On July 13 Mastermyne bought Mackay-based DRE Electrical, an electrical services company specialising in draglines and shutdowns for the opencut coal sector, effectively giving itself a platform from which to build up an electrical base.
"Electricians are an integral part of any operation and across every sector they are a scarce commodity," Mastermyne chief executive Tony Caruso said.
The acquisition gives Mastermyne the ability to bring cleanskin electricians through opencut jobs "where the electricians work in large groups and are heavily supervised" and then select some to bring through to the underground sector where Mastermyne's core business lies.
It is not only cleanskins who can be trained, but also overseas labour where they can be put through a supervised environment, and Australian recognition of their skills can be fast-tracked.
While DRE is the perfect vehicle for Mastermyne to bolt onto its own operations as an electrical division, it's not all one-way traffic. For DRE it gets the financial and human resources muscle of a larger operator.
Caruso says the deal will give DRE the ability to grow its services, being backed behind the scenes by a bigger player. He said Mastermyne had no plans to interfere with the current running of DRE, as it had already proved itself to be a successful player in the Bowen Basin since its establishment in 2005.
Started by Jake Hutchinson and Gary Macintyre, DRE specialises in dragline and shovel electrics and also supplies electrical services at coal loading facilities and wash plants. At its Mackay plant DRE manufactures and wires electrical switchboards, dragline consoles and dragline chairs.
DRE's current order book contains secured contracts with BMA's Hay Point coal terminal and Goonyella/Riverside train loadout project and the electrical portion of the new Lake Lindsey dragline construction project in conjunction with Bucyrus Australia.
While the purchase of DRE diversifies Mastermyne's portfolio into the opencut sector, the acquisition will also benefit another of Mastermyne's acquisitions - Capricorn Mining.
DRE will give Yeppoon-based Capricorn, a consumables and fabrication specialist for the underground coal sector, leverage into the opencut sector.
