We’ll cut Aquila mine costs down to size, says Baosteel

Chinese steel giant Baosteel is confident of reducing the cost of developing Australia’s next major iron ore mine, signalling it can shave down the $8 billion price tag of its newest Australian asset, according to The Australian.

Baosteel director Yiming Wu has outlined that the company had begun a review of the assets it acquired in its successful $1.4 billion takeover of Aquila Resources.

Local miners keen to run ruler over Cliffs assets

Two Australian miners have expressed interest in the iron ore business that US miner Cliffs Natural Resources is expected to put on the market in the near future, according to the Australian Financial Review.

ASX-listed Mineral Resources and Cazaly Resources both confirmed they would at least take a look at the assets if they came onto the market.

Cliffs is not listed in Australia, but is the nation’s fifth-biggest iron ore exporter from its Koolyanobbing operations in Western Australia.

Indochine Mining investors force out board

Interests associated with Brian Rodan’s Australian Contract Mining are believed to be behind a board coup at Indochine Mining, which has been battling to develop the giant Mt Kare gold deposit in Papua New Guinea, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

Indochine has been seeking to raise funds from a cornerstone investor for months – most recently, it is believed, from China – to help it get the project underway.

But investors lost patience, and on Thursday forced out the recently installed chairman, Hugh Thomas, along with the chief executive, Stephen Promnitz, and another director, Robert Thomson.