What we do
We are a project-reporting and consultancy company, specialising in the mining, oil-and-gas and infrastructure sectors.
Project reporting
We report on mining and oil-and-gas projects in Australia. We also cover projects overseas where driven from Australia.
We focus on projects from a pre-feasibility stage through
to early construction.
In our reporting, we strive to be accurate, timely, comprehensive
and responsive to subscribers' needs. As part of this, we strive to provide accurate details
of the key people involved in projects (e.g. project managers, engineering
consultants and, when appointed, contractors).
Reports are issued at least twice a month. They are delivered to subscribers in PDF and Excel formats. In
addition, subscribers have access to our project database, which provides a
convenient storage place for reports, as well as allowing for the organisation of reports by criteria such as location, commodity and company.
For subscriptions, see Order Form above.
Consultancy
Our services range from
providing strategic advice on particular markets, to analysing market trends
and assisting clients in pursuing specific market opportunities.
We work particularly with suppliers, consultants, contractors and professional firms. Our clients range from large Australian and
international companies to small and medium-sized companies from Australia and overseas.
For further information on our services, please contact us at melbourne@resourcesmonitor.com.au or +61 411 478307.
Source: Stephen Codrington
Project Notes
RESOURCES PROJECTS: THE
OUTLOOK
20 June 2019
Australian mining and
oil-and-gas exports are forecast to increase strongly this financial year, compared
to the previous financial year. This is shown in percentage terms below:
|
Iron ore
|
18
|
Alumina
|
18
|
|
Metallurgical coal
|
16
|
Lead
|
31
|
|
Thermal coal
|
12
|
Liquefied natural gas
|
59
|
|
Copper
|
18
|
Total resources
|
22
|
Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, March 2019.
In line with this
buoyant export situation, capital investment in mining has increased since late
2016. This follows a steady decline in the previous five years.
Increased capital
investment is notable in the case of iron-ore. The three major producers – Rio
Tinto, BHP and Fortescue Metals Group – are spending between them at least $10
billion on new developments in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Increased capital
investment is notable also in the case of lithium, with this driven by increasing
demand for lithium-ion batteries (e.g. for mobile phones, electric vehicles).
Major developments,
all in Western Australia, include expansion of the Greenbushes mine south of
Perth (the world’s largest lithium mine), a major new mine in the Kalgoorlie
region and associated refineries to process lithium concentrate into
higher-grade products.
And there have been
significant investments by individual companies in other areas (e.g.
Carrapateena copper-gold project in South Australia).
Existing iron-ore and
lithium projects will provide work for mining-services companies for several
years to come. But they will not necessarily be the source of major new
projects.
Iron-ore prices – currently
buoyed by shutdowns of mines in Brazil because of collapses of tailings dams –
are expected to retreat from their current high (over US$100 per tonne).
And lithium prices
have fallen by 50% in the last 18 months, reflecting an increase in supply.
This lessens room in the immediate future for other than low-cost projects.
However, the approval
this month of Adani Australia’s planned thermal-coal mine in the Galilee Basin
in Queensland is likely to open the way for further thermal-coal developments
in this region, elsewhere in Queensland and in New South Wales.
Strong growth in India
is opening up a market for Australia for metallurgical coal, with several new
developments on-the-drawing-board (e.g. Olive Downs in Queensland, Vickery in
New South Wales).
And in the view of
BHP, nickel “offers
high-return potential as a future growth option, linked to the expected growth
in battery markets and the relative scarcity of quality nickel-sulphide supply”
(Mr Andrew Mackenzie, Chief Executive Officer, 14 May 2019).
BHP is similarly optimistic about the outlook for copper.
In contrast to
mining, capital expenditure in the oil-and-gas sector has declined steadily for
the past four years, reflecting the completion of major offshore projects (e.g.
Gorgon, Wheatstone, Ichthys) and the three liquefied-natural gas (LNG) plants
at Gladstone in Queensland.
However, increasing
concern about limited supplies of gas in the eastern states is likely to see increasing
project work in this field.
New coal-seam gas
developments are planned in Queensland.
In New South Wales, the
government approved in April the development of a terminal at Port Kembla for
the conversion of imported LNG into gas for distribution in the state. In
addition, it appears ready (after more than two years of dithering) to decide this
year on Santos’ coal-seam gas project at Narrabri.
Between them, these
two projects would meet all of New South Wales’ gas needs and generate a surplus
for sale in other states.
In the Northern
Territory, following government approvals this month, Origin Energy and Santos expect in coming weeks to
start exploration drilling – with this to include hydraulic fracturing – in the
Beetaloo Basin. This basin, about 600 kilometres south of Darwin, is considered
highly prospective for gas, which could be supplied to the eastern states.
Finally, Australian
mining projects overseas offer attractive work for mining-service
companies. Examples: Wafi-Golpu (copper-gold) in Papua New Guinea; KSK
(copper) in Indonesia; Bawdwin (lead-zinc-silver) in Myanmar: Wa,
Bibiani and Fekola (all gold) in west Africa; T3 (copper) in
Botswana; Toliara Sands (mineral sands) in Madagascar; Olaroz Phase 2
(lithium) in Argentina; and Cascabel (copper-gold) in Ecuador.
Australia is probably
the world’s largest foreign investor in mining projects globally.
