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CONSTRUCTION firm Leighton Holdings Ltd is taking a wait-and-see approach to any possible bid for infrastructure and engineering group Downer EDI Ltd. "The company (Downer EDI) is very fortunate to have a large balance sheet and surplus cash and we’re always looking at opportunities," Leighton’s chief executive Wal King said. "We do have a small shareholding in that company and we’ll see how events unfold in the future." Mr King added that many of the opportunities currently available are "highly priced". "We continue to say that unless the opportunities make strategic and commercial sense we’re not interested in pursuing it for some obscure reason," he said. After intense market speculation leading to a sharp rise in its shareprice, Downer EDI this week issued a statement to the market saying it had received no takeover approaches.
China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), the country's largest offshore oil producer, has acquired China National Chemical Construction Corporation (CNCCC). The merger - announced on Sunday by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) - will enable CNOOC to sharpen its competitiveness by using CNCCC's skills in fertilizer production, chemical research, engineering design and international trade, according to Fu Chengyu, CNOOC general manager. CNOOC is China's third largest oil company. Having focused on oil and natural gas exploration and production, it has been trying to expand into oil refining, petrochemicals and international trade. By the end of 2005, the company had 191.4 billion yuan (23.93 billion U.S.
Constructon and engineering group Murray & Roberts says its global contract-mining operations are poised to benefit from the mineral-commodities boom, which the company expects will persist for “at least the next five to seven years”. Writing in the group’s annual report for 2006, CE Brian Bruce reports that Murray & Robert’s mine-construction and development operations in the Southern African Development Community region, Canada and Australia are well positioned to benefit from growth opportunities in the domestic and global mineral-commodities markets.“Global growth, particularly in and from the eastern hemisphere, continues to place heavy demand into the natural-resources sector.“Indications are that this will continue for at least the next five to seven years before reaching a new level of sustainable demand.“This bodes well for further development of a global resources focus in the group,” says Bruce.Meanwhile, demand for metals and minerals continues to exceed installed delivery capacity and resource prices have risen to record highs.“Capital expenditure by mining houses in our largest market – South Africa – has firmed appreciably, but still without the expected growth,” states Bruce.South Africa remains the group’s primary mining contracting market.It experienced increased activity in both the base-metals and precious-metals markets during the year under review.Platinum continued to offer the best opportunity, as the world’s two largest South Africa-based producers of the precious metal – Anglo Platinum and Impala Platinum – invested in expansion and replacement projects to meet global demand.There was also increased activity in the gold-mining sector, largely as a result of the stronger gold price and “an element of acclimatisation to a stronger rand environment”.In Africa, Murray & Roberts Cementation targets established mining markets with multiple project opportunities, including Ghana, Tanzania, Zambia and Botswana, where demand for diamonds is generating renewed activity.Mine development, which contributes 45% of the group’s revenue in South Africa, continued on the Impala Platinum No 20 shaft, Lonmin’s Karee 4 twin shaft and the Anglo Platinum Turffontein decline shaft project, in the Rustenburg area.A new R600-million contract was also secured on the Paardekraal double shaft project for Anglo Platinum and a development contract was secured for the Barplats platinum mine, near Brits.The Kroondal platinum mine continues to be the mainstay of activity in contract mining, accounting for almost 40% of South African revenue.The remainder of business in South Africa is focused on small specialised projects, which include exploration drilling, raise drilling and cementation work.The development of a fourth shaft at Kroondal is currently under adjudication.According to the annual report, Murray & Roberts Cementation is also the preferred contractor to build and contract for the new Blueridge mine, near Groblersdal.Bruce also reports that RUC Mining Contrac-tors, in Australia, reaped the benefits of ongoing buoyancy in the highly-mechanised Australian underground-mining sector, reporting revenues of R146,5-million, compared to R115,2-million in 2005, and operating profits of R20,1-million, up from R11,7-million.Cementation Canada exceeded key financial targets in an active market, delivering revenues of R657,3-million, compared with R547,1-million in 2005, and operating profits of R43,9-million (2005: R24,7-million), at an operating profit margin of 6,7%.
(SGT-HCMC) Construction Company 585, an arm of Civil Engineering Construction Corporation 5 (Cienco 5), yesterday began work on a new apartment building project capitalized at around VND600 billion (US$37.5 million) on the outskirts of HCMC.
The project, which will bring a new urban look to the city's less developed district of Tan Phu, comprises five 17-story blocks covering a 14,000-square-meter site and bordering the 24-meter-wide Nguyen Son Street and Thoai Ngoc Hau Street that will be widened to 60 meters.
When the Phu Thanh project is completed by 2009, there will be an additional 3,000 homes in the center of the outlying district, four kilometers from Tan Son Nhat International Airport.
The apartments are quoted at VND9 million per square meter.
In the green industry, there is a lesson to be learned every day, according to Frank Mariani, CEO of Mariani Landscape based in Lake Bluff, Ill. And to make the most of these lessons, landscape contractors need to apply them in ways that work for their businesses. Mariani shared his business philosophy at the Oct. 19 meeting of the Ohio Landscape Association held at Southwest Landscape Management and Land Creations Landscaping in Columbia Station, Ohio. "But dont follow everything I say like the gospel, Mariani says. You have to do what works for you. .
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