MINING magnate Joseph Gutnick has struck a $US100 million deal to supply Queensland phosphate to India's largest fertiliser company.
Under the deal, the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative will invest $US100.5 million ($A102.9 million) over the next two years through shares and options in Mr Gutnick's US-based Legend International Holdings.
Legend, which was initially involved in diamond exploration, has phosphate interests in Queensland's Georgina Basin, near Mt Isa, and plans to produce a five million tonne per year phosphate rock mine.
Phosphate rock is a key fertiliser-making ingredient.
IFFCO represents 50 million farmers and supplies a quarter of India's fertiliser.
The cooperative has agreed to buy four million tonnes, or 80 per cent, of the concentrated rock phosphate Legend will produce.
It comes amid record prices for phosphate, in excess of $US400 a tonne, as global demand exceeds supply.
Mr Gutnick said he hoped the deal would also create opportunities to develop fertiliser products down the track and supply for Australian farmers.
But for now the man dubbed "Diamond Joe" is concentrating on having phosphate rock ready to ship to India within two years.
Mr Gutnick and the IFFCO delegation have been meeting with Queensland government representatives this week to discuss the development, which will also involve the construction of an on-site benefication plant and a slurry pipeline to Karumba in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Mr Gutnick described the meetings as "encouraging" and was confident of securing mining leases to progress the project.
Legend will list on the US Stock Exchange soon, but Mr Gutnick said there were no immediate plans for a dual listing in Australia.
"Certainly in the long term we intend to come here because I'm an Australian and it's an Australian project, but at this stage our support came from (US investors) and that would be very hard to get in Australia and we will continue that route."
Legend last month raised $US105 million through a private placement in the US. Mr Gutnick said the fact that the project helped supply fertiliser to a country "that's in dire need of food" was a "positive from a humanitarian point of view".
Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Australia’s Unofficial Chief Rabbi Buried in Israel
Sydney, Australia - An American-born rabbi who has been hailed as “the greatest Australian Jewish leader of the past century” was buried July 11 on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner, who was sent to Australia as the special emissary of the Chabad-Lubavitch rebbe, died July 7 after a long illness. He was 83.
Israel’s former Ashkenazic chief rabbi, Yisrael Meir Lau, officiated at the ceremony in Jerusalem in front of hundreds of mourners, including Groner’s younger brother, Leib, who was the personal secretary of the Lubavitch rebbe for more than 40 years.
Yossi Aron, religious affairs editor of the Australian Jewish News and longtime student of Groner, told the Forward, “Rabbi Groner did more to develop the Orthodox community than any other rabbi. He put Chabad on the map in Australia.”
Isi Leibler, a former Australian Jewry president who now lives in Jerusalem, said, “History will record that Rabbi Yitzchok Groner was beyond a doubt the greatest Australian Jewish leader of the past century.”
Born in New York in 1925, Groner was first sent on a pilot tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1947. He returned Down Under in 1953, and several years later, in 1958, the Lubavitch rebbe asked him to be his emissary there for a few years. Groner stayed for 50 years, building a thriving Lubavitch community of thousands as well as a network of educational and religious institutions, including two Jewish schools; a men’s kollel; a women’s seminary, and a clutch of Chabad houses around Melbourne, three of which are run by his sons or sons-in-law.
In a rare interview in 2004, Groner said: “My objective is to make my boys and girls a mensch. I want that they should be decent, moral, learned, observant young men and women, a credit to the community where they will live.”
At Groner’s 80th birthday party, which raised $1 million for Chabad, then-prime minister John Howard said he had the “enviable reputation as the people’s rabbi.”
On Wednesday, July 9, more than 1,500 mourners came to the memorial service, which was held at the Yeshiva Centre in Melbourne and streamed live on the Internet. Groner’s body was then flown to Israel for burial alongside his parents.
Succeeding Groner as Lubavitch chief will be Rabbi Zvi Telsner, who is married to one of Groner’s daughters.
Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner, who was sent to Australia as the special emissary of the Chabad-Lubavitch rebbe, died July 7 after a long illness. He was 83.
