Shift Miner Magazine

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May 2019 Edition 212

KIND OF A BIG DEAL

CENTRAL QUEENSLAND COAL TAKES CENTRE STAGE IN THE FEDERAL ELECTION

ONE SMALL STEP

North Goonyella nearly ready to go

INVESTORS

Back in the shed

BHP’S ROBOTIC DREAM

400,000 hrs of training, 50% able to code, tripling robots and high school drone pilots

May 2019 1

You are entitled to a

free health check If you work in a Queensland coal mine, your employer is required by law to pay for you to get a respiratory health check. This is part of our ongoing effort to make sure lung disease from mine dust is prevented and detected early.

Learn more about

Protection

Detection

Support

Visit

www.dnrme.qld.gov.au/miners-health-matters

CS9259 5/19

Authorised by the Queensland Government, William Street, Brisbane

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CONTENTS

News

NEWS

04 ARE YOU READY TO BE A ROBOT? 06 M INER

REJECTS BLACKWATER TRUCK CLAIMS

10 C FMMEU 14

& SUSPICIOUS MINDS

STRAIGHT ANSWER A FROM POLITICIANS?

REGULARS 20-22 F RANK & MADMUMZIE 24 CRIB QUIZZES 25-26 T RADER For all general enquiries 07 4921 4333 or admin@shiftminer.com

NEWS & SUBSCRIPTION

EDITORIAL Overall editor is Alex Graham alex.graham@shiftminer.com or 074921 4333

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May 2019 3

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BHP’s robotic dream BHP’s Vice President of Technology Global Transformation Rag Udd has given a speech in Brisbane on the future of automation and technology in mining.

Mr Udd predicted digital transformation was inevitable, calling it a “reality” that would require half their workforce to have advanced coding skills by 2030.

“To realise this future, we must build skills and capability, and we must do it now,” he said.

“By 2030, half of the future workforce will need advanced coding and software design skills, so in preparation for tomorrow, we’re building a technology-savvy

workforce today.

“400,000 hours is the amount of training we will deliver for our people as part of the implementation of just one key technology initiative.

“We are actively creating a culture of learning and upskilling, and this means more controllers, more builders and more technicians.”

BHP says it’s committed more than $55 million to Australian Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) programs, and in Central Queensland High Schools is facilitating the rollout of Remote Pilot Certificates for year 12 students so they can

Rattling the can The Federal government has moved to stop taxpayers footing the bill for worker entitlements after businesses go broke passing new laws that toughen penalties for directors who avoid paying workers entitlements during insolvencies or restructures.

The new laws also target Phoenix activity - the phenomenon where new companies rise from the ashes of old ones after leaving creditors owed millions.

During the mining downturn, several Central Queensland businesses went into administration without the funds to pay employee entitlements. In these situations, the Australian Government uses taxpayer money to provide financial assistance through the Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) as a last resort.

Typically the FEG will cover unpaid wages (up to 13 weeks), unpaid annual leave and longservice leave, payment in Lieu

4 May 2019

of notice, and redundancy of four weeks per year of service.

The law changes follow a recent blowout in the costs of the FEG during the mining downturn that saw taxpayers pay more than $1 billion to cover employees from 2012 to 2016, a 75 per cent rise from the previous four years.

Under the new laws, company directors only have to be deemed “reckless” in their dealings to be found liable, and they also increase penalties for phoenix activity, bringing it in line with offences for market manipulation and other financial misconduct.

Parties will also be able to recover employee entitlements from related entities if that entity benefited from their work, even if it did not employ the employees directly.

The laws also allow the Australian Securities and Investment Commission to disqualify company directors and other officers with a track record of repeatedly and inappropriately using the FEG.

graduate with the highest possible accreditation for drone piloting in Australia.

While many people are sceptical about the ability of a long term mining operator to reskill in middle age, Mr Udd isn’t, and points to better inclusivity along the way.

“In the same way we see it and feel it in our personal lives – technological advances mean our industry has entered an age of acceleration,” he said.

“It’s now driving an exponential rate of change, some fear may exceed our capacity to cope, but clearly that’s not a view that I’m prepared to accept.

“Our Integrated Remote Operations Centre, achieved gender balance from the outset.

“Located here in Brisbane, the IROC team manages our entire coal supply chain from pit to port and equally importantly, the IROC created an extensive suite of training and upskilling opportunities for our people – many of whom were long-term miners.

“Over 50 per cent of the IROC’s mine control team have formerly operated heavy vehicles.”

Mr Udd also says Queensland is

lagging in the implementation of robotic technology and says BHP is ready and willing to invest in making it a global robotic hub.

“We have approximately 0.6 robots per thousand employees compared to the OECD average of 1.61,” he said. “ If we can increase that adoption, we have a real opportunity to develop bestin-class industrial robotics and remote asset management, and these capabilities, like the commodities they help extract, can be exported throughout the world.

“For this reason, we are working hard to establish an Industry-Led Australian Robotics Cluster right here in Queensland, to drive this forward in a partnership approach with Government, Educators and other sector leaders.”

“It’s my view that collectively as an industry, in partnership with our suppliers, communities and government, we can do more much more than ‘cope’.

“A tech-driven future is a reality. It waits for no one, but it is a future that we can shape together.

“We must be brave, and we must adapt and evolve.”

Cash to live at Moranbah

Stanmore Coal and their primary contractor Golding have begun offering their workforce extra cash to live in the Bowen Basin near their Isaac Plains mine rather than commute to work.

According to Stanmore General Manager Bernie O’Neill, many of their employees currently live in Moranbah, but they would like to encourage more to live locally as part of a workforce mental health initiative.

“Stanmore Coal’s Isaac Plains complex is a significant employer in Central Queensland, and we always have safety and employee wellbeing as a key priority,” he said.

“From our perspective, it makes sense to have capable people living nearby, and we believe there will be a positive impact on fatigue management from reduced travel times, which in turn improves people’s general and mental wellbeing, and it’s great for our operational flexibility.

“This is also a chance to strengthen the community ties that Stanmore Coal and Golding already

have, with more of our employees and their families becoming part of and contributing to regional life.”

According to Stanmore the ‘live local’ housing allowance is a backto-back financial commitment to employees and is available to permanent Golding employees who have a ‘usual place of residence’ in the area. The financial incentive recognises there are “associated costs” for people choosing to live away from major regional or metropolitan centres.

A month ago Isaac Regional Mayor Anne Baker told Shift Miner she sensed a tightening of housing supply in Moranbah and wanted to do everything they could to avoid the mistakes of the past.

“I feel like the housing market has really started to tighten,” she said at the time.

“There is still availability, and it’s nowhere near where it was, but to tell the truth, I don’t think anyone wants it back there.

“We want sustainable growth without the high swings and low lows, but if it does get bigger, we want to be prepared.”

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News

Mine revived near Clermont

Chinese company Huaxin Energy has applied for a mining lease to develop a significant open cut thermal coal mine 25 kilometres North West of Clermont in the second half of this year.

Known as the Moorlands South Replacement Project, it will produce just under two million tonnes of coal per annum (mtpa) and employ around 150 people at full production.

As the name suggests, it’s not

the first time that the project has come close to being developed.

Back in 2014, the formerly ASX listed Cuesta Coal had a mining lease approved for the “Moorlands Project” saying at the time the mine could produce 1.9 million tonnes of thermal coal per year at around $63/tonne (FOB and excluding royalties).

They also upgraded the JORC compliant resource by 92 per cent to a measured resource of more than 118 million tonnes and indicated resources of just over 52 million tonnes.

The latest application, submitted through Huaxin Energy’s Australian subsidiaries Hannigan & Associates and Blackwood Coal, is essentially the same as the 2014 version.

However, they have reduced the mine’s life from 30 years to 25, and there have been changes to the mine’s access to accommodate landholder concerns.

“The Moorlands South Replacement MLA forms part of the Moorlands Project,” the

company said.

“In September 2014, Huaxin Energy (then named Cuesta Coal) applied for four mining leases for the Moorlands Project: Moorlands North (ML70524), Moorlands East (ML70525), Moorlands Central (ML70526) and Moorlands South (ML70527).

“Huaxin has, in consultation with the relevant Mining Registrar, withdrawn the Moorlands South mining lease application to ensure compliance with the MRA and to amend the boundary of the mining lease application to address landholder concerns.

“Huaxin now applies for the Moorlands South Replacement MLA and for a fifth mining lease, Moorlands North New Access, to address landholder concerns and thus provide an alternative access route for the Moorlands Project.”

