While I am not a geologist, and yes, the RXM capex appears high,...

While I am not a geologist, and yes, the RXM capex appears high, it is not out of the ball park for a mine to produce 70,000tpa of copper.

P Hill's capex was a bit over $1.1B more than 5 years ago. Yes, there are differences, grade, location, infrastructure etc.

M&A or a JV announcement could actually be a positive for the sp. Investors are seeing P Hill open cut finish in 5 years and there is currently nothing to fill the production hole. A t/o or JV that brings production on line before 2018 will help to fill the looming production hole.

Both RIO and BHP are looking to divest assets that do not fit their portfolio. Something could come up there as well. (North Parkes springs to mind)

HT1