I had time to kill, so I Googled for information on Koodaideri...

I had time to kill, so I Googled for information on Koodaideri and a possible decision by December 2018. This is what I located:

• https://blog.plantminer.com.au/rio-tintos-new-pilbara-mine-to-create-over-2000-jobs, “Rio Tinto has announced that it has approved a US$146 million (approximately AUS$197 million) funding to jump start initial works at the Koodaideri iron ore project – located in the Pilbara region about 110 kilometres from Newman, Western Australia – ahead of the final investment decision which is expected to be made by the end of 2018.”
• https://im-mining.com/tag/koodaideri/, “In addition to this, the company has agreed to provide $146 million to undertake initial work at its Koodaideri iron ore project in Western Australia, ahead of a final investment decision by the end of the year.”
• https://vaaju.com/aus/iron-ore-headlamp-switches-to-rio-tinto-after-bhp-and-fmgs-latest-mining/, “The future investment plan published by Rio in February meant that the expenses for Koodaideri would start in the calendar year 2019, which would be formal approval in the latter half of 2018.”

Who has that expectation, and the basis thereof, is a moot point, but one can be sure that mining-services suppliers and equipment hirers have had tentative discussions in respect to Koodaideri.

Anyhow, I'll stick with my this-calendar-year forecast. As a long-term holder, apart from the fun of guessing when we may hear who lands the RIO's Koodaideri project, for me it is immaterial if the news comes out in calendar years 2018, or 2019. Also, with so many other successes in securing contracts, profit margins are now more important than revenue, so like the John West advertisement states, the fish rejected may be more the hallmark of NWH as a good investment, than the tally of fish caught.