Новости за 16.11.2020

The compensatory mitigation plan (CMP) for the Pebble copper/gold/ molybdenum project, in Bristol Bay, Alaska, has been submitted to the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Toronto-listed Northern Dynasty Minerals reported on Monday. The company did not release any details about the CMP, which had to be developed to show how it intended to mitigate the proposed mine’s environmental impacts within the Bristol Bay watershed. The USACE concluded in August that it could not permit the Pebble project as proposed... Читать дальше...

A vote on a new contract for workers at Candelaria copper mine in Chile, operated by Lundin Mining, will be fiercely contested amid ongoing divisions about whether to continue a four-week-long strike, a union chief said on Monday. At the end of last week, the company submitted an improved proposal to the Candelaria union, whose members began the legal walkout on October 20, prompting the company to suspend operations. Evelyn Walter, president of the union, said one group of members were happy with... Читать дальше...

Zambia expects to conclude talks over buying Glencore’s stake in Mopani Copper Mines within a month, according to Barnaby Mulenga, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Mines. Mulenga declined to disclose the size of the stake that state-owned ZCCM Investments Holdings is trying to acquire. ZCCM-IH currently has 10% of Mopani, with Glencore holding 73.1% and Vancouver-based First Quantum Minerals 16.9%. Zambia wants to raise its holding after clashing with Glencore earlier this year over the company’s plan to mothball Mopani’s operations. Читать дальше...

The Ekati diamond mine, in Northwest Territories, is being prepared for a restart, with 60 furloughed employees to be recalled with effect from early December. Owner Dominion Diamond says it is recalling employees in anticipation of an agreement to restructure its debt and to fund the company. An agreement with banks comprising its senior secured lenders and an ad hoc group of holders of second lien note is expected “in the near future”, the diamond mining company said on November 13.

Aim-listed Kefi Gold and Copper has raised £2.97-million through a firm oversubscribed placing, after issuing about 186-million new ordinary shares of 0.1p each at a price of 1.6p apiece. Both new and existing shareholders partook in the firm placing, with the issued shares expected to start trading on or about November 20.

ASX-listed Resource Generation (Resgen) has reached an in-principle agreement with Noble Group for it to provide additional working capital to Resgen’s partly-owned subsidiary Ledjadja Coal. The agreement is effectively an extension to a facility agreement between the companies dated March 2014.

The Trump administration is rushing to issue permits, finalise major environmental regulations and even sell the rights to drill for oil in Alaskan wilderness before Inauguration Day in a push that could complicate Joe Biden’s climate and conservation agenda. The 11th-hour regulatory race underscores the extent to which federal agencies are anticipating Biden’s swearing-in as US President on January 20 even as President Donald Trump refuses to concede the election. It also reveals a widespread effort... Читать дальше...

LSE- and ASX-listed Pensana Rare Earths reports that it continues to progress two studies towards becoming a rare earths miner and establishing a magnet metal supply chain to meet rare earths demand from the electric vehicle and offshore wind industries. The company has appointed consultants based in Perth to undertake a feasibility study into the production of mixed rare earth sulphate in Angola, while the company also initiated a Wood Group study into the establishment of a UK-based processing facility to produce separated rare earth oxides.

Dual-listed Botswana Diamonds has announced that all conditions precedent for the acquisition of Sekaka Diamonds have been satisfied. The transaction, first announced in July, has been approved by Petra’s lenders and noteholders, as well as by the Botswana Minister of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security. Sekaka was Petra’s exploration vehicle in Botswana and holds three prospecting licences in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve – PL169/2019, PL058/2007 and PL224/2007 – which include the high-grade KX36 kimberlite pipe.

Glencore, the world's biggest thermal coal trader, said on Monday it plans to lay off contractors at its coal operations in Australia's New South Wales state due to a prolonged market downturn. Contractors at the Hunter Valley Operations (HVO) will depart next month, Glencore said in a statement. The miner holds a minority 49% stake of the joint venture with Yancoal, and manages the mine's communications. "Hunter Valley Operations has initiated discussions with the mine's workforce on changes that... Читать дальше...

