FMG expects iron price to stay at USD 140 per tonne

Saturday, 18 Feb 2012

Fortescue Metals Group expects iron ore prices will remain around USD 140 per tonne in the short-to-medium term as Chinese demand remains strong but little new supply comes onto the market.

Fortescue reported that it had achieved an average realised sales price of USD 139 per tonne during the six months to December 31, down from USD 149 per tonne in financial 2010/11.

Mr Nev Power CEO of FMG told reporters that "Our core market in China remains strong and the iron ore index price has remained around USD 140 per tonne.”

He said that "Long term, China's growth is forecast to be stable around the nine per cent mark and we don't see significant new supply to come into the market in the short term, and, therefore, expect the price to remain in that range."

Head of marketing Mr David Liu said China's steel market should stabilize after a recent lull.

(Sourced from AAP)

Australia’s Federal Court decides in favor of Fortescue on mining leases

August16,2011

Australian miner Fortescue Metals Group Limited (Fortescue) has announced that the Federal Court of Australia has made its final decision regarding the appeal by the Yindjibarndi native title claim group against previous decisions of the Western Australian government to grant mining leases to Fortescue for its Solomon Hub mining operation.

The Federal Court has unanimously dismissed the Yindjibarndi native title claim group's appeal against the previous grant of these mining leases to Fortescue.

According to the company statement, the project at Solomon Hub is continuing both to schedule and budget. The Federal Court decision allows Fortescue to continue with its expansion plan in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Fortescue has been trying to increase its annual output to 155 million mt per year from 55 million mt per year under these leases.

FMG welcomes federal court decision

Saturday, 13 Aug 2011

Fortescue Metals Group Limited advises that the Full Bench of the Federal Court of Australia has handed down its decision in relation to an appeal by the Yindjibarndi # 1 native title claim group against previous decisions of the National Native Title Tribunal and a single Judge of the Federal Court to grant mining leases to Fortescue for its Solomon Hub mining operation.

The Full Bench of the Federal Court has unanimously dismissed the Yindjibarndi # 1 native title claim group’s appeal against the previous grant of these mining leases to Fortescue. Fortescue welcomes the decision that affirms that the State of Western Australia validly granted the three mining leases. Today’s decision should dispose of the majority, if not all, of the Yindjibarndi # 1 native title claim group’s legal arguments in this matter.


Mr Nev Power CEO of FMG said that "We are pleased this judgment confirms previous decisions granting these mining leases for our Solomon Hub mine. This verdict vindicates Fortescue's philosophy to support an entire community to become independent and move on from welfare. We look forward to continuing with Fortescue's expansion and delivering outcomes to the Yindjibarndi community as promised.”

Under these leases, work at the Solomon Hub has been underway for some time now and is running both to schedule and budget. It's important to note that Fortescue has an agreement which the majority of the Yindjibarndi community overwhelmingly supports and that agreement is expected to be registered. Mr Power said that "Fortescue now looks forward to completing construction of the Solomon Hub and continuing its close co operation with the Yindjibarndi and Roebourne communities.”

Fortune Minerals closes coal venture with POSCO Canada

Thu,11 August2011

London, Ontario-based resource company Fortune Minerals Limited reported Tuesday that it has closed the joint venture with POSCO Canada Ltd. (POSCAN), essentially creating POSCO Klappan Coal Ltd. to advance the Mount Klappan anthracite metallurgical coal project in northwest British Columbia to production.

Under the agreement, POSCAN acquired a 20 percent stake in the Mount Klappan project with an upfront cash payment of $30 million. Based on current capital cost estimates, POSCAN is anticipated to make total payments and cash contributions of $181 million to develop the Mount Klappan mine and related railway infrastructure. Fortune Minerals owns the other 80 percent stake in the venture.

