WMC Resources
Encyclopedia
WMC Resources Limited was an Australian diversified mining
and fertilizer company formerly listed on the Australian Stock Exchange
. WMC was an acronym for Western Mining Corporation. It was delisted on 29 June 2005 following a successful takeover by BHP Billiton
. It had three main businesses:
company in Kalgoorlie
, Western Australia
. The company's final corporate structure before takeover was formed in 2003 by a demerger that split off the aluminium
operations to form Alumina Limited
, separate from what was to be known as WMC Resources (with a separate ASX code of WMR).
In 2003, the company made a profit of 245 million Australian dollars, on assets of approximately 4000 million AUD.
The last Chief Executive Officer
of the independent company was Andrew Michelmore, and the board was chaired by Tommie Bergman and Executive Directors included Mr Michelmore and Alan Dundas. A notable previous CEO, from 1990 to 2003, was Hugh Morgan
, a politically-vocal CEO who spoke out about the power of trade union
s, criticised the Mabo decision and native title
more generally, and supported a number of other right-wing causes. Most influentially, Morgan was a member of the "greenhouse mafia," central to the campaign to prevent the Federal Government ratifying the Kyoto Protocol
, or taking actions to cut emissions (in collaboration with Ray Evans
, WMC Executive Officer, 1982-2001).
, a Swiss mining company, announced a takeover offer for the company. In February 2005, the WMC board recommended that shareholders reject the offer. The government did not object to the takeover through the Foreign Investment Review Board, however a number of people (including members of the Government) expressed concerns due to the economic (and strategic) importance of the Olympic Dam resources, and the reputation of Xstrata and its major shareholder, Glencore
.
The Xstrata takeover offer lapsed after a higher offer was made by BHP Billiton
, with support from the WMC Resources board. On the afternoon of 3 June 2005, about 6 hours before the BHP Billiton takeover offer was due to close, it was announced that 55% of the shares had accepted the offer. This automatically (according to Australian Corporations law) extended the offer period by another 14 days to 17 June. BHP Billiton had gained control of the company. On the afternoon of 17 June 2005, BHP Billiton announced that it had achieved 90.5% ownership, and would proceed to compulsory acquire the remaining shares.
As a result of the takeover, most of the board and the CEO resigned, to be replaced by BHP Billiton appointees. BHP Billiton Executive Director Mike Salamon took over the position of Chairman of the board, and Chris Campbell
took over as interim CEO. Subsequently, the company name has been replaced by the BHP Billiton corporate identity, and a significant name in Australian mining
history ceased to be used.
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and fertilizer company formerly listed on the Australian Stock Exchange
Australian Stock Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
. WMC was an acronym for Western Mining Corporation. It was delisted on 29 June 2005 following a successful takeover by BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...
. It had three main businesses:
- A nickelNickelNickel is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile...
mining and processing business in Western AustraliaWestern AustraliaWestern Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. - A copperCopperCopper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and uraniumUraniumUranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
mine at Olympic DamOlympic Dam, South AustraliaOlympic Dam is a mining centre in South Australia located some 550 km NNW of Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is the site of an extremely large iron oxide copper gold deposit producing copper, uranium, gold and silver. The site hosts an underground mine as well as an...
in South AustraliaSouth AustraliaSouth Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. In 2005, this mine was estimated to contain 33% of the world's known uranium reserves. - A fertilizerFertilizerFertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...
production business in Queensland, which became known as Southern Cross Fertilisers following the BHP Billiton takeover; as well as Hi Fert, a blending and distribution network supporting Australia's eastern states. BHP Billiton sold Southern Cross Fertilisers to Incitec Pivot LimitedIncitec Pivot LimitedIncitec Pivot Ltd. is an Australian chemicals & explosives manufacturer based in Southbank, Victoria. Incitec Pivot is the largest supplier of fertilisers in Australia; the largest supplier of explosives products and services in North America; and the second largest supplier of explosives...
in May 2006 and Hi Fert to a joint venture of EldersElders LimitedElders Limited is an Australian based agribusiness company.It was founded in 1839 in South Australia by Alexander Lang Elder as a new arm of his family's Scottish based merchant and shipping business. Its core business was a trading company and commission agent for wool and other agricultural...
and AWBAWB LimitedAWB Limited is a major grain marketing organisation based in Australia. It was a government body known as the Australian Wheat Board until 1 July 1999, when the AWB was transformed into a private company, owned by wheat growers...
on 5 December 2005. - In 2004, the company was investigating a new titanium dioxideTitanium dioxideTitanium dioxide, also known as titanium oxide or titania, is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium, chemical formula . When used as a pigment, it is called titanium white, Pigment White 6, or CI 77891. Generally it comes in two different forms, rutile and anatase. It has a wide range of...
mineral sands mine (Corridor Sands Limitada) near ChibutoChibutoChibuto is a city located in the province of Gaza in Mozambique. It is the principal city of Chibuto District and is served by Chibuto Airport.-References:...
in MozambiqueMozambiqueMozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
.
