December 9th, 2009
I had been working in Australian underground mines for over 10 years before I had the opportunity to visit some underground mines in the USA. What amazed me was the stark contrasts in mining practices in Australia vs the USA. I thought that I would share some of those experiences for those that have not had the privilege of seeing both USA and Australian underground mines. There are some practices that are widespread in Australia, yet banned in USA mines. On the other hand, there are some things that are allowed in USA mines that Australian mine workers would not believe were allowed.
December 2nd, 2009
The Australian Senate has voted to reject the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Although I am all for reducing energy consumption, there are better ways to address this issue – ways that will not reduce Australia’s competitiveness.
March 11th, 2009
News out of Japan is that Australia’s largest coal producers are to agree to a 40% cut in thermal coal prices. The final price is expected to be in the range of US$70 – US$72 per tonne, sharply down from the US$125 per tonne that Japanese companies have been paying for their thermal coal.
This cut [...]
November 12th, 2008
We have all seen the news about the slowing Australian economy. The latest ANZ jobs survey showed a 5.9% decrease in job advertisements in October. This followed a 1.4 decrease in September. Overall, job advertisements are down 9.8% from October last year.
(See full story on MarketWatch)
The government has release the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook [...]
August 22nd, 2007
(Update No 2: 3 September 2007)
Have you been following the unfolding story of the rescue attempts at the Crandall Canyon mine? I want to share some links to video clips, pictures and other illustrations to help you understand the situation at Crandall Canyon. I will continue to update this as the story unfolds.
Current News:
Officials at [...]
May 17th, 2007
I am sure that you have seen the news about mining companies having to scale back coal production due to infrastructure problems.
Rio Tinto’s Coal & Allied Division announced a 20 percent cut in coal production due to bottlenecks in rail infrastructure and Newcastle Port. As a result, 250 miners will lose their jobs this month.
Other [...]
April 4th, 2007
You may have read about the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority stopping Rio Tinto from expanding its Pilbarra iron ore project because it failed to protect five species of Troglobite.
Robe River Mining Company, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, had proposed the $12.5 billion Mesa A project as an expansion of the Pilbarra iron ore project.
The [...]
March 20th, 2007
Who thinks that the Australian mining boom is over? Not me! I have reviewed the latest Mineral Exploration figures that have just been released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
In the December 2006 quarter alone, mineral exploration (excluding petroleum) rose yet another $36 million (9.5%) to $424 million.
This represents an increase of over [...]
October 3rd, 2006
Are trying to market your mining equipment, product or service to the mining industry? Well, you definitely need to get your hand on this free report,
The Mining Marketing ManifestoAn Insider’s Guide to Marketing to the Mining Industry
This report will change the way you promote your company, products and services to the mining industry.
For more information, [...]
September 11th, 2006
No matter where you go in the mining industry, people have stories to tell about their experiences while working at a mine somewhere. Tell us your story by using the “Post a Comment” link below.
I have a few, but I will post them one at a time, so let’s get started…
One night, I was [...]