[sourced steelorbis]

Australia's Port Hedland July iron ore shipments 17.533 mln tonnes

Tue Aug 9, 2011

SYDNEY Aug 9 (Reuters) -

Iron ore shipments from Australia's Port Hedland, one of the world's largest export terminals, declined by 5.5 percent to 17.53 million tonnes in July from 18.55 million tonnes in June, data released by the port authority showed on Tuesday. Shipments to China, the ports biggest destination, dropped to 12.62 million from 13.88 million tonnes in June. BHP Billiton is the port's biggest user followed by Fortescue Metals Group Ltd .

(sourced Reuters)

FMG considers AUD 1 billion bond issue

Wednesday, 20 Jul 2011 |Wall Street Journal

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd is considering AUD 1 billion bond issue as the iron ore miner plans to step up spending on its major expansion in Western Australia state.

Mr Neville Power CEO of Fortescue Metals Group said that the Australian miner will likely target US bond markets, but is also open to offers from Chinese banks as it looks to spend AUD 8.4 billion during the next two years to triple its production in the Pilbara region.

Mr. Power added that " "I would expect us to be back in the debt markets again, probably in the late third quarter, early fourth quarter, and I'd expect that it is likely to be a bond-raising this time,”
Macquarie Equities analysts said Monday that Fortescue might need to raise as much as $2 billion in external funding by the first half of next year to help pay for its expansion, despite strong cash flows due to current booming iron-ore prices.

Last week, the company revealed it had AUD 2.7 billion in cash on hand and had set up AUD 600 million revolving credit facilities with nine syndicate banks.

In May, Fortescue decided against proceeding with a proposed AUD 1 billion unsecured loan, stating that offers to provide the facility didn't meet its expectations.

Australia court bars Fortescue from key Rio Tinto rail line

Wed May 4, 2011 8:36am GMT

SYDNEY May 4 (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals Group said an Australian federal court ruling which prevents its from gaining access to a key rail haul line operated by rival Rio Tinto would not affect its expansion plans.

Fortescue said its target to raise iron ore output to 155 million tonnes per annum was based on its own infrastructure and existing approvals.

Fortescue said in a statement it would consider legal options after reviewing the court decision.

(Reporting by James Regan, sourced Thomson Reuters)

Fortescue Metals considers dual listing in Hong Kong - report

Mon Mar 28, 2011

MELBOURNE, March 28 (Reuters) - Australia's no.3 iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group is considering a dual listing in Hong Kong to give it access to new sources of capital as it embarks on a massive expansion of capacity, a newspaper reported on Monday.

"We look at all of the options," Fortescue executive director Andrew Forrest was quoted saying in the Australian Financial Review.

Forrest met with Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx) officials in Hong Kong last week, the newspaper said, adding that Fortescue has also considered a listing in Shanghai.

HKEx is pushing to attract Australian resource company listings, a potential new competitive threat for the Australian Securities Exchange , which is looking to merge with Singapore Exchange Ltd .

Last week, Australian mining magnate Clive Palmer said he was delaying a planned $3 billion float of his company Resourcehouse in Hong Kong due to volatile market conditions.

HKEx is reviewing its listing rules to make it easier for resources companies to list.

"I believe as the investors here become more fluent in understanding mining and natural resource companies there is an opportunity for us to potentially make those rules even more flexible," the newspaper quoted an HKEx spokesman saying. (sourced:Reuters)

Fortescue says on track to run 55 mln tonne/yr of iron ore by end FY 2011

Tue Mar 22, 2011 4:13am GMT

PERTH, March 22 (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals remains on track to increase its run rate to 55 million tonnes of iron ore per year from its Pilbara operations by the end of fiscal 2011, the company said on Tuesday.

The increase from about 38 million tonne per year rate was a result of expansion work in Western Australia's Pilbara's belt to capture more of China and India's growing demand, Neville Power, Chief Operating Officer of Fortescue Metals Group, said on Tuesday at an industry conference.