Israel’s former Ashkenazic chief rabbi, Yisrael Meir Lau, officiated at the ceremony in Jerusalem in front of hundreds of mourners, including Groner’s younger brother, Leib, who was the personal secretary of the Lubavitch rebbe for more than 40 years.
Yossi Aron, religious affairs editor of the Australian Jewish News and longtime student of Groner, told the Forward, “Rabbi Groner did more to develop the Orthodox community than any other rabbi. He put Chabad on the map in Australia.”
Isi Leibler, a former Australian Jewry president who now lives in Jerusalem, said, “History will record that Rabbi Yitzchok Groner was beyond a doubt the greatest Australian Jewish leader of the past century.”
Born in New York in 1925, Groner was first sent on a pilot tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1947. He returned Down Under in 1953, and several years later, in 1958, the Lubavitch rebbe asked him to be his emissary there for a few years. Groner stayed for 50 years, building a thriving Lubavitch community of thousands as well as a network of educational and religious institutions, including two Jewish schools; a men’s kollel; a women’s seminary, and a clutch of Chabad houses around Melbourne, three of which are run by his sons or sons-in-law.
In a rare interview in 2004, Groner said: “My objective is to make my boys and girls a mensch. I want that they should be decent, moral, learned, observant young men and women, a credit to the community where they will live.”
At Groner’s 80th birthday party, which raised $1 million for Chabad, then-prime minister John Howard said he had the “enviable reputation as the people’s rabbi.”
On Wednesday, July 9, more than 1,500 mourners came to the memorial service, which was held at the Yeshiva Centre in Melbourne and streamed live on the Internet. Groner’s body was then flown to Israel for burial alongside his parents.
Succeeding Groner as Lubavitch chief will be Rabbi Zvi Telsner, who is married to one of Groner’s daughters.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Mourners pay tribute to Groner
More than 1,500 mourners paid tribute to Australia’s most senior Orthodox rabbi.
Wednesday's memorial service for Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner, the chief rabbi of Melbourne’s Chabad-Lubavitch community, took place outside the Yeshivah Centre that he built as his Lubavitch headquarters. The ceremony was streamed live on the Internet, allowing thousands around the world to watch it.
Groner died Monday after a long illness.
Police closed the main street outside the Yeshivah Centre to enable the mass of mourners to follow the coffin as it departed for the airport. His body was flown to Israel for burial Friday on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem alongside his parents.
Hundreds of messages from places such as Tasmania, New Zealand, South Africa, Israel, America and England already have been posted on the Yeshivah Centre’s Web site.
“Australian Jewry has lost one of its noblest personalities,” wrote Isi Leibler, a former president of the Australian Jewish community, who now lives in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a rabbinical student in Australia in the 1980s, wrote: “It’s safe to say that there will never be another like Rabbi Groner. It’s also safe to say that if world Jewry could produce another hundred like him, we would instantly solve the global problem of Jewish assimilation. But that’s the problem with great men. They are so rare that they are not always appreciated during their lifetime, but are sorely missed once their fiery hearts are no longer present to illuminate our lives.”
Wednesday's memorial service for Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner, the chief rabbi of Melbourne’s Chabad-Lubavitch community, took place outside the Yeshivah Centre that he built as his Lubavitch headquarters. The ceremony was streamed live on the Internet, allowing thousands around the world to watch it.
Groner died Monday after a long illness.
Police closed the main street outside the Yeshivah Centre to enable the mass of mourners to follow the coffin as it departed for the airport. His body was flown to Israel for burial Friday on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem alongside his parents.
Hundreds of messages from places such as Tasmania, New Zealand, South Africa, Israel, America and England already have been posted on the Yeshivah Centre’s Web site.
“Australian Jewry has lost one of its noblest personalities,” wrote Isi Leibler, a former president of the Australian Jewish community, who now lives in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a rabbinical student in Australia in the 1980s, wrote: “It’s safe to say that there will never be another like Rabbi Groner. It’s also safe to say that if world Jewry could produce another hundred like him, we would instantly solve the global problem of Jewish assimilation. But that’s the problem with great men. They are so rare that they are not always appreciated during their lifetime, but are sorely missed once their fiery hearts are no longer present to illuminate our lives.”
