WDR has been the victim of one of the worst wets in that area...

WDR has been the victim of one of the worst wets in that area for 30 years - they started up in it. It might be a cliche, but unless you've actually worked in a mine you wouldn't have a clue of how badly rain affects production.

It has also been the victim of trying too hard to bring costs down. It worked on the haul road - delivering it at a fraction of the FS costs through good choice of contractor. It hasn't worked on barging. Pacific Basin Towage are a barge towing service, not a shiploader, so WDR got caught out there.

Finally, it has been a victim of its own optimism. Most new mines these days seem to need to raise capital as they completely underestimate the working capital required on start-up. Operating a mine for 2 months with no income leads to a very empty treasury!

There is nothing systemic in any of this - it is all fixable. My discussion with a director led me to believe the CR and the barge operator replacement will see operations calm down to steady state operations.

WDR have now dispatched 6 ships of cargo. The ore is better than predicted. The wet is coming to an end and all will come up smelling sweet. I believe it.