METS

Nickel miner extends contracts

Privately-owned underground mining contractor Barminco has extended its long-term stay at Western Areas’ (ASX: WSA) Forrestania nickel camp in Western Australia, a new A$236 million (US$179 million) mining and drilling contract that highlights the fact that a contractor can remain part of an operating-cost equation even, in this case, in a grim nickel price environment.