In my opinion things look tougher than what they are, but there...

In my opinion things look tougher than what they are, but there are issues. Better communication would have solved many things and maybe some better planning for what now appears to be a 3 year ramp up to 6 million tonnes. We appear to have 2 separate production configurations and we are transitioning to the second with too many of the old that might be suitable for 2-3 million but not 6. Lets face it, the current BLF is constrained to 10-12,000 tonnes per day with small mobile screening equipment and very limited stockpile capacity with stockpiles rehandled an additional 2 times before hitting the barge. An urgent investment in fixed unloading and screening is what should have been implemented over this wet season. We have a mining fleet more suited to 2-3 million tonnes and we have 1 really decent deposit (30 million tonnes) and the rest is more variable with urgent need of further assessment. Just as we are getting a couple of years of 6 million under our belt, we will transition to the more of the variable thinner bauxite deposits with higher silica. Planning is the key to this mine's future and a perusal of the company management lists reveals no geology manager and yet the banner of MMI states explore-define-mine. From what I have heard most of the original technical team with local experience is no longer at MMI and we now have to reboot in Year 2 with a replaced mining and BLF team and a largely new technical team. We will also have additional large machines and additions to the barge area so who knows what further teething problems we will see. The people of Cairns were given notice of an MMI recruitment drive starting in early February but still no jobs advertised for all the SAB replacements as far as I can see.

Those things can be overcome and managed but could impact the start of Year 2. The money side worries me the most. MMI have renegotiated loan repayments to compensate for possible cash flow issues this quarter and the market will not accept another CR. All the while interest payments on the 40 million increase.

Apart from those things all I want Simon Finnis to do is supply us with the budgeted costs for this 3 year ramp up period. They stated how happy they are in today's statutory accounts for the past 6 months and how things compared so well with expectations, but the bulk of their investors cannot hold these people to account as they won't f.......... release the DFS budgeted costs to us. Pardon the French but stop treating us like mushrooms Simon. Release the DFS budgeted figures to us.