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Yilgarn Submits Tender For Oakajee Port
Yilgarn Infrastructure Limited has submitted a comprehensive tender to the WA Government for the right to build a deepwater port at Oakajee in the State’s Mid West region. Commonwealth Approves China's Investment In Yilgarn's Mid West Rail and Oakajee Port ProjectThe Australian Government has given the green light to investment agreements signed late last year between Yilgarn Infrastructure and five major Chinese companies. These companies – China Railway Materials Commercial Corporation (CRM), Sinosteel Corporation, China Railway Group Limited (CRGL), China Communications Construction Corporation (CCCC) and Anshan Iron and Steel Group Corporation (AnSteel) - comprise some of China's biggest enterprises in the fields of railway operations, port and railway construction;, iron ore trading and steel production. The Foreign Investment Review Board approval marks an historic first for Australia-Chinese business relations and brings Yilgarn’s estimated $3 billion Mid West rail and Oakajee Port project a step closer to realisation. The sign-off followed the completion of full technical, financial and legal due diligence by the Chinese companies and was a vital step in confirming Yilgarn’s capability to undertake the development its Mid West Rail and Oakajee Port Project. Yilgarn’s investment agreements mark the first time such a large grouping of Chinese enterprises has invested in an Australian company. Their commitment underpins the Yilgarn’s vision for the Mid West providing access to both equity and China EXIM and Development Bank debt-finance required to implement the project. Yilgarn’s infrastructure project will be owned independently of the region’s mines and operated to service multiple mine customers in the Mid West on an open-book, open access basis. Yilgarn Completes Oakajee Drilling Programme
Geraldton residents were given the first tangible sign of work proceeding on the long-awaited Oakajee port during February, with a jack-up drill rig clearly visible off the coast. The rig was employed by Yilgarn at the Oakajee Port site to undertake the geotechnical investigations necessary as part of definitive feasibility studies into the development. The core samples obtained from the drilling programme are the most accurate way of determining ground conditions. This knowledge will enable an accurate assessment of dredging risks at the site – information that will influence the final design solution for the Port of Oakajee. The work is a vital component of the Definitive Feasibility Study into the port development and represents the most significant marine drilling programme to be undertaken at Oakajee. Yilgarn Partnerships Recession Proofing The Mid WestChina’s strategic investment in Yilgarn’s Mid West Rail and Oakajee Port Project presents a unique opportunity to recession-proof the Mid West region. The strategic debt and equity support for the project from China and its growing investment in the region’s mines secures iron ore market demand in the region for many years to come. China’s strategic investment in regional infrastructure provides long-term commercial security for the iron ore industry and sustainability for the Mid West. It means China has a vested interest in the mines’ product, as the inevitable resource supply: demand cycles occur – effectively ‘recession proofing’ the region. By forming alliances between Australian and Chinese port and rail engineering expertise to develop the infrastructure, Yilgarn also offers local companies a pathway to establish new relationships that will provide business opportunities in WA, offshore in China and other parts of the world where Chinese companies are active. At a regional level, local content through employment, manufacturing and service provision is a Yilgarn priority. Skills training and community development for Geraldton and the towns within the project footprint will form an important component of the infrastructure development – benefits that will be felt long into the future. Synergies for the Mid West arising from the realisation of the SKA are complemented by Yilgarn’s vision for the region. Yilgarn’s Mid West rail and Oakajee Port project is not just a plan to build vital infrastructure, it is a sustainable, long-term development plan that will benefit the Mid West, the State and the nation for many years to come. Who Are We?Yilgarn Infrastructure Limited is an unlisted public company based in Perth, Western Australia. We were established in 2005 to develop the estimated $3 billion Oakajee Port and associated rail infrastructure to support the expansion of the Mid West region's iron ore industry. Yilgarn is well capitalised by a group of sophisticated Australian investors including the WA Local Government Superannuation Plan and has backing from major Chinese enterprises and Chinese policy banks. Yilgarn's business is to build quality, independently owned and operated infrastructure to service all the Mid West region's mines on an open-access, open-book and common-user basis, enabling export of product at the most competitive prices for the Chinese and other international markets. With a project of this scale, Yilgarn recognises the potential benefits for the region – the up-side – but is also cognizant of the potential environmental impacts associated with the port and rail infrastructure. “Minimal Harm” coupled with a regional vision has been an underpinning philosophy for Yilgarn. The story continues to unfold. The RFP submission, scheduled for 9 May 2008, is the next Chapter. Yilgarn Kicks In For Chapman Valley Football Club
Yilgarn’s port and rail project has helped provide a lifeline for the Chapman Valley Football Club, with a sponsorship agreement announced late last year. The commitment has enabled the club to appoint a new coach – Brad Forrester – and will also allow it to take part in the NAB AFL Auskick football programme for this year’s season. This programme will give young locals an opportunity to develop Aussie Rules football skills in a safe, structured environment. Established in the 1960s, Chapman Valley Football Club was for decades a social hub for the local farming community. A success on and off the footy field, the club played a major role in the lives of people in the area. However, years of drought and population shift to Geraldton had impacted so severely on the club that its future was in doubt unless corporate sponsorship could be secured. In recognition of the potential benefit that the community could again derive from a vibrant and fully operational sporting facility, Yilgarn committed to sponsoring the club to help it take its first steps back to health. Yilgarn Appointment
Yilgarn Infrastructure Limited further boosted its senior management last year with the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer, Project Director and Company Secretary/General Counsel. CEO Andrew Carter, a mining engineer, has 30 years experience in the resources sector and related industries, working in Australia, South Africa, South America, North America, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, Europe and Asia. A Fellow of the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Dr Carter’s previous positions have included Chief Executive and General Manager of Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal Pty Ltd and Chairman, Dalrymple Marine Services Ptd Ltd; Chief Executive Clough Resources Division; Managing Director Griffin Coal Mining Company Pty Ltd and Chief Mining Engineer, Shell Company of Australia Pty Ltd. 
Yilgarn’s Project Director, Philip Knudsen, is a civil engineer and specialist in project management who has been responsible for the delivery of major civil, utilities, road, rail, port/marine and airport infrastructure projects throughout Australia, China and South East Asia. Mr Knudsen’s previous positions have included; Program Manager, Transfield Services (Australia) Pty Ltd; Project Manager for MWH China Constructors Ltd; Start-Up Manager Brisbane Water Alliance and Engineering Design Manager for Thiess Contractors Pty Ltd and Senior Project Manager for Bechtel Australia Pty Ltd. 
Company Secretary and General Counsel John McMath is a highly experienced businessman and barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Courts of Western Australia and Victoria. Mr McMath is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a member of the Starlight Children’s Foundation Board and Deputy Chairman of the WA Youth Orchestra Board. His previous roles have included General Counsel and General Manager, Group Risk and Insurance for Clough Limited, Senior Lawyer for Woodside Energy in Western Australia, and General Counsel and Company Secretary for Loy Yang Power Limited in Victoria. |
Also in this issue
Project Progress• Definitive Feasiblity Studies underway. |
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