If everything goes to plan, first coal will be in 2021 with construction work to start this calendar year. According to the latest mine plan, coal will be delivered along a dedicated haul

road (approximately 9 km in length) to a train loading facility (TLF) connected to Aurizon’s existing Goonyella rail network that connects Blair Athol Coal Mine to the Port of Hay Point.

However, Huaxin has also flagged hauling the coal three kilometres by road to the Blair Athol Coal mine for loading as a stop-gap measure in the beginning.

In the original Moorlands mining lease application in 2014, the proposed open cut mine would be a truck and shovel operation, with about 75% of coal sent to a dedicated Coal, Handling and Preparation Plant (CHHP) designed to have a throughput capacity of less than 1.4 Mtpa.

Other proposed mine and civil infrastructure required for the project includes administration facilities, workshops, servicing facilities, bunded fuel storage, water collection and control, haul roads, product coal stockpiles and explosives storage and preparation facilities.

High wall collapse at Carborough

North Goonyella re-entry close

The Carborough Downs coal mine twenty kilometres from Moranbah is slowly recovering from a recent high wall collapse.

No one was injured in the incident although one miner told Shift Miner it was a near miss.

“It happened just after a bloke drove out, it could have been much worse, with a 100 people in that area earlier,” he said.

Shift Miner has not been able to get in contact directly with the mine’s owners Fitzroy Australian Resources, (FAR) however they have confirmed the incident to other media.

“Soil and rock material from above the high wall of the mine box cut collapsed and blocked two of the four portal entries to underground operations,” they said.

“The mine undertook a controlled withdrawal from underground of all personnel

A reopening of the North Goonyella coal mine is imminent, with mines rescue personnel now on emergency standby.

The underground mine was evacuated and shut down in September last year after a fire broke out. Since then, the mines owners Peabody, have permanently sealed off the burning areas underground (including millions of dollars worth of machinery) and simultaneously tried to work out how they can recommence mining from areas considered safe.

At the start of this year, they announced their plans for a multi-phased re-ventilation program of parts of the mine, and subject to an analysis of the air underground, re-entry by people.

In an update, Peabody says they have increased their network of gas monitoring points, and have a GAG inertisation unit and trained rescue people on standby.

“Temporary seals have now been installed at the 19, 38 and 53 cut-through areas to segregate the mine into zones,” they said.

“Ventilation fans at the 1:7 and 1:4 mine access drifts have been tested and are ready to ventilate zone 1.

without incident, and operations were suspended pending further investigation.”

As is the case for all incidents, the Queensland Mines inspector is also investigating the situation.

FAR is controlled by Global commodities and resources group AMCI who re-purchased the mine from Vale in 2016 after selling it to them nearly a decade earlier.

The mine produces predominantly hard and semihard coking coal with pulverised coal injection (PCI) coal as a secondary product.

Total mining capacity is 4 Mtpa of which 2.8 Mtpa is sold.

The current mine plan allows for mining until 2019, but there is potential for significant mine extensions beyond that timeframe.

At peak production, Carborough Downs employs around 500 people.

“Concrete cutting has been completed at both the 1:7 and 1:4 mine access drifts to create a ventilation pathway through the mine, and new remote-activated emergency sealing doors are now closed over both mine access drifts.

“Ventilation of zone 1, when it commences, will involve opening the emergency sealing doors over the mine access drifts and starting the ventilation fans to circulate air through the main corridor of the mine.”

This first stage reentry will be a critical step for Peabody who has publicly forecast 2 million tonnes of coal from the mine in 2020. The North Goonyella fire has so far cost them tens of millions to contain and when it first broke out, wiped millions from their share price, as some investors predicted it would stop production at the mine forever.

It is also a critical moment for the 225 miners employed by the mine. According to Peabody, they are currently working on: “installing key infrastructure to support additional staged re-ventilation”, however, they remain in limbo until the mine’s future becomes certain.

May 2019 5

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News

Bluff miner rejects claim Bluff PCI Coal the operating entity for the Bluff coal project - and a subsidiary of Chinese controlled Wealth Mining - says claims about excessive truck movements in and out of Blackwater are wrong.

On the 18th March, Shift Miner reported Blackwater residents were concerned about a two-year plan by Wealth mining to truck coal from their just opened Bluff coal mine along the Capricorn highway to the Bounty owned Cook Colliery for processing and loading onto trains.

According to one Blackwater resident (who didn’t want to be named), there had been no community updates held in

Blackwater, and his understanding was that 200 trucks a day would be passing through town, twice a day.

A week later, Bluff PCI coal released a statement contesting those numbers saying they had been talking to the community since 2013, with the most recent meeting held on the 19th March in Bluff, which was open to Blackwater residents as well.

“We have made a clear and continuing commitment to be open and transparent with the community surrounding our project, which includes both Bluff and Blackwater residents,” they said.

“At full operation, the mine’s haulage of coal will increase traffic on the Capricorn Highway by around 50-60 truck round trips per day, falling significantly short of the ‘200 trucks’ figure previously reported.

“According to 2017 Department of Transport and Main Roads, traffic data, heavy vehicle movements constitute 20.19% of movements along the Capricorn Highway, and our proposed traffic impact is expected to increase existing traffic movements by less than 2% per day through Bluff, and even less through Blackwater.”

The two-year road haulage plan has the approval of the Department of Transport and Main Roads and includes a requirement that Bluff PCI coal chip in money for the increased maintenance required from all the extra truck movements.

The tier one contractor at the Bluff project is Western Australian based MACA who is expected to generate approximately $700 million in revenue over the PCI mines ten-year, 12 million tonne life.

Production at the small, truck and excavator, open-cut site was due to begin in the first quarter of 2015. However, when prices collapsed, it was mothballed despite having secured all necessary environmental approvals except a mining lease.

In November last year when Wealth (through their subsidiary Carabella Resources) announced they would be working with MACA, they concurrently signed a two-year agreement with Bounty to handle, wash and prepare up to 100,000 tonnes of coal from the Bluff project at the Cook Colliery.

In the longer term, Bluff PCI will develop a standalone CHPP at the Bluff site.

With around 150 people already employed at the mine, a Bluff PCI coal spokesperson said they were proud to be providing jobs to the local community.

“The Bluff PCI Project is here for the long term and are proud to be taking a locals-first approach to employment in our operations, with more than 25% of our employees living locally in Bluff or Blackwater and contributing to the local economy,” she said.

Dust disease hits 100 Surat drilling this week The task of second checking lung X-rays from Queensland miners has been brought back to Australia this month, ending the coal industries dependency on the United States for most of the last five years.

A total of 13 Australian radiologists now have B-reader certification from the US Government’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

The number of Mine Dust Lung Disease (MDLD) cases in Queensland mining since 1984 hit 100 in early April. However, of that 100, ten were recorded in the 30 years to 2014, and the remaining 90 in the last five years.

All the reviews that followed the outbreak of MDLD in 2014, have identified incompetency among health professionals in reading lung X-rays, and so one of the first responses was to have X-rays sent to the United States for double checking.

A spokesperson for the DNRM told Shift Miner workers should have confidence in the Australian B readers.

“All chest X-rays taken since 1 March 2019 must be dual-read

by Australian radiologists with

6 May 2019

B-reader certification from the US Government’s NIOSH,” they said.

“Radiologists must maintain B-reader certification by re-qualifying through NIOSH every four years, and, in addition, the department requires its registered B readers to read at least 8000 X-rays every four years to stay registered.

“The department has engaged international expert Dr Robert Cohen, who delivers the NIOSH B-read course, to audit a sample of X-rays and reports completed by Australian B-readers to ensure consistency and accuracy of reporting.”

The count of MDLD cases includes cases of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP or Back Lung), mixed dust pneumoconiosis (MDP), silicosis (a form of pneumoconiosis from silica dust), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asbestosis.

All Queensland coal mine workers must have a health assessment paid for by their employer before starting work, and then at least once every five years during their employment.

On retirement, workers are entitled to an exit medical and once retired; the department will pay for a respiratory health assessment every five years for life.

Brisbane based manufacturing business CSR has inked a deal with Senex for the supply of between 1.95 and 3.25 petajoules of gas from 2020.

CSR will use the gas from 2020 to run its three plants around Brisbane where they employ 260 people manufacturing building materials like bricks and plasterboard.

Senex will source the gas from its soon-to-be-developed project Atlas in the Surat Basin near Wallumbillawill comprise

around 100 new gas wells, developed across nearly 60 square kilometres, and will be the first Queensland gas project explicitly developed to supply local gas users.

