09-June-2021:  I am no longer a shareholder in FOR - the Forager Australian Shares Fund (FASF) LIT (listed investment trust), however I do follow what they are holding.  Currently their portfolio includes two mining services companies - Perenti Global (PRN), which used to be called Ausdrill, and Macmahon Holdings (MAH), a company that FOR have held for at least 7 years - I also hold MAH, but not PRN, as I am still a little wary of Perenti from their Ausdrill days and concerns I had about them back then, including corporate governance issues.  The following is a link to a weekly video from FOR in which Steve Johnson talks with Alex Shevelev about mining services as a sector (and the opportunity and risks of investing in the sector currently) and those two companies in particular.

Labour costs are continuing to inflate around the country while miners are buoyed by high commodity prices. So where does that leave mining services companies?

Forager Chief Investment Officer, Steve Johnson, talks to Forager Australian Shares Fund (FOR) senior analyst, Alex Shevelev, about the Fund's investments in mining services companies Macmahon (MAH) and Perenti (PRN) in this short video:

7-June-2021: Forager: Cost Pressures Slam Contractors (and Maybe the Rest of the Country)

09-June-2021:  Sandfire Resources (SFR) awards open pit mining contract for Motheo Copper Mine, Botswana, to Perenti Global (PRN)

Sandfire Resources Ltd (ASX: SFR) is pleased to announce that, through its subsidiary Tshukudu Metals Botswana (Pty) Ltd (Tshukudu), it has awarded the contract for open pit mining services of the T3 pit at its Motheo Copper Project in Botswana to African Mining Services (AMS). AMS is a surface mining business of diversified global mining services group Perenti Global Ltd (ASX: PRN).

The contract, which has an estimated value of US$496 million (A$648 million), is the largest single operational contract for the new Motheo Project covering a period of 7 years and 3 months, with provision for a one-year extension.

The contract was awarded following a competitive 3-stage tender process which saw a number of key factors taken into consideration when selecting the preferred contractor. These included Citizen Economic Empowerment, safety culture, equipment suitability and availability, commercial terms and identified improvement opportunities.

The award is subject to the grant of the Mining Licence and subsequent execution of the final contract. Under the terms of the contract, AMS has agreed to form a 70:30 Joint Venture with a suitable local Botswana partner or partners. The JV is expected to be finalised ahead of commencement of mining in early CY2022.

AMS has been operating in Africa for over 30 years. AMS’ parent company, ASX listed diversified mining services group Perenti (formerly Ausdrill), already has a presence in Botswana through Barminco, their underground mining division, at the large-scale Khoemacau Copper Mine located 200km north-east of Motheo.

--- click on the link at the top for the full announcement ---