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Thick, high‑grade copper intercepts and new mineralisation at Aeris Resources’ Tritton operation in central NSW are giving the producer a strong start to 2025, with drilling extending known lenses and opening additional underground targets. Recent holes have returned wide sulphide zones carrying elevated copper grades, strengthening the mine plan around existing Tritton and Budgery ore sources and supporting potential resource upgrades. For planners and geotechs, the results point to longer mine life, continued sublevel open stoping, and further investment in underground development and paste backfill.

Fortescue is accelerating its “Real Zero” strategy across Pilbara iron ore operations such as Christmas Creek, targeting zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions without offsets by 2030 through global partnerships on green haul trucks, renewable power and hydrogen. The miner is trialling battery-electric and hydrogen-powered haul fleets to replace diesel, and planning large-scale solar and wind integration with high-voltage transmission to its remote sites. For mine planners and process engineers, the shift implies redesign of pit haul profiles, power distribution, and maintenance regimes around high‑capacity electrified mobile equipment.

The Papua New Guinea Mining and Industrial Resources Conference and Exhibition (PNG Expo) in Port Moresby is positioning Australian suppliers to tap into PNG’s roughly $8 billion mining sector, centred on large-scale gold, copper and LNG-linked projects. Delegates are targeting contracts with operations such as Ok Tedi, Lihir and Porgera, where logistics constraints, high rainfall and complex geology drive demand for robust pit dewatering, slope stability monitoring and remote power solutions. Networking at venues like the Stanley Hotel is being used to broker partnerships on everything from modular processing plants to mine camp construction and maintenance.

Fortuna Mining is refocusing on West Africa to rebuild its 500,000 oz/y gold output, backing expansions at the Séguéla mine in Côte d’Ivoire and the Diamba Sud project in Senegal while targeting 100,000–200,000 oz/y assets with 10+ year mine lives. Séguéla, which poured first gold in 2023, has lifted contained reserves by 11%, doubled indicated resources and is expected to exceed 150,000 oz in 2025, with Lycopodium studying a plant throughput increase from ~1.7–1.75 Mt/y to 2–2.5 Mt/y. The company has about $400 million net cash for acquisitions, amid intense regional deal activity including Atlantic Group’s purchase of Barrick’s Tongon mine and competing bids for Predictive Discovery.

Li-FT Power is acquiring Australia’s Winsome Resources for about A$130.8 million ($86.8 million) in shares and taking 75% of the adjacent Galinée property from Azimut Exploration and SOQUEM, consolidating a large hard-rock lithium position in Quebec’s James Bay. The deal brings in Winsome’s 100%-owned Adina project, with 1.4 Mt at 1.14% Li₂O (indicated) and 16.5 Mt at 1.19% Li₂O (inferred), scoped in 2024 as a 20+ year operation producing 280,000 t/y of spodumene concentrate, capex $259 million and NPV₈ of $743 million. Li-FT plans a C$30 million placement for Adina–Galinée work, C$10 million for Yellowknife, and an ASX listing, while some analysts argue Winsome is being undervalued.

Westgold Resources will spin out its non-core Murchison gold assets into a new ASX-listed vehicle, Valiant Gold, targeting A$65–75 million at A$0.25 per share while retaining 44–48% equity. The demerger packages the Reedy’s and Comet brownfield projects, which hold 15.6 Mt at 2.4 g/t Au (1.2 Moz contained) and previously produced 820,000 oz at 3.8 g/t and 257,000 oz at 2.77 g/t respectively, plus several small underground mines in care and maintenance. Valiant will secure toll treatment via ore processing agreements at Westgold’s Cue and/or Meekatharra hubs (6 Mtpa installed capacity), backed by a A$3 million interest-free loan to accelerate restart studies and near-term production.

US mining enters 2026 under a suite of Trump executive orders (EO 14213, 14220, 14241, 14261 and 14272) directing agencies to cut permitting delays, open federal land and expand domestic processing, with impacts expected on exploration timelines and investor confidence in critical minerals. SME consultant Debra W. Struhsacker warns that more than 30 years of restrictive legislation and land-use limits mean recovery will be gradual, with litigation over NEPA reviews and the fate of the SPEED Act (HR 4776) key to real permitting gains. She flags severe rare earths dependence on China and a looming skills gap, noting only 14 US mining schools and urging passage of the Mining Schools Act of 2025 and renewed federal mineral research funding.

