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Several hundred jobs at risk as Rio Tinto accelerates automation project

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[Infographic]: 2021 World Exploration Trends


Several hundred jobs at risk as Rio Tinto accelerates automation project

TOP NEWS

Several hundred jobs at risk as Rio Tinto accelerates automation project

Rio Tinto will cut several hundred jobs in the coming years as it accelerates the long-planned automation of its iron ore mines and railways in Western Australia, The Australian reported, citing an internal company briefing. According to the document, about 600 full-time jobs would be affected as the company increases its driverless truck fleet from 77 to 325 over four years from 2017. A Rio Tinto spokesperson, however, clarified that the briefing numbers were indicative at the time and had changed with the company's knowledge of automation.

DRC to sign into law new mining code

Democratic Republic of the Congo Prime Minister Bruno Tshibala on June 8 will sign into law regulations to immediately implement a new mining code, a move that could spark a legal battle between the government and major miners operating in the country, Reuters reported. The new code scraps protections for existing projects against changes to the fiscal regime, increases royalties and imposes a windfalls profit tax.

More Australian aluminum could head to US, experts say

Australia could end up sending more aluminum to the U.S. following the Trump administration's decision to lift temporary exemptions on tariffs for the EU, Canada and Mexico, according to Wood Mackenzie's aluminum research head and the Australian government. Wood Mackenzie's London-based head of aluminum markets research, Uday Patel, told S&P Global Market Intelligence that more metal may come from Australia into the U.S. due to remaining exemptions that apply to Australia, but much will depend on the economics.

DIVERSIFIED

* Rio Tinto and China Minmetals Corp. entered into a formal agreement for their 50/50 exploration joint venture in China. The joint venture will have a registered capital of 200 million Chinese yuan, with initial contributions of 35 million yuan from each party within six months.

BASE METALS

* JPMorgan was looking for buyers for A$156.9 million of Aurelia Metals Ltd. shares, or about 37% of the miner's outstanding capital, The Australian Financial Review's Street Talk reported, citing a term sheet sent to fund managers.

* The main union at BHP Billiton Group's Escondida copper mine in Chile presented its demands to the company, which now has until the weekend to deliver its counteroffer, Bloomberg News reported. The parties are scheduled to hold talks next week as the current contract is set to expire July 31.

* Metal Tiger Plc agreed to acquire up to 50% of Botswana-focused private explorer Kalahari Metals Ltd. for US$1.6 million and exercised its first option to acquire an initial 18% interest for US$600,000.

* Nevada Sunrise Gold Corp. agreed to acquire the Coronado property, which is prospective for volcanogenic massive sulfide mineralization, kicking off a 90-day due diligence period.

* Copper miner OZ Minerals Ltd.'s takeover offer for Avanco Resources Ltd. has received acceptances of 43.5%, and the offer is now unconditional.

* OZ Minerals CEO Andrew Cole said he is not worried about the company becoming a takeover target, and would instead see any advances from suitors as a compliment, The Australian reported. "It would need to be for the right price, of course, because we've got plans to expand Prominent Hill and Carrapateena — plans that are not yet valued in the marketplace," Cole said.

* Private equity firm Cupric Canyon Capital LLC will start construction of its Khoemacau copper project in Botswana in October, Reuters reported, citing Johannes Tsimako, Khoemacau manager. The project is projected to produce 60,000 tonnes of copper per annum, increasing to about 100,000 tonnes per year by 2023.

* Metals X Ltd. expects to achieve the targeted production rate at its Nifty copper mine in Western Australia of 40,000 tonnes per annum by the end of the year despite the delay in the timing of production ramp-up. In the September quarter, the company is targeting a production rate of 35,000 tonnes per annum.

* Clive Palmer claimed that his Queensland, Australia-based companies own a combined A$6 billion of cobalt in tailings, which contain 69,000 tonnes of contained metal, Australian Mining reported.

* Cameo Cobalt Corp., formerly Cameo Resources Corp., signed a letter of intent to acquire a 456-hectare property in Chile's Carrizal Alto district.

PRECIOUS METALS

* The land forfeited by Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. unit Zimplats Holdings Ltd. in Zimbabwe will be used by Karo Resources for its planned US$4.2 billion platinum project in the country, Bloomberg News reported, citing Zimbabwean Mines Minister Winston Chitando.

* Eastern Platinum Ltd. is seeking damages from certain former executives and directors on a number of legal grounds related to payments totaling US$13.7 million to Serina Services AG and Ingwenya Inc. The group filed notices of civil claim in the British Columbia Supreme Court.

* Claiming greater shareholder support in a battle for board control, the former CEO of Alexandria Minerals Corp. blasted some of his former colleagues as "nasty folk" and denied allegations he acted improperly in raising funds or in managing the company's exploration. "They're ignorant complaints," said Eric Owens, who was fired by Alexandria earlier this year and is now trying to reshape the junior explorer's board of directors.

* Sibanye Gold Ltd. CEO Neal Froneman said earthquakes are impossible to predict and a fact of life for deep level operations in South Africa, Reuters reported. "Seismicity is a feature of mining in the region and deep-level mining layouts and support systems have been designed specifically to cope with seismicity," Froneman added.

