Applecross, Western Australia-based Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN, OTC: MALRF) is a growing, diversified mining service, contracting, processing and now a commodities production company.

Since its foundation in 1993 the company has grown through strategic business development, consolidation and acquisition and now has a portfolio of market-leading brands, including Crushing Services International, PIHA, Process Minerals International, Polaris Metals and a 64 percent interest in Mesa Minerals.

CSI is Australia’s biggest specialized build-own-operate (BOO) crushing, screening and processing contractor. PIHA is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s foremost innovators in polyethylene pipe technology for the utilities and infrastructure, civil contracting, mining, and oil gas industries. PMI processes minerals and base metals and also provides logistics services.

Through Polaris Metals Pty Ltd Mineral Resources has now become a specialist iron ore resources company, while Mesa operates the Ant Hill and Sunday Hill manganese deposits in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Iron ore production in 2009-10 was 875,000 metric tons. Output rose 158 percent to 2,259,000 metric tons in 2010-11. Manganese production in 2009-10 was 428,000 metric tons, rising modestly to 449,000 metric tons in 2010-11. Management has set a 2011-12 target for overall commodity export-volume growth of at least 47 percent, achievement of which would push production to 4 million-plus metric tons of iron ore and manganese from 2.7 million in 2010-11.

This is the management’s strategic growth focus going forward, and it has an impressive start on becoming a substantial steelmaking commodities producer. Although it’s been exporting iron ore and manganese since 2004, only recently has an effort to build off its services-contractor skill base.

In early November management announced that the first shipment of iron ore from its Carina mine was loaded at the Kwinana bulk handling port south of Perth. The shipment marks a milestone because Carina is the first real mining operation Mineral Resources has gotten off the ground on its own. The project is forecast to reach production pace of 4.4 million metric tons a year sometime in calendar 2012 but has potential go push out as much as 8 million if extra port capacity at Kwinana or Esperance can be found.

Should this potential be realized–perhaps now already may be time–it would be legitimate to question whether it’s a services company or a mining company. It also highlights an issue addressed by Executive Chairman and Managing Director Peter Wade during a recent interview to discuss Carina: “At the appropriate time, when we can get the full valuation for the operations and that means more tonnes then we potentially see that the best opportunity would be to divest ourselves of the operations.”

The company posted record 2011 net profit after tax (NPAT) of AUD150.9 million in fiscal 2011 (ended Jun. 30, 2011) , up 55.1 percent on 2010. Fiscal 2011 revenue of AUD608.77 million was up 97.1 percent from 2010, while earnings per share rose 31 percent to AUD0.90 from AUD0.685.

Management declared an annualized dividend of AUD0.42 per share in 2010-11, a 110 percent year-over-year increase and a resounding rebound after Mineral Resources was forced to trim its final dividend of fiscal 2009 and its interim dividend for 2010 because of the global economic slowdown. The five-year dividend growth rate, in fact exceeds 100 percent, as the annual payout has grown from AUD0.095 per share in fiscal 2006-07 to AUD0.42 in 2010-11.

Net assets as of Oct. 31, 2011, were AUD627.5 million, up 29 percent over the trailing 12 months, while net cash on Halloween was AUD91.2 million, up from AUD88.2 million a year ago as the company’s balance sheet continues to strengthen.

This cash balance as well as free cash generated from operations will be sufficient to fund the company’s forecast 2012 capital expenditure program.

Each of Mineral Resources’ four operating companies–PMI, CSI, PIHA and Polaris Metals–won top honors at the 2011 IFAP/CGU Safe Way Achiever Awards for excellence in safety.

These awards are acknowledgement of Mineral Resources ability to operate efficiently. On-the-job accidents result in time- and money-consuming shutdowns. When it asserts that it “employs best-practice safety management systems at each of its operating sites, supported by extensive professional resources at the group level,” it’s nice to know that gold medals are backed up by a track record of strong financial performance.

Management expects demand and pricing for iron ore to continue to be strong in fiscal 2012, as China steel production picks up. Manganese pricing and volumes are also expected to pick up as the new fiscal year progresses. Iron ore volume will be hemmed in by export-volume allocation limits, but the company’s stockpile will be fully utilized.

Pipeline operations continue to provide a solid, reliable underpinning to cash flow; contract lining projects, for example, are at record levels, and PIHA continues to enjoy high rates of repeat business from major domestic and international clients. PIHA’s order book for fiscal 2012, in fact, is “full,” according to management.

The stock has held its ground during an otherwise volatile 2011 for commodity-focused companies around the world. It remains a favorite among the analysts who cover it, with five “buy” ratings according to Bloomberg’s standardized system for smoothing language across brokerage houses, one “hold” and zero “sell” ratings. Though it’s slightly in the negative year to date the stock price has generally followed the dividend higher.

Mineral Resources, with a solid track record of growth and a credible plan to generate more of same in future, is a buy under USD12 and a new addition to the AE Portfolio Aggressive Holdings.