$220 million coal mining contract for Leighton/Theiss
LEIGHTON Holdings subsidiary Thiess has won 2 Queensland coal mine contracts worth $220 million for projects being built by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance. Thiess will build a coal handling and preparation plant plus a rail loop and holding roads at the Caval Ridge mine project in the Bowen Basin.
The BHP Mitsubishi Alliance, a joint venture between BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi Development, approved development of the Caval Ridge mine in November 2011.
Queensland Mining Jobs
There were still 10 coal projects worth a total of $10.2 billion in the Bowen Basin, capable of creating at least 2800 mining construction jobs and another 1610 mining jobs would be created to operate the mine.
On paper, the figures appear paltry when compared with $60.8 billion being invested in liquefied natural gas projects near Gladstone.
Those projects will employ up to 17,000 through construction and up to 3000 once operating.
To the west, $23.15 billion is to be spent in the Galilee Basin, which – if all were successful – would deliver 130 million more tonnes of thermal coal per year for export.
LNG Jobs Soar in Gladstone
CONSTRUCTION giant Bechtel is hiring between 100 and 150 new workers every week as it builds multiple gas plants (LNG trains) on Curtis Island off Gladstone. With about 8300 workers already employed across three multi-billion dollar construction projects, the American firm is gearing up to having 8800 workers when construction numbers peak.
At least half of all workers had been pulled from the Gladstone area, when that supply was exhausted, Bechtel would work “in concentric circles”, recruiting from across the state.
This means 88% of Bechtel workers were Queenslanders, with only a small percentage of the workforce coming from interstate. Workers are spread across three projects – Australian Pacific LNG, Gladstone LNG and Queensland Curtis LNG.
QCLNG is due to be completed in 2014, with the other two expected to be operating from 2015.
Best is yet to come from China: Forrest
FORTESCUE Metals Group executive chairman Andrew Forrest says China’s greatest contribution to Australia and the global economy is yet to come. He was confident the Communist Party’s new leadership team, which comes into power in March, will aim to stabilise and strengthen the Chinese economy.
Beijing is already targeting 7-7.5 per cent economic growth this year, but most forecasters expect up to 8 per cent. Mr Forrest said concerns that the Chinese economy was heading towards a hard landing, which would have major consequences for Australia, were starting to ease.
China is now Australia’s largest trading partner, overtaking Japan as the nation’s number one export destination. In the next 10 years, China’s contribution will be greater than ever before because of the focus of the new leadership team.
A new report this week said China’s steel demand would grow by 4.1 per cent next year.
People looking to get into iron ore mining jobs in Western Australia should follow the developments in China as it will open up opportunities for employment in the West next year. Sign up for iMINCO Project News to keep informed of the latest mining and energy sector developments.
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