The agreement follows the Queensland Government’s environmental approval of the project in March and the announcement a fortnight ago that Easternwell had won the main drilling contract set to start this week.

Senex is expected to spend around $230 million in the Surat Basin over the next two years creating about 150 jobs and CEO Ian Davies said the CSR deal was in line with their overall marketing strategy.

“We’re delighted to secure CSR as a customer and support this key Queensland manufacturer of essential building products,” he said.

“Senex’s initial gas marketing focus is to partner directly with domestic commercial and industrial customers for longterm, enduring and mutually beneficial relationships.”

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AMCI’s new project kicks off surface waters or alluvial aquifers during the UWIR period because Alluvium is mostly absent from the project site... and the significant depth of cover over the project mining area during the UWIR period (up to 200 m) will reduce significant depressurisation of the shallow formations.

Construction work has begun at Fitzroy Australia Resources (FAR) Ironbark No1 mine near Clermont.

The work follows the release of an Underground Water Impact Report (UWIR) a month ago, covering the first three years of the mine’s life.

The delivery of UWIR is a requirement of the Water Act, and one of the conditions required under their Environmental Authority (EA) which they finalised two months ago.

The UWIR concluded that

there was very low potential for groundwater contamination because of the local geology, and the fact that the only “saturated” seam was the one they are mining.

“The approved mining operations will result in localised depressurisation of the Leichhardt Seam, [but] the other potential aquifers and shallow formations are largely unsaturated, and are not predicted to be depressurised by the project,” they said.

“The project will not impact

“There are no groundwater users or other sensitive receptors near the mining area and therefore no significant groundwater impacts as a result of the project.”

The Ironbark NUmber one project is a six million tonne a year underground coking and thermal coal mine located near Coppabella East of Moranbah. It will operate as a satellite pit to the existing Carborough Downs coal mine and share most its infrastructure.

According to FAR this will allow first coal by the start of 2020 and will generate around 160 construction and 350 operational jobs.

FAR is a subsidiary of global commodities and resources group AMCI which is controlled by American based coal billionaire Hans-Jürgen Mende.

In late 2016, at the height of the mining downturn, Mr Mende - through his global commodities and resources group AMCI - repurchased the Carborough Downs coal mine from Vale after selling it to them nearly a decade ago.

FAR and Vale didn’t release details of the sale price, so we will never know whether it was a sell-in-boom-buy-in-bust deal to be remembered alongside Kerry Packer’s Channel Nine sale to Alan Bond.

However, we do know that in 2007 Vale paid $835 million to AMCI for the Integra Coal mine in NSW, 80% of Carborough Downs, half the Isaac Plains mine, the Broadlea Joint venture, and a suite of other undeveloped deposits.

Then in 2009 Vale spent a further $400 million updating the mining processes at Carborough mine to achieve saleable coal of 2.8 million tonnes a year.

May 2019 7

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Peabody isolates cause of fire

Peabody says a decision to increase underground ventilation was the likely cause of an underground fire at its North Goonyella mine in September last year.

Importantly, there were no injuries as a result of the fire.

However, it has cost Peabody tens of millions of dollars in containment and lost production costs.

Last month Peabody released the results of its own investigations into the fire, as part

of its commitment to share the lessons they have learnt through the ordeal with the rest of the coal mining community.

“The company’s review of the incident concluded that areas of the mine demonstrated both elevated methane levels and elevated carbon monoxide levels following completion of coal production in the 9 North panel,” they said.

“During the longwall move sequence, a change in gas management focus to reduce

elevated methane levels in the 9 North panel, by increase airflow int he ventilation system, inadvertently intensified the oxidation of coal that was likely causing the elevated carbon monoxide levels.

“Despite sustained efforts to manage the oxidation from the mine surface, including the use of nitrogen to create an inert environment .... the oxidation accelerated into a spontaneous combustion event that eventually resulted in the fire.”

Despite months of work trying to contain the fire, Peabody was eventually forced to seal off the burning parts of the mine, leaving millions of dollars worth of longwall machinery stranded forever, and causing speculation among investors that North Goonyella might never reopen.

However, after months of monitoring gas levels, the company announced publicly in January that they thought a reopening of the mine was viable, securing the jobs of the more than 225 miners.

President of Peabody’s Australian Operations George

Schuller says they remained on track to get North Goonyella reopened and 2 million tonnes of coal mined in 2020.

In response to the releasing of Peabody’s report, mining union the CFMMEU’s Queensland District President Stephen Smyth has called for a second independent report to validate Peabody’s conclusions.

“This was a severe mine fire that could have ended in large-scale tragedy,” he said.

“The 1994 explosion at Moura shows us the consequences of combustion in underground mines, and it’s critical that any process failures that led to the North Goonyella mine fire are understood, owned and shared across the industry.

“Our members at North Goonyella have been undertaking a range of alternative work but are looking forward to some certainty about recommencing coal mining at the site.

“We can’t afford to take any chances with mine safety, and we need a thorough, independent investigation by the regulator before the mine reopens.”

Isaac Plains just the beginning

Stanmore Coal’s decision to shift operations out of the original Isaac Plains coal mining area into the adjacent Isaac Plains East (IPE) project appears to be paying dividends.

Despite a five per cent reduction in ROM coal production in the March quarter, Stanmore was still able to break records for saleable coal production and total coal sales. If production continues at the March quarter rate, the IPE mine would be capable of producing nearly three million tonnes of saleable coal a year.

In light of the strong quarter,

8 May 2019

the company lifted it’s production estimates for the year by 150,000 tonnes.

“Full year production guidance has been lifted to 2.3 million tonnes from 2.15 million tonnes following minimal wet weather impacts during the wet season and strong excavator performance,” they said.

“Excavator performance together with higher sales prices increased underlying FOB costs guidance by $2/t from $86/t to $88/t (ex-state royalties).

“The full year underlying EBITDA guidance has been

maintained at $140m to $155m with shipping ques expected to build due to demand in the June quarter, impacting the timing of full-year sales and increasing inventory levels.”

Beyond IPE, Stanmore is also pushing ahead with the nearby Isaac Downs (ID) open cut coal project. When Stanmore acquired that project in 2018, they said it had 15-20 million tonnes of ROM coal suited to an open cut mine operation with a strip ratio of approximately 8:1.

Having been given the green light to start working on their EIS last month, Stanmore says they will apply for mining leases shortly.

By bringing both IPE and ID into production, Stanmore believes it can maximise output from their existing Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHHP) at Isaac Plains, which will secure their long-term future.

Both IPE and ID were formerly owned by Peabody, who was

forced to sell them when they went into administration during the significant correction in coal prices after the last construction boom.

Isaac Plains East was formerly known as Wotonga and was sold

by Peabody for around $7 million in 2015. Stanmore bought the two mining tenements comprising Isaac Downs and formerly known as Wotonga South from Peabody for approximately $30 million in 2018. They have a JORC resource of 22.8 million tonnes, classified mostly as semi-soft coking coal.

A fourth component of the Isaac Plains Complex is a proposal to develop the Isaac Plains Underground Mining Project (IPUMP) using continuous miners, shuttle cars, and mobile bolters to extract the coal. It has a measured and indicated resource (JORC) of more than 21 million tonnes and located in the Eastern part of the original Isaac Plains mining lease.

It is currently in the bankable feasibility stage.

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Labour Hire in court limbo

Industrial relations in the resources sector has ground to a halt, with Labour Hire firms in limbo and the Fair Work Commission at least six months behind in rubber stamping Enterprise Agreements (EA).

In 2018 there were two landmark decisions in the Fair Work Commission (FWC) regarding Labour Hire and Casual employment. In one case an EA voted on by four people, but later used to employ hundreds was overturned, and in another Workpac employees listed as casual in their contract were deemed in fact to be full-time.

In both cases, Workpac and One Key Resources were suddenly liable for years of back pay worth

millions of dollars.

The retrospective nature of the decisions had casual, and labourhire employers across the Surat and Bowen Basin on tenterhooks, with some people predicting a flood of claims.

However, the Federal Government introduced legislation to Parliament to protect employers, but it failed to get passed by the Senate. In its place, a new regulation was implemented as short term protection.

Mackay based Workplace Consultant Craig Joy says the regulation is being challenged, with the most likely outcome being that there will be no progress until after the election.

“They [Federal Government]

put a regulation in place to say that where an employee has been paid a casual loading in lieu of annual leave and sick leave, the court can’t grant them compensation if they have been misclassified,” he told Shift Miner “So that put the kybosh on all these planned class actions.

“Now what has happened is that Senator Cameron from the Labor Party has put up a disallowance motion to have that regulation made null and void, and that is currently going through Parliament.