Northern Star Resources has ordered Sandvik Toro® TH663i underground trucks and Toro® LH621i and LH517i intelligent loaders for its Western Australian gold operations, with the fleet order booked in Q4 2025. Deliveries will start in Q1 2026 and run through 2027, supporting high‑tonnage, automated loading and haulage in deep underground stopes. The i-series machines are configured for Sandvik’s AutoMine® and OptiMine® platforms, signalling further roll-out of tele-remote and data-driven fleet management in Australian hard-rock mines.

Fortescue Ltd has agreed to acquire the remaining 64% of Alta Copper Corp it does not already own via a Canadian Plan of Arrangement, offering Alta shareholders C$1.40 per share in cash. The deal would give Fortescue full control of Alta’s copper portfolio, positioning the iron ore major to expand further into large-scale red metal projects. For engineers and project teams, this signals potential acceleration of feasibility, permitting and infrastructure planning across Alta’s development assets under Fortescue’s balance sheet and project delivery model.

ABB has been selected to design and supply the complete electrical infrastructure for Vulcan Energy’s Phase One Lionheart geothermal lithium project in Germany’s Upper Rhine Valley, which will co-locate renewable power generation with lithium extraction and processing. The integrated plant will produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) for the European EV supply chain, requiring high-reliability power distribution, grid connection and process electrification. For engineers, the project signals growing demand for utility-scale, renewables-based electrical systems tightly coupled to hydrometallurgical lithium circuits.

Equinox Gold is divesting its Brazilian portfolio, agreeing to sell 100% interests in the Aurizona open-pit gold mine, the RDM Mine and the Bahia exploration complex to a CMOC Group subsidiary for US$1.015 billion. CMOC Chairman and CIO Liu Jianfeng framed the acquisition as a strategic move into gold, adding to a portfolio better known for copper and cobalt operations such as Tenke Fungurume. The deal signals continued Chinese capital deployment into established Brazilian gold assets, with potential changes ahead in mine planning, capital allocation and regional contractor pipelines.

Sustainability Victoria is marking 20 years as the state’s lead agency for accelerating sustainability in infrastructure, including large-scale use of recycled aggregates and reclaimed asphalt in Victorian road projects. Since 2005 it has shifted policy into on-ground practice by funding demonstration pavements, supporting specifications for recycled content in roadbase and asphalt, and backing circular-economy procurement across councils and state agencies. For civil and materials engineers, its programmes have normalised secondary materials in pavements and structures, de-risking adoption through trials, performance data and standards support.

AustStab’s 2025 Conference in Adelaide marked 30 years of the association’s work on in situ pavement recycling and stabilisation, signalling a more mature approach to reusing existing granular bases and bound layers rather than full-depth reconstruction. International experts and local contractors presented case studies on foamed bitumen, cementitious binders and lime stabilisation to improve subgrade performance, moisture resistance and fatigue life. For designers and asset managers, the focus was on life-cycle cost, carbon reduction from reduced quarry haulage, and performance-based specifications for recycled pavements.

The West Gate Tunnel in Melbourne is now open to traffic, adding twin road tunnels that provide an alternative to the West Gate Bridge and direct links to the Port of Melbourne, the CBD and CityLink. Designed to relieve a bridge that had effectively reached capacity, the new connection is expected to divert a substantial share of east–west traffic and heavy vehicles away from the existing corridor. For civil and geotechnical teams, attention will now shift from construction to long-term tunnel operations, pavement performance and groundwater/settlement monitoring.

Fortescue has entered a binding agreement to acquire the remaining 64 per cent of Alta Copper, lifting its ownership to 100 per cent in a deal valued at around $US400 million and significantly increasing its copper development pipeline in South America. The move consolidates Fortescue’s position in the Cañariaco project in northern Peru, a large-scale porphyry copper deposit with open-pit potential and long-life resource characteristics. For mine planners and geotechs, the deal signals future demand for large waste dumps, tailings capacity and associated pit slope design in a seismically active, high-altitude Andean setting.

MASPRO has logged 42 per cent year-to-date growth in orders for 2025 as it scales a mining supply chain model built around high-availability wear parts and rapid dispatch for crushers, drills and loaders. The company focuses on stocking critical spares close to major Australian mining hubs and using data on failure rates and maintenance cycles to pre-position components, cutting unplanned downtime windows that can cost large sites hundreds of thousands of dollars per hour. For maintenance and reliability teams, the approach shifts planning from reactive procurement to scheduled component change-outs with tighter lead-time risk.