"We are running our (mining) tenements hard to bring those tonnes to market," Power said.(Reuters)

Port Hedland iron ore shipments tumble in seasonal drop

Thu Mar 10, 2011 4:22am GMT

* Chinese New Year probably biggest factor in drop

* Cyclone, shorter month also weighed

SYDNEY, March 10 (Reuters) - Iron ore shipments from Australia's Port Hedland, one of the world's largest export terminals, fell 16 percent in February, but the drop was mostly due to seasonal and weather-related factors, and analysts expect a rebound in March.

Iron ore shipments dropped to 12.85 million tonnes in February from 15.33 million in January and 17.33 million in December, the port said on Thursday, but analysts suggested the chief culprit was a holiday in China, the biggest destination of the port's shipments.

"It's all seasonal with the Chinese New Year when you've got a week or so with not too many (customers) to trade with," said Tom Price, a commodity analyst with UBS.

"A better signal is the spot price, which was quite strong, indicating solid demand."

Officials at Port Hedland, which is used by BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals and shipped more than 180 million tonnes of iron ore in 2010, pointed out that the port was closed for several days in February due to tropical cyclone Carlos and that the unadjusted figures also do not reflect the shorter month.

Iron ore shipments a year earlier dropped around 2 million tonnes in February, but made up nearly all of the loss in the following month.

February exports from Port Hedland to China fell to 9.03 million tonnes from 9.97 million in January while exports to Japan nearly halved to 1.47 million from 2.82 million.

China's iron ore imports in February reached 48.64 million tonnes, down 29.5 percent from a January record, with trade disrupted by the Lunar New Year, China's customs agency said in a statement on Thursday.(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi Editing : Himani Sarkar, sourced Reuters)

Tags : China's iron ore imports in February, steelmaking

Fortescue trims March Qtr iron ore production on rains

Mon Mar 7, 2011 8:06am GMT

PERTH, March 7 (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals Group has trimmed its March quarter production guidance to a range of 8.5-9.0 million tonnes, down 0.5 million tonnes, after heavy rains hit its mining operations in the Pilbara area of Western Australia.

The company said in a statement it was working to maximise production throughout the rest of the quarter.

Rio Tinto , which also mines iron ore in the region, said its operations had been impacted by adverse weather conditions during the first quarter, but that it will announce any impact in its quarterly production report.

Earlier this month, Rio said its coastal operations had been hampered by cyclone-related weather, resulting in a likely impact to shipped tonnage for the first quarter.

"The weather conditions are certainly better now than they were two weeks ago," Rio Tinto spokesman Gervase Greene said on Monday.

"That said, obviously there was a fair bit of ground to catch up," he said.

A spokeswoman for BHP Billiton said the company had not put out any new guidance on its iron ore operations. (Reporting by Rebekah Kebede and Ed Davies in Sydney,sourced:Reuters)

Heavy rains in Pilbara adversely affect Fortescue’s iron ore operations

Friday, 04 March 2011

Australian iron ore producer Fortescue Metals Group Limited (Fortescue) has announced that continued and heavy rainfall across the Pilbara region of Western Australia is impacting the company's mining operations.

According to a company release, the sustained wet weather events have caused significant flooding across the Pilbara resulting in extended access road closures and air access restrictions to Fortescue's mining operations, disrupting production.

Fortescue now estimates iron ore production of 8.5-9 million mt in the first quarter of 2011 down 500,000 mt compared to the previous guidance, assuming a return to normal weather conditions.

Fortescue is working to maximize production throughout the remainder of the quarter, the company said.

Fortescue Metals Cuts Quarterly Iron Ore Output Guidance

4March 2011
By Robb M.StewartBy Dow Jones

MELBOURNE -(Dow Jones)- Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (FMG.AU), one of Australia's largest producers of iron ore, said Friday its output in the March quarter will be dented by continued heavy rainfall in Australia's Pilbara region.

The Perth-based company said it expects iron ore production to be between 8.5 million and 9 million metric tons, a reduction of 0.5 million tons from its previous guidance.

The sustained wet weather has caused significant flooding in the iron ore-rich Pilbara, which has closed roads and restricted air access to Fortescue's mining operations and disrupted production, it said.

