Karara contracts and orders approach $1 billion

Orders in recent months for items such as a dual wagon tipper, water pipeline, magnetic separators, rail and pressure filters have lifted the total commitments for Karara to approximately $700 million as activity on site at Karara, 225km east of Geraldton, continues to gather pace.
The award of a further $300 million of major new construction, equipment and services contracts in coming months will see the project hit the $1 billion milestone and cement Karara’s position as the most advanced major project development in the Mid West region of WA.
Some of the major new service and construction contracts expected to be awarded include a facilities management contract to manage the Karara and Lochada accommodation villages, the construction of the 85km Karara rail spur connecting the project with the existing rail line near Morawa, the installation of the 140km water pipeline from Mingenew to site, civil work at Geraldton Port and the construction of access roads.
The new contracts are in addition to the major contracts already awarded by the Karara Joint Venture which include:
Karara camp and accommodation village - Doric Constructions - $70 million
Earthworks and concrete construction - NRW Holdings - $120 million
Management and construction services - WorleyParsons and AMEC Minproc - $140 million
“The award of these substantial new contracts demonstrates our confidence in the Project and our commitment to progress full steam ahead at Karara, even as we finalise the debt funding arrangements and recently announced equity raising,” said Gindalbie’s managing director, Garret Dixon.
“The award of these contracts brings to the forefront the flow-on benefits to the broader economy which major mining projects such as Karara generate for Australian workers and businesses right across the country,” he added.
Gindalbie and its partner Ansteel are currently finalising the security arrangements and final documentation for the US$1.2 billion Karara Project Loan facility and the recently announced $175 million equity raising to underpin project construction and working capital, both of which are subject to shareholder approval at meetings which have been convened respectively for June 16th and June 28th.