“If that wins, if it is successful and the regulations dead, then all the class actions are back on again.

“If the disallowance motion is unsuccessful, and there are no more class actions until the election Shorten has said that if they get in, they are going to cancel that regulation anyway.

“So if Labor wins the whole thing is back on.”

Meanwhile, as the election approaches, future work conditions for both miners and their employers are in limbo with the FWC falling behind in their job of approving new workplace

agreements.

Even where both parties are happy with a proposed EA, the FWC is probably six months behind, let alone the situations where both parties aren’t.

District Representative for the CFMEU Stephen Smyth told Shift Miner it does have practical implications.

“So what they did is introduce Members Assist, which was supposed to create a smoother transition for EA’s, but it’s actually done the opposite,” he told Shift Miner.

“Its a joke, agreements that have been voted up on, are taking three, four, five, or even six months to approve.

“There is a massive backlog, and it’s certainly caused frustrations for a number of parties.

“Most of the new agreements will contain back pay on approval for agreed pay increases, and some of them have better entitlements.

“So the company might say that on approval of the EA by the Fair Work Commission, we will give back pay for whatever was negotiated.

“Well, that’s all been held up.”

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CFMMEU suspicious

Mining Union the CFMMEU says BHP has commenced recruiting around 350 people under its brand new Operational Services (OS) entity at Daunia and Caval Ridge mines near Moranbah.

However, the mining union remains sceptical about the benefits of the new entity, noting that fewer than 50% of the current Labour Hire workforce is making the transition.

Futura Wilton Futura Resources has passed another milestone in the development of the Wilton coal project, lodging paperwork with the Federal Government for its EIS and a mining lease.

According to the referral, the Wilton project - if approved would produce around 1.6 million tonnes of hard coking coal a year through open cut mining operations. The plan is to haul the coal by truck to Joint Venture Partner Sojitz’ Gregory Crinum Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHPP) where it will be processed and loaded onto trains.

Wilton itself is expected to be mined using a standard truck and shovel mining fleet operating in conjunction with a WIRTGEN continuous miner.

The tenement encompasses two mining leases (ML700028 and ML700029), and CEO of Sojitz Cameron Vorias told Shift Miner a month ago that he thought the Wilton project would be the first one operating “We are expecting that sometime in the second half of the year Wilton will come into action,” he said at the time.

The Wilton coal project is approximately 45km northeast of Emerald and 50km northwest of Blackwater and the Gregory Branch of the main Blackwater rail line runs adjacent to the tenement.

10 May 2019

BHP announced they wanted to form the new entity in December last year, saying OS employees would be deployed to BMA’s operations in Central Queensland (and elsewhere) on a needs basis, and work on different rates of pay and conditions to the permanent miners employed directly at each mine.

Because the workforce isn’t permanently tied to particular worksites, some have called it BHP’s in house version of Labour Hire.

The CFMMEU’s Stephen Smyth told Shift Miner they remain unconvinced of the benefits.

“They have commenced rolling it out at Daunia and Caval Ridge, and employing people under it,” he told Shift Miner.

“They said they were going to use it to in-source their Labour Hire people, but they’ve made it quite clear they only intend, at the most, to be employing about 50%

of the current labour hire people that they have got on site.

However, when asked by Shift Miner whether 50% is better than none, he said time would tell.

“Well it is, but I go back to the point that they have current agreements they can employ those people under at every one of those mines, so I don’t know why they have to create this new one,” he responded “Secondly its really only a replacement for the labour hire, they are still paying the labour-hire rates, and there are labour-hire agreements in the marketplace that have better conditions than the BHP OPS agreement.

“Thirdly it means that you will never get a permanent role under the existing EA’s with BHP. “So it’s a mixed bag.

We are all about having more permanent people, and that’s what has to be encouraged.

“So time will tell I suppose.”

BHP was given an option to respond, but have not yet done so.

Back in December when they announced the new entity, a spokesperson for BHP, said OS was about full-time work and maintaining productivity.

“Operations Services offers permanent jobs for workers many of whom are currently labour hire employees and will provide security and flexibility to them, labour stability and productivity benefits for BHP,” he said at the time.

“Operations Services will accelerate productivity improvements and allow BHP Mitsubishi Alliance to address limitations in labour availability and reduce its use of labour-hire workers.”

Before OS was introduced roughly 60% of BMA’s mine workers were employed under a Labour Hire arrangement.

Investors back in the shed

Activity in the industrial property sector is finally heating up as investors show faith in the resource sector recovery.

Valuers Herron Todd White have reported significant sales across Central Queensland, most notably in Mackay, where after years of declines investors are again taking an interest in arguably the states pre-imminent industrial precinct.

“21 Gateway Drive sold in November last year for $4.84 million at a passing yield of 8.15 per cent. This heavy engineering workshop complex is leased to Maintec for a ten-year term,” they reported.

“12 - 16 Progress Drive sold in December for $3.012 million at

a passing yield of eight per cent, and this workshop complex with low site coverage was sold on a leaseback basis to Aust Bore Pty Ltd also for a ten-year term.

“We have not seen yields this low since 2015.

“Importantly, we believe that the local coal mining based economy has improved to the extent that tenants are now willing to commit to long term leases at historically low rental levels which are beginning to recover from a cyclical trough.

“We expect that long-term leases and lower investment yields will continue throughout 2019 as investors rediscover Paget, the premier industrial precinct in regional Queensland.”

Aside from the large industrial sheds, HTW in Mackay reports the industrial unit market also appears to be attracting renewed interest with a couple of larger vacant units presently under contract at prices between $550,000 and $700,000.

“Prices in these two sectors are well below the 2012 market peak, and we expect increased sale volumes in these sectors through the year with modest price improvement.”

In nearby Rockhampton, it’s been s a similar story with no significant passive industrial sales occurring for several years.

“Late last year, the transaction of the Siemens workshop showed a return of investor confidence to the market,” they said. “ The property sold for $3.3 million at auction in October and reflected an analysed yield of about eight per cent. A new fiveyear lease was recently executed to Siemens. “ Additionally, the Strammit shed in Parkhurst has reportedly just been sold for $5 million. It has a reported yield of 8.8 per cent and was sold by Burgess Rawson.

“This new sale at a higher price bracket further demonstrates that investors are returning to the market with increased confidence.”

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News

Money “tight” at Bounty Mining In a frank and open assessment, the newly elected Chairman of Bounty Mining used his maiden address last month to tell shareholders to accept the conditions of a companysaving-loan after a disastrous end to 2016, that nearly saw the company run out of money.

Bounty’s principal asset is the Cook Colliery at Blackwater; an old and famously complicated underground coal mine that’s sent more than one owner to the wall.

According to Chairman Rob Stewart, a failure to reach production targets in the second half of 2016, resulted in less revenue than expected putting them in a tight financial position.

As a consequence, in October they raised $10 million through a share placement from existing shareholders. However, despite this, the board remained concerned about “cash flow projections” and “solvency” into the future and so launched a competitive funding process to raise more money.

At the end of December, the board of Bounty selected a conditional funding proposal from

two businesses - Amaroo and Xcoal - who are controlled by the wealthy US coal mining veteran Ernie Thrasher.

However, the funding was conditional, including requiring shareholders to give both entities security over Bounty’s assets, locking Bounty into marketing future coal through Xcoal, and requiring some monthly performance benchmarks.

In justifying the decision to accept the money, and in an attempt to get shareholders to approve the plan, Mr Stewart used his Chairman’s address at the general meeting to explain the situation.

“In recognition that the funds available under the facility were the best option available at the time and that the funding, both to date and ongoing, was critical to the company’s solvency, all directors encourage shareholders to vote in favour of the grant of security to both Amaroo and Xcoal,” he said.

“Since December 2018 the Directors, recognising the serious position the company was in, made some senior management changes to give the company

the skills and drive to recover production performance and to place the company on a sound financial footing.

“Since these appointments, there has been a significant improvement in consistency of production at Cook Colliery, an uplift in productivity, and a reduction in operating costs.

“The Directors are confident that Bounty can continue this trend in coming months and is working on a strategy to deliver a step change in production later this year.”

Even if the funding proposal is accepted, it won’t be enough to solve Bounty’s dire financial problems, because they need more money to make the final payment for Cook Colliery, secure an environmental bond, repay the Amaroo loan at the end of July, fund new equipment and provide working capital.

“Bounty announced on Tuesday 19 March that it had agreed with Amaroo to increase its funding facility to $35M as an interim step in supporting the company until appropriate longterm funding can be put in place,”

Mr Stewart added.

