| The TEX Report Topics < Iron Ore > | |
| HOME >> Topics List >> September, 2006 >> 05 (Tue) |
| Major Events In July 2006 Over Ferrous Raw Materials (2) |
|
July 11: <Cullen Resources signs MOU with FMG on exploration interest > Australian company, Cullen Resources Ltd. (Cullen) announced July 7 that it has signed an MOU with Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (FMG) for FMG to earn up to an 80% interest in the iron ore rights on a group of Cullen's tenements in the West Pilbara Region, incorporating a total tenement area of up to 460 km2. The tenements include iron formations that host the adjacent Metawandy deposits of Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd, for which an Inferred Resource of 225 million tons at 62.1% Fe has been reported. July 12: <Smorgon acquires 20% interest in Thai Suntech Metal Company> Australia-based metal recycling company Smorgon Steel Group announced acquisition of 20% shares in Suntech Metal Company, a subsidiary of Thai metal recycling operator Suntech Group. Suntech Metal is processing 170,000 tons of steel scrap a year at Chon Buri, ca.120 km each of Bangkok. July 14: <POSCO's 2Q06 sales, profits plunge> South Korean POSCO released financial results for April to June 2006 that show a general decline for the second year running; Sales at KRW 4.67 trillion (down 13.1% from the same quarter in 2005), Operating profit KRW 941.46 billion (down 45.5%), and Net profit KRW 709.67 billion (down 43.8%). In terms of January to June, the results were as unfavorable as for the April quarter; Sales were down 15.4% at KRW 9.33 trillion, Operating profit down 50.6% at KRW 1.73 trillion and Net profit down 45.9% at KRW 1.39 trillion. All these are accounted for by the sluggish market prices of steel products, coupled with soared raw materials costs. July 18: <Hong Kong's Noble Group offers 10% equity placement in FMG's equity raising program> Australian Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (FMG) filed July 10 the updated status of its equity raising program with Australian Stock Exchange. It has been meanwhile revealed that the Company is negotiating with a number of potential partners, including Hong Kong's Noble Group Ltd. FMG informs Noble has tabled an offer for an equity placement of 10 percent of the fully diluted shares in FMG on condition that a joint venture marketing company for the sale of FMG's iron ore to China be established with a 51% ownership of Noble. <Mitsui increases its shareholding in Nippon Steel Corp> Mitsui & Co revealed July 14 it has purchased an additional 23,027,000 shares in Nippon Steel Corp for 10 billion yen, resulting in an increase in its shareholding from 21,263,632 shares (0.31%) as at March 31 to 44,290,632 shares (0.65%) at July 14. The additional acquisition is in order to strengthen its relationship with Nippon Steel as a key business partner. <NYK Line signs COA with Baosteel to carry W. Australian iron ore> NYK Line announced signing of a long-term COA with China's Baoshan Iron and Steel (Baosteel) to transport Western Australian iron ore to the country. The signing took place at the headquarters of NYK Line on July 6, attended among others by Dai Zhi Hao, vice-president of Baosteel visiting Japan. Under the COA 1.7 to 2.3 Mt of iron ore will be transported annually from Western Australia to China over 12.5 years starting in July 2006. July 19: <Evraz Group acquires stake in South African Highveld Steel & Vanadium> Evraz Group of Russia jointly with Credit Swisse announced acquisition of stake in South African Highveld Steel & Vanadium Corp, a 79% owned subsidiary of Anglo American (AAC). Both Evraz and Credit Swisse acquired 24.9% each from AAC for a total consideration of US$678 million (for acquisition of a maximum 79%). In June 2006 Evraz purchased Stratcor, a US leading vanadium producer, for US$110 million. |
| last modified : Fri 08 Sep, 2006 [10:17] |