ASX-listed Alicanto Minerals has reported a maiden resource of 500 000 oz at its Arakaka gold project, in Guyana. An independently calculated maiden resource of 9.1-million tonnes has been estimated for the project, grading at 1.8 g/t gold for 520 000 oz of contained gold.

Physical RB1 coal enjoyed a strong rally last week, driven by firmer prices for December loadings. Spot prices shifted up significantly, whilst the discount with API#4 narrowed as well, reflecting the stronger physical demand. However, the discounts for lower-grade coal, such as RB3, increased. This discount spread looks like a seasonal trend now as the anticipated Q4 rally gets underway.

Chilean miner Antofagasta has committed the Centinela and Zaldívar mines to commit to the Copper Mark – an assurance framework designed to hold the copper industry accountable to responsible practices. To be granted the Copper Mark, a producer must comply with 32 criteria relating to greenhouse gas emissions, safety and health, tailings management, biodiversity, business integrity, gender equality and human rights.

TSX-listed companies Endeavour Mining and Teranga Gold on Monday announced a merger, creating a global top ten senior gold producing company, and the largest gold miner in West Africa. The combined entity would produce more than 1.5-million ounces a year. Simultaneously, Endeavour confirmed its intention to seek a secondary premium listing on the LSE next year. The company would be the largest premium listed gold producer on the exchange.

China's Tianqi Lithium said on Friday its financial situation has not improved in recent weeks as a major repayment deadline on a $3.5-billion loan looms and its application to adjust the terms is still under review. Chengdu-based Tianqi Lithium, one of the world's biggest producers of the commodity used in electric-vehicle batteries, is due to make a $1.88-billion payment at the end of November on a syndicated loan led by China Ciitic Bank, which was taken out to buy a stake in Chile's SQM in 2018.

Brazil's Vale and China's Ningbo Zhoushan Port have signed a deal to invest around 4.3-billion yuan ($650.6-million) in iron-ore storage and processing facilities in Zhejiang, a local government statement said on Friday. The move follows the two firms' inauguration of a grinding hub at the port in eastern China in August and further boosts Vale's presence in the top global consumer of the steelmaking raw material. Vale, the world's second-biggest iron ore miner, and Ningbo Zhoushan Port will each hold 50% in the joint venture (JV)... Читать дальше...

Colombian coal mine Cerrejon on Friday requested the Labor Ministry convene an arbitration tribunal to solve a dispute with its largest workers' union and lift a more than 70-day strike. The strike began on August 31 after Cerrejon and union Sintracarbon were unable to reach agreements over pay rises, as well as health, education and living benefits for workers. A decision by Cerrejon, which is owned equally by mining heavyweights BHP Group, Anglo American and Glencore, to bring in a new work shift... Читать дальше...

Chile's Candelaria copper mine, owned by Canada's Lundin Mining, said on Friday it had offered an improved contract deal to one of two unions on strike at the deposit in a bid to re-start production. The mine shut operations on October 20 after members of the Candelaria Union walked off the job, joining the company's Mine Union, which had begun a strike 12 days before. The latest offer is aimed at the Candelaria Union. The Mine Union rejected a topped-up offer from the firm in early November, prolonging a strike which now stands at 36 days.

Chile's Spence copper mine, owned by BHP Group, said on Saturday it had struck an early deal with its union of supervisers on a contract that will run until November 2023. The company did not disclose details of the deal. BHP's Escondida copper mine in Chile also reached agreement with its supervisors last month, averting the threat of a strike at the world´s largest copper deposit.

The board of copper/gold miner Oz Minerals has approved a A$47-million investment to progress a shaft expansion study at its Prominent Hill operation, in South Australia, after an updated expansion study indicated that an installation of a vertical hoisting shaft was technically and economically feasible. The 1 360 m, 7.5 m diameter vertical hoisting shaft will replace truck haulage.