Minerals Council accused of backflipping
The NSW Minerals Council has been accused by the Greens of double standards for campaigning against a balance of economic, environmental and social concerns for mining approvals that it supported just three years ago, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The council, the peak mining body in the state, has been vocal in its opposition to plans by the Baird government to remove a provision in the State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) that made the economic significance of the resource “the principal consideration” when determining approval.
NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee denied the council had changed its position on planning issues, saying the clause 12AA had been poorly promoted by the government, and it had not resulted in the economic value of mines being given primary consideration.
Digital will keep copper immune from violent swings: OZ CEO
OZ Minerals chief executive Andrew Cole has said copper would remain immune from the violent price swings besetting iron ore for decades to come because of strong demand from a variety of industries linked to the digital age across a broad number of countries, according to the Australian Financial Review.
“I'm glad I'm in copper,” Cole said after delivering a speech to a Committee for Economic Development of Australia business function in Adelaide.
Cole said there will be fluctuations in the copper price over the next few years, but the commodity will be spared from the serious downturn in prices that have plunged toward the break-even cost of many second-tier iron ore miners.
Vale swaps loss-making tonnes as cost battle heats up
Brazilian iron ore giant Vale is cutting costs by replacing up to 30 million tonnes of unprofitable iron ore with cheaper production, putting more pressure on rival Fortescue Metals Group and high-cost producers battling to survive, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
However, Vale is sticking to its supply target of 340Mt this calendar year, meaning the high-cost tonnes it is taking out the market will be replaced by lower-cost iron ore.
