After helping topple one of Britain’s best known public-relations companies, South African anti-corruption groups are now targeting US consultancy McKinsey & Co. and auditing firm KPMG for doing work for businesses tied to the Gupta family and President Jacob Zuma’s son. The Guptas, originally from India and including brothers Atul, Rajesh and Ajay, moved to South Africa in the 1990s and are being accused of using their friendship with the president to influence government contracts and cabinet appointments. They deny wrongdoing.
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Market research multinational BMI Research reported on Thursday that there would be a shift in the status quo of mining finance sources, as mineral prices stabilise and edge higher over the coming years. “Majors will continue to rely on equity and debt financing. Mid-cap and small-cap companies, as well as those looking at higher-risk exploration projects, will benefit from new players taking a greater stake in the sector, including private equity and sovereign wealth funds,” BMI said in its latest ‘Mining Finance Industry Trend Analysis’ report.
ASX-listed Empire Oil & Gas has placed its subsidiary Empire Oil Company into voluntary administration, after ASX-listed Mineral Resources issued a notice of default under a A$15-million loan facility agreement.
Mineral Resources this week said that it took the steps in order to protect its interest, following consideration of the ongoing interruption to production at the Red Gully 1 well, owned by the Empire subsidiary, as well as consultation with the board of Empire Oil & Gas.
Nev Power’s successor as Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.’s top executive will be charged with leading the world’s fourth-largest iron ore exporter’s drive into new businesses.
“We are going to look for and consider other opportunities, where other investors can join us,” chairperson and founder Andrew Forrest told reporters Friday on a conference call after announcing Power, 59, will step down on Febuary 16. “I don’t see ourselves as only a mining company, I see ourselves as a great management and operating company.”
ST. PAUL, Minn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–PolyMet Mining Corp (“PolyMet” or the “company”) TSX: POM; NYSE AMERICAN: PLM – today reported that it has filed its financial results for the three and six months ended July 31, 2017. PolyMet also agreed to issue up to an additional $20 million secured debenture to Glencore AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Glencore plc. “We appreciate and welcome Glencore’s continued financial and technical support. This gives us solid financial footing to advance the permitti
Junior metals explorer Ardea Resources has raised A$5.5-million in a share placement to sophisticated and professional investors, to accelerate drill programmes at its KNP cobalt project, in Western Australia.
Some 7.6-million new fully paid ordinary shares would be issued under the company’s existing capacity, with the shares placed at a price of 72.5c each.
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Market research multinational BMI Research reported on Thursday that there would be a shift in the status quo of mining finance sources, as mineral prices stabilise and edge higher over the coming years. “Majors will continue to rely on equity and debt financing. Mid-cap and small-cap companies, as well as those looking at higher-risk exploration projects, will benefit from new players taking a greater stake in the sector, including private equity and sovereign wealth funds,” BMI said in its latest ‘Mining Finance Industry Trend Analysis’ report.
CALGARY, Alberta–(BUSINESS WIRE)–American Creek Reports That JV Partner Tudor Gold Has Produced Numerous Intercepts of High Grade Gold and Silver in Preliminary Drilling on New HC Zone at Treaty Creek
New analysis conducted using updated cost assumptions for solar photovoltaic (PV), onshore wind and batteries shows that the share of renewable energy in an electricity mix that would also be the least cost for South Africa could grow to above 90% by 2050. Such a portfolio, the study indicates, will be 30% cheaper than the generation mix currently outlined in the Draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) Base Case, published by the Department of Energy (DoE) in November 2016.
Aim-listed Edenville Energy is pleased with the progress being made with the development of its Rukwa project, in Tanzania. “The first half of 2017 was an extremely busy and transformational period for the company. Having raised funds in February to start production, we have been able to rapidly put in place the required infrastructure and are seeing strong demand for our coal. “We look forward to the wash plant being operational shortly and commencing sales of washed coal, while continuing to advance our coal to power project in conjunction with our partner Sinohydro. The remainder of 2017 is expected to be equally busy,” CEO Rufus Short commented on Friday.
DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The “Global Niobium Market Segmented by Application, Occurrence, End-User Industry and Geography Trends and Forecasts 2017 – 2022” report has been added to Research and Markets’ offering. The global niobium market was valued at 90,149.6 metric tons in 2015, and is set to grow at a CAGR of 6.89%, during the forecast period 2016-2021. The forecast from IMF is that the growth rate of the global economy is going to be 3.8% for the year 2015. Although, the Chinese economy ha
TORONTO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–$TMMFF #HopeBay–TMAC Resources Inc. (TSX: TMR) (“TMAC” or the “Company”) is pleased to report additional drilling results from the 2017 drilling campaigns at both Doris Mine and Boston Deposit, on its 100% owned Hope Bay Project. The initial drilling results at Boston were reported on August 10, 2017 and TMAC has since received all assay results from the remaining Boston and Doris drilling to date. The Company is also providing an operational update. Highlights Boston: • TMB0009
ASX-listed junior Predictive Discovery has signed a joint venture (JV) agreement with Canada’s Progress Minerals over its exploration permits in Burkina Faso.
Predictive’s current tenement holdings in Burkina Faso cover some 100 km of strike length on the Samira Hill greenstone belt, with the company having previously discovered gold mineralisation on multiple prospects in the area.
ASX-listed junior Vital Metals has raised A$2-million through a share placement to progress its Watershed tungsten project, in Queensland.
The company will issue 263.9-million new shares, at 75c each, to professional and sophisticated investors, under its current placement capacity.
Diversified miner South32 will acquire an additional 15-million shares in TSX-listed Arizona Mining, taking its share in the Canadian company to 19.9%.
South32 in May this year acquired an initial 45-million shares, or a 15% interest in Arizona Mining for an investment of C$110.3-million.
Australian gold miner Ramelius Resources has struck a deal with US gold major Newmont Mining Corporation over its South Monitor land package, in Nevada.
Under the terms of a farm-in and joint venture (JV) agreement inked this week, Ramelius could earn an 80% interest in the South Monitor gold project by spending $8-million over an eight-year period, through a staged earn-in.
The Letšeng diamond mine, in Lesotho, recovered several diamonds larger than 100 ct during the first half of 2017, with LSE-listed diamond miner Gem Diamonds upbeat that this trend will continue for the remainder of the year. These gems include the 114.38 ct Type II, the 126 ct D-colour Type IIa and the 104.73 ct white diamonds, as well as the 151.52 ct yellow diamond.
The minister of trade and industry, Rob Davies, said on Friday that China has agreed to support South Africa and Africa’s initiatives of industrialisation and mineral beneficiation as the country embarks on a drive to better exploit its mineral resources. Davies said in a statement that that South Africa has set out to achieve this by developing its manufacturing industry, and that China will have a significant role to play in this initiative.
A ‘whole new world’ for lithium demand has aspiring technology metals firm Avalon Advanced Metals evaluating its options to cash in on the red-hot industry; patiently advancing three projects in its portfolio that will benefit from higher metals prices.
Just this week provided new evidence that the emerging age of the electric vehicle (EV) is approaching faster and at a far greater scale than even recent forecasts predicted, with German automaker Volkswagen announcing investment of about €20-billion in the space, that could alone gobble up the entire supply of lithium today. China also dropped a bombshell this week in announcing tentative plans to ban internal combustion engines, which analysts expect to coincide with China’s commitment to an emissions cap by 2030.
Canadian miner Eldorado Gold’s threat this week to freeze investments in Greece after years of frustrating and costly permit delays highlighted the risks the industry faces when it strays away from mining-friendly countries.
After moving into higher-risk countries in recent years to mine new deposits, companies are being forced to seek safe havens during a rise in so-called resource nationalism and other political headwinds.
The landmark deal that forced Freeport-McMoRan to cede control of the world’s biggest gold mine and second-biggest copper mine to Indonesia may not be the final outcome as both sides prepare for a politically charged battle over the price of the asset and how it will be run, according to the US company’s former chief in Indonesia.
Chappy Hakim, who once led the nation’s air force and who remains an adviser to Freeport Indonesia after his resignation as chief executive in February, said the political nature of the negotiations, which have been going on for years, make it unpredictable as to what both sides will finally agree.
HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Genesis Alkali, a business of Genesis Energy, L.P. (NYSE: GEL), announced today that, effective immediately or as contract terms permit, list and off-list prices will increase for USP and Industrial grade sodium bicarbonate by $20/Ton ($1.00/cwt). Increasing costs associated with production, investment in manufacturing infrastructure and ongoing increases in regulatory requirements and compliance are driving the need for this price adjustment. As always our top priorit
SPOKANE, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Gold Reserve Inc. (TSX.V: GRZ) (OTCQX: GDRZF) (“Gold Reserve” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide an update on current and ongoing activities in Venezuela with respect to the Siembra Minera gold/copper/silver project (owned 45% by the Company and 55% by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela) located in southeastern Venezuela. Engineering activities focused both on the early works saprolite gold plant and the primary gold/copper/silver plant are continuing wit
WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#ExportImport–ISRI releases its 2017 Recycling Industry Yearbook with the most up-to-date information and statistics about the U.S. scrap industry & global market.
