Новости за 19.03.2020

Global miner Anglo-American said on Thursday it would scale down operations at its Los Bronces copper mine in Chile to the minimum necessary to ensure "operational continuity" amid the spread of the coronavirus in the South American nation. The miner said in a statement it expected only minimal impact on output because it planned to continue processing stockpiled copper. Chile is the world´s top producer of the red metal. The mineral-rich South American nation is home to massive copper mines run by BHP... Читать дальше...

The World Gold Council (WGC) on Thursday said deceleration in economic growth globally will undoubtedly impact on consumer demand for gold and gold’s volatility may remain high. However, high risk levels, coupled with widespread negative real rates and quantitative easing, will be supportive of gold investment demand as a save heaven.

Research agency Fitch Solutions has revised downwards some of its mineral production forecasts for this year, in light of increasing operational disruptions while Covid-19 continues to spread globally. For example, Fitch revised its production forecast for copper to 20.28-million tonnes, from the 20.3-million tonnes expected previously. It also expects a decline in nickel production to 207-million tonnes, compared with its forecast of 269-million tonnes previously.

BHP said on Thursday its operations had not been materially impacted so far by the coronavirus pandemic and that it had implemented additional procedures to prevent the spread of the disease among its employees. "BHP supply chains are still open and we currently have adequate supplies to operate and maintain critical equipment," CEO Mike Henry said, adding that he was encouraged by increased activity in China, the world's top metals consumer. The miner had warned last month that demand for iron-ore... Читать дальше...

London-listed Gem Diamonds has had to cancel its Letšeng large tender, owing to travel and other restrictions imposed by various governments, including in Belgium, where the tender would have been held from March 16 to 25. In its place, Gem has launched a “flexible direct sales process” for these large and high-quality diamonds that had seen significant demand during the tender viewings held to date.

Platinum and palladium will remain turbulent in coming months after huge losses sparked by the spread of coronavirus, before starting a tentative recovery with support from palladium's supply gap and platinum's correlation with gold, analysts said. Platinum has plunged 40% and palladium 45% from February highs as efforts to contain coronavirus stifled the global economy and turmoil in wider markets forced investors to sell precious metals for emergency cash.

Welcome to Second Take, the show that focuses on the issues behind the news. Mining Weekly editor Martin Creamer unpacks the Green Hydrogen Consortium, zero emission incentives and Exxaro’s energy business

Chilean copper miner Codelco said on Wednesday it would reduce its operations to comply with a state of catastrophe announced by the government in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus. The miner, the world's biggest of the precious red metal, said it would maintain "operational continuity" for a period of 15 days from March 19. Codelco in a statement acknowledged the risk of the "economic impact" for workers, contractors, the state-owned company and the country. Copper mining has accounted for... Читать дальше...

Mining major Rio Tinto has temporarily suspended operations at its Kennecott copper/gold/silver mine, in Utah, following a 5.7 magnitude earthquake. The company has reported that all employees had been accounted for evacuated from potential risk areas, while initial assessments have identified limited damage to the operation, or risk to the surrounding community.

Coal miner Exxaro driving rigorous renewable energy strategy; Menar doing due diligence on thermal coal assets being offloaded; and, Coronavirus likely to cause drastic price falls

Copper miner Sandfire Resources is undertaking business as usual while continuing to implement protocols to minimise the potential transmission of COVID-19. The ASX-listed miner on Thursday said that its DeGrussa operations, in Western Australia, continued to operate at full capacity, with mining, processing and concentrate sales figures in line with guidance.

Coal miner Universal Coal on Thursday resumed share trading after the company was unable to name a secondary bidder. Universal earlier this week went into a trading halt after receiving a non-binding indicative intention from a second bidder for all of the company’s shares. Due to confidentiality restrictions, the ASX-listed company was unable to disclose the identity of the bidder. However, following discussions with the ASX, the bourse required that the identity of the bidder be disclosed. Universal... Читать дальше...

From using drones for field inspections to stockpiling cyanide, miners are scrambling to maintain output amid the coronavirus pandemic, a task made trickier in underground mines where social distancing is nearly impossible. The virus has claimed 8 700 lives and infected over 200 000 globally. While miners have faced some outages, due to government shutdowns in places like Peru and Mongolia, most production continues. In a defensive step, miners have begun stockpiling fuel, hydrofluoric acid, lime and other industry staples... Читать дальше...

Unionised workers at BHP´s Escondida copper mine, the world´s largest, said on Wednesday they would ask authorities to shut down the mine unless management begins to implement stricter measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The union said in a statement its members were particularly exposed to the virus given the often tight quarters at mine facilities and frequent travel from disparate parts of Chile. "If minimum health and safety conditions aren´t met shortly...we will ask government... Читать дальше...