Новости за 08.02.2019

Sibanye-Stillwater on Friday said the Labour Court had rejected its application to stop the ongoing strike that the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) started at its gold operations in November 2018, on technical legal grounds. The court stated res judicata, which means the matter has already been judged, Sibanye pointed out.

Chilean State miner Codelco said on Friday heavy rains had forced suspension of operations at its northern copper mines Chuquicamata and Ministro Hales. Codelco said it had sent its daytime shift of workers home as a preventative measure and would evaluate whether to cancel its night shift as well.

Two Brazilian towns near iron-ore tailings dams in Minas Gerais state were evacuated on Friday as a precautionary measure while inspections of the structures were under way. Vale, which is reeling from a deadly dam wall burst last month, said that the area downstream of the Sul Superior tailings dam of the idled Gongo Soco mine has been evacuated, as part of its emergency action plan for mining dams.

Glencore's Zambian unit Mopani Copper Mines said on Friday it had suspended operations at its Mindola north shaft after three workers were killed in a fire accident. Mopani is one the biggest mining companies in Zambia – Africa's No. 2 producer of the metal – with an output of around 100 000 t/y. It was not immediately clear how much production would be lost owing to the suspended production.

Russian aluminium giant Rusal expects demand for aluminium to grow in 2019 and sees potential for prices to rise, it said on Friday, sending its Hong Kong-listed shares up 12% to a 10-month high. Shares in Rusal, the world's largest aluminium producer outside China, hit their highest since April when the United States imposed sanctions on the company and its co-owner Oleg Deripaska because of his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Australian company SolGold on Friday expressed its frustration at the rejection of its planned bid for Canadian firm Cornerstone – a company that holds 15% of the Cascabel copper/gold project in Ecuador. Cornerstone rejected the intended offer meant to consolidate SolGold’s ownership in Cascabel in record time. It took Cornerstone less than three hours to dismiss SolGold’s intentions in a press released lodged with the TSX at 09:52 EST.

Leading up to the release of its interim results for the six months ended December 31, on February 12, Harmony Gold on Friday said its headline earnings per share (HEPS) would be up to 97% lower year-on-year. Harmony reported gold production for the period of 751 000 oz, which is a 34% year-on-year increase.

NYSE-listed Consol Energy’s production and sales have hit a new record in 2018, marking three consecutive years of production growth at the Pennsylvania mining complex (PAMC). Sales from PAMC increased by seven-million tons in the fourth quarter, generating revenue of $49.81/t, compared with 6.2-million tons at an average revenue of $46.36/t a year ago.

The 25th Investing in African Mining Indaba took place this week. Mining Weekly editor Martin Creamer attended the indaba and unpacks the highlights.

Australian coal haulier Pacific National said on Thursday that one of its trains derailed near the Hunter Valley in New South Wales and that some services would be affected while repair work was carried out. The Hunter Valley is Australia's top thermal coal-producing region and home to operations run by Yancoal, Glencore and Peabody Energy.

Uranium miner Energy Resources of Australia (Era) has completed a feasibility study for the closure of its Ranger project, in the Northern Territory. The closure and rehabilitation feasibility study has increased the rehabilitation provision from the A$526-million estimated at the end of 2017, to A$830-million.

Diversified miner South32 has announced the election of Karen Wood as chair elect, to succeed David Crawford, effective from April 12. Crawford is expected to retire as chairperson and non-executive director of South32.

Iron-ore futures surged more than 5% to hit the highest level since 2014 on concern that the increasingly severe crisis at top producer Vale will curtail global supplies, tightening the seaborne market and offsetting the impact of a slowdown in China, the largest importer. Vale invoked force majeure earlier this week after a judge forced it to suspend some operations at its Brucutu mine in Brazil – a move that it said would result in an annual production loss of 30-million tons.

Despite the turbulent political landscape in Zimbabwe currently, low-cost platinum group metals (PGMs) and chrome concentrate producer Tharisa Minerals remains fully committed to its Investment Project Framework Agreement with the Zimbabwe government. The agreement involves the establishment of a vertically integrated PGMs mining complex and a call option to acquire a 90% shareholding in illuvial chrome mining company Salene Chrome Zimbabwe on the condition of completion of the exploration programme, says Tharisa CEO Phoevos Pouroulis.

Aside from the relative lag in demand and price for platinum, the other platinum group metals (PGMs) – osmium, iridium, ruthenium, rhodium and particularly palladium – are expected to develop a stronger presence in the markets after a strong 2018, says global precious metals mining company Sibanye-Stillwater business development executive VP Richard Stewart. Speaking to Mining Weekly about the prospects of PGMs markets this year, Stewart expects this to continue in 2019.

Precious metals recovery company Gra-Tech is aiming to assist companies that are active in the platinum group metals (PGMs) industry, particularly mines and Nitric Acid plants, as it looks to expand into other emerging markets. “Industry has not realised the massive value contained in old and scrapped equipment. Anybody who uses or has used PGMs as a catalyst in their processes is potentially looking at being able to recover millions of rands from existing and scrapped equipment. We began this offering... Читать дальше...

Screening and vibrating equipment solutions and services provider Aury Africa is planning to expand its operations into the platinum group metals (PGMs) market this year with the introduction of radio-frequency identification (RFID) audit and inspection solutions. Aury Africa regards the local PGMs sector as a significant growth area, for which it will develop and review its strategy to become a more significant player in the sector.

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), lying pretty much in the centre of Africa, is geographically the 11th biggest country in the world and is well-known for its mineral riches. In its most recent (2014) report “The Mineral Industry of Congo (Kinshasa)”, the US Geological Survey (USGS) noted that the country “played a globally significant role in the world’s production of cobalt, copper, diamonds, tantalum, and tin. In 2014, the country’s share of the world’s mined cobalt production amounted to 51%; tantalum... Читать дальше...

Tin mining is poised to become a significant factor in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), especially in North Kivu, as it can contribute to the country’s socioeconomic wellbeing, says tin exploration and mining company Alphamin Resources CEO Boris Kamstra. Alphamin Resources is developing the Bisie tin mine in North Kivu.

Infrastructure and energy supply issues continue to hamper mining and processing operations, as well as the broader economy, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), says international metals and minerals consultancy Roskill director Jack Bedder. Despite the country having significant hydropower potential, the energy sector remains a major inhibitor to economic development and social inclusion, he tells Mining Weekly.

Demand for more effective and efficient impeller and agitator technology is on a dramatic upward trend in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), says industrial agitator and mixer manufacturer Mixtec sales and projects manager Rudi Swanepoel. He notes that the company sees a significant opportunity in copper processing, with developments and project explorations constantly increasing in the country. “Having done numerous projects in the DRC, we see the need for innovations and improvements... Читать дальше...