TOP NEWS
Vale reaches US$700M cobalt streaming deal
Vale SA struck a US$700 million deal to sell future cobalt production from its Voisey's Bay nickel-copper-cobalt complex in Newfoundland and Labrador, Bloomberg News reported, citing sources. The move comes amid an increased demand for cobalt, which is a key ingredient in lithium-ion batteries, with prices more than tripling in the past two years.
ASIC files additional claims against former Rio Tinto execs over Mozambique coal assets
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission said that former Rio Tinto CEO Tom Albanese and former CFO Guy Elliott avoided US$2.4 billion impairment over the Mozambique coal assets by withholding negative information on reserves, valuation and coal transport options from the board's audit committee, The Australian reported. The regulator added that it was taking court action against the miner and the former executives for misleading and deceptive conduct in delaying Mozambique writedowns.
Glencore facing US$1.14B lawsuit over stake in DRC cobalt mine
Congolese-American businessman Charles Brown is demanding US$1.14 billion from Glencore PLC, claiming that he was coerced to sell his 19% interest in cobalt miner Mutanda Mining Sarl to Glencore in two transactions in 2007 and 2012, Bloomberg News reported. In January, a commercial court in the province of Lualaba in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the Mutanda mine is located, sanctioned Brown's request to seize US$843 million of assets from Glencore and Mutanda Mining.
BASE METALS
* The main union at BHP Billiton Group's Escondida copper mine in Chile is hopeful of reaching a deal on a new labor contract with the company, Reuters reported. "A favorable scenario has emerged for developing negotiations to reach a satisfactory agreement," the union said in a statement, noting higher copper prices.
* Confirming previous reports, Sandfire Resources NL agreed to acquire Talisman Mining Ltd.'s 30% interest in the Springfield copper-gold joint venture in Western Australia by purchasing Talisman A Pty. Ltd. for A$72.3 million cash.
* Aurelia Metals Ltd. confirmed that Pacific Road Capital is no longer a shareholder after its 36.7% stake, or 313.7 million shares, was sold and placed to a range of new and existing institutional investors.
* Entree Resources Ltd. sold its 0.5% net smelter royalty on Candente Copper Corp.'s Canariaco copper project in Peru to Anglo Pacific Group PLC for US$1 million of Anglo Pacific shares.
PRECIOUS METALS
* South Africa's Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, or AMCU, decided to demand a monthly minimum wage of 12,500 South African rand from some of the country's major gold producers in upcoming wage negotiations, Bloomberg News reported. AMCU is the second-largest union at the operations of AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., Sibanye Gold Ltd. and Harmony Gold Mining Co. Ltd. AMCU President Joseph Mathunjwa also called for better housing, maternity leave benefits and a five-day work week.
* Just over three months after an earthquake cut power to the Porgera gold mine, putting a damper on production, Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd. said that in early June, the supply of electricity to the mine had resumed to approximately 50% of pre-earthquake levels. Zijin also said that it expects full power to be restored within six to eight weeks.
* Harmony Gold said that a worker was fatally injured in a fall of ground incident at its Bambanani gold mine in South Africa.
* A fifth body was recovered from the Cieneguita gold-silver complex in northern Mexico where a tailings dam collapsed last week, Mining.com reported. Two other miners remain missing.
* Pasu Loharjun, Thailand's permanent secretary for industry, dismissed a rumor that the government was trying to pay Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd. to end the latter's arbitration proceedings against Thailand in connection with the company's subsidiary Akara Resources PCL's Chatree gold mine in the country, Manager Daily reported.
* iMetal Resources Inc. signed memorandums of understanding with the Matachewan and Mattagami First Nations and the Teme-Augama Anishnabai community of the Temagami First Nation in northern Ontario to advance its Gowganda West gold-copper-cobalt project.
* AM Resources Corp.'s AM Resources SAS unit entered into an option deal to acquire a 60% interest in the Mico gold property in Colombia from Universal Geoaguas Ltda.
* Petropavlovsk PLC is not satisfied with the list of five beneficiaries of Patia Trading Ltd., provided by CABS Platform Ltd. The board said it does not believe that these individuals are the ultimate owners of CABS, and the disclosure is "yet another veil of secrecy." CABS is behind a proposal to replace all members of the current board at the company's next annual general meeting.
* Sothic Capital Management, the second largest investor of Petropavlovsk, said it was strongly against a motion filed by CABS Platform and Slevin seeking to replace the current board as the move could lead to the sale of the company at a knockdown price, the Financial Times reported. Sothic holds 10.9% of U.K.-listed Petropavlovsk.
* Patagonia Gold PLC produced 10,662 gold equivalent ounces in the first quarter from its Cap Oeste project in Argentina at an average cash cost of US$693 per ounce. The company said it is reviewing the production guidance for the year.
BULK COMMODITIES
* The Chinese government told several large steel mills to increase their year-on-year import volumes of U.S. met coals, as part of the country's attempts to narrow its significant trade deficit with the U.S., sources told S&P Global Platts. Ministry of Commerce officials have approached at least two steelmakers that have previously procured U.S. met coal and instructed them to procure more U.S. exports, sources close to the matter said.
