BHP investors back unification plan; Las Bambas inks deal to stop blockades

TOP NEWS IN METALS & MINING

* BHP Group's shareholders in Australia and the U.K. approved the mining giant's plan to scrap its dual listing and to unify its corporate structure under its Australian parent, Reuters reported.

* Management at MMG Ltd.'s Las Bambas copper mine reached an agreement with some leaders from Peru's Chumbivilcas province to increase local jobs in an attempt to avoid future roadblocks that may disrupt operations, Reuters reported.

➤ Honeywell, Freyr Battery to partner in lithium-ion battery production deal

The agreement is to accelerate FREYR Battery's manufacturing plans, beginning with an inaugural plant in Norway in 2023. The company is also exploring sites in the U.S., where it could start production in 2024.

➤ Carbon market brings new revenue, acrimony to divided states

Controversy over the costs and benefits of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative has created new uncertainties for utilities and investors in Virginia and Pennsylvania, while North Carolina is gearing up for what will likely also be a partisan battle.

DIVERSIFIED

* Vedanta Resources Ltd. plans to create a $10 billion fund to acquire assets including the Indian government's stake in Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd., Reuters reported, citing Vedanta Chairperson Anil Agarwal.

BASE METALS

* Chile's state-owned copper miner Codelco has launched the $1.4 billion Andina Transfer project that converted the underground operation into an open pit mine, BNamericas reported.

* Aurubis AG raised its fiscal 2021/2022 guidance for pretax operating earnings to the range of €400 million to €500 million, from the previous forecast of €320 million to €380 million, after its preliminary pretax operating earnings jumped year over year to €152 million from €82 million in the fiscal first quarter.

* Imperial Metals Corp. agreed to surrender its Giant copper property to the government of British Columbia for C$24 million due to permitting challenges linked to the project's proximity to a provincial park.

* PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, or Nornickel, and Helsinki Shipyard Oy started the construction of an icebreaker designed to expand Nornickel's transportation capacity, with delivery expected by the winter of 2025.

PRECIOUS METALS

* Hochschild Mining PLC's attributable production inched up to 94,222 ounces of gold equivalent or 8.10 million ounces of silver equivalent in the fourth quarter of 2021 from 94,030 ounces of gold equivalent or 8.09 Moz of silver equivalent in the previous year.

* Northern Star Resources Ltd.'s gold recovered in the three months ended Dec. 31, 2021, grew to 388,742 ounces from 247,561 ounces in the prior year, while sales swelled to 392,655 ounces from 252,899 ounces.

* Resolute Mining Ltd.'s gold production for the December 2021 quarter declined year over year to 79,816 ounces from 89,888 ounces, and the company slashed its full-year 2022 gold production guidance by 15% to 345,000 ounces.

* Endeavour Silver Corp. set a full-year 2022 production guidance range of 6.7 million ounces to 7.6 Moz of silver equivalent comprising 4.2 Moz to 4.8 Moz of silver and 31,000 ounces to 35,000 ounces of gold.

* An initial resource estimate for Polymetal International PLC's Pavlov deposit in Russia outlined 727,000 ounces of gold contained within 9.7 million tonnes of indicated and inferred resources grading 2.3 grams of gold per tonne.

* World Gold Council founding member Gold Fields Ltd. rejoined the organization amid an "exciting" outlook for the precious metal, Gold Fields CEO Chris Griffith said.

BULK COMMODITIES

* The U.S. and the U.K. officially began bilateral discussions to address global steel and aluminum excess capacity and a tariff dispute between the two nations, S&P Global Platts reported.

* Vale SA received an order from prosecutors in the Minas Gerais state of Brazil to fix issues in 18 tailings dams at its mines to avoid structural problems, following months of heavy rains, Reuters reported.

* Alcoa Corp.'s net loss in the fourth quarter of 2021 widened to $392 million, or a loss of $2.11 per share, from a year-ago loss of $4 million, or a loss of 2 cents per share, after the company booked a series of restructuring charges and a one-time tax expense, Dow Jones Newswires reported.

* China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd.'s full-year 2021 coal production increased 5.3% year on year to 307.0 million tonnes, while sales rose 8.0% to 482.3 Mt.

* PJSC Novolipetsk Steel's steel production in the fourth quarter of 2021 increased 16% year over year to 4.5 million tonnes while full-year 2021 steel production jumped 10% to 17.4 Mt.

* An explosion caused by a gas leak at U.S. Steel Corp.'s Great Lakes Works near Detroit injured two workers, the Associated Press reported, citing a company spokesperson.

SPECIALTY

* Denison Mines Corp. said the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission approved an amendment to the uranium mine and license for the McClean Lake operation in Saskatchewan, allowing for the expansion of the JEB tailings management facility.

* An updated definitive feasibility study on Lithium Power International Ltd.'s Maricunga stage 1 lithium brine project in Chile outlined a posttax net present value of $1.43 billion, discounted at 8%, with an internal rate of return of 39.6% and a payback period of two years.

S&P Global Market Intelligence and S&P Global Platts are owned by S&P Global Inc.

The Daily Dose is updated as of 8 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.