quietly added to Obama’s plan (Monday, 14 May 2012) AFTER widespread criticism about coal’s omission from US President Barack Obama’s “all of the above” energy plan, paired with a shocking loss in last week’s West Virginia primary election – to a convicted felon, no less – his re-election campaign has added a section discussing his plans to progress clean coal. Full Story... Austar to spend $250M tweaking LTCC (Monday, 14 May 2012) A MERGED Yancoal-Gloucester company will spend another $250 million over the next four years on its Austar mine in New South Wales after Yancoal spent $264 million implementing longwall top coal caving technology. Full Story... VA governor signs coal mining bills (Monday, 14 May 2012) VIRGINIA governor Bob McDonnell has signed off two sizeable pieces of legislation that will support the state’s mining industry. Full Story... News Wrap (Monday, 14 May 2012) IN THIS morning’s wrap: Haggarty takes aim at carbon tax; BHP to focus on shareholder returns; mine tax revenue remains a mystery for another year; and Liberals want tighter compliance rules for mine developers Full Story... US United Bulk Terminal sold (Monday, 14 May 2012) FLORIDA-headquartered United Maritime Group has sold a massive Louisiana dry terminal facility to Oiltanking Holding Americas division Bulk Handling USA for an undisclosed sum. Full Story... Ravensworth extension application inches forward (Monday, 14 May 2012) PROPOSED modifications to Xstrata Coal’s Ravensworth mine in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales that would extend mine life by six years have moved a step closer, with the state’s director general of planning issuing his environmental assessment recommendations. Full Story... UT regs staunch on Crandall Canyon treatment bond (Monday, 14 May 2012) UTAH mining officials are sticking to their guns demanding a three-year reclamation bond totaling $US720,000 for water treatment at the now-closed Crandall Canyon mine, despite owner Genwal Resources pushing for an agreeable solution that would have significantly cut that amount. Full Story... Defence best form of attack (Monday, 14 May 2012) SKILLS shortages in the Australian resources sector could be alleviated by flying in reinforcements in the form of ex-servicemen from the British armed forces. Full Story... Dust Control Technology selects new sales head (Monday, 14 May 2012) ILLINOIS dust suppression firm Dust Control Technology has named former Philippi-Hagenbuch staffer Aaron Valencic as its new vice president of sales. Full Story... Hose injury spurs safety alert (Monday, 14 May 2012) AN ACCIDENT last month involving a loose discharge hose in a Queensland longwall has prompted safety regulators to issue a warning about the dangers of high-pressure hydraulic systems. Full Story... Alpha idles WV mines (Monday, 14 May 2012) IN THE wake of disappointing first quarter results, Alpha Natural Resources has reportedly opted to idle two of its West Virginia coal operations, effective immediately. Full Story... Abigroup taps $40M Hunter water project (Monday, 14 May 2012) ABIGROUP has won a $40 million project by the Hunter Water Corporation to build a water recycling plant. Full Story... UK Coal flounders (Monday, 14 May 2012) UK COAL production results for the quarter ending March 31 indicate a 33% decrease compared to production during the same period in 2011. Full Story... Electricity retailers rorting carbon price: consultant (Monday, 14 May 2012) ELECTRICITY retailers in the National Electricity Market may overcharge bulk customers by $1.4 billion a year by mishandling the way the carbon price mechanism will feed through into electricity prices. Full Story... Carbon’s million dollar Chinese deal (Monday, 14 May 2012) CARBON Energy has taken the first step to licence its proprietary underground coal gasification technology worldwide, entering into an agreement to be Shanxi Sanyuan Coal’s exclusive UCG technology partner. Full Story... Dart confirms no inner Sydney drilling (Monday, 14 May 2012) DART Energy has reaffirmed it will not carry out any coal seam gas drilling at the inner Sydney suburb of St Peters. Full Story... Tigers Realm rolls on in Russia (Monday, 14 May 2012) TIGERS Realm Coal (TIG) has been issued a “discovery certificate” for its Amaam coking coal project, marking a key step in the government approval process for the tenement in far eastern Russia. Full Story... Shaky ground (Monday, 14 May 2012) THE Queensland coal seam gas industry appears to be crumbling under its own weight as both cost assumptions and reserve estimates underpinning LNG projects have come unstuck. Full Story... CER names carbon culprits (Monday, 14 May 2012) THE federal government's Clean Energy Regulator expects around 330 entities will be liable to pay the carbon tax when it starts in eight weeks, a number much lower than the expected “top 500” regularly touted in the past. Full Story... Borneo snaps up more Indonesian coal reserves (Monday, 14 May 2012) IN A move to expand its coal portfolio, Washington-based Borneo Resource Investment has signed an agreement to acquire 90% of BT Berkat Banua Masanggu, which holds an 8800 hectare thermal coal concession in the Indonesian region of South Kalimantan. Full Story... Trickling down (Monday, 14 May 2012) US COAL stocks continued to struggle under low investor confidence as a $US2 billion loss from banking giant JP Morgan kept market moods chilly. Oxford Resource Partners took a 5% decline to close at $7.24. Full Story... China crowned king of coal (Monday, 14 May 2012) CHINA has surpassed Australia and India as the country tipped to be the largest coal-producing nation in the Asia-Pacific region in the future, a report has found. Full Story... TSX plunge (Monday, 14 May 2012) ENERGY shares led a losing Friday on the Toronto Stock Exchange as most companies on our coal watchlist posted in the red. Saturn Minerals fell 5.3% to C18c and Corsa Coal lost 7.4%, closing at 25c. Full Story... India looks to Mongolia (Monday, 14 May 2012) ENERGY-hungry India has reportedly announced plans to acquire a coal mine in Mongolia in a bid to reduce its reliance on Australian coking coal. Full Story...

