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Mining stocks back in vogue with investors eyeing large cash returns
Stocks of a number of mining companies are on the verge of a 12-month high.
Stocks of a number of mining companies are on the verge of a 12-month high.
Australia's biggest gold miner Newcrest Mining has blasted the Western Australian government over its higher tax regime unveiled this week, saying the government had broken two commitments and that higher gold royalties would hurt the state and cost jobs.
Mining companies with operations in Western Australia, such as Rio Tinto, BHP, Fortescue and a string of gold miners, will be hit with a bigger tax slug under changes announced in the WA state budget.
The mining giant's chief Jean-Sebastien Jacques has used a speech at Parliament House to vent against the country's energy policy and call for lower corporate taxes.
The NSW government has confirmed it is conducting an investigation into the Australian subsidiary of South Korean giant KEPCO that could affect the company's plans for a $1.5 billion coal mine in the Bylong Valley.
Australia needs more greenfields mineral exploration "to find the mines of tomorrow," the acting chief executive of the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies said on Monday, in the wake of new national figures show a slight lift in spending on mining exploration.
The Turnbull government will commit $100 million to secure private investment in greenfield mineral exploration across the country to drive a new wave of discoveries and restart the flagging mining sector in its west.
Parties agreed on a maritime boundary as well as sharing arrangements for the $US50 billion Greater Sunrise oil and gas field.
Rio Tinto officially handed over the key to its Hunter Valley coal business on Friday, prompting renewed speculation about what it will do with the proceeds from the $US2.69 billion ($3.5 billion).
Australia's biggest iron ore producers are spending as much as $US10 billion on mines to keep pumping out shipments to China.
The Chinese conglomerate has warned it may suspend operations at its Sino Iron mine in Western Australia if it can't resolve legal disputes with Clive Palmer's Mineralogy over royalty payments and land access.
Jakarta: US mining giant Freeport McMoRan has signalled it believes a breakthrough agreement allowing it to continue operating a massive gold and copper mine in Indonesia will win the approval of Rio Tinto.
Claims that Shenhua's restricted coal mining will avoid affecting the aquifers of the rich farmlands of the Liverpool Plains are "false and ignorant", former state and private agronomists have said in a letter to Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
A federal police anti-bribery taskforce is examining if ASX listed firm Iluka Resources has breached Australian corruption laws.
The Federal Court of Australia has thrown out two other bids to stop the controversial Adani coal mine going ahead in central Queensland.
South32 has flexed its dividend policy and will pay well above its minimum commitment, as it distributes a massive $US334 million worth of final dividends.
Corporate high-flyer Grant King will leave the board of mining giant BHP at the end of the month, deciding not to stand for election at its annual general meetings this year after his appointment six months ago sparked a backlash from some investors.
Businessman Clive Palmer has faced a Brisbane court over a legal bid by government-appointed liquidators to freeze almost $220 million of his personal assets.
BHP chief executive Andrew Mackenzie has pledged that the revitalised miner's plans would deliver "shareholder returns for decades to come", acknowledging that poor investment decisions had come at a cost.
Activist shareholder Elliott Management will be emboldened to pursue other demands it thinks necessary for BHP to clean up its act.
Traditional owners have faced another legal setback in their quest to block Adani's proposed coalmine in central Queensland.
BHP chief executive Andrew Mackenzie has admitted the miner's entry into the onshore US shale industry was poorly timed and it "paid too much" as it revealed plans to sell the controversial assets.
The paucity of independent monitoring of waste water from coal mines in NSW is leaving communities exposed to decades of pollution, long after mining operations have ceased, Ian Wright, a leading water ecologist, said.
Investors have savaged BlueScope shares after it flagged competition and power prices would hurt its profit at the same time as announcing long-serving CEO Paul O'Malley would retire.
Iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group has more than doubled its net profit, to $US2.1 billion ($2.7 billion) and pledged to reward shareholders with a bigger dividend.
Fortescue's generosity to shareholders marks the final stage in its evolution from a highly speculative upstart to a mature company with reliable positive cash flow.
Investors have savaged BlueScope shares after it flagged competition and power prices would hurt its profit at the same time as announcing long-serving CEO Paul O'Malley would retire.
A vast improvement in BHP's results for fiscal 2017 compared to the previous year is expected to be among the highlights of a frenetic few days of reporting season this week, as the focus shifts gear to mining.
Coal mining in Sydney's catchment is having a "cumulative and possibly accelerated" impact on water flows but its full effect is unknown because of a lack of data and monitoring.
Thailand's military government has lifted its controversial ban on Australian miner Kingsgate's gold mine in northern Thailand.
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