Sumitomo to shut Bowen Basin coal venture
Sumitomo Corp cut its full-year profit forecast by 96% as the Japanese trading company wrote down the value of a US oil development and Australian coal mining operations, according to the Australian Financial Review.
The company plans to stop production at its Isaac Plains coal mine in Australia with Vale after an industry downturn, it said in a separate statement on Monday. The companies plan to cease operations at the venture in Queensland’s Bowen Basin by the end of January.
Brazilian giant Vale joins Fraser Range nickel rush
Vale’s Perth-based exploration unit is understood to have joined a long list of explorers in the Fraser Range region of Western Australia, in the hope of making a new major nickel discovery, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The region came to prominence after Sirius Resources hit the jackpot with the Nova nickel and copper discovery two years ago, and has since become one of the most active exploration regions in the nation.
Lenders expect Rio Tinto to miss Mongolia deadline
Rio Tinto appears unlikely to be ready to push ahead with the second stage of the Oyu Tolgoi mine this week, despite an imminent deadline and improving relations with the Mongolian government, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Most of the lenders involved in the $US5.4 billion ($A6.2 billion) second stage have attached a September 30 deadline to their funding commitments, after the initial deadline on March 31 was breached.