Friday, 11 May 2012

UBB families withdraw settlements (Friday, 11 May 2012) UPPER Big Branch mine owner Alpha Natural Resources says at least two of the families of miners killed in the April 2010 explosion have withdrawn their previous settlement agreements. Full Story... Pike dead may never be recovered: Solid Energy (Friday, 11 May 2012) NEW Pike River mine owner Solid Energy has dashed hopes of early recovery of the bodies of the 29 miners who died there, confirming that recovering the bodies was conditional on a recommencement of mining. Full Story... Quick reflexes needed in an evolving market: Whiting (Friday, 11 May 2012) JUST five years after spinning off from Peabody Energy, Patriot Coal is looking to its key strengths, including its ability to rapidly react to an ever-changing market, according to the company’s top official. Full Story... News Wrap (Friday, 11 May 2012) IN THIS morning’s wrap: mining tax litigation fears; miners set to fall off supercycle; red tape strangling resources; Japan looking to restart reactors. Full Story... Safe work procedures stressed after KY fatality (Friday, 11 May 2012) FEDERAL officials are reminding all US mines, miners and contractors to establish and adhere to safe work procedures after a demolition contractor was killed last month at a Kentucky operation. Full Story... Hog sniffs out budget good news (Friday, 11 May 2012) FIRST, the good news. Yes, that’s right, Hogsback was able to find some this week amid the fallout from the federal government’s anti-business, anti-mining budget and the rolling crisis that is the slow death of the grand European experiment. Full Story... Four Alpha properties go home with Holmes (Friday, 11 May 2012) TWO West Virginia surface operations, an underground mine and a dock facility owned by Alpha Natural Resources have earned prestigious Holmes safety awards for achievements in safety last year. Full Story... Last whistle at Norwich Park (Friday, 11 May 2012) CLOSING time today will mark the official end of operations at BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance’s Norwich Park coking coal mine in Queensland’s Bowen Basin. Full Story... PA gets state money for reclamation (Friday, 11 May 2012) MINE remediation projects in five Pennsylvania counties can now be completed thanks to more than $US2.25 million in reclamation contracts from the state Department of Environmental Protection. Full Story... Palmer to sue newspaper (Friday, 11 May 2012) MINING magnate Clive Palmer will seek damages of $50 million from a newspaper that reported Swiss energy trader Vitol had terminated a $40 billion coal supply contract for the proposed China First project in the Galilee Basin. Full Story... China crowned king of coal (Friday, 11 May 2012) CHINA has surpassed Australia and India as the country tipped to be the largest coal-producing nation in the Asia-Pacific region in the future, a report has found. Full Story... Ward breaks silence over Pike disaster (Friday, 11 May 2012) THE man at the “helm” of New Zealand’s Pike River mine, former chief executive officer Gordon Ward, has finally spoken out about the tragic explosion which took the lives of 29 miners 18 months ago, offering his condolences to the families of the Pike victims. Full Story... Hog sniffs out budget good news (Friday, 11 May 2012) FIRST, the good news. Yes, that’s right, Hogsback was able to find some this week amid the fallout from the federal government’s anti-business, anti-mining budget and the rolling crisis that is the slow death of the grand European experiment. Full Story... Yanzhou could buy Integra for $500M: report (Friday, 11 May 2012) VALE’S troubled Integra underground and open cut coal mine in New South Wales may be for sale for $500 million to Chinese giant Yanzhou, according to a report in Bloomberg that quoted unnamed sources. Full Story... India looks to Mongolia (Friday, 11 May 2012) ENERGY hungry India has reportedly