“Amaroo has undertaken a very thorough due diligence program and we understand is currently reviewing the information and considering the formulation of an offer to shareholders.

“We do not know if an offer will be forthcoming or what form it may take.”

Only a year ago - after announcing a loss of $24 million in the 2018 financial year Bounty was upbeat about the development of a coal hub South of Blackwater.

“Bounty intends to leverage the Cook Colliery’s Coal Handling and Preparation Plant and other infrastructure by developing the Cook North project located on the same mining lease……...and developing the Minyango Project into an operating mine,” they said at the time.

“Bounty has completed a prefeasibility study for the Wongai project and is now planning a bankable feasibility study with the objective of subsequently securing a mining lease and environmental authority.”

May 2019 11

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News

FWA rules on Dysart decision A former manager of Sodexo’s Dysart accommodation complex has had her claim of unfair dismissal rejected by the Fair Work Commission.

Mrs Irene Webb had worked for Sodexo for nearly 15 years and was on an annual salary of around $90,000 a year while working within Sodexo’s team of relief pool managers.

In line with this, she was sent to Dysart to back-fill as second in charge, on the understanding that the role could continue anywhere between a few roster “rotations” and twelve months.

However, just one month into the job she says she received a call from Mr Martin Klavsen, Queensland Operations & HR Scheduler for Sodexo. According to Mrs Webb, he advised her she was likely to be made redundant after a decision was made to replace the relief pool with labour hire employees.

“As of 24 March 2017, your position would be dissolved along with the entire relief pool due to a business restructure,” she recalled him saying.

“If we cannot find a role to redeploy you then you will be made redundant.

“I cannot provide further information as I am unsure of

the details, the instructions have come from Singapore to action the restructure immediately, and I was told to call all relief pool managers and full-time relief employees to advise them of the terminations.

“I will contact you on Friday, 3 March 2017 as I will probably have more information by then. If I don’t call you it is because I am very busy.”

In it’s an official letter to Ms Webb, Sodexo confirmed it’s decision to switch to labour hire making the relief pool redundant, and encouraged her to apply for the more than 107 vacancies that were available around the country.

However, in emails to Ms Shalyn Jones, Human Resources Manager for Sodexo, Ms Webb said the listings lacked key detail about pay and conditions, and questioned why someone with 15 years experience would need to reapply. She also said the list provided to her did not include roles commensurate with her experience, and in some cases included jobs that were no longer open. She also claimed to be aware of other managers in the same position as her, who had been transferred to different internal roles within Sodexo

Treasury confirms king coal

Figures released by Queensland Treasury have shown coal exports for the 12 months to February this year were worth $35.8 billion compared to $18 billion in the 12 months to February 2015.

Over the same period, coal royalties increased from $1.6 billion to more than $4.26 billion this financial year representing a 150% increase.

The latest figures confirm a booming coal sector where

12 May 2019

exports have doubled in four years and are now worth $83 billion.

Queensland Resources Council Chief Executive Ian Macfarlane said the state should be thanking everyone who works in the resources sector.

“Without the coal royalties, the State Budget would be in deficit and the Government’s capacity to deliver services and build infrastructure like Cross River Rail would be diminished,” he said.

“The Palaszczuk Government is forecast to receive an extra $1.9 billion in coal royalties between 2017-18 and 2021-22.

“The resources sector accounts for more than 80% of Queensland exports worth more than $1.2 billion each week.”

“To put that in context, for each of 316,000 men and women working in the resources sector, almost $200,000 worth of resources is exported on their behalf.”

already.

Eventually, on the 23rd March Ms Webb received a phone call advising her that since she had not applied for any of the other jobs, she would be made redundant.

The court decided that the key criteria for determining whether the dismissal was unfair, was whether the position was genuinely redundant and whether Ms Webb should have been treated differently because an existing Enterprise Agreement covered her.

After considerable evidence from a range of people involved with Sodexo’s transition to labour hire, Commissioner Hunt ruled Ms Webb hadn’t been treated unfairly.

“I am not satisfied on the evidence before me and on the balance of probabilities that a position suitable for Ms Webb to be redeployed to would have necessarily arisen after the date that a definite decision was made to abolish the relief pools,” he said.

“I do not accept that the provision of outdated careers listing documents to her by Ms Jones prevented Ms Webb from considering vacant positions which she might otherwise have

been aware of.

“Having regard to the list of roles internally advertised by Sodexo between 28 February 2017 and 24 March 2017, and perused by Ms Webb on Sodexo’s online vacant positions listings, Ms Webb discounted them all.

“I consider that had Ms Webb expressed to Ms Jones interest in any of Sodexo’s vacant positions and satisfied Sodexo that she was suitable to perform that position, Ms Webb would not have been required to formally apply for the position or compete publically for the position.

“For all of the reasons above, including the many conversations Sodexo held with Ms Webb, …. I determine that Sodexo satisfied itself that it would not be reasonable to redeploy Ms Webb before terminating her employment, and I am satisfied that Sodexo was entitled to make such a decision.

“I have determined that Ms Webb’s employment was not covered by a modern award or enterprise agreement, and on that basis, Sodexo had no obligation to consult with Ms Webb about her redundancy under the terms of a modern award or enterprise agreement.”

Union backfills council

The Bowen Basin’s biggest union will continue to have an influence on the civic life of the Isaac regional community with the President of the Goonyella Riverside CFMMEU sworn in as Division 4 Councillor.

Cr Simon West replaces long term union delegate, former Belyando Mayor, and unsuccessful Labor candidate Peter Freeleagus, who stepped down from his role as Councillor in February.

Mr West was selected from a group of five nominees without the need for a by-election, because under Isaac Regional Council rules a democratic election is not required when a vacancy occurs

less than 18 months, but more than six months, before the next local government election.

On joining the council, Mr West said he encouraged people to talk to him about their issues.

“I saw it as a terrific opportunity to be part of a council that is going in the right direction,” he said.

“I would like to understand more about the challenges that local businesses face, and the community in general over the next 12 months as a councillor.”

“If I could say one thing to the Isaac community, it is not to be afraid to talk to me. If you’ve got an issue, come and have a chat.”

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Another punt on coal

Stanmore coal investors Neville Sneddon and Nick Jorss have injected a further $200,000 into small explorer Bowen Coking Coal (BCC) as part of a $1.7 million capital raising.

BCC has been exploring its coal tenements over the last 12 months, with the Coooroorah tenement near Blackwater the latest to receive an upgrade.

The company has increased the estimated resource by 172% to 158 million tonnes, of which 61% is indicated and 39% inferred under the JORC reporting rules.

A significant part of the capital raised will fund new drilling at two of BCC’s other projects; Isaac River and Hillalong.

The Isaac River tenement

is adjacent to BMA’s Daunia mine near Moranbah, and the new drilling program follows the release of a maiden resource estimate last year which classified 4.2mt of indicated resource and 1.1 mt of inferred resources.

Following that JORC announcement, Bowen Coking Coal completed a desktop analysis of the expected capital and operating costs for a variety of mine plans to exploit the Leichhardt coal seams within the tenement. All of the options considered were built around using a contractor workforce and trucking the coal to a nearby Coal Handling and Preparation Plant on a tolling basis. However, a lack of data regarding the other coal seams in the tenement has necessitated the funding of this new drilling program.

The Hillalong coking coal project is 16 kilometres from Glencore’s Hail Creek Coal mine, and in one of the most prospective greenfield coal areas in the Bowen Basin, with Glencore, Rio Tinto, Cape Coal (CC), Bowen Coking Coal (BCC) and Shandong Energy (SE) all involved in potential mining projects.

There are three potential

projects in the area, Mt Hillalong, Hillalong and Hillalong East all with different and recently changed ownership structures - and all close or adjacent to Rio Tinto’s Hail Creek mine.

BCC controls the Mt Hillalong and Hillalong East tenements, and back at the height of the mining boom in 2013 and 2014, Rio Tinto - former Hail Creek mine owners - did extensive drilling at Mt Hillalong, but as the downturn kicked in, and despite some encouraging exploration results, walked away from the project.

Another player altogether, Shandong Energy, is planning to develop the similarly named nearby Hillalong coal project sometime this year. The Chinese company acquired the tenement for around $200 million during the last mining boom, when it purchased explorer, Rocklands Richfield.

Shandong proposes to develop two open-cut pits and two underground longwall mines producing approximately 4.2 million tonnes a year of runof-mine coal. It would employ roughly 450 people through both the construction and operational phases.

Winchester South The Winchester South metallurgical coal project has been declared a ‘Coordinated Project’ by the State Government which in theory should speed up the approvals process.

