Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Four months after shutting down its Bloom Lake iron ore mine as part of a plan to exit Eastern Canada amid low commodity prices, U.S. miner Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE:CLF) is about to divest itself of more Canadian assets.
CBC News reported on Friday that the Cleveland-based company’s subsidiaries, which filed for creditor protection in January, are “seeking a Quebec court’s permission to solicit interest next month in the Bloom Lake mine, the Wabush Mine, and related port and rail assets in Quebec and Labrador, according to a motion filed by monitor FTI Consulting Canada.”
According to the CBC report, the assets include businesses related to the Bloom Lake mine, Wabush Iron Co. Ltd., Wabush Resources Inc., Arnaud Railway Company, the Wabush Lake Railway Company Ltd. and port facilities in Pointe-Noire, Quebec.
Cliffs, the U.S.’s biggest iron ore miner, also sold part of its struggling coal division for $174 million, in cash, to Coronado Coal II LLC. In October last year, Cliffs took a $6bn charge related mainly to the ill-timed purchase of Bloom Lake, which was supposed to supply the then-booming Chinese steel market.
The Wabush iron ore mine, Canada’s third largest, has been marked for closure since last October as well.
Comments
LAMB
Looks like CLIFFS day in the sun is over.