BlueScope Steel Australia awarded navy contract

CANBERRA, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced on Monday that Australia's steel producer BlueScope Steel was awarded a 20 million Australian dollars (14.6 million U.S. dollars) contract to supply steel for Australia's three new navy air warfare destroyers.

"This is a great achievement. Australian steel for Australian ships for Australian defence, that's what we're here today to celebrate," Rudd told reporters.

According to the Australian Associated Press, the contract will run over six years with BlueScope Steel to produce around 3,000 tonnes of steel per ship.

"Through this new contract they (BlueScope) will support jobs for Australian workers and flow-on economic benefits for their communities," Rudd said.

Rudd said the 8 billion Australian dollars (6 billion U.S. dollars) project would see the first of the three ships delivered in 2014, the largest defence project in Australia's history.

BlueScope Steel is a flat product steel producer with operations in Australia, New Zealand, Asia, the Pacific and North America.

Australia approves Ansteel's additional stake in Gindalbie

CANBERRA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan announced on
Friday his approval on the Chinese steel maker, Anshan Iron and Steel Group
Corporation (Ansteel)'s acquisition of an additional stake in Australian iron
ore miner Gindalbie Metals Ltd.

Ansteel had agreed on a number of undertakings that would support
Australian mining jobs and protect Australia's investment participation in the
Chinese resources market, Swan said.

"My approval under the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 is
conditional upon Ansteel supporting the wider development of infrastructure in
the Mid-west (of Australia), and maintaining agreed levels of Australian
participation in a green fields joint venture in China's Liaoning Province,"
Swan said in a statement.

Swan said this foreign investment decision has allowed Ansteel to have a
stake of up to 36.28 percent in Gindalbie, conditional upon legally enforceable
undertakings by Ansteel.

Ansteel was also a 50 percent partner in a joint venture with Gindalbie to
develop the Karara Iron Ore Project.

The Karara Iron Ore Project has been a 1.8 billion Aust dollars (1.4
billion U.S. dollars) development in the Mid-west region of Western
Australia.