Whitehaven purchased Winchester South from Rio Tinto for around $250 million in May last year and has been meeting with stakeholders, collecting baseline data and undertaking ecological studies.

Next month Whitehaven will start a “comprehensive” drilling program to get better data on coal quality, which will guide the proposed open-cut mine plan.

According to Whitehaven, the project will require a $1 billion in capital expenditure inclusive of the mining fleet, and create 500 jobs during construction and 450 jobs when operating. Total coal production annually is expected to be around 15 million tonnes for 20 to 30 years.

Whitehaven has appointed a small project team who is developing the tenement 30km south-east of Moranbah

THAT’S WHAT WE CALL HEAVY LIFTING

May 2019 13

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Election

What role do you see coal playing in Central Queensland in the next 5 years? Do you support mining coal in the Galilee Basin?

Combined statement from Zac Beers Labor Candidate for Flynn and Belinda Hassan Labor Candidate for Dawson Australia’s resources, providing that development stacks up environmentally and financially.

Our resources industry can provide secure, stable jobs for local workers and are also a major driver of economic growth.

Federal Labor recognises and supports the important role coal mining plays as a driver of economic growth, not only the economy of Central Queensland but the Australian economy as a whole, and as a major source of secure jobs for Central Queensland workers.

Queensland produces more than 200 mtpa of coal, generating wealth for Australia and employing more than 20,000 Queenslanders.

Labor supports the responsible development of

Labor will always stand up for our resources workers and, Labor will always fight to end the scourge of labourhire, reign in the use 457 visas and stop the rampant casualisation that is hollowing out so many regional communities in Central Queensland.

Australia’s resources industry leads the world and Labor wants to make sure we stay number one, That’s why Labor has announced up to $1.5 billion to help unlock gas reserves in the Galilee Basin and Bowen Basin through our Northern Australia Development Fund. We will also kick-start the discovery of new resource deposits throughout Australia

Australian Research Council Special Research initiative.

Providing $2 million to support 100 new scholarships for mining engineers, with 50 of them for Women. Developing a Resources White Paper, to deliver the longterm vision across government for the resource sector as recommended by the bipartisan Resources 2030 Taskforce Report.

with our Future Mines and Jobs Plan.

Labor’s Future Mines and Jobs Plan is designed to support the discovery of new mineral deposits and develop the mines of the future. Specifically, Labor’s plan includes: Establishing the Australian Future Mines Centre to coordinate exploration work and lead the scientific research and development necessary to explore under deep cover as part of a $23 million

Two-thirds of potential mineral deposits are left undiscovered because they lie deeper than the limits of past exploration technology. We want to support our resources industries to make big new discoveries.

Labor is committed ensuring Australia remains a world leader in resources exports. Our Future Mine and Jobs Plan underscores our support for investment in the discovery of future mines, the development of new mining techniques and both the creation and continuation of mining jobs.

Shift Miner offered George Christensen (LNP member for Dawson) and Ken O’Dowd (LNP Member for Flynn) the opportunity to respond but they chose not to participate.

FIFO WORKER? KEEP YOUR GEAR SAFE & SOUND

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EAGLE FARM 3868 1933 1090 KINGSFORD SMITH DRIVE

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Around Town

PHOTO’S COURTESY OF JEANNETTE FLETCHER

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Around Town

PHOTO’S COURTESY OF JEANNETTE FLETCHER

16 May 2019

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News

Going underground at Curragh? BHP output flat

The new owners of the Curragh coal miner near Blackwater have approved a significant drilling and seismic exploration program to define a potential new underground mine.

While an early stage investment, the approval concluded a solid quarter for the mines owners Coronado, who increased ROM production by more than five per cent, and saleable production by two per cent on the back of efficiency improvements with their dragline and wash plant.

According to Coronado the

average metallurgical coal price at Curragh was $US153.4 a tonne, and they remain optimistic about the longevity of the current coal market.

“Demand from Coronado’s customers remains stable as steel mills continue to produce positive cash margins,” they said.

“Higher iron ore prices resulted in steel producers purchasing weaker metallurgical coal grades to offset the cost of iron ore.

“Market pricing for seaborne metallurgical coal is heavily influenced by China, and in the

Moranbah welcomes newest citizens

Isaac Regional Council welcomed five new citizens last month at a special ceremony held at Clermont Council Chambers.

Rogelio Biona and Mary Eseo from the Philippines, Amy Duggan from England, Himani Kansara from India and Rosemary Kulu from Papua New Guinea took their Australian citizenship pledges in front of friends and family.

Mayor Anne Baker, Cr Greg Austen and Cr Lyn Jones with Isaac Regional Council CEO Gary Stevenson presented the new citizens with their certificates and an Australian Citizenship coin.

During the ceremony, Mayor Baker outlined the duties and responsibilities of the new citizens as they took a pledge to uphold

Australian values.

“I am proud to be authorised as a person who may conduct this citizenship ceremony on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia and his is a very significant honour in the role of a Mayor,” she said.

“Our ceremony recognises that citizenship is a common bond made meaningful because it embraces an understanding of the rights and responsibilities of all people in a public recognition of your commitment to Australia and your family.

“Our new citizens are ABCs; Australians by choice. This is not something most Australians get to choose and makes your decision much more special.”

March quarter, China released a policy restricting the quantum of coal imports from Australia. “[However] Demand for highquality metallurgical coal supplied

by Australia will likely continue as Chinese steel mills prefer higher quality coal and it’s likely metallurgical coal imports will receive preferential treatment over thermal coal imports.”

Early last year American based Coronado Coal Group paid Wesfarmers AU$700 million plus a share of future coal sales to buy Curragh.

Increasing yield at the South Walker Creek mine and continued higher wash-plant throughput at Poitrel mine have combined to deliver record production for BHP’s 80% owned BMC business for the nine months to March.

However, within the BMA business, stoppages due to rain, and a scheduled longwall move have meant BHP’s total coal production in the Bowen Basin was about the same as last year at around 31 million tonnes.

Despite the flat result, there is still the possibility for a record-breaking 46 million tonnes of coal this year.

On the other side of the ledger, it hasn’t changed its forecast per unit costs in the Bowen Basin, sticking with last years expectation of around $US70 a tonne. At that time the company said it expected to lower unit costs to approximately US$57 per tonne in the medium term. However, there is no sign yet of where the savings will come from with no major expansions on capital expenditures flagged in the latest report.

The increased productivity of Poitrel is due to the 2017 purchase of the Millennium mine coal handling and preparation plant (CHPP) from its former owners Peabody. The CHHP was renamed Red Mountain and put to work processing Poitrel coal.

Moranbah square gets a facelift

Moranbah residents, businesses owners and visitors to the Town Square will notice a large structure rising above the security perimeter fence next to the Council building.

A series of weather events left the last Town Square shade structure damaged, and Council decided to take it down and replace it with an engineered, cyclone rated solution.

The construction has allowed for other renewal works to be completed, including re-painting of adjacent walls and re-laying of the paved space.

Isaac Regional Council Mayor Anne Baker said the renewed

space will be a great area for events and activities or enjoying a shady retreat.

“I am confident the revitalised Town Square will improve the user experience,” she said.

“The mural is of the Isaac River; the regions name-sake and the only river to dissect through all three of the former shires.

“Painted along the river will be significant aboriginal cultural events and places; essentially a visual map of our regions proud indigenous heritage.”

Isaac Regional Council would like to thank the community for their support and patience with the project.

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Around Town

PHOTO’S COURTESY OF JEANNETTE FLETCHER

18 May 2019

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Around Town

May 2019 19

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FRANK THE TANK’S

Streaking good love advice

Dear Frank, I’ve been seeing my girlfriend for about three years and I’m thinking about popping the question.

The only thing is, she would never say yes without her father’s blessing, and he doesn’t seem to like me very much.

To tell you the truth, he’s exArmy and I’m kind of scared of him.

What can I do to earn his respect?

Conner, Townsville Frank If you want my advice I think you should forget about marriage altogether.

I’ve dated plenty of women, married a few, and I can tell you that nothing sucks the passion out of a relationship quite like saying “I do”.

In fact, it was married life that led me to my true passion: collecting antique sex mannequins.

Stuck in a passionless

20 May 2019

relationship, I turned to the internet for solace.

It was there I discovered the most revered and respected of all the perverted arts.

I immediately mortgaged my house and used the money to amass what I consider to be Australia’s most extensive (and most frequently utilised) collection of sex mannequins.