* Cabral Gold Inc. said that an updated resource estimate was completed for four deposits at its Cuiu Cuiu property in northern Brazil. Indicated resources are estimated to contain 171,000 ounces of gold within 5.9 million tonnes of ore grading 0.9 g/t, while inferred resources are estimated to contain 776,000 ounces of gold within 19.5 million tonnes grading 1.24 g/t.

* Honey Badger Exploration Inc. acquired privately held Thunder Bay Silver & Cobalt Corp., which owns 359 claims covering 6,880 hectares in Ontario's Thunder Bay polymetallic silver camp, expanding its Thunder Bay silver property to over 37,850 hectares.

* Sovereign Mines of Africa Plc, which has been an AIM cash shell since early 2017 announced an agreement to acquire a U.K. gastropub chain called Turf to Table and complete its exit from mining.

* PJSC Polyus estimates Russia's largest untapped gold deposit, Sukhoi Log, to have an average annual output of 1.6 million ounces of gold at a cash cost of US$420/oz to US$470/oz. The company said that investment decision and start of construction CapEx spending are planned for 2020 and 2021, while production will commence in or around 2026.

* Two mine workers were found dead at the Cieneguita gold-silver complex in Chihuahua, Mexico, after a June 4 dam collapse swept away workers and machinery, Reuters reported. Authorities earlier said seven workers were missing after the incident.

* Gold Fields Ltd. agreed to earn up to a 70% joint venture interest in tenements in the western portion of Lefroy Exploration Ltd.'s Lefroy gold project in Western Australia.

* Jubilee Metals Group PLC said its Hernic platinum-chrome tailings project in South Africa achieved record production of 2,101 ounces of platinum group metals in May, taking the total for second quarter's first two months to 3,972 ounces. Meanwhile, the first PGM material delivery under an April agreement with Northam Platinum Ltd. is scheduled for June.

BULK COMMODITIES

* Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. secured a 19.9% stake in Atlas Iron Ltd. by acquiring 15% of the latter's common shares at 4 Australian cents apiece and another 4.9% through a cash-settled swap relating to notional shares. The company said it will not support Mineral Resources Ltd.'s proposed all-share play for Atlas.

* Uncertainty lingers in the metallurgical coal market as China considers plans to increase U.S. coal imports in order to reduce the significant trade deficits between the two economies, sources said. While this could be a major development for the coking coal sector, market participants said several issues would have to be tackled first.

* Yancoal Australia Ltd. CEO Reinhold Schmidt vowed to be more active in his support for the coal sector amid the anti-coal rhetoric, saying that only a blackout in New South Wales will wake up the state to the value of the industry, The Australian Financial Review reported.

* European steel industry association Eurofer said that an 8% increase in steel imports this year is a direct result of the import tariffs on the metal imposed by the U.S., which caused trade flows to be deflected to Europe, Reuters reported. Eurofer also called on the EU to impose safeguards, both in the form of tariffs and quotas.

* Czech Republic-based Trinecké Zelezárny has made a nonbinding offer for ArcelorMittal's ArcelorMittal Ostrava AS unit, Trinecke Zelezarny told Metal Bulletin.

* The retail and business community lauded bipartisan legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate that would require President Donald Trump to gain congressional approval before imposing tariffs on global trading partners.

* The closure of the Navajo coal plant in Arizona, scheduled for 2019, may be delayed as the U.S. Interior Department is considering using executive powers to force a water project in the state to purchase power from the plant, Reuters reported.

* The Queensland Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy Anthony Lynham denied an ABC report that said the state is still considering funding an estimated A$100 million upfront cost of road access for Adani Enterprises Ltd.'s Carmichael coal project, Australian Mining reported.

SPECIALTY

* AVZ Minerals Ltd. shares closed more than 20% down on the ASX June 7 after Chairman Klaus Eckhof sold more than half of his stake in the company, The Australian reported.

* Botswana Diamonds Plc Managing Director James Campbell said the company is interested in acquiring liquidated BCL Mine's stake in the Maibwe Diamonds joint venture project, Reuters reported. BCL is selling its 51% interest in Maibwe Diamonds for an undisclosed amount. "We have put in an offer to the liquidator of BCL and we hope to get a response in the next few months," Campbell added.

* Battery cell maker Northvolt AB secured an environmental permit for what will be Europe's largest lithium-ion battery cell factory, Metal Bulletin reported. The initial phase of construction will begin June 8.

* Dark Horse Resources Ltd. completed the first stage renegotiation to revise payment schedule of the option deal for the acquisition of the Las Tapias lithium project in Argentina.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* South African Minister of Mineral Resources Gwede Mantashe said the country has an eight-year backlog in the issuance of mining rights as proper processing of applications for mining licenses stalled over the years, Mining Weekly wrote. Addressing the recent mining related deaths in the country, Mantashe added that the department's Council for Geoscience and other stakeholders were paying special attention into seismicity.

* In the 2018 edition of S&P Global Market Intelligence's World Exploration Trends report, the company forecast a 2018 exploration budget increase of 15%-20%. Based on an increase in the number of meters of drilling started or announced in the March 2018 quarter, it appears that the industry's exploration activity is currently moving in line with our projections.

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