Surprising as it might seem to some people, coal demand is at an all-time high, and these heydays spell “good profits and rising margins” for several miners in this space, including US-focused Corsa Coal.
The TSX-V-listed miner, which produces coal from six mines, has one development mine and operates three preparation plants, has weathered the unprecedented price downturn without needing bankruptcy protection and is now poised to double metallurgical coal sales over the next two-and-a-half years, CEO George Dethlefsen tells Mining Weekly Online in an interview.
Chile’s state-run copper company Codelco has signed a new collective contract with the professionals’ union at its Radomiro Tomic mine, the company said on Thursday.
The agreement, which will last 35 months, includes no salary adjustment, but does give workers a one-time bonus of 6.35-million pesos, or $10 140.
Vancouver-headquartered Eldorado Gold said on Thursday its Greek subsidiary Hellas Gold has finally received a formal notice from the country’s Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Environment and Energy initiating domestic arbitration.
The mediation will take place under the provisions contained in a contract between the Greek state and Hellas.
Small-scale Peru-focused gold processor Inca One Gold has reported a 124% year-on-year increase in gold output for the months of July and August combined, it announced on Wednesday.
“July and August was another productive period for Chala One and our operations team is to be commended for solid and consistent production numbers. I am pleased with our continued growth entering the second half of the year, keeping Inca One on track towards our goal of positive cash flow,” president and CEO Edward Kelly said in a statement.
Platinum mining company Implats, which reported an impairment-impacted 137 cents per share headline loss in the 12 months to June 30, sees the lower-for-even-longer metal price environment as ‘the new normal’. In presenting results for its financial year to June 30, the JSE-listed company reported disappointing production at the Impala Rustenburg and Marula mines, which were both below target.
At least one person was killed and several wounded when Guinean security forces opened fire to break up a riot in the bauxite mining hub of Boke, witnesses said on Wednesday. Boke has suffered waves of rioting rooted in a perceived failure of mining to raise living standards, despite 15-million tonnes of aluminium ore being extracted annually by the West African nation’s largest mining companies Societe Miniere de Boke (SMB) and Companie Bauxite de Guinee (CBG).
DENVER–(BUSINESS WIRE)–U.S. Borax, onderdeel van Rio Tinto, heeft een mobiele gewassengids gelanceerd om agronomen, kwekers en onderzoeken te helpen bij het herkennen en behandelen van boorgebrek in landbouwgrond. Het gebrek aan boor is een groot probleem in de landbouw. Boor is een essentiële micronutriënt voor plantengroei. In de afgelopen jaren is er meer aandacht voor de rol die micronutriënten – zoals boor en zink – spelen bij de opname van macronutriënten. Deze bekendmaking is officieel
Ethiopia is considering finding a new partner to develop a potash mine abandoned last year by Israel Chemicals, which has sought compensation at an arbitration court after accusing the government of failing to support the project. Several companies are interested in developing potash deposits in the country’s northeastern Afar region, Mines Minister Motuma Mekassa said in an interview Wednesday in the capital, Addis Ababa. The government is eager to begin work on the project as long as there are no legal hindrances from the arbitration process currently under way in The Hague, though no discussions with prospective investors have taken place yet, he said.
The world’s biggest diamond producer hired an external investigator to find the source of possible leaks of its most sensitive price data, according to people familiar with the matter. De Beers hired investigators from KPMG International in South Africa to find the source of the leaks, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. The company suspected at least one employee sold pricing information to customers before the diamonds were offered for purchase, the people said.
DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The “Global Cobalt Market: Size, Trends & Forecasts (2017-2021)” report has been added to Research and Markets’ offering. Global Cobalt Market: Size, Trends & Forecasts (2017-2021), provides analysis of the global cobalt market, with detailed analysis of market size in terms of production, demand and segments. The report also includes a detailed regional analysis of the Cobalt market in regions such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Australia and Canada, comprisi
South Africa’s second-biggest platinum mining company Impala Platinum (Implats) said on Thursday that it would no longer be supportive of lossmaking operations and was taking strong steps to bring about a cash neutral position at its major productivity-hit Impala Rustenburg platinum mine and would close the community distrupted Marula mine if it failed to become cash positive. Impala Rustenburg, which produced 654 600 oz of platinum in the 12 months to June 30, incurred a headline after-tax loss of R2.68-billion in the period, with disruptions, mainly by surrounding communities, putting Marula R737-million in the red.
