The five-year contract with a possible two-year extension will deliver whole-of-mine management at Firetail, including operating and maintaining the mining fleet, ore handling plants and associated infrastructure.

The contract also includes a commitment by Leighton to engage graduates of FMG’s indigenous training and employment program, VTEC.

In addition, it specifies Leighton must support FMG’s commitment to provide opportunities for Aboriginal contractors and joint ventures to further expand indigenous employment opportunities.

Indigenous employees comprise more than 10% of FMG’s workforce and the company has awarded more than $500 million worth of contracts under its commitment to provide $1 billion in contracts to Aboriginal contractors and joint ventures.

Meanwhile, Leighton has reviewed its own backyard and announced the sale of its telecommunications infrastructure assets, as part of the company’s ongoing strategy to recycle capital from assets considered non-core.

As such, assets up for sale are Nextgen Networks, Metronode and Infoplex.

Leighton said it had already received a number of unsolicited inquiries and Macquarie Capital has been retained with respect to the potential sale process.

Leighton chief executive Hamish Tyrwhitt said the company would not sell the assets unless there was a compelling value creating proposition for its shareholders.

Tyrwhitt said the sales would not lessen Leighton’s commitment to the telecommunications sector.

“We remain absolutely committed to this sector of the market through our subsidiary brands Visionstream, Silcar (50% owned by Thiess) and John Holland Communications,” he said.

“A divestment of the non-core assets would enable us to continue to provide those services to the telecommunications sector without owning infrastructure.”

This divestment follows Leighton’s earlier sale of Thiess waste management business to Germany's Remondis for $218 million.

This article first appeared in ILN's sister publication ConstructionIndustryNews.net.