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Rudd sees the light
KEVIN Rudd is back in the good books with the Jewish community. The PM copped some flak last month for scheduling his two-day 2020 Summit on the same weekend as the religious festival Passover, leaving practising Jews unable to attend. But on Friday he was welcomed with open arms at Bondi's Yeshiva Centre, the HQ of Chabad NSW. In front of 600 people, including Jewish community leaders and more than 40 rabbis, Rudd was presented with a menorah (Jewish candelabra) by Yeshiva's dean and spiritual leader, Rabbi Pinchus Feldman. Chabad is the largest Jewish outreach movement in the world, operating in more than 100 countries. Its aim is to encourage acts of goodness and kindness. So maybe we can expect tax cuts in Tuesday's budget.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Van crash kills Sydney Chabadniks
The bodies of a Lubavitch couple killed in a car crash Dec. 20 were buried in Sydney on Monday.
More than 700 mourners joined 19 immediate family members for the burial of Zev and Rochel Simons, who were killed when their van veered across the median strip on a major highway and plowed into a truck. Their deaths have stunned Sydney’s Orthodox community.
The couple, who have 10 children, were traveling to Melbourne for a wedding. None of the children were with them at the time.
The 39-year-old driver of the truck was thrown from his vehicle and died at the scene.
The truck was carrying 50,000 liters of gas, prompting emergency personnel to close the highway for more than 12 hours for fear of an explosion.
Zev Simons was a former director of Jewish studies at the Yeshiva Primary School. Rochel Simons was a teacher at Kesser Torah College and also worked at the local mikvah, or ritual bath.
Kesser Torah College’s president and principal sent a letter on Friday to the school community grieving over the “terrible tragedy took the lives of two of our beloved. We are all in varying stages of shock,” they wrote. “At KTC, we are trying to digest the monumental proportions of this heartbreaking loss.”
The couple's son-in-law, Rabbi Yossi Cunin, the co-director of Chabad of the Hills in Beverly Hills, Calif., told the Chabad.org Web site: “They gave their lives to the community.”
More than 700 mourners joined 19 immediate family members for the burial of Zev and Rochel Simons, who were killed when their van veered across the median strip on a major highway and plowed into a truck. Their deaths have stunned Sydney’s Orthodox community.
The couple, who have 10 children, were traveling to Melbourne for a wedding. None of the children were with them at the time.
The 39-year-old driver of the truck was thrown from his vehicle and died at the scene.
The truck was carrying 50,000 liters of gas, prompting emergency personnel to close the highway for more than 12 hours for fear of an explosion.
Zev Simons was a former director of Jewish studies at the Yeshiva Primary School. Rochel Simons was a teacher at Kesser Torah College and also worked at the local mikvah, or ritual bath.
Kesser Torah College’s president and principal sent a letter on Friday to the school community grieving over the “terrible tragedy took the lives of two of our beloved. We are all in varying stages of shock,” they wrote. “At KTC, we are trying to digest the monumental proportions of this heartbreaking loss.”
The couple's son-in-law, Rabbi Yossi Cunin, the co-director of Chabad of the Hills in Beverly Hills, Calif., told the Chabad.org Web site: “They gave their lives to the community.”
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Jewish House fundraiser draws 250
Jewish House, a 24-hour crisis centre for people with stress-related conditions including, anxiety and depression, will use the money to continue the upkeep of its accommodation and counselling facility.
Co-president Roger Clifford said he was proud to see the community supporting his organisation and was pleased with how much money was raised.
“I think anyone can see, by the number of people that attended, that there is a tremendous support base for the Jewish House in the community,” Clifford told The AJN after the function.
“The reason the community supports us is because they recognise the unique work that we do and see it as something that is absolutely vital for the Jewish community.”
Executive director and rabbi at Jewish House Elozer Gestetner echoed Clifford’s comments.
“It was very gratifying to see the support we received. I’m proud to be able, as a rabbi, to lend my support and assistance to those needing emergency help”
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