澳洲礦企瘦身 礦業繁榮期或已結束

Australian mining companies are slashing spending as the country's economic outlook dims.

隨着本國經濟前景變暗，澳大利亞礦業公司紛紛開始削減開支。

The world's fourth-largest producer of iron ore, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., said Tuesday it will slice operating costs by $300 million and save a further $1.6 billion by delaying the development of a large iron mine in Western Australia's Pilbara region. The company will also cut several hundred jobs.

世界第四大鐵礦石生產企業Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.（簡稱:FMG）週二表示，將削減3億美元的營業成本，並將推遲西澳大利亞州皮爾巴拉(Pilbara)地區一座大型鐵礦的開發，從而進一步節省16億美元。另外，FMG還將裁撤數百個崗位。

Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton are also planning cutbacks amid darkening economic outlooks around Asia, slumping prices for industrial commodities and rising production costs.

隨着亞洲各地經濟前景越來越黯淡、工業用大宗商品價格大幅下跌、生產成本不斷上升，力拓(Rio Tinto)和必和必拓(BHP Billiton)也在做瘦身規劃。

Mining companies in Australia are moving quickly to protect profits as the price prospects for major industrial commodities worsen-posing a risk for the resource-rich nation's economy. Australia recovered quickly from the financial crisis in 2008 and grabbed a place among the world's fastest-growing developed countries largely due to mining. That status is now at risk as companies such as BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue aggressively rein back their investments.

澳大利亞礦業公司迅速採取措施保護利潤，是因爲主要工業用大宗商品價格前景惡化，給這個資源大國的經濟帶來了風險。澳大利亞之所以迅速擺脫2008年的金融危機，成爲世界上增長最快的發達國家之一，主要原因就在於礦業。現在隨着必和必拓、力拓和FMG等公司大幅削減投資，這一地位已面臨風險。

The mining companies' sudden change in strategy is sparking concerns that Australia's mining boom has ended. As 2012 began, Australia's miners were complaining of a shortage of manpower and scouring the world for skilled labor-paying some specialist truck drivers around $250,000 a year to work in Western Australia. Now the industry is shedding jobs.

礦企戰略突然發生改變使人擔心澳大利亞的礦業繁榮期已經結束。2012年開年之初，澳大利亞礦商還在抱怨人力短缺，從世界各地尋找熟練工人。在西澳大利亞,一些專門的卡車司機年薪達25萬美元左右。現在這個行業正在裁人。

The price of iron ore, Australia's largest single export, has dropped by a third in the past two months. Tuesday it fell to US$86.90 a dry metric ton, its lowest level since October 2009. The price of coal, Australia's second-largest export and a major contributor to the profits of the country's biggest mining companies, has also plummeted, with thermal coal-used to generate electricity-down 20% this year.

鐵礦石是澳大利亞出口額最高的單一產品，其價格在過去兩個月下跌三分之一，週二跌至每幹噸86.90美元，爲2009年10月以來的最低水平。煤炭是澳大利亞第二大出口產品，也是該國大型礦企的重要利潤來源。煤炭價格也已經大幅下跌，今年以來電煤價格跌了20%。

The iron-ore decline 'has been much sharper than anyone anticipated,' said Fortescue Chief Executive Nev Power, and now there's concern a recovery will take a little longer than first thought. Government forecasters are warning there's further to fall for industrial commodities such as iron ore, coal and copper.

FMG首席執行長鮑爾(Nev Power)說，鐵礦石價格的下跌幅度遠遠超出了所有人的預料，而現在大家又擔心反彈的時間將比原來預想的來得更晚。政府預測人士警告說，鐵礦石、煤炭和銅等工業用大宗商品都還有進一步降價的空間。

'If prices continue to decline-and they declined substantially in the last six to eight weeks-then that clearly will have a negative outlook in terms of what companies are prepared to invest over the long term in projects,' Quentin Grafton, chief economist at the Bureau of Resources & Energy Economics, said in an interview Tuesday.

資源能源經濟局(Bureau of Resources & Energy Economics)的首席經濟學家格拉夫頓(Quentin Grafton)週二接受採訪時說，過去六到八個星期價格已經大幅下跌，如果進一步下跌的話，肯定會對企業計劃中的長期項目投資產生不利影響。

For Fortescue, based in Perth, that means backing off plans to raise the annual iron-ore output rate at its Pilbara operations to 155 million metric tons by next June. Instead it will aim to produce at a rate of 115 million tons by March, and then assess its growth plans based on market conditions.

