ERA scraps acid leach uranium project, but reluctant to close unprofitable Ranger mine
“ERA should be planning a comprehensive clean up of the mine site and beginning an ordered and managed exit from Ranger.”
Kakadu uranium miner scraps acid extraction project, but wants to go underground, Dave Sweeney, 4 August 11, Energy Resources of Australia’s decision to scrap its plan to use a controversial acid leach mining technique at the troubled Ranger uranium mine in Kakadu is an instance of belated commonsense, the Australian Conservation Foundation said today.
ERA has confirmed it will not proceed with a planned mine expansion based around acid leaching, in which sulphuric acid is injected into low grade and waste rock. Continue reading
Energy Resources of Australia makes a loss due to Ranger uranium mine
ERA reports H1 loss because of rain. SMH, August 4, 2011 Shares in Energy Resources of Australia slumped almost six per cent as the uranium miner posted a first half loss after suspending operations at its Ranger Mine on above average rainfall.
The company posted a net loss of $121.75 million for the six months to June 30 compared with a profit of $22.68 million a year earlier, Darwin-based ERA said in a statement on Thursday…..
Volatility in the spot price of uranium oxide was likely to continue until the nuclear situation in Japan became clearer and the outcomes of the safety reviews of nuclear power facilities in China were released….
The company plans to conduct an expanded exploration program on the Ranger Project area between 2012 and 2014 at an estimated cost of $40 million.
Earnings per share were negative 63.8 cents, compared with positive 11.9 cents a year earlier.
ERA directors decided not to declare an interim dividend for the 2011 financial year, after an interim dividend of eight cents per share the year before. No final dividend was paid for 2010…http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-business/era-reports-h1-loss-because-of-rain-20110804-1icgg.html
Falling profits for big uranium companies
Rio feeling the squeeze, The Age, Peter Ker.August 4, 2011………Some analysts believe today’s result and those over the next year might prove to be the earnings peak for Rio Tinto and fellow major BHP Billiton, with a combination of falling commodity prices and rising production costs expected to drag profits down from record levels during 2012-13…….http://www.theage.com.au/business/rio-feeling-the-squeeze-20110803-1ibko.html
‘Skilled Veterans Corps’ – heroism of Japan’s retired nuclear workers
Some 3,000 people are working at the Fukushima site at the moment, but most of them are unskilled laborers, and all have to be regularly relieved in order to avoid excessive exposure to radiation. Several are reported to have absorbed more than the legal limit already. And about 9,000 workers have been involved in the four-month operation to stabilize the plant…..
Fukushima’s nuclear cauldron: Retirees who want to go in, Christian Science Monitor, By Peter Ford, Staff writer / August 3, 2011, Tokyo Fukushima’s radiation has hit deadly levels for the second day, according to Tepco, making efforts to bring the nuclear plant under control difficult. Japan’s retired skilled laborers say they are ready to relieve younger workers.
Nothing makes Nobuhiro Shiotani angrier than to be called a “kamikaze.” Continue reading
Australian govt says NO to nuclear power
Greg Combet rejects Ziggy Switkowski call to nuclear power , Sid Maher The Australian, August 04, 2011 “…. Asked about nuclear power on ABC radio in Sydney yesterday, Mr Combet said nuclear energy was “still a lot more expensive than any of the energy options we’ve got available to us”……
“And in particular in our country we’ve got tremendous resources available that will deliver us cheaper energy whether it be from more efficient generation from coal or conversion to natural gas-fired electricity,” he said.
“But also renewable energy sources will provide a much greater part of our electricity generation and they’ll all be much cheaper than nuclear.”
Future of China’s nuclear industry in doubt – uranium imports decline
The slowdown suggests that uranium importers, including China National Nuclear Corp andChina Guangdong Nuclear Power Group (CGNPG), are still uncertain about the industry’s prospects before the central government issues the revised nuclear development plan, XuYing, industry analyst at Donghai Securities, said.
Uranium imports in marked decline, By Liu Yiyu (China Daily) 2011-08-03 Energy industry waiting for new plan following Japan nuclear crisis Beijing – Imports of uranium slowed during the first half of this year, amid industry uncertaint ycaused by Japan’s Fukushima nuclear crisis. Continue reading
In Western Australia, the system and the media benefit miners, not Aboriginals
the reality is that once an Aboriginal community commits to the Native Title process they are locked into a process which guarantees that mining will take place on their land whether they want the mining or not..
..In WA the mining interests are also assisted in an almost blanket (corporate) media message that mining is good for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people alike. This is nowhere more evident than in the sole WA daily newspaper, The West Australian which fawns over local magnates Andrew Forrest and Gina Rinehart in weekly articles and opinion pieces,
Yindjibarndi Aboriginal people take on WA FMG mining magnate, CPA The Guardian, 4 Aug 11 On one side are the proud Yindjibarndi people, who wish to preserve their culture, customs, language, way of life and country which embodies their spirit. On the other side is Australia’s second richest person, Andrew Forrest (another Western Australian mining magnate, Gina Rinehart being the richest) with a net worth of $6.9 billion who is chairman of the corporation he founded, Fortescue Metals Group (and currently appealing a ruling by the Federal Court that bars him from running FMG), which mines and exports iron ore. Continue reading
Victorian solar cell initiative
AUSTRALIA TO MANUFACTURE SOLAR CELLS WITH NEW PRINTING MACHINE, FEN, By Annie Dang on 1 August 2011 Producing solar cells with zero-emissions electricity will provide new manufacturing opportunities for local industries.
Australian solar researchers and industry have partnered to develop innovative ways of generating zero-emissions electricity using a printing machine to produce solar cells.
The $7.2 million project will see the development of a possible alternative solar cell technology compared with more conventional photovoltaic systems. It is expected that the products will provide Australia industries the opportunity to commercialise and produce the cells competitively. The Federal Government will contribute a $1.7 million grant through the Australian Solar Institute with the Victorian Government providing funding of equal amount.
Launched in Melbourne yesterday, Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson AM MP said the project was aimed at developing efficient solar cells using organic materials and conventional printing methods.
The project will see researchers at the University of Melbourne, the CSIRO Future Manufacturing Flagship, and Monash University collaborate with industry partners BlueScope Steel, Innovia Films and Robert Bosch to take commercialese their printing machine innovation…. http://www.myfen.com.au/news/australia-to-manufacture-solar-cells-with-new-prin
Success of New Zealand’s carbon pricing scheme
In the scheme’s first year, permits have been granted for 12 new renewable power stations which will produce 1400 megawatts of electricity, the report states. That’s five times the average over the past decade……”Already New Zealand’s carbon price is driving major investment in renewable energy without any of the dire consequences some naysayers in Australia warn of,”
NZ ETS proves naysayers wrong: Labor, -9 News, Aug 1 2011, By Julian Drape– The federal government says a report showing New Zealand’s emissions trading scheme (ETS) has boosted investment in renewable energy proves the naysayers in Australia are wrong to attack Labor’s carbon tax.
New Zealand’s trading scheme, covering the energy, industry, transport and forestry sectors, has been operating since July 2010……. Continue reading
1 This month
of the week – Disrupting War & Militarism in Oceania. Active solidarity. Radical practice.
Antinuclear 