Australia’s OceanaGold intends to take legal action if a proposed move in the Philippines to suspend or close a series of mines in the country, including its Didipio operation, for environmental reasons goes ahead.

Philippines’ environment and natural resources secretary Regina Lopez yesterday ordered the suspension of five mines, such as the Didipio gold mine, and the closure of 23 mines, including several nickel operations.

Lopez, who has been a vocal opponent of the impact mining has on the Philippines environment, explained the move was about putting the public’s welfare ahead of mining revenues.

“My issue here is not about mining, my issue here is social justice,” Lopez said.

In an ASX announcement, OceanaGold said it had not yet received any formal suspension order from the Philippines department of environment and natural resources (DENR), and that mining and processing activities were continuing at the Didipio mine.

The company added that there was no legal basis for the proposed suspension, as the mine did not violate any laws, rules or regulations, and was not posing any threat to public, security, health, safety or otherwise.

OceanaGold chief executive officer Mick Wilkes said the decision was unjustified nor had any basis in law.

“We have not received any show cause notice from the DENR nor have we received a suspension order. Should we ultimately receive a suspension order as suggested today (February 2) we have very strong legal grounds to have it overturned,” Wilkes said.

“Our Didipio mine is a partnership with the Government of the Philippines through the Office of the President and has a strong social license to operate. We are a large employer of Filipino nationals, and our operation delivers significant benefits to the local communities.

“As proof of this, Didipio was announced as the joint winner of the presidential mineral industry environmental award in recognition of our exemplary performance in safe and environmentally responsible mining.”

OceanaGold produced 147,150 ounces of gold at Didipio in 2016, it announced on Monday.

While the plan to close or suspend the mines is bad news for companies operating in the Philippines, like OceanaGold, it could be the opposite for nickel miners producing in Australia.

In 2015, the Philippines was the world’s leading nickel producer with 530,000 tonnes. By shutting down its nickel mines it could reduce the country’s output by as much as half.

The share price of Australian nickel miner Western Areas increased by 10.9 per cent on the ASX yesterday following announcement of the proposed move. The three-month nickel price on the London Metal Exchange (LME) also jumped to a three-week high of $US10,500 a tonne.

OPS has become the official distributor of Terex Trucks products in Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.

The company has traditionally been the official dealer for Osborn, Terex Finlay, Terex Washing Systems, Terex Environmental Equipment, Telestack conveyors and Kiverco recycling plant, mostly within WA and NT. It also stocks a comprehensive range of plant spares and associated products at its Jandakot warehouse which are available to its customers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Terex Trucks, now a division of Volvo Construction Equipment and headquartered in Motherwell, Scotland, is a manufacturer of off-highway rigid and articulated haul trucks that are used in mining, quarrying and construction applications worldwide. OPS will distribute the manufacturer’s three models of articulated haulers – the TA250, TA300 and TA400, with payloads ranging from 25 to 38 tonnes – and provide an extensive aftermarket care service to customers that purchase the trucks.

Terex Trucks’ Clement Cheong and OPS managing director Shane Czerkasow at the official signing.

“OPS prides itself on providing quality support to its customers in the segments served, which include mining, earthmoving, civil construction and quarries, and these are areas that fit extremely well with Terex Trucks’ client base,” said Clement Cheong, the Asia-Pacific director of sales and marketing for Terex Trucks.

“The company has gained a good reputation in the market for the products and services it delivers, and we are confident that OPS will bring the same enthusiasm to Terex Trucks’ customers.”

Shane Czerkasow, the managing director of OPS, said the company was delighted to be partnering with Terex Trucks in WA, SA and NT. “We believe the two organisations’ values and objectives are aligned, such as the simplicity of product for maximum operational effectiveness, quality customer service and a leading, first class aftermarket back-up offering,” Czerkasow said.

“OPS is committed to providing all our existing and new Terex Trucks customers with a new level of service and support and we look forward to fostering a long partnership with Terex Trucks.”

The articulated trucks are set to become available in the first quarter of 2017.

In the eastern states, Terex Trucks are already available through Terrequipe, based in Rockhampton, Queensland.

Steve Filipov

In an exclusive interview with American Cranes & Transport, Filipov told the magazine that the plant closure falls in line with Terex Cranes’ recent restructuring, which has involved reducing its worldwide footprint as part of a strategy to allow new product development and accommodate lower demand.

Filipov also said that his team was evaluating the launch of the LC line of crawler cranes, which had been planned to be produced at the Jinan plant. Three prototypes of the first LC crawler, the 330 US ton (300 metric ton) capacity LC 330US / LC 300, have been produced so far.

“I’ve decided not to show the 330 on ConExpo,” said Filipov adding that he doesn’t feel the crane is 100% ready to be on show.

“Right now, the analysis is obviously focused around Oklahoma City where we have a lot of our product. But we have to go through that analysis, and we’ve got some work to do with that product. It was a tough decision to make, but in my mind it’s the right message to the market, that Terex Cranes is going to show a product that’s ready for prime time.”

– See more at: http://www.insideconstruction.com.au/site/news/1050897/terex-closes-manufacturing-facility-china#sthash.mYQJ5q9r.dpuf

Kingsgate’s Chatree gold mine in Thailand will cease operations from January 1 2017, despite the new mineral bill allowing legal operation of mines in the country.

More than 1000 workers will be sacked from the operations, according to The Bangkok Post.

Earlier this year the Thai government ordered the suspension of all gold mines from January 1 following concerns about potential health and environmental problems.

Kingsgate, along with partner Akara Resources, denied these claims.

Chatree’s mining licence expires on December 31, but the company held a concession to continue operations until 2028.

Last week the Thai Government passed a bill allowing mining with less regulatory restrictions, however Kingsgate said they needed a solid guarantee they would be allowed to continue operations without being disrupted.

Kingsgate chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk told The Associated Press, “We’d need an ironclad guarantee of tenure.”

“It’s been a disgrace. There’s still a lot of gold there still to be taken out, needing expertise of people like ourselves who are prepared to spend big investments to get it out.”

On Tuesday Thai prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who is also the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), issued an order for the suspension of all gold mines which also prevents the issuing and renewal of gold mine exploration and concession licenses.

Kingsgate now has plans to develop a new mine in Chile.

Bradken’s board has supported a takeover bid worth $689 million from Japan’s Hitachi Construction Machinery.

The Australian Financial Review and others report that the bid is a 34 per cent premium on Bradken’s closing price of $2.43 a share. It follows interest from several private equity firms in the mining engineering company, whose shares have traded as low as 38 cents this year.

The company said it would retain Bradken’s management teams and headquarters at Newcastle.

The board’s support depends on no better bid being made and is subject to an independent expert’s report, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Hitachi makes, sells and services mining machinery, and has a market capitalisation of roughly $5.5 billion and over 20,000 employees.

Caterpillar’s newest large mining truck, the 794 AC, has made its mining debut at MINExpo 2016.

The 291-tonne capacity truck uses a combination of proven designs—a chassis design that has accumulated about 18 million operating hours and power train design that has racked up three million hours.

Caterpillar launches new truck at MINExpo

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