對於總部位於珀斯(Perth)的FMG來說，這意味着要放棄在明年6月之前將皮爾巴拉地區的鐵礦石年產量提高到15,500萬噸的計劃。相反，FMG將致力於在3月之前以年均11,500萬噸的速度進行生產，然後根據市場狀況評估增長計劃。

The miner, whose credit rating from Moody's Investors Service-already at junk level, Ba3-was put on review for possible downgrade last week, lowered its fiscal year 2013 capital-expenditure guidance by US$1.6 billion, or 26%, to US$4.6 billion. It will defer not just a major project at the Solomon Hub iron-ore site but also a new export berth at Herb Elliott Port. Mr. Power also said the company would cut 'several hundred staff and several hundred contractors,' and reduce operating costs in a bid to secure immediate savings. A spokesman for the company declined to give details on the job cuts.

穆迪投資者服務公司(Moody's Investors Service Inc.)對這家礦業公司的信用評級已經是Ba3的垃圾級，上週又將其列入“可能下調”的評議名單中。該公司已經把2013財年的資本開支預期下調了16億美元，至46億美元，降幅26%。該公司不僅將推遲Solomon Hub鐵礦區的一個主要項目，還會推遲在Herb Elliott Port港口新建一個出口泊位項目。鮑爾還說，公司將裁掉幾百名員工，並解除與幾百名承包商的合作關係，降低運營成本，以儘快節省資金。該公司的一名發言人拒絕提供裁員細節。

'This is exactly what happens when commodity prices get savaged,' said Prasad Patkar, a Sydney-based fund manager at Platypus Asset Management. 'High-cost and marginal projects get deferred as miners look to conserve cash, and producers that can't remain cash-flow positive cut production and the market balances.'

悉尼鴨嘴獸資產管理公司(Platypus Asset Management Ltd.)的基金經理帕特卡(Prasad Patkar)說，大宗商品價格受到打擊時就會發生這樣的事，成本高和不重要的項目被推遲，礦企尋求留住現金，不能保持現金流爲正的礦商削減產量，從而使市場達到平衡。

BHP Billiton led the industry-wide reassessment when it announced last week that it was indefinitely delaying a $30 billion plan to expand its Olympic Dam copper, gold and uranium mine in South Australia.

必和必拓引領了行業範圍內的重新評估潮。上週，該公司宣佈將無限期推遲斥資3,000億美元擴大南澳大利亞州Olympic Dam 銅礦、金礦和鈾礦的計劃。

Western Australian Mines Minister Norman Moore said Tuesday that more iron-ore projects in the state, which holds the country's largest reserves, face being delayed.

西澳大利亞州礦產與石油部部長穆爾(Norman Moore)週二說，該州更多的鐵礦石項目面臨着延期的命運。西澳大利亞是澳大利亞礦產儲量最大的一個州。

Rio Tinto meanwhile said it will trim jobs and cut costs at its Argyle mine, famed for its rare pink diamonds. The company already is looking to shed a number of jobs at its coal operations in eastern Australia as well, and has said it will close one mine there before the end of the year rather than find ways to extend its operating life.

此外，力拓還表示，它將在Argyle鑽石礦裁撤崗位，削減成本。Argyle因出產稀有的粉鑽聞名。力拓已經尋求在東澳大利亞的煤礦業務上裁掉一些員工，該公司表示，將在年底之前關掉東澳大利亞的一個礦，而不會設法延長這個礦的運營壽命。

'Like others in the industry, Argyle is facing increasing costs,' said Bruce Tobin, a spokesman for Rio Tinto. 'We cannot do this effectively without reducing employee costs.'

力拓的發言人託賓(Bruce Tobin)說，就像業內其他礦場一樣，Argyle正面臨成本日益上升的壓力，如果不降低僱傭員工的成本，我們沒辦法有效地運營下去。

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, behind in opinion polls and counting on mining-industry taxes to meet budget pledges, has downplayed the pullback in investment by BHP, Rio and Fortescue. On Tuesday she called reports of the end of Australia's mining boom 'exaggerated,' saying that the industry instead is entering a new phase of growth.

澳大利亞總理吉拉德(Julia Gillard)目前在民調中的支持率處於落後的位置，她正指望來自礦業的稅收能夠幫助其履行預算方面的承諾。吉拉德有意弱化了必和必拓、力拓和FMG撤出投資的影響。吉拉德週二表示，有關澳大利亞礦業繁榮期行將結束的報道誇大其詞。她說，恰恰相反，礦業即將進入一個新的增長階段。