If collecting inanimate sex dolls isn’t your cup of tea, there are certainly ways you can obtain your would-be father in law’s blessing.

Being an ex-army man you could always impress him by signing up to serve in the armed forces.

Better yet, you could lie to him and say you’ve signed up to serve in the armed forces.

Buy some secondhand camouflage gear off eBay, rent some war movies and memorise the lingo, then just pretend you’re a tough-as-nails commando when you visit for Sunday roast.

Deceiving your girlfriend’s

father for an extended period of time will require commitment. If you don’t think you’re up for it there are other ways of earning his respect.

You could always challenge him to a fight.

If you best the ex-army man in fisticuffs, he’ll have no choice but to respect you.

Unfortunately, this could also backfire spectacularly if you don’t manage to win the fight.

This is why I would recommend resorting to underhanded tactics.

Invite yourself over to dinner at your girlfriend’s parent’s place and offer to get her father a beer.

Drink the neck of his beer and then top it off with half a bottle of night-time cough medicine.

When he starts to look suitably drowsy, that’s when you challenge him to the fight.

He’ll have no choice but to respect you after you pummel his drowsy face to a pulp on the front lawn.

Frank

SENSIBLE SUSAN Conner, If you’re serious about marrying your girlfriend I think you need to pluck up the courage and tell her father.

You might find that standing up to him, not to mention your display of commitment to his daughter, will earn you his respect.

If for some reason he refuses to give you his blessing, I would still pop the question.

It’s 2013 and your girlfriend is an adult. If she loves you and wants to marry you then she doesn’t need her father’s permission.

Susan

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News

PHOTO’S COURTESY OF JEANNETTE FLETCHER

May 2019 21

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MadMumzie.com SOCIAL MEDIA BEFORE NEXT OF KIN?

Did you attend “Go Galilee Basin” rally in Mackay? A little rain didn’t stop locals coming out to support our mining and resources industry. Why was it on? Why were we there? Eighty per cent of the crowd put up their hands when asked if it was their first rally too?

It was time to stand up for our region.

On the other side of the Mackay Entertainment Centre was another group, the Stop Adani convoy with Bob Browne leading the charge all the way from Hobart! Coming into our region to voice their opinion on the Carmichael coal mine, and the

22 May 2019

News

locals aren’t happy.

I stayed with my people, surrounded by media, black t-shirts, green stop sign banners, hi-vis, politicians, armed police, undercover cops (who always stand out), kids, dogs, free sausage sizzle and the odd spy with binoculars in the distance from the “others.”

We heard from speakers sharing what many of us have been thinking: How dare they come to our towns to stop our livelihoods?

Protesting about coal killing the reef and causing global warming. How did they get up here? One wag in the crowd yelled, “They walked!”. Of course, they drove. Many in old banger cars that would guzzle more juice than my v8 and cause plenty of the emissions they are so precious about. It’s been hot and humid here in Tropical North Queensland.

Did they have air cons? Do they share all their shit on social media on devices that connect through big steel towers?

They drove past dirty brown

coal mines and power stations in Vic and NSW to protest against the cleanest coal in the world. The common word from my research inside social media and at the rally was Hypocrisy!

“Galilee-Galilee, future for our families.” We started off a bit cold but soon got the gist of this rally cry thing. It was asked why we didn’t all march over to “them” at the end?

“The cops asked us not to.”

The overall theme was for our voices to be heard and use the media spotlight to shine a light on our beloved coal industry. We are a democracy, and all have the right to protest and share our views on whatever it is, but we also need to stay within the law and practice what we preach. Not be hypocrites!

Anyway, time for a beer and to edit this audio into a podcast.

Now, what the hell did I say to the Mayor?

Note from the editor

Cheers MM

Enjoy this? You will love her award winning podcast “Beers with A Miner”.

MM was a finalist in the 2018 Australian Podcast Awards. We asked her what it was like to be recognised.

“The nomination came as a complete surprise to me. I headed down to Melbourne for the finals, and had a fantastic time, even though I didn’t win my category,” she said.

“Interestingly, fellow Podcasters were amazed that I drove those big trucks, and more so, had a podcast about it!

“Thanks to Saraya D’Arth, underground miner and WIMARQ awards finalist from Broadmeadows, your episode 33 was the one I entered.

“And of course all my other guests are great too.”

Search for “Beers With a Miner” in your favourite Podcast app, or head to MadMumzie.com/beers and push play.

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May 2019 23

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Puzzles

CROSS WORD

SODOKU

Across

Down

1. Turn blind eye to 5. Enquiring 9. Animates (6,2) 10. Jail 12. Most selfish 13. Pick-me-up 14. Perky 16. Prejudiced 19. Return game 21. Rainbow shapes 24. Eventuate 25. Living room recliners 27. NRL interstate showdown, State of ...

28. One-off 29. Conflicts 30. Sunburn skin bubbles

1. Do favour for 2. Feels jealous of 3. Queued, ... up 4. Sumptuous 6. Tactical 7. Craziness 8. Crime against humanity 11. Cheque butt 15. Fanatic 17. End (relationship) (5,3) 18. Refereeing 20. Warmth 21. Navy chief 22. Future husband 23. Bible songs 26. ... & lows

Across: 1. Overlook 5. Asking 9. Livensup 10. Prison 12. Greediest 13. ETonic 14. Pert 16. Bigoted 19. Rematch 21. Arcs 24. Arise 25. Armchairs 27. Origin 28. Original 29. Fights 30. Blisters Down: 1. Oblige 2. Envies 3. Lined 4. opulent 6. strategic 7. Insanity 8. Genocide 11. Stub 15. Extremist 17. Breakoff 18. Unpiring 20. Heath 21. Admiral 22. Fiance 23. Psalms 26. Highs

THE “GREATEST AUSTRALIAN IN THE CRIB ROOM” QUIZ. 1. Who is “Matilda” in the Banjo Patterson song Waltzing Matilda?

A) Sheep B) Swag C) Kangaroo D) Gum Tree 2. In what year did Vegemite appear on Australian Supermarket shelves?

A) 1954 B) 1923 C) 1915 D) 1935 3. What is the national flower of Australia?

A) Banksia B) Waratah C) Golden Wattle D) Blue Gum 4. In what year was Paul Keating elected as Prime Minister?

A) 1989 B) 1991 C) 1993 D) 1990 5. In what year did the Eureka (Rebellion) Stockade occur in the goldfields of Ballarat?

A) 1901 B) 1887 C) 1865 D) 1854 6. How many Senators are there in Australian Parliament?

A) 96 B) 76 C) 85 D) 101 7. In what year were the colonies united into a federation of states?

A) 1901 B) 1903 C) 1898 D)1788 8. What worldwide pandemic killed more than 12,000 Australians in 1919?

A) The Plague B)Polio C) Spanish Flu D)Lyme disease 9. What was the name of the overweight man who appeared in the ‘Life?

Be in it’ campaign launched in 1975?

A) Fred B) Norm C) Gary D) Rob 10. What was the first album to sell more than one million copies in Australia?

A) Whispering Jack by John Farnham B)ABBA Gold – Greatest Hits C) Thriller – Michael Jackson D)Born in the U.S.A – Bruce Springsteen

1. B- Swag 2. B - 1923 3. C - Golden Wattle 4. B - 1991 5. D - 1854 6. B- 76 7. A - 1901 8. C - Spanish Flu 9. B - Norm 10. A - Whispering Jack by John Farnham

ANSWERS

24 May 2019

Shift Miner Magazine www.shiftminer.com

Trader

THE BEST PLACE TO FIND GOOD GEAR

CAR FOR SALE

CAR FOR SALE

CAR FOR SALE

CAR FOR SALE

1974 FORD F350 V8 MANUAL

1975 FORD

1976 JAGUAR XJ6 SEDAN

1987 FORD FALCON SEDAN

V8 engine rebuilt engine some years ago, xtra work done for Horsepower gain, good 302 V8 Cleveland, good 4-speed manual box and good 4.11 diff with dual wheels.

Purchased from 2nd owner 10 years ago.

Motor needed a freshen up. Rebuilt to std spec. 1 st oversized pistons. 4 MA Crank still factory sizes. Changed cam grind for a little more urge down low.

Jaguar XJ6. Motor converted to fuel injected V6 Commodore, has Modification Plate fitted. runs well. has some Daimler trim.

Good condition; dent in drivers side back door, have got a replacement one. Very little rust, would be an easy project, no rego or rwc, the interior is good, no air con, power steering, 5 mags, tires are no good.