History
The company traced its roots back to 1933 as a gold miningGold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
company in Kalgoorlie
Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Kalgoorlie, known as Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, and is located east-northeast of state capital Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. The company's final corporate structure before takeover was formed in 2003 by a demerger that split off the aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
operations to form Alumina Limited
Alumina Limited
Alumina Limited is a public company listed on the Australian and New York Stock Exchanges. It was formed in 2003 in a demerger from Western Mining Corporation, and is one of the largest companies on the ASX....
, separate from what was to be known as WMC Resources (with a separate ASX code of WMR).
In 2003, the company made a profit of 245 million Australian dollars, on assets of approximately 4000 million AUD.
The last Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of the independent company was Andrew Michelmore, and the board was chaired by Tommie Bergman and Executive Directors included Mr Michelmore and Alan Dundas. A notable previous CEO, from 1990 to 2003, was Hugh Morgan
Hugh Morgan (Australian businessman)
Hugh Matheson Morgan AC, , an Australian businessman, is the son of former Western Mining Corporation CEO Bill Morgan, and was himself CEO of WMC from 1990 to 2003. He was also President of the Business Council of Australia from 2003 to 2005. The Howard Government appointed him to the board of the...
, a politically-vocal CEO who spoke out about the power of trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s, criticised the Mabo decision and native title
Native title
Native title is the Australian version of the common law doctrine of aboriginal title.Native title is "the recognition by Australian law that some Indigenous people have rights and interests to their land that come from their traditional laws and customs"...
more generally, and supported a number of other right-wing causes. Most influentially, Morgan was a member of the "greenhouse mafia," central to the campaign to prevent the Federal Government ratifying the Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
, or taking actions to cut emissions (in collaboration with Ray Evans
Ray Evans (Australian businessman)
Ray Evans is an Australian business leader, a conservative, and campaigner against climate change mitigation efforts.-Early years:Evans was educated at the Melbourne High School before he attended University of Melbourne and graduated in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering...
, WMC Executive Officer, 1982-2001).
Takeover bids
In December 2004, XstrataXstrata
Xstrata plc is a global mining company headquartered in Zug, Switzerland and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is a major producer of coal , copper, nickel, primary vanadium and zinc and the world's largest producer of ferrochrome...
, a Swiss mining company, announced a takeover offer for the company. In February 2005, the WMC board recommended that shareholders reject the offer. The government did not object to the takeover through the Foreign Investment Review Board, however a number of people (including members of the Government) expressed concerns due to the economic (and strategic) importance of the Olympic Dam resources, and the reputation of Xstrata and its major shareholder, Glencore
Glencore
Glencore International plc is a multinational mining and commodities trading company headquartered in Baar, Switzerland and with its registered office in Saint Helier, Jersey...
.
The Xstrata takeover offer lapsed after a higher offer was made by BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...
, with support from the WMC Resources board. On the afternoon of 3 June 2005, about 6 hours before the BHP Billiton takeover offer was due to close, it was announced that 55% of the shares had accepted the offer. This automatically (according to Australian Corporations law) extended the offer period by another 14 days to 17 June. BHP Billiton had gained control of the company. On the afternoon of 17 June 2005, BHP Billiton announced that it had achieved 90.5% ownership, and would proceed to compulsory acquire the remaining shares.
As a result of the takeover, most of the board and the CEO resigned, to be replaced by BHP Billiton appointees. BHP Billiton Executive Director Mike Salamon took over the position of Chairman of the board, and Chris Campbell
Chris Campbell
Chris Cardell Campbell is an American football offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League.-References:...
took over as interim CEO. Subsequently, the company name has been replaced by the BHP Billiton corporate identity, and a significant name in Australian mining
Mining in Australia
Mining in Australia is a significant primary industry and contributor to the Australian economy. Historically, mining booms have also encouraged immigration to Australia. Many different ores and minerals are mined throughout the country.-History:...
history ceased to be used.
External links
- WMC Corporate website - source of much material for this article
- Australia's Uranium
- Xstrata's WMC takeover page
- BHP Billiton's website