The company said it working to maximize output throughout the remainder of the quarter.

Rio Tinto PLC (RIO) and BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) are the country's biggest producers of iron ore.

-Newswire

The war over third-party infrastructure access; Rio Tinto rejects Fortescue Metals Group's boast over rail access

March 01, 2011 12:00AM
By Andrew Burrell From The Australian

The war over third-party access to critical infrastructure in the Pilbara has escalated, with mining giant Rio Tinto rejecting billionaire Andrew Forrest's claim that his Fortescue Metals Group was the first to provide rail and port access to a junior miner.

In a statement released to the Australian Securities Exchange last week, Mr Forrest said Perth-based BC Iron had become the first miner with a stranded deposit to have its iron ore transported using another company's railway in the Pilbara. The ore came from the Nullagine project, a 50:50 joint venture between BC Iron and Fortescue, and was carried to Port Hedland using Fortescue's railway.

Mr Forrest hailed the move as "historic", saying it would prove to Rio and BHP Billiton that third-party access was possible despite their objections over many years.

"The final stake has been put into that lie," he said.

The comments angered Rio executives, who say Mr Forrest and BC Iron chief executive Mike Young were ignoring the fact that Rio's Hope Downs joint venture with Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting had been producing and transporting iron ore for the past three years.

"Congratulations to Mike Young and BC Iron, but Andrew Forrest should know better. In fact, he does know better," a Rio spokesman said.

"Perhaps it simply slipped the minds of both men that Hancock Prospecting's iron ore has been routinely travelling on Rio Tinto's railways ever since December 2007. In fairness, it was a long time ago.

"I'm not surprised Andrew Forrest defines Hope Downs ore as not fitting his idea of what constitutes third-party ore, but he's just plain factually wrong. "Twenty six times a week, a train loaded with about 24,000 tonnes of iron ore leaves that mine, and that ore is not owned by Rio Tinto.

"It is owned by the Hope Downs JV, and it is marketed and sold as such. We are entitled to half of the proceeds, as is Hancock Prospecting."

A spokesman for Mr Forrest said he stood by the statements, saying the Nullagine JV operated differently to Hope Downs.

He said Rio had management control of the Hope Downs JV and once the ore left the mine it lost the Hope Downs "badge".

Tags : iron ore, steel mills, China, Australian Securities Exchange

Fortescue makes billion-tonne iron ore discovery

February 26, 2011 - 1:20AM

Fortescue Metals Group has announced the discovery of more than one billion tonnes of iron ore in Western Australia's Pilbara and aims to develop it rapidly.

The new project, named Nyidinghu, is about 35 kilometers south of Fortescue's first mine, Cloudbreak, and contained an inferred resource of 1.032 billion tonnes of ore at a grade of 58 per cent iron, the company said.

In a statement to the stock exchange issued several hours after the market closed, Fortescue said the 1.03 billion tonnes of high-grade Brockman ore was in the inferred category of Australia's mineral reporting code, the least proved-up category.

"The proximity of Nyidinghu to Fortescue's existing Chichester Hub mining operations and unique high-performance modern infrastructure boosts their collective value significantly," Fortescue said.

It said the high-phosphorus discovery could significantly increase its total production and be used to mix with lower phosphorus ore.

"The new Nyidinghu discovery will create a new high-value blend and thus extend the life of these mines," it said.

"Fortescue is commencing a feasibility study with a view to developing this deposit as rapidly as possible. This maiden estimate is expected to grow as further drill results come in."

Fortescue shares were put in a trading halt early in yesterday's market session at the company's request. Their last sale was at $6.50, up 4¢.

Fortescue is spending $8.4 billion expanding its mines in Western Australia to almost triple output to supply steel mills in China.

The average price of its ore in the second half of 2010 rose to $US138.50 a tonne from $67.58 a year earlier.

It said yesterday it now controlled almost 7 billion tonnes of hematite ore and a further 2.5 billion tonnes of magnetite ore.

