It seems that Mn ore prices are holding up well, thats not to say that they'll stay this high indefinitely.
However, Mn ore at US$7.85/dmtu for April delivery is fantastic.
"Tshipi backed off its early price of $7.95 for April shipment to $7.85."
It is very difficult to compare OMH and JMS, as they are very different companies. Yes, OMH has $500 million in debt, but the earnings are substantial, OMH paid off $70 million in debt in the last 6 months. Frankly, I'd prefer the debt to billions of shares on issue.
The OM Sarawak ferro alloy smelter is where most of the income comes from, infact the smelting income is 4 x mining income.
OMH is not as tied to the Mn ore price as JMS is, currently the profit margin on FeSi is far higher than the manganese alloys (FeMn and SiMn). I also note that OM Sarawak is looking at firing up the last furnace with metallic silicon, which is extremely high priced ( Currently US$2,600/tonne). OMH will be very competitive due to lower power costs, as it takes 12,000 to 13,000 KWh to produce one tonne of metal. Half the cost of producing is power costs and OM Sarawak has the cheapest power in Asia.
I think most investors missed this very important announcement, as it was in the Financial Report and I think the excitement of the fantastic report overshadowed this very important update.
So if you think JMS is making a lot of money then you'd better take a second look at OMH as its making 3x or 4x as much.
Can't really understand the decision below, it could be that JMS wants to separate the marketing for its listing.However I know who'll the winner will be in this situation, and it isn't JMS.
In a move that has manganese ore sellers shaking their head, Tshipi’s shareholders are planning to individually market the mine’s manganese based on their ownership share. Tshipi is expected to sell 3.3-million mt of manganese ore this fiscal year, ending Feb. 28.
“It’s crazy,” a competitor said. “Now you will have at least three companies marketing the same ore solely on the basis of price. It has to lower manganese ore prices for everyone.
Tshipi’s shareholder, Main Street 774 Proprietary Ltd. (owned by Ntsimbintle Mining and OMH) established its own marketing company, OM Tshipi Pte Ltd in Singapore to market its portion of the Tshipi production.
Tshipi’s other shareholder, Jupiter Kalahari Mines Ltd. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Jupiter Mines Ltd. ) has Johan Kriek to market its portion of the Tshipi production.
In a complicated structure, Jupiter Mines has a 49.6% interest in Tshipi é Ntle,.OM Holding has a 26% interest and the BEE Ntsimbintle Mining has a 74% interest in Ntsimbintle NewCo, which in turn has a 50.1% stake in Tshipi.
Meanwhile, after selling its March production to China at $7.45 per Mn unit, Tshipi backed off its early price of $7.95 for April shipment to $7.85.
(20min delay)