Murray & Roberts lands R2.3bn mining contract with Newmont Corporation
RUC CEMENTATION Mining Contractors, a subsidiary of the Murray & Roberts (M&R) mining platform, has been awarded a R2.3 billion Newmont Corporation shaft lining and equipment contract in Australia. The contract was for Newmont’s Tanami Expansion 2 project in Australia’s Northern Territory. Newmont is the world’s largest gold producer.
M&R’s share price increased 2.8 percent to R11 on the JSE yesterday morning on the announcement of the contract, with the price well up from R5.16 a year ago. The share price closed at R10.74.
RUC is a diversified underground mining contractor with an extensive portfolio of completed and current projects throughout Australia and the Asia-Pacific.
M&R said yesterday that capital investment in the mining sector continued mainly in brownfield expansions, although it was expected investment in new mines would return from mid-2021 onwards.
As one of the largest underground mining contractors in the world, M&R’s mining platform has significant market share in the jurisdictions in which it operates, including Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Mongolia, South Africa, the US, Mexico, Chile and Zambia.
These include shaft sinking and equipping projects, decline and mine development projects, production mining projects, support and construction projects, and ore handling infrastructure construction projects.
In the six months to December 31 last year, M&R said it held a record order book for all its operations of R60.5bn, well up from the R50.5bn order book at the same time a year previously.
It declared an interim attributable loss of R167 million versus a R163m profit at the same time a year before, but said that, considering the size of its order book and near orders of R19.9bn at the end of the interim period, it was well positioned for a return to profitability and “meaningful earnings growth” in the short to medium term.
The mining platform delivered a R176m profit before tax and interest at the interim stage, versus R353m the previous year.