Hancock Prospecting has secured a successful bid for five mineral exploration licences in Saudi Arabia, partnering with a local company to enter one of the world’s most active greenfield exploration jurisdictions. The licences give Gina Rinehart’s group a platform to test iron ore and other commodity potential in the Arabian Shield, a Precambrian terrane already hosting major gold and base metal deposits. For geologists and mine planners, the move signals growing Australian involvement in Saudi projects where state-backed infrastructure and permitting can accelerate drilling and resource definition.

Hancock Iron Ore safety advocate Dale Harris argues that “engaging with empathy” is critical to designing effective safety programmes across its Pilbara iron ore operations. Harris links lower incident rates to supervisors spending time in the pit and at fixed plant, listening to operators about specific hazards such as conveyor pinch points and fatigue on 12-hour night shifts. The approach shifts pre-starts and toolbox talks from one-way briefings to two-way discussions, aiming to capture near-miss data and behavioural risks that standard JSAs and procedures often miss.

The US is negotiating a rare earths partnership with Brazil, targeting Brazil’s largely untapped deposits, which are estimated to be the world’s second-largest and only 30% geologically mapped in detail. Talks involve US and Brazilian officials, Ibram, and financial institutions, building on about $465 million in US-backed financing for Serra Verde, currently Brazil’s only producing rare earth mine, and early-stage plans by Canada’s Aclara Resources. Engineers should watch for new greenfield and brownfield projects as Brasília’s National Mining Policy Council pushes critical minerals while Europe pursues competing offtake and investment deals.