announced plans to acquire a coal mine in Mongolia in a bid to reduce its reliance on Australian coking coal. Full Story... Rey secures agreement with traditional owners for WA coal project (Friday, 11 May 2012) WESTERN Australian coal developer Rey Resources has concluded negotiations with traditional owners Nyikina Mangala on a heads of agreement for the potential development of its Duchess Paradise thermal coal export project in the Canning Basin. Full Story... Coal of Africa expands RSA footprint (Friday, 11 May 2012) COAL of Africa has fortified its presence in South Africa’s northern coalfields with the completion of a $US75 million acquisition deal for Rio Tinto and Kwezi Mining’s Chapudi coal project. Full Story... Australia’s image suffering: Rio (Friday, 11 May 2012) RIO Tinto chairman Jan du Plessis says the company’s perspective on Australia as an attractive investment destination has changed over the past couple of years as it becomes a more expensive place to operate due to the mining and carbon taxes, the high Australian dollar and rising costs. Full Story... Barloworld bullish (Friday, 11 May 2012) SOUTH African equipment dealer Barloworld has announced it expects its headline earnings per share for the six months to March 31 to be 65-75% higher than last year. Full Story... Leighton secures $700M in Indonesian and Australian contracts (Friday, 11 May 2012) THIESS and Broad, wholly owned subsidiaries of Leighton Holdings, have bucked the global downturn to grab a share of lucrative contracts in both Indonesia and Australia. Full Story... Orderly retreat (Friday, 11 May 2012) INVESTORS appreciated government word that jobless claims were down on Thursday but European worries continued to check the market in various sectors. New York-listed coal losses were widespread but modest as 15 companies on our watchlist stagnated or reversed less than 4%. Full Story... MPJ gets green light for Etona exploration (Friday, 11 May 2012) MINERALS exploration company Mining Projects Group (MPJ) is following through with its aim of developing a prospective portfolio of coal assets, announcing it has been granted a coal exploration permit for the Etona coal project in Queensland's Eromanga Basin. Full Story... Uphill battle on TSX (Friday, 11 May 2012) COAL companies on the Toronto Stock Exchange continued to struggle yesterday even as positive US jobs data lightened the market as a whole. Eastcoal and Teck Resources, however, scrambled 4.1% and 0.7% gains respectively. Full Story... India closes nine mines, mulls coal rules (Friday, 11 May 2012) NINE coal mines in India’s eastern state of Orissa have been served closure notices for procedural violations as the government considers a series of coal policy changes. Full Story...

Thursday, 10 May 2012

Lawmaker railing at coal omissions (Thursday, 10 May 2012) A KENTUCKY representative who also serves as chairman of the nation’s house energy and commerce energy and power subcommittee is reportedly still taking issue with US President Barack Obama’s All of the Above energy plan that fails to mention coal. Full Story... Yancoal-Gloucester to spend $1B on Moolarben (Thursday, 10 May 2012) A MERGED Yancoal-Gloucester Coal would invest $1 billion over the next four years to develop underground and open cut operations at Moolarben in New South Wales if its proposed $8 billion merger is approved. Full Story... Miner stable after breaking back at MD operation (Thursday, 10 May 2012) A MINER has been hospitalized with a broken back after a mobile equipment incident at a northern Maryland operation, federal officials have confirmed. Full Story... News Wrap (Thursday, 10 May 2012) IN THIS morning’s wrap: foreign resource groups take advantage of tax benefit; miners warned to be on guard; energy-hungry Japan unlikely to be deterred; and cost blowout to shut dirty power stations. Full Story...

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