$ 4,000

$ 950

Call: 0419 798 263

Call: 0400 706 569

Call: 0749 951 229

KOMBI SHELL FOR SALE

DRILLING RIG FOR SALE

$ 5,200 Call: 0499 116 083

$ 36,990

CAR FOR SALE

2014 TOYOTA LANDCRUISER UTE

Your ad here Free

KOMBI ROLLING SHELL

RFW DRILLING RIG - REFURBISHED

Remote Central Locking-Cruise ControlFront & Rear Factory Diff Lock-Air Bag & Compressor-Underbody Toolbox & Water tank-L.E.D Spotlights -3”Stainless ExhaustHeavy Duty Clutch-U.H.F Radio-RWC.

1974 Kombi Rolling Shell.

RFW 4WD Truck Vin No. 45316344 - 4 Cly GM Motor Engine No. 50435001 HD16S127 - Rotary Drill driven by 6354 Perkins on Hydraulics - 11 Rods x 4.6m and 6 1/2” Hammer. In very good condition.

$ 62,000

$ 2,250

$ 90,000

Call: 0417 649 624 TRUCK FOR SALE

TRUCK FOR SALE

Call: 0429 008 581

Call: 0447 739 611

TRUCK FOR SALE

BUS FOR SALE

MACK TRUCK R600

VOLVO N715 4X2 PRIME MOVER

WATER TRUCK

1998 INTERNATIONAL/ IVECO DELTA BUS

R600 Mack Prime mover - Ready for work - In good working order - Has Aircon - with a Mack Engine ENDTB676 7Y4367 - Mack Transmission TRTXL 7Y9503.12 Speed Direct - Front Axel FA537 - Bogie SS441.

Needs rust/ paint work. Fully rebuilt Td70e Engine. New Radiator etc. Selling the lot.

Open to offers. Located CQ. More photos available

Mine spec water cart for sale hyd driven pump cannon batter sprays dribble bar three rear sprays new brakes and drums new tires.

Custom Coaches Body. 57 belted seats, AC (new seats & a/c retro-fitted 5years ago at the cost of $60000) 12m long, flat floor.

Perkins turbo diesel engine (rear) 6-speed synchro gearbox. Airbag suspension.

$ 22,000

$ 11,990

$ 70,000

$ 40,000 Call: 0427 620 371

Call: 0749 543 155

Call: 0439 888 618

Call: 0439 468 057

CARAVAN FOR SALE

CARAVAN FOR SALE

TRAILER FOR SALE

ATV FOR SALE

2013 EXPANDA OUTBACK

KEDRON TOP ENDER

FLAT BED TRAILER BOX TRAILER

RZR POLARIS 1000 TURBO 2016

Jayco 17.56.2 Excellent condition. Sleeps 6 in comfort (queen bed and double bed with innerspring mattresses), double bunk (converts into the second dinette), bathroom with shower, toilet, and vanity. .

This van has always been garaged little use is in excellent condition. Fully self contained.

We are downgrading to smaller van bit easier for the wife! Great van exceptionally made, the gall boys do a great job.

Ex 79 series Landcruiser tray built into a trailer. 2400x1800, Spare tire, spindle, hub, and bearings. 3 Toolboxes, Many ties down points for bikes. Tested off road with large loads with ease. Non braked 6 stud axle.

Competitive race machine or great weekend fun! Holz racing front A-arms/ball joints. Holz racing rear trailing arms/radius arms. Holz racing rear sway bar. Fox shocks revalved & resprung.

$ 38,000 Call: 0429 645 149

$ 67,500 Call: 0407 794 279

$ 3,000

$ 22,000

Call: 0438 762 438

Call: 0749 835 291

SELL YOUR ITEMS FOR FREE. BECOME A SUBSCRIBER May 2019 25

Shift Miner Magazine www.shiftminer.com

Trader

THE BEST PLACE TO FIND GOOD GEAR

BIKE FOR SALE

BIKE FOR SALE

BOAT FOR SALE

BOAT FOR SALE

2008 SOFTAIL NIGHT TRAIN

BUELL 1125R

6.1 METRE HAMMERHEAD

3.85M QUINTREX EXPLORER TINNY

Night Train low ks only 8600, If you are looking for a bike with all the work done then this is the one always cleaned after every ride and regularly serviced, Stage 3 kit sounds lumpy, Vance and Hines pipe.

2010 Buell 1125r. Build #78 of 95. Approx 7636klms. Excellent condition, new belt.

Will be a Regretful sale. Located Emerald Qld. Rare bike, priced for quick sale

2015 Custom Built, This is a very versatile boat, whether fishing for Barra in the Gulf, or jigging for Nannygai at the Reef. It has all features to cover all fishing aspects.

3.85m Quintrex Explorer tinny, 15hp Johnson outboard. .

$ 23,000

$ 7,500

$ 75,990

$ 2,000

Call: 0477 053 671

Call: 0474 820 749

BOAT FOR SALE

BOAT FOR SALE

Call: 0488 660 518

Call: 0400 521 116 BOAT FOR SALE

Your ad here Free

QUINTREX ‘BREEZEABOUT’ 4.5M

QUINTREX 560 FREEDOM CRUISER

VHF & Lowrance depth sounder/ fish finder with navionics card. All safety gear & anchors as well.Yamaha 40hp ‘precision blend’ Just needs carbs rebalanced & battery.

Quintrex freedom cruiser Wake Tower 130hp Mercruiser.

Low running hrs, unpainted, underfloor fuel tank, plumbed live bait tank, front & rear Nav lights interior LED strip lighting, 4 comfortable seats, 5 Life jackets, anchor kit, Telescopic paddles, V Sheet, EIPIRB

$ 3,000

$ 32,000

$ 15,500

Call: 0455 333 655

Call: 0439 834 421

BOAT FOR SALE

GENERATOR FOR SALE

STACER 4.29M TINNY

Call: 0427 785 699 ENGINE FOR SALE

ENGINE FOR SALE

2003 CUSTOM SKI BOAT PROBE

HONDA GENERATOR

TD70E ENGINE

CUMMINS N855P

Vortex 350 chev. 340hrs. Soft clutch.

Custom duckboard.Wake tower/ boom bar.New skeg bush/ log glan seal.New mufflers.New rudder bushes.New prop shaft. Prop cleaned up.

EU invertor 20 I only had approx 10 hours use.

Volvo td70e turbo 6 cyl diesel engine.

Full ground up rebuilds and painted. All genuine parts. New radiator. Header tank.

Clutch kit. Lots spent on it. Came out of a n715 prime mover. Located cq.

$ 21,000

$ 1,650

$ 9,990

Cummins N855P 6 cylinder 235hp was set up as-is part of a fire pump, would have done less than 100hrs, comes with skid and needs wire loom. Please call Don for more details.

Call: 0427 118 759

Call: 0749 421 683

Call: 0418 780 314

ENGINE FOR SALE

TOOL BOX FOR SALE

FRIDGE FOR SALE

$ 5,000 Call: 0498 470 534 SCOPE FOR SALE

HONDA 50HP OUTBOARD

ALUMINIUM PROPELLER PLATE

WAECO FRIDGE

VORTEX SCOPE

Gas assist model no power trim and tilt.

Long shaft new standard prop comes with fuel tank 1690hrs ex-pro fishing hear running Gladstone QLD

New Aluminium propeller plate tool box, 1 Metre x 560 mm x 440 mm. Pickup only or freight at your cost.

Cf50 waeco, in very good condition, very well looked after. Only selling to up size.

Crossfire II 4-12 X 44 hardly used with Nikko Sterling QD rings.

$ 4,000

$ 300

$ 550 Call: 0404 380 224

$ 250 Call: 0448 302 652

Call: 0414 606 266

Call: 0408 354 249

SELL YOUR ITEMS FOR FREE. BECOME A SUBSCRIBER 26 May 2019

Shift Miner Magazine www.shiftminer.com

Trader

May 2019 27

Shift Miner Magazine www.shiftminer.com

Trader

E XPERIENCE MORE Air Con WiFi Gym Bar Shop Nestled in our village gardens are your welcoming living spaces designed for relaxation after a hard days work.

Your home away from home awaits you with everything you could need, from wholesome meals — cooked daily by our in-house chefs — to fully serviced en-suite rooms and 24-hour gyms. Our friendly staff are always on hand to help, whether you’re checking in, shopping at the Store or having a drink at the HUB! We’re more than just workforce accommodation. With Civeo, experience more.

WA

QLD

NSW

Karratha — Kambalda

Coppabella — Dysart — Middlemount — Moranbah — Nebo

Narrabri — Boggabri

civeo.com l 1300 622 222

28 May 2019