Australia and NZ

Andrew Bellamy, CEO of Austal, one of the world’s leading aluminium shipbuilders, talks to Jayne Alverca about the winds of change that are blowing in the wake of a major defence contract with the US Navy.

Austal, headquartered in Henderson, Western Australia, is the largest builder of aluminium fast ferries in the world, with a customer base that spans the globe. The company has reached this level of success in just over 20 years—an achievement that CEO Andrew Bellamy attributes to three key factors.

Under new and gifted management, Carrick Gold is undergoing a renaissance—and is currently poised to develop a major gold discovery within the Kalgoorlie West Project. Chairman Laurence Freedman talks to Jayne Flannery.

Ireland-based Kentz Engineering and Construction Group has won a $33.6 million contract from Bariq Mining to carry out works at its Jabal Sayid project.

Kentz’s Saudi operating unit, Saudi Arabian Kentz Co Ltd, has won the procurement, construction and commissioning contract to carry out the structural, mechanical, piping, electrical and instrumentation works for Bariq Mining’s copper processing plant at its new Jabal Sayid copper mine located in western Saudi Arabia.

The mine will produce copper concentrate with gold and silver credits. 

South African miner Exxaro has made a takeover bid for Australian miner Territory Resources for A$123 million in cash.

Territory has an iron ore operation in Australia’s Northern Territory, with an operating mine at Frances Creek positioned close to rail and port infrastructure serving the port of Darwin. The mine produces approximately 1.6 million tonnes per annum of lump and fine direct shipping ore.

Territory also owns rights to iron ore tenements in the vicinity of Frances Creek.

Royal Dutch Shell has decided to go ahead with its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project in Australia, which will see it build the world's first FLNG facility.

The platform will be moored around 200 kilometres off the Australian coast and will liquefy gas from offshore fields onboard by cooling.

Shell will now commence detailed design and construction of what will be the world's largest floating offshore facility, in a ship yard in South Korea.

Aquarius Platinum is to buy the mineral rights to the southern part of Northam Platinum’s Booysendal project for R1.2 billion, it has been announced.

The mineral rights comprise several farms underlain by the UG2 and Merensky reef horizons, collectively called Booysendal South. Aquarius, which will acquire the platinum group metals and associated base metals mineral rights, said that after geological losses, the rights would increase its current resource base by approximately 24 per cent.

As April draws to a close, the world’s major oil companies are coming out with their first quarter results for 2011, with ConocoPhillips, BP, EXXON and Shell all reporting this week.

Reporting yesterday, the third largest US oil company ConocoPhillips reported a 43 per cent year-on-year rise in quarterly earnings to $3 billion, but said it was disappointed not to have achieved its production and refining targets.

Jürgen Hendrich, CEO and MD of MEO Australia, talks to Jayne Flannery about the importance of creative thinking to build shareholder and environmental value through the exploration and commercialisation of hydrocarbon resources.