* Europe will level counter-measures against U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, following in the footsteps of Canada, Reuters reported, citing German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
* European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker offered U.S. President Donald Trump a joint assessment of EU-U.S. trade to help resolve a dispute over the steel and aluminum import tariffs the EU believes are based on a misreading of trade data, Reuters reported.
* Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said the country will launch an anti-dumping probe into U.S. companies in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, Reuters reported, citing the Dogan news agency. "However the USA looks at our products, we will look at their products in the same way. We will launch important processes within a few days," Zeybekci was quoted as saying.
* An Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. unit and the Guinean government agreed to create a mining company that will hold licenses to the Boffa Nord and Boffa Sord bauxite projects in the African country. The project development cost is estimated at around US$706 million.
* TerraCom Ltd. secured sales of 520,000 tonnes of coal from its Blair Athol mine in Queensland, Australia, at a forecast average price of US$92 per tonne. The company will also look to lock in another 130,000 tonnes of sales in the coming weeks to complete the forecast sales of 650,000 tonnes for the September quarter.
* PJSC Uralkali closed a 15 billion Russian ruble exchange bond issue, which is set to mature in five years at a rate of 7.70% per year.
* According to the Financial Times, United Co. Rusal PLC will have difficulties maintaining its stakes in PJSC Norilsk Nickel Co. as U.S. sanctions threaten Rusal's debt deal with Sberbank, for which it used a 25% Norilsk Nickel stake as collateral. Rusal holds about a 27.8% shareholding in Norilsk Nickel.
* Mineral Resources Ltd. amended its deal with takeover target Atlas Iron Ltd. to allow the latter to hold talks with other interested parties until June 22. The news comes a day after Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. reported amassing a 19.9% stake in Atlas Iron after buying shares equivalent to a 15% additional interest.
* S&P Global Ratings lowered Atlas Iron's long-term issuer credit rating to CCC from B- and placed the ratings on CreditWatch with developing implications, from CreditWatch with positive implications. S&P said Atlas' merger with Mineral Resources would be positive for its credit quality, but the recent challenge from new 19.9% shareholder Fortescue may result in the company going into default within the next 12 months if a transaction fails to materialize.
* China's aluminum exports increased to 485,000 tonnes in May, the highest in more than three years and the second-highest on record, despite U.S. tariffs, Reuters wrote, citing customs data. Chinese steel products, meanwhile, fell 1.4% year on year in May to 6.88 million tonnes.
* Kazakhstan Potash Corp. Ltd. plans to acquire a 51% interest in the Kikata North and Mifumbi copper-cobalt projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
SPECIALTY
* PJSC Alrosa's diamond sales reached US$288.0 million in May, down significantly from US$405.3 million in April. Yuri Okoyomov, Alrosa's deputy CEO, said there was a planned sales decline in May driven by the sale of accumulated inventories and a seasonal drop in current output.
* De Beers SA's De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd. unit selected six black economic empowerment partners for its eight-year transport project at the Venetia diamond mine in South Africa. According to Mining Weekly, the transport initiative is valued at 600 million South African rand to 700 million rand.
* Between 3,000 and 5,000 protesters hailing from Spain, Portugal and France rallied on the weekend against the construction of Berkeley Energia Ltd.'s Salamanca uranium mine in Spain, Mining.com reported, citing local news sources. The protesters said uranium exploitation in Salamanca would have serious environmental effects.
* A key Mineral Deposits Ltd. shareholder is not too impressed with an A$291 million offer made by Eramet in April, Reuters reported. "At this stage we are not inclined to accept Eramet's current bid of A$1.46 per share," Simon Mawhinney, chief investment officer at Allan Gray Australia, told the newswire. Allan Gray Australia holds a 13.4% stake in Mineral Deposits.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* U.S. President Donald Trump said the trade partners "have no choice" but to agree to the country's terms and confirmed that he pushed for a tariff-free G-7 as he left the summit early. "No tariffs, no barriers and no subsidies. That's the way it should be," he said.
* Democratic Republic of the Congo Prime Minister Bruno Tshibala signed a regulation to implement the country's new mining code into law with no changes, Reuters reported, citing advisers to the prime minister. "The decree fully implements the mining code promulgated by the President of the Republic in March," said the premier's legal counsel Anita Lwambwa, confirming that none of the recommendations by the mining industry were included.
* Global oil majors' moves in recent years point to an "agnostic" future of energy production that could conceivably include owning or investing in battery minerals extraction companies, which would be "small CapEx" compared to their usual spend and well within their capabilities, Deloitte's global LNG leader told S&P Global Market Intelligence.
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This S&P Global Market Intelligence news article may contain information about credit ratings issued by S&P Global Ratings, a separately managed division of S&P Global. Descriptions in this news article were not prepared by S&P Global Ratings. The original S&P Global Ratings documents referred to in this news brief can be found in the sources section.
