Новости за 04.07.2019

Top copper producer Codelco is again delaying the return to normal operations at its Chuquicamata smelter. Some parts of the smelter are operating normally, including the flash oven and one acid plant, a Codelco official said in an email in reply to questions from Bloomberg. A second acid plant will start ramping up within the next six days and the whole facility is expected to be up and running within the third quarter, the company said.

Solaris Copper’s subsidiary Solaris Copper Chile has entered into a definitive earn-in option agreement with Minera Freeport-McMoRan South America with respect to Freeport’s Tamarugo property in Chile. Tamarugo is a grassroots copper porphyry target comprising about 5 100 ha strategically located in northern Chile.

First, iron-ore hit $100 a ton, then it raced straight to $110, and now spot prices are well north of $120: the commodity’s rally has been so strong it’s triggering warnings that the gains have taken the market beyond fundamental drivers and prices are likely set for a pullback. Futures tanked. “Prices are disconnected from fundamentals at the moment,” CRU Group senior analyst Erik Hedborg said in an interview from London, citing improving global supply and expectations that mainland steel consumption may soften. Читать дальше...

The global Rare Earth Industry Association (REIA) has been established. Launched with the support of European research and development funding agency EIT RawMaterials, the establishment of REIA comes at a time of trade friction between the US and China, which threatens to impact on the global rare earths value chain, a statement issued by the REIA said.

Metso Minerals, subsidiary of global industrial company Metso, will merge with Finnish-listed technology company Outotec to form a leading process technology, equipment and services company serving the minerals, metals and aggregate industries. The combined company, to be named Metso Outotec, is estimated to have combined sales of about €3.9-billion, or about €4.2-billion if Metso’s recently announced acquisition of screening and crushing equipment supplier McCloskey is included.

Zambia is planning a law to compel mining companies to give local suppliers a fair share of procurement, its mines minister said on Thursday, in the latest sign of the government taking an interventionist approach in its mining sector. Zambia is Africa's second-largest copper producer, with copper mining accounting for around 70% of foreign currency earnings.

The Malawian government has granted TSX-V- and Aim-listed Mkango Resources a new and exclusive three-year prospecting licence in the Mchinji district, adjacent to licences with known nickel/cobalt resources. Mkango will evaluate all historical data over the 868 km2 licence area and exploration will mainly target nickel and cobalt, as well as gold, graphite and potentially other base metals.

Diversified miner Vedanta Resources on Wednesday obtained an ex parte order in the High Court of South Africa, granting the company leave to institute an urgent interim interdict application against ZCCM Investments Holdings. In terms of the urgent application, served on both Zambian company ZCCM and provisional liquidator Milingo Lungu for Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), Vedanta declared that ZCCM had breached the KCM shareholders’ agreement by pursuing winding-up proceedings against KCM in Zambia.

The Nova base metals project, in Western Australia, has exceeded production expectations for the full year, owner Independence Group reported on Thursday. Nickel production for the full year ended June reached 30 708 t, which was above the 27 000 t to 30 000 t previously estimated, while copper production for the same period reached 13 693 t, above the 11 000 t to 12 500 t predicted.

ASX-listed American Pacific Borate and Lithium (ABR) was hoping to start construction of its Fort Cady borate project, in Southern California, by the fourth quarter of this year. The start of construction would be subject to financing and permitting.

US coal major Peabody Energy has started the re-entry of the North Goonyella mine, in Queensland. The miner this week told shareholders that the re-entry activities, which are being done in consultation with the Queensland Mine Inspectorate, were part of a comprehensive, phased reventilation and safe re-entry plan for the mine.

New data by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has shown that the resources sector generated a record A$24.9-billion in export earnings during May this year, accounting for 60% of total export income. Iron-ore exports also reached a record high in May, accounting for A$8.8-billion of the total export earnings.

Cordoba Minerals has announced a positive updated mineral resource estimate for the San Matias project, including the Alacran replacement copper/gold deposit, in Colombia, with significant tonnage and copper and gold grade increases at the Alacran deposit. Nordmin Engineering’s work on the San Matias mineral resource estimate included a detailed geological re-examination of the structural controls to high-grade gold veins within the Alacran deposit.

TSX-listed Guyana Goldfields has suspended operations at its Aurora mine, in Guyana, after a portion of the workforce employed by the company's wholly owned subsidiary, AGM, blocked the delivery of ore to the mill earlier this week. While it seeks a resolution with striking workers, it has evacuated all non-essential personnel from site, including the striking workers.

An association of Brazilian mining companies on Wednesday criticized some proposals made a day earlier by a Senate committee that spent months investigating the collapse of one of Vale's tailings dams. In a 400-page report, the Senate panel looking into the January disaster proposed a ban on new tailings dams, sought the phase-out of all existing tailings dams within ten years and recommended harsher legislation for environmental crimes.

President Donald Trump warned Iran Wednesday against stepping up uranium enrichment, the latest escalation of the conflict over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program that has plunged the Gulf into renewed uncertainty. “Rouhani says that they will Enrich Uranium to ‘any amount we want’ if there is no new Nuclear Deal,” Trump tweeted Wednesday afternoon in Washington, referring to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. “Be careful with the threats, Iran. They can come back to bite you like nobody has been... Читать дальше...