bhp says no job cuts at ravensthorpe

BHP says no job cuts at Ravensthorpe

Charlotte Dudley -- Mining News --
Thursday, 15 January 2009

BHP Billiton says it has no plans to lay off workers at its Ravensthorpe nickel operation.

Fresh rumours emerged this week that the miner was planning to lay off more than 100 staff at the nickel mine; however, BHP nickel spokesman Ford Murray denied job cuts were on the cards at Ravensthorpe.

“Those comments have been around for a long time,” he told MiningNews.net.

The Western Australian nickel laterite mine, which opened in May, was hampered by cost blow-outs and operational delays even before the nickel price sagged to current lows.

Adding to its troubles, in November the miner copped a $US2.1 billion ($A3.2 billion) impairment charge relating to the mine and its Yabulu nickel operations.

The setbacks pushed many analysts to suggest Ravensthorpe may delay its planned ramp-up.

While BHP says Ravensthorpe is safe for now, the changing economic climate has witnessed a steep rise in industry lay-offs and mine closures in recent months.

Yesterday, BHP’s one-time takeover target Rio Tinto announced jobs would go at its Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia as part of an operational slowdown at the WA operation.

The downsizing follows last week’s decision by Rio to off-load 50 full-time contractor jobs at its Kestrel coal operation in Queensland’s Bowen Basin, while 26 staff and 320 contractors at Rio's Northparkes copper mine in New South Wales have also been axed.

Earlier this week, Xstrata announced a restructure of its Mount Isa zinc operations that will see 89 contractors and 60 Xstrata employees lose their positions.

Last November, after the company called off its bid for Rio Tinto, BHP chief executive officer Marius Kloppers indicated the miner would review operations that became “cashflow negative”.

In other BHP news, Credit Suisse has downgraded the miner from outperform to neutral, after fears reduced commodity price forecasts will eat into earnings.

“BHP has obvious appeal in a credit crisis, but it is no longer outstandingly cheap given our EPS downgrades,” Dow Jones reported the investment bank as saying.