The Briefing on Mining
The latest news, trends and data from the mining industry
In Data
Mining in Numbers
$250bn
A planned tariff hike on $250bn on Chinese goods has been delayed by US President Donald Trump as a "gesture of good will".
750 employees
The world’s biggest producer of potash, Nutrien, will lay off 750 employees next month and close down three of its Saskatchewan mines, in response to a short-term slowdown in global markets.
Six times
According to Moody’s, demand for metals such as cobalt, lithium, nickel and copper could see six fold increases if electric cars reach 8% of road traffic by the mid-2020s.
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$2,000 per ounce
Citi analysts have said that the price of gold could hit $2,000 per ounce in the next two years. This would pass a level not seen since August 2011 when it reached $1,830.55/oz.
1,700km
Rio Tinto’s driverless trains will travel 1,700km, a round-trip that will take 46 hours, as part of their AUD940 million project.
One news story we didn’t cover
The controversial deepsea mining Solwara 1 project, offshore Papua New Guinea, has been labelled as a “total failure”. The project, run by specialised mining company Nautilus, was trying to mine rare earth metals from mineral-rich hydrothermal vents, and is thought to have cost the country $157m.
The failure of the project, has renewed calls to ban seabed mining, which environmentalists and scientists caution could destroy poorly understood ecosystems.
“I ask you all to… support a 10-year moratorium on seabed mining from 2020 to 2030 which would allow for a decade of proper scientific research of our economic zone and territorial waters,” Fiji president Frank Bainimarama said in response to the failed project.
Read the full story on the Guardian
In the News
Top Project News This Month
Botswana Diamonds receives authorisation to mine Marsfontein Gravels
Irish exploration and project development company Botswana Diamonds’ associate Vutomi has secured environmental authorisation over part of the residual diamond-bearing gravels produced from the Marsfontein mine. Botswana Diamonds noted that the authorisation is a major step towards obtaining a mining permit covering an area of five hectares, which the company expects to receive soon. The mining permit has a renewable lifespan of two years.
Metso opens performance centre in Chile for mining industry
Finnish industrial machinery company Metso has opened its first performance centre in Santiago, Chile, to boost its remote-monitoring capabilities for the mining industry.The opening of this facility will be followed by a second performance centre in Changsha, China.Metso plans to open additional centres in major mining regions during 2020-2021.
Brazil’s IBRAM to implement sustainable mining initiative
Brazil’s mining association Instituto Brasileiro de Mineração (IBRAM) is set to adopt the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) initiative developed by the Mining Association of Canada (MAC).The corporate social responsibility programme aims to enhance environmental and social practices in the mining industry.Besides IBRAM, six other mining associations implemented the TSM initiative, which is recognised internationally as a standard for responsible mining.
M&As: This Month's Top Deals
Namdeb sells Elizabeth Bay mine in Namibia to Lewcor
Namdeb Holdings has completed the sale of its Elizabeth Bay mine and related marine assets to a member of the Lewcor Group, a 100% Namibian-owned Consortium. De Beers and the Government of the Republic of Namibia hold 50% interest each in Namdeb. The move comes after Namdeb closed the operations of its Elizabeth Bay mine in September last year, as the company felt it could no longer run the operation economically after exploring various options.
Source: The Citizen
Japan Gold acquires gold projects in Kyushu province
Canadian company Japan Gold has acquired five new gold projects in the Southern and Middle Kyushu Epithermal Gold Provinces. The acquired gold projects cover significant current and past producing gold mines, including the Hishikari, Yamagano, Kushikino, Bajo and Okuchi mines, and collectively comprise 21,058ha. The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has granted authorisation to Japan Gold to commence surface exploration at these areas.
Source: Universe Today
Barrian Mining signs LoI to buy Troy Canyon project in US
Barrian Mining has signed a letter of intent (LoI) to acquire an 100% interest in the Troy Canyon gold silver project located in Nye County, Nevada, US, from Brocade Metals.The project is located approximately 70km east of Barrian’s flagship Bolo Project near Tonopah, in Nevada. It has returned underground stope rock grab samples grading 576g/t gold and greater than 100g/t silver.
Source: New York Times
Belmont signs mineral property acquisition deal with Pistol Bay Mining
Belmont Resources has agreed to acquire a substantial interest in part of Pistol Bay Mining’s Confederation Lake greenstone belt portfolio in Canada. The Fredart/Gerry Lake and adjoining claim groups are located approximately 25km northeast of Great Bear Resources’ Dixie property and adjacent to Pistol Bay’s Garnet Lake claims. The Arrow Zone/Garnet Lake, an adjoining claim block also owned by Pistol Bay, hosts a 2017 43-101 inferred mineral resource containing 2.1 million tonnes averaging 5.78% zinc, 0.72% copper, 19.5g/t silver and 0.6g/t gold.
Source: Science Alert
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