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Brad ThompsonMining reporter

Brad Thompson is The Australian’s mining reporter, covering all aspects of the resources industry and based in Perth.

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DefenceBusiness

PERTH, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos November 18th 2025: The Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, and Treasurer Jim Chalmers in Bunbury today, meeting the locals at CafÃÂ© Bean. Picture: NewsWire/Philip Gostelow

Chalmers wants to nail Austal ownership call as Hanwha lurks

Navy shipbuilder Austal sweats on $500m National Reconstruction Fund grant as Treasurer Jim Chalmers delays crucial foreign investment call because ‘I want to make sure that I get this one right’.

MiningMining & Energy

Gina Rinehart at The Bush Summit August 20th 2025 . Picture: Supplied

Rinehart’s rare earths stake soars to $US996m

Mining billionaire Gina Rinehart has slashed her portfolio of lithium investments as she continues to bet big on rare earths.

MiningMining & Energy

2013: Terry Jingles Tydd keeps rehydrated at the Rio Tinto Alcan refinery at Yarwun. Photo Luka Kauzlaric

Rio Tinto to cut 180 jobs at Queensland refinery

Rio Tinto will slash 180 jobs and cut production by 40 per cent at its Queensland alumina refinery, as waste storage issues threaten the plant’s long-term future.

Sanjeev Gandhi, managing director and chief executive officer of Orica Ltd., speaks during the World Mining Congress in Brisbane, Australia, on Tuesday, June, 27, 2023. The conference runs through June 28. Photographer: Ian Waldie/Bloomberg

Net zero by 2050 risks paralysing manufacturing: Orica boss

Orica CEO Sanjeev Gandhi has taken huge strides to reduce the chemical company’s carbon emissions. But he warns that net zero by 2050 risks destroying manufacturing in Australia.

Brad Thompson and Max Aitchison

AgricultureBusiness

ON HOLD : Embargoed for The Daily telegraph. 15.8.2024 Dr Andrew Forrest at his property Minderoo which is in the North West of Western Australia.. Picture: Rohan Kelly

Forrests seek new boss for Minderoo station, couples welcome

Their cattle business is back in the black, but only just, as the Forrests seek a ‘dynamic leader’ for the Minderoo operations covering 760,000 hectares. A home will be provided.

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - NewsWire Photos - October 27, 2025: R.M.Williams owner Dr Andrew Forrest AO will officially open RMWÃs expanded manufacturing facility and mark five years since the company was returned to Australian hands. Picture: NewsWire / Roy VanDerVegt

Forrest-owned Wyloo making bold strides in bombed out nickel

Wyloo made a net profit of $377.6m in 2024-25, compared to $352.8m loss the previous year when it booked a near $300m nickel impairment. The Andrew and Nicola Forrest-owned private miner is taking counter cyclical steps in down and out nickel.

AgricultureCompanies

CROPS: Luke Milgate at Serpentine Pictured: Generic canola crop. PHOTOGRAPHER: Zoe Phillips

GrainCorp tanks as low prices hit farmers mid-harvest

Investors ditch GrainCorp shares as the global grain oversupply weighs on markets, despite China’s move to lift its five-year ban on Australian canola.

Brad Thompson and Valerina Changarathil

ManufacturingRenewable energy & economy

EMBARGO FOR THE GREEN LIST, 22 NOVEMBER 2024. Orica team on site. Photo: Supplied

‘Green’ hydrogen feasible – with $477m of taxpayer funds: Orica

Orica is committed to its Hunter Valley ‘green’ hydrogen venture even as similar projects collapse, while its CEO says an east coast gas reservation policy would help keep manufacturing plants open.

MiningMining & Energy

Chris Ellison's Mineral Resources has secured a landmark $1.2bn deal with South Korea's POSCO.

Chris Ellison reclaims billionaire status in maverick lithium deal

MinRes shares have hit their highest point since last year’s governance crisis after CEO Chris Ellison extracted $1.2bn from South Korea’s POSCO for lithium assets.

MiningCompanies

The disputed AVZ Minerals lithium project in the DRC.

Corporate watchdog sues fallen lithium play once valued at $4.6bn

ASIC has launched Federal Court action against AVZ Minerals and two directors over alleged failures to disclose critical information about its troubled Congo lithium project.

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/brad-thompson/page/2