Новости за 01.07.2022

To address the climate emergency, governments and businesses are responding and mining companies are committing to minimising greenhouse -gas emissions with a goal of reaching net zero by about 2040 or 2050; however, this will be challenging and requires new ways of thinking. This was noted by Stantec global mining marketing and business development manager Resa Furey, during the virtual Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada Annual Convention 2022, this week.

Following an 18 month construction and commissioning period, continuous nickel production has begun at privately held UK company Brazilian Nickel’s Piauí nickel project (PNP) in Brazil, which the world’s first stand-alone nickel laterite heap leaching operation. In 2016 and 2017, Brazilian Nickel successfully demonstrated large scale heap leaching, purification and recovery of nickel and cobalt from Piauí ore. The company has since expanded the existing demonstration plant to develop the PNP1000 operation.

ASX-listed Matsa Resources has entered into an agreement with exploration company IGO Newsearch, whereby IGO will acquire a 70% interest in the copper/nickel Symons Hill project as well as Matsa’s other Fraser Range tenements in Western Australia. Under the terms of the agreement, IGO will pay A$600 000 in cash and then free carry Matsa for all exploration to the completion of feasibility studies or the decision to mine, whichever occurs earlier.

Mineral exploration and development company Oceana Lithium started trading on the ASX on Friday under the code OCN. The listing follows the successful and oversubscribed initial public offering (IPO) of Oceana, which raised A$6-million in new equity. This included a A$1-million cornerstone investment from large lithium hydroxide producer Yahua International Industrial Group, which is a major supplier to electric vehicle manufacturers Tesla, BYD Auto and Sinopec.

ASX-listed Bowen Coking Coal has completed its 100% buyout of the shares in coal company New Lenton Coal, which it called a transformational transaction for the company. New Lenton holds a 90% interest in the Lenton joint venture (JV), which owns the Lenton coal project and Burton coal mine in the northern Bowen Basin of Queensland.

If the world were to electrify every mine truck, it would stop 198 000 t of carbon dioxide (CO2) a day from entering the atmosphere, which equates to a single electrified mining truck eliminating what would take 46 000 trees to absorb. That mammoth sustainability benefit was driven home firmly this week by ABB regional sales manager mining for Africa and Australia Erik Pretorius, who told Mining Weekly in a Zoom interview: “There's a strong business case for electrification whilst also keeping operations... Читать дальше...

Copper prices tumbled to a near 17-month low on Friday and were set for their fourth consecutive weekly decline, as fast-rising interest rates and weak economic data stoked fears of a global recession, which would dent demand for metals. Other industrial metals also fell, with zinc dropping over 6% this week and aluminium heading for its sixth straight weekly fall, down 2.4%.

Iron-ore and steel prices tumbled on Friday as prospects of a sharp global economic downturn fanned fears of a slump in demand for commodities, despite signs of a rebound in manufacturing activity in top metals consumer China. The spectre of a global recession fed an already clouded demand outlook for iron-ore in China, the world's biggest steel producer, where mills have idled dozens of blast furnaces recently in a bid to reduce high inventories amid weak orders.

The Spanish Parliament has rejected a motion by democratic socialist electoral alliance Unidas Podemos that would have made it more difficult to secure approvals for new mining projects and would have also increased taxes on existing mineral producers. On June 23, the motion was outvoted by an overwhelming 283 votes against versus 36 in favour, with 22 abstentions.

Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer South Africa's potential to be an energy exporter; Pan African's definitive feasibility study on Mogale Gold’s tailing storage facilities; and Orion’s capital raise for its copper and zinc mine, Prieska.

Maintaining and improving reliability of pumps used to transport abrasive media can be challenging in high-energy applications with players in the oil and gas industry aiming to optimise performance and minimise downtime. Fluid engineering company Sulzer says these objectives can be met through planning maintenance and introducing modern materials technology to existing assets.

Every dewatering project is different, but most do require the using of accessories such as hosing and flotation systems. While these accessories may seem to be just that, it is essential that when selecting the hosing and flotation system it is correctly matched to the dewatering pump and the application to ensure optimum operation.

Submersible industrial pumps manufacturer Amandla Pumps manufactures and designs its pumps locally, enabling the company to meet specific customer demands. The company has a state-of-the-art machining facility, equipped with computer numerical controlled equipment to accurately manufacture its products to high standards, with flexible turnaround times.

Mechanical seals, pumps and complementary pumps products supplier Mechanical Rotating Solutions (MRS) replaced expeller seals on centrifugal pumps at a coal mining company’s facility, in Mpumalanga, at the end of April and beginning of May; the pumps were registering poor mean time between failures. The pumps were originally sealed using conventional mechanical packing that, along with poor adherence to the packing schedule, caused excessive slurry leakage and, consequently, damage to the pump bearings... Читать дальше...

As industries have developed, customers’ equipment demands have increased. As such, equipment and solutions provider Weir Minerals Africa has found that continuously engineering product solutions to meet these industry trends and demands has positioned it uniquely within the engineer-to-order (ETO) space. In conversation with Mining Weekly, Weir Minerals Africa GM for pump products Marnus Koorts explains that engineered-to-order solutions lend themselves to a variety of application solutions. This... Читать дальше...