Новости за 30.04.2020

Teck Resources has been targeted by a hedge fund shareholder that’s pushing the underperforming Canadian miner to divest its energy and coal businesses and consider replacing long-standing CEO Don Lindsay. Tribeca Investment Partners said making those changes and pivoting to a pure base metals miner would improve Teck’s environmental credentials and could lead to a sixfold share gain over the next year. The company should also scrap its dual-class shares to boost returns, the Australian fund with... Читать дальше...

The restart plan and guidance on key economic parameters for Australian-listed uranium company Paladin Energy’s Langer Heinrich uranium operation, in Namibia, are expected to be released during the fourth quarter of the year. Care and maintenance (C&M) activities at the mine continued during the period, ended March 31, and a recent review of these activities have resulted in lower ongoing expenditure with no adverse impact to the operational restart plans to be expected.

Industry analysis company Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research (Fitch) expects a relatively quick ramp up in mining operations across the world when Covid-19 lockdowns and other restrictions are lifted or relaxed. The impact of Covid-19 on mining production will be primarily felt in the first half of the year, with production recovering in the second half as virus containment measures impacting the mining sector are relaxed, it says.

Russia's Norilsk Nickel, one of the world's largest nickel producers, on Thursday reported weak first-quarter output but kept its 2020 guidance unchanged. Nornickel, which is also the world's largest palladium producer, attributed the weakness to "accumulated work-in-progress inventory" and an unfavourable comparison with the same quarter last year, adding that the coronavirus pandemic has not had any material effect on its operating activity so far.

ASX-listed Danakali is proceeding with Phase 2 of the engineering, procurement, construction and management (EPCM) at its Colluli potash project, in Eritrea. The Colluli project is 100% owned by the Colluli Mining Share Company (CMSC), a joint venture between Danakali and the Eritrean National Mining Corporation (Enamco). CMSC’s aim is to become a  producer and exporter of sulphate from potash (SOP) during 2022.

Copper miner Kaz Minerals on Thursday announced that it would spend between $50-million and $100-million less this year on its Aktogay expansion project, as Covid-19 restrictions in Kazakhstan and elsewhere are negatively impacting on supply chains. Restrictions are also reducing the availability of local contractors and preventing vendor representatives from entering the country to support equipment installations. Capital expenditure for 2020 is now forecast to be $300-million to $350-million... Читать дальше...

ASX-listed Panoramic Resources has moved to temporarily reduce corporate costs in order to preserve cash. The company in April temporarily suspended operations at its Savannah nickel project, in Western Australia, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which adversely impacted transportation, the availability and cost of personnel, equipment and supplies at site.

The "quick mitigation measures" that TSX-listed Capstone Mining implemented have positioned the copper miner to weather the current low price environment, without delaying its 2021 growth targets, president and CEO Darren Pylot said this week. Like many others in the industry, the company will reduce its capital and exploration expenditure for the year by C$32-million. The miner is also targeting cost savings measures that will lower cash operating costs by about $22-million over the remainder of the year.

Specialist mining advisory company Ukwazi Mining Solutions was selected to assist a major mining client with the streamlining and automation of its planning process for a sizeable Southern Africa openpit coal operation last year.   “The client had many challenges ranging from inconsistent data and misaligned processes to duplicated information within the planning operation, all of which Ukwazi improved,” says Ukwazi senior mine planner Branden Paine.

Base metals miner Taseko is sticking to its production plans for 2020 and will also continue with work on its US copper project, noting that the current mine shutdowns will only exacerbate the supply deficit in the coming years. The company, which produces copper from the Gibraltar mine, in British Columbia, and the Florence project, in Arizona, expects to produce about 130-million pounds this year, and said that production could be at the higher-end of that range. Taseko in March introduced a... Читать дальше...

A prefeasibility study (PFS) into the Kachi lithium brine project, in Argentina, has found that the project could support an annual production of 25 500 t/y of battery grade lithium carbonate over a mine life of 25 years. ASX-listed Lake Resources on Thursday said that the PFS estimated a start-up capital investment of $544-million would be required, with operating costs estimated at $107-million a year.

Mexico's miners on Wednesday asked the US government to consider their sector in talks over the reopening of key areas of the Mexican and US economies once quarantine measures imposed over the coronavirus outbreak are gradually repealed. Talks are ongoing both domestically and internationally in North America over how to re-open supply chains among the highly integrated economies of the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Brazilian iron-ore miner Vale has received non-binding offers for its nickel mining operations on the Pacific island of New Caledonia, an executive said in a call with analysts on Wednesday. On the call, Vale base metals chief Mark Travers said the company received the offers in late February. While the full economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic were not felt until March, he said negotiations were still progressing successfully with potential buyers. Vale expects to have relevant news on a potential deal within a month or two, he added.

Global gold holdings is said to have held firm at 1 083.8 t in the first quarter of the year, marking a rise of 1% on the same period last year, according to the World Gold Council’s (WGC's) latest Gold Demand Trends report. The global Covid-19 pandemic fueled the safe-haven investment demand for gold, with gold-back exchange-traded funds (ETFs) attracting inflows of over 298 t to push global holdings in these products to a record high of 3 185 t.