Новости за 24.11.2022

The global copper market could accumulate a large deficit of almost eight million tonnes in a decade as soaring demand will outweigh new projects, the head of Chile's state-owned Codelco, the world's largest producer of the metal, said on Thursday. During a speech at Asia Copper Week in Singapore, Maximo Pacheco, chairman of the board of Codelco, highlighted that although a surplus is expected in the short term due to new projects in Chile, Congo, Peru and Tibet, medium term demand will eclipse supply further down the line.

BHP Group, the world's largest listed miner, is bracing for rising costs into the middle of the decade, adding to headwinds facing the copper market which is facing short-term oversupply, an executive said on Wednesday. "We've seen some substantial cost inflation. We don't think we've seen the end of it yet. We think this is going to be a period of between the next 2 years or 3 years," said BHP's Chief Development Officer Johan van Jaarsveld.

Korean Zinc and commodities trader Trafigura are in advanced talks to form a joint venture to build a nickel smelter as part of the Korean company's expansion in renewable energy, batteries and resource recycling, they said late on Wednesday. Nickel is one of the key materials used to make electric vehicle batteries.

The Chinese copper scrap market is expected to remain tight as the pandemic and global economic downturn worsen an already limited supply caused by global trade restrictions, a JCC Renewable Resource executive said on Thursday. "Due to increased uncertainty of the global economy and the aftermath of COVID, the market for raw material is in tight supply," said Huang Yifu, vice general manager of Chinese scrap company JCC Renewable Resource.

London- and Toronto-listed SolGold has announced it is raising $36-million from investors, including China’s Jiangxi Copper Investment Company, purchasing 180-million shares in the company. Of the total, Jiangxi has agreed to purchase 155-million, which will result in the company owning 6.3% of SolGold.

Smelter executives on Thursday called on miners to pay higher treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) to incentivise them to expand capacity and ensure long-term copper supply to the market. Copper demand from the renewable energy and electric vehicles sectors is expected to rise sharply amid the global energy transition, potentially creating a shortage of copper towards the end of the decade.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is expected to reach a decision on the Ambler road project, which will give access to mineral deposits in north-western Alaska, by late next year, exploration and development firm Trilogy Metals reports. Trilogy, in a joint venture with South 32, is active in the Ambler mining district, which is home to some of the richest-known copper-dominant polymetallic deposits. The proposed 340 km industrial-use only road will link the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects to the Dalton highway.

Junior Kingston Resources has announced a 114% increase in the mineral resource estimate at the Southern ore zone (SOZ) at its Mineral Hill gold/copper mine, in New South Wales. The resource estimate for the SOZ now stands at 3.8-million tonnes, a 1.29 g/t gold, 19.2 g/t silver, 0.9% copper, 1.6% lead and 1.4% zinc. This was a 54% increase in the contained gold and a 64% increase in contained copper, compared with the previous resource estimates.

Modelling undertaken by advisory firm PwC has shown that value-added industries in the critical minerals sector could contribute more than A$40-billion to the Australian economy by 2025. The value-added industry, which includes processing, refining and manufacturing, could also deliver as many as 4 500 jobs a year, the modelling shows.

South African thermal coal exporter Thungela Resoources has reached an agreement with its black economic empowerment partner Inyosi Coal to acquire the 27% interest in Anglo American Inyosi Coal (AAIC) currently owned by Inyosi in exchange for shares in Thungela. Upon completion of the acquisition, Thungela will own 100% of AAIC, whose assets include the Zibulo Colliery, in Mpumalanga, and the recently approved Elders production replacement project.

ASX-listed Energy Resources of Australia (ERA) has welcomed the passing of the Atomic Energy Act Amendments Bill, which would allow the company to extend its existing authority of the Ranger uranium mine, in the Northern Territory, beyond the current 2026 deadline. The federal government in September introduced the Bill to allow ERA to keep working on the rehabilitation of the mine until the work is complete.

Uranium hopeful Peninsula Energy has taken a final investment decision (FID) to restart uranium production at its Lance project, in Wyoming, and has announced a A$35-million capital raise to fund the activities. The Lance project holds a Joint Ore Reserves Committee compliant resource of 53.7-million pounds of uranium oxide (U3O8), making it one of the largest uranium production development projects in the US.

The federal government has signed a partnership agreement with the First Nations Heritage Protection Alliance to co-design stronger laws to give better protection to Aboriginal cultural heritage, following the 2019 destruction of the Juukan Gorge rockshelters in the Pilbara by major Rio Tinto. Addressing Parliament on Thursday, Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek said that the destruction of the cultural heritage site resulted from a number of factors, including poor communication, weak state laws... Читать дальше...