BLOOMBERG, AAP
Tags:Chinchester Hub mining operations, Hematite ore, magnetite ore,

ASIC wins FMG appeal

Saturday, 19 Feb 2011

The West Australian reported that the Federal Court agreed with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's argument that Justice John Gilmour erred in finding Mr Forrest and his Fortescue Metals Group did not act dishonestly when they announced they had signed Chinese partners to build their Pilbara project.

Billionaire Mr Andrew Forrest faces being banned from running the company he turned into the country’s third biggest iron ore producer after the nation's corporate watchdog won its Federal Court appeal.

ASIC successfully argued that Mr Forrest deliberately engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by making false, misleading and exaggerated statements to the ASX and the media about the nature of framework agreements signed in 2004 with three Chinese companies.

The agreements concerned the construction and financing of a mine, railway and port in the Pilbara. ASIC argued that Fortescue and Mr Forrest falsely portrayed the agreements as binding.

A judge had dismissed the watchdog’s claims in December 2009 following a trial in the Federal Court. But ASIC appealed against the finding in February last year, arguing the case had raised important issues that needed to be heard by an appeals court.

The six day appeal was heard in November last year before the Full Bench of the Federal Court, comprising Chief Justice Patrick Keane, Justice Arthur Emmett and Justice Ray Finkelstein.

Mr Forrest was not in court to hear the decision, which followed an appeal hearing in November after Justice Gilmour's 2009 judgment.

FMG and Mr Forrest have always denied any wrongdoing in the case.

(Sourced:thewest.com.au)

FMG orders for 260 iron ore rail cars from China

Thursday, 27 Jan 2011

The West Australian reported that Fortescue Metals Group has struck a deal to buy 260 numbers of 40 tonne axel load iron ore rail cars from China's CNR Corp as part of Pilbara expansion ambitions.
The contract signing coincided with a visit by senior FMG executives, thought to include development director Mr Peter Meurs, to China to secure equipment needed for the Pilbara expansion.

Chinese reports claimed the ore cars were the biggest freight wagons in the world, based on their loading capacity.
Fortescue announced the go ahead for its USD 8.4 billion Pilbara expansion two months ago. The expansion will increase Fortescue's iron ore production from 55 million tonnes to 155 million tonnes per annum within three years by increasing capacity at the Chichester Range mines and building a new one at Solomon, in the central Pilbara.

Fortescue has long claimed that its 280 kilometer railway from the Chichester mines to Port Hedland is the world's heaviest line, with its ability to handle 40 tonne axle load ore cars.
FMG's rail fleet already has 15 GE Dash 9 diesel locomotives and 976 freight cars, including fuel and ballast wagons.
CNR has sold 5000 rail cars in to Australia since 1999. Customers include BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto. (Sourced from thewest.com.au)

Australia Fortescue-BC Iron JV to load first iron ore on rail in Jan

Singapore (Platts) --21 Jan, 2011

Australia's Fortescue Metals Group said Friday it expects to load the first train of iron ore by the end of January from its joint venture with BC Iron, the target of a complete takeover by a Hong Kong mining company. "Fortescue looks forward to loading the first ore train using iron ore from its joint venture with BC Iron shortly," said Cameron Morse of FD, a public relations firm engaged by Fortescue.
BC Iron's board of directors on Friday recommended shareholders to accept a bid by Hong Kong-listed Regent Pacific Group to buy the remaining shares of BC Iron it does not own for A$3.30($3.26)/share, valuing it at A$345 million. Regent now holds 19.9% of the company. BC Iron's 50:50 joint venture with Fortescue, the Nullagine project in Australia's Pilbara region, will use the latter's infrastructure at Christmas Creek to rail its ore to Port Hedland for export. Mining started in November 2010 and the first shipment will take place in the first quarter of 2011, it said. BC Iron plans to export 1 million mt by June, when it expects to mine at a rate of 3 million mt/year. Sourced:Platts.com