Minerals 260 has reported record gold intercepts at its Bullabulling project in Western Australia, with recent drilling returning some of the highest grades yet encountered at the site. The results come from reverse circulation and diamond holes targeting extensions of known lodes along the Bullabulling shear zone, a 30km-long structure historically hosting multiple open pits. For mine planners and geotechs, the higher-grade zones within this shear-hosted system could materially change pit shell economics, strip ratios and geotechnical design around steeper, deeper wall configurations.

An Interim Modernised Agreement has been signed between Rio Tinto and the Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation, updating long‑standing arrangements covering the company’s iron ore operations on Yinhawangka country in Western Australia’s Pilbara. The interim deal is intended to reset consent, cultural heritage and benefit‑sharing frameworks following the 2020 Juukan Gorge rock shelter destruction, ahead of a fully modernised agreement. For mine planners and project teams, the move signals tighter expectations around heritage surveys, design avoidance of sensitive sites and earlier Traditional Owner engagement in approvals.

Westgold Resources plans to demerge its smaller Reedy and related gold assets into a separate vehicle, creating a new WA-focused producer targeting historically worked but under-capitalised deposits. The move carves out non-core operations from Westgold’s larger Murchison and Bryah Basin portfolio, signalling a shift in capital towards higher-grade, longer-life underground and open-pit centres. For mine planners and geotechs, the spin-out suggests renewed drilling, resource definition and potential plant reconfiguration on legacy pits and underground workings rather than greenfield development.

Wigan-based Marsden Crane Services has added a 150-tonne Liebherr LTM 1150-5.3 all terrain crane as its new flagship, featuring a five-axle carrier, seven-section 66-metre main boom and remote-controlled superstructure functions for safer site operations. With extensions, the crane reaches a 92-metre hook height and 72-metre radius, and can legally travel under STGO with 29 tonnes of its 46-tonne ballast, reducing support transport for many lifts. The unit has already erected Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s new 138 ft Aviktas gyro swing and follows Marsden’s recent addition of a 50-tonne Liebherr LTC 1050-3.1 city crane used for precast lifts at Burnley FC’s stadium.

Availability of 411 purpose-built studio rooms on Newcastle’s Heber Street has been delayed by a year after Downing’s Building Safety Regulator Gateway 2 approval took 42 weeks, shifting construction start to March 2026 and first occupation to September 2028. The Simpson Haugh-designed block forms a single building in three elements of 10, 12 and 14 storeys and targets BREEAM Excellent with embedded sustainability measures. As the final phase of the Downing Plaza redevelopment of the former Newcastle & Brown Brewery site, the delay affects capacity planning alongside the existing 1,800+ student beds and 183-bed hotel already delivered.

Galliford Try’s Water Technologies team has secured Phase 1 of South West Water’s continuous water quality monitoring programme, installing 86 automatic samplers across wastewater assets in Devon and Cornwall to meet Section 82 Environment Act obligations. Sensors from RS Hydro will measure dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, turbidity and ammonia both upstream and downstream of storm overflows and sewage treatment works, with data due for public release in 2030. 3D scanning and GIS integration will be used to optimise site selection, layout planning and installation logistics.

Van Elle has agreed to sell its 2023-formed Canadian subsidiary, Van Elle Canada Inc, including its fleet of road-rail plant, to special purpose vehicle 1560169 B.C. Ltd, in partnership with rail contractor Remcan Projects LP, for approximately CAD $4.7m, with completion targeted around 17 December 2025. The deal comprises an initial CAD $2.7m cash payment, matching the net book value of key fixed assets, plus about CAD $2.0m deferred to 31 July 2026, subject to closing adjustments. Van Elle Canada, originally set up to service the delayed Metrolinx GO expansion, generated £3.5m revenue but a £1.3m loss in the year to 30 April 2025, and will continue to receive specialist rail consultancy support from Van Elle’s UK team.

Torus has awarded a £224m multi-contractor framework to deliver 9,000 new homes by 2029 and support retrofit works across its existing 41,000-home portfolio around Liverpool, Warrington and St Helens. The 13 appointed firms include Eric Wright Construction, Seddon Construction, Caddick Construction, Vistry Merseyside, Starship Modular and others covering both traditional build and modular delivery. The framework will be central to scaling fabric upgrades and new-build output, giving regional contractors a structured pipeline of housing and refurbishment projects.