This is exactly what we need to happen to NKP. It won't happen as 60% of NKP is controlled Genorah but it is desperately required.
By the way, those of you who are wondering what is happening etc. Just watch the SP. It will tell you all you need to know. If it moves up on heavy volume, you know good news is coming. If it is treading water or trade ranging (like it is currently), nothing is happening.
At the moment, despite all the email responses by NKP management, absolutely nothing is happening. There is no JV anywhere near completion.
The only mandatory update we will receive is on Monday, 1st August which will be the Quarterly. I expect that to have the same amount of spin as other communications released by PL and co.
FINALLY, Murchison Metals has realised it's in deep trouble.
Yesterday's radical management shake-up that swept out long-time executive chairman Paul Kopejtka and brought in heavy hitters Ken Scott-Mackenzie as non-executive chairman and Greg Martin as managing director was astonishingly long overdue.
The changes won't solve all of Murchison's immediate problems in delivering $10 billion worth of mining and infrastructure projects in Western Australia's Mid-West region, but they may prove to be a mighty good start.
Kopejtka was big on vision during his six years in charge -- but he stands aside without delivering any major commitments on time or on budget. He rarely spoke to the media and hadn't been seen for months. At Murchison's AGM last November, Kopejtka assured shareholders the future was rosy and blamed a "campaign of destabilisation based on rumour and misinformation" for the huge market uncertainty over Murchison's share in the Oakajee infrastructure project and the Jack Hills mine.
But the market uncertainty was based on the legitimate question of whether a mining company with a market capitalisation of just $300 million had the financial clout to deliver an infrastructure project of Oakajee's size and scale.
Yesterday's media conference with Scott-Mackenzie, Martin and Murchison chief operating officer Trevor Matthew was like a breath of fresh air. The three were calm and answered questions with a minimum of spin. There was no shirking the scale of the daunting challenge that lies ahead.
Regardless of whether the Murchison management shake-up were driven by Mitsubishi's anger over the Oakajee saga, or whether it was a legitimate response to the need for new skills sets at the development stage of two major projects, investors agreed it was worth cheering.
Scott-Mackenzie and Martin realise their immediate task is to quickly sell down Murchison's Oakajee stake to China Inc because the miner cannot raise its share of the equity funding needed to get the project off the ground.
The new management has initiated a strategic review under which "nothing is sacred or sacrosanct". Trading away Murchison's key interests in both OPR and Jack Hills are live options.
The next crucial challenge will be for Murchison's half-owned infrastructure vehicle, Oakajee Port & Rail, to sign up foundation customers for the rail and port network. So far, OPR hasn't even been able to come to terms on tariffs with Crosslands Resources, which is also owned by Murchison and Mitsubishi but has been negotiating its supply chain agreement at arm's length.
The biggest stumbling block remains Chinese metals giant Sinosteel's decision this month to suspend its $2bn Weld Range iron ore project in protest against the cost blowouts and delays that cost Beijing millions of dollars a week.
Martin pointed out that Sinosteel had already invested $2bn at Weld Range and was confident commonsense would prevail. It's worth noting that the cost blowouts revealed yesterday could have been far worse. The capital cost estimate of $5.94bn was up 24 per cent on the draft study released last year, but that number fell well short of the estimates of $7bn and $8bn that have been floating around in recent weeks.
Martin assured investors that Oakajee would go ahead.
"One only has to contemplate the billions of dollars that have been invested in the region to underline the fact that it is actually in everyone's best interests for these projects to proceed," he said.
"Chinese interests have already invested $3bn to $4bn in the Mid-West and so one would think it would be logical that eventually we will see the projects proceed."
Unfortunately for Murchison, it's also logical that the company will either disappear from the Oakajee project altogether or see its role greatly reduced.
NKP Price at posting:
29.5¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
