Bougainville Copper Project

The ougainville Copper Project

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This is a highly irregular entry to publish something on my own behalf (although as founder of this website I am perhaps entitled to some privileges):

Our 7-acre-plus property "Riverbend" with almost 400 metres of absolute waterfront near Batemans Bay on the South Coast of New South Wales is for sale. For more information go to thisisaprivatesale.com.

It's the sort of property that is usually passed down the family as there are fewer than a handful on the Clyde River. I have been here for 18 years and for me it's time to move on - regrettably! - as we plan to live for part of the year in Kalimantan (Borneo) in Indonesia which makes it impossible to also maintain such a large property this far south.

The price - for those who can afford it - is very realistic as nearby unimproved waterfront blocks just 1500 square metres in size and with as little as 19 metres of waterfront have recently sold for $750,000. A renovated fishing shack on 1700 square metres of land just a few metres up the lane sold six months ago for $950,000. By contrast, "Riverbend" which consists of eight separate titles and comprises approx. 29,200 square metres - or more than 7 acres - is on sale for $2 million, lock, stock and barrel! For those who feel a little financially challenged, I can even offer very substantial vendor's finance on below-bank finance terms.

If you're interested, contact me by email to

riverbendnelligen[AT]mail.com

REVISITING BOUGAINVILLE
HAS JUST BECOME A WHOLE LOT EASIER

Click here for more information

Bougainville Copper shares

THE EUROPEAN SHAREHOLDERS of Bougainville Copper (ESBC) have asked all shareholders in Bougainville Copper (BCL) to pitch their shares at a high price ($25-30) to prevent custody banks from using them for unauthorised lending to short sellers.

"We want to stop fraudulent manipulation in [Bougainville Copper] shares," says ESBC President Axel G. Sturm.

"Short selling generated huge losses in Bougainville Copper shares within the last year", he said.

"As a result the share price plunged under $1 since January 2011. This happened although all news flowing from Bougainville had been very positive during that period.

"The green light for re-opening our Panguna mine is a question of a couple of months only," he stated optimistically.

According to Mr Sturm, who is based in Andorra, Bougainville Copper shares are supposed to have a fair value of $30-50.

"The exact price - of course - depends on the actual market prices of copper, gold, silver and molybdenum," he said.

"On the other hand BCL is highly vulnerable to market manipulation: less than 30 percent is in free float (the international mining giant Rio Tinto owns 54% and the state of Papua New Guinea 19%."

From the air Bougainville is a romantic island. Lush and rugged, surrounded by reefs and an emerald sea. Cloud sits on the rain forest that mats the mountains. The tall volcanic cones of Bagana and Balbi smoke sullenly and glow at night.

But along the Crown Prince Range and down on the flat country, life was not always as romantic as it seems from a passenger's window.

Rain, mud, dust, heat, boredom. These are deep in the memories of the men who built the mine. But deeper in their consciousness is another feeling, almost of pride, that they were part of a tremendous and exciting adventure. That they were pioneers.

The Bougainville Copper Project in the then Territory of Papua New Guinea ran from 1966 to 1973 and cost some US$350 million. At its peak in mid-1971, it employed a labour force of some 10,700. The Bougainville Copper Project was not only the largest grass roots copper project undertaking in the world to that date - it was truly a monument to every man who turned his hand toward its successful completion.

	Did you spend some time on the Bougainville Copper Project in the sixties and seventies? If you did, we want to hear from you! They aren't many of us left and it would be good to hear from those who lived with us in the camps or in Arawa or Kieta and shared with us the experience.
	Wouldn't it be great to revisit Bougainville, drive up to Panguna or swim at Loloho Beach? The Bougainville Copper Project shaped our lives as many of us continued in overseas projects. Others returned to suburbia and ordinary jobs but they, too, were forever changed by the experience.
	Where are they all today? Many are settled back in Australia while others stayed on in New Guinea and some are still on the move. When were you on Bougainville? Who did you work for and what did you do? Have you photographs or memories to share which we could publish on this website?
	My email address is riverbendnelligen[AT]mail.com (By the way, do you remember the rumours about the stuff they put in our tea in the camp, to keep our minds off it...? Well, 40 years later, I think mine's beginning to work.)

As one contributor put it so aptly, "You only have to scratch the surface and you bleed PNG..." So next time you bleed a little and feel a bout of "Bougainvilleitis" coming on, share your thoughts and memories with us. I very much look forward to hearing from you and any of your mates who may have spent time on the Bougainville Copper Project.

Email me!

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