Xstrata Plc, the world’s largest exporter of power-station coal, won court approval to build the A$6 billion ($6.3 billion) Wandoan coal mine in Australia that opponents say threatens the Great Barrier Reef. Carmel MacDonald, president …
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Bumi approves shake-up but Nat Rothschild to stay on
The board of Indonesian coal miner Bumi Plc has approved a shake-up that will bring in a new chairman after demands from key investors but will also retain co-founder Nat Rothschild as director.
See http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page504?oid=148105&sn=Detail&pid=92730. …
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Australia passes controversial mining tax into law
The Australian Senate has pushed through into law a 30% tax on iron ore and coal mining companies. The tax will raise A$10.6bn ($11.2bn, £7bn) over three years from major companies including BHP Billiton, Rio …
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Time to end the clean coal charade
“Over the last ten years I’ve heard an incredible amount of nonsense from people championing carbon capture and storage (CCS), a.k.a. clean coal. This was usually because those pushing the technology actually had no genuine …
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When it rains, it pours for BHP
A leaked email reveals that BHP Billiton never intended to negotiate new work practices with Australia’s leading mineworkers union. This is despite the world’s biggest mining company having previously committed itself to such negotiations, as …
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Indonesia says foreign miners must grant 51% ownership to domestic companies
The two largest foreign-owned mining companies operating in Indonesia have brushed off “threats”, posed by a recent government announcement that they must increase domestic ownership in the country’s mineral resources. At present it doesn’t seem …
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Glencore/Xstrata make iron ore a priority
Glencore/Xstrata make iron ore a priority Glencore and Xstrata, set to create a $90 billion mining powerhouse, have put iron ore at the top of their post-merger to-do list, building up the one key commodity …
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BHP Billiton threatens to shift multi-billion coal investment to Indonesia
Australia’s main mineworkers union may soon win effective control of Queensland’s coal fields, the world’s largest single source of coking coal. If this happens, BHP Billiton has threatened to shift a planned Aus$10 billion coal …
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USA: Navajo, Environmental Organizations Partner to Appeal Peabody’s Kayenta Coal Permit
A group of five organizations, To Nizhoni Ani, Black Mesa Water Coalition, Dine C.A.R.E, Sierra Club and the Center for Biological Diversity have filed an appeal that challenges the U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation …
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Coal impasse may lead Essar to hold 3 projects
Difficulties in sourcing fuel for its coal-fired electricity plants may force London-listed Essar Energy to shelve its plans for three power projects.
See http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/coal-impasse-may-lead-essar-to-hold-3-projects/466122/.
GCM’s Phulbari project threatens fundamental rights, warn UN experts
UN experts believe that GCM’s Phulbari project would cause “massive disruption”.