trending Market Intelligence /marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/cyibcqwb0h0exoyo85_mra2 content esgSubNav
In This List

Chinalco kicks off US$1.3B expansion at Toromocho copper mine in Peru

Blog

Insight Weekly: US stock performance; banks' M&A risk; COVID-19 vaccine makers' earnings

Blog

Insight Weekly: LNG exports surge; investors unfazed by inflation; neobanks drive VC funding

Blog

Essential Metals Mining Insights November 2021

Blog

[Infographic]: 2021 World Exploration Trends


Chinalco kicks off US$1.3B expansion at Toromocho copper mine in Peru

TOP NEWS

Chinalco kicks off US$1.3B expansion at Toromocho copper mine in Peru

Aluminum Corp. of China, or Chinalco, started the second-phase expansion work at its Toromocho mine in central Peru to expand the copper concentrate processing capacity by 45% by 2020, Reuters reported. The US$1.3 billion investment for the project's second phase will increase the processing capacity to 157,000 tonnes per day and annual refined copper output to 300,000 tonnes, Xinhua News Agency reported.

En+ hires Rothschild to help cut Deripaska's stake; chief resigns

En+ Group PLC said that President and Executive Director Maxim Sokov resigned as of June 1 as part of measures to avoid U.S. sanctions. The resignation is part of the company's plan, announced in late April, that includes appointing a majority of new independent directors to the board. The embattled group hired Rothschild to reduce Oleg Deripaska's stake to below 50%, London's Financial Times reported, citing people with knowledge of the decision.

Euro Sun amends joint offer with Lundin for Nevsun buy

Euro Sun Mining Inc. amended its portion of the joint proposal with Lundin Mining Corp. for the acquisition of Nevsun Resources Ltd. to 50% cash and 50% stock. The proposed offer now comprises C$5 per share for Nevsun's entire stock and includes C$150 million in cash from Euro Sun and C$600 million in cash from Lundin along with C$150 million of Euro Sun stock and C$600 million in Lundin stock.

DIVERSIFIED

* BHP Billiton Group's planned exit from its U.S. shale business could take longer than expected, with no deal expected until late this year or early 2019 due to the involvement of a large number of interested parties, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the negotiations.

* Guangdong Rising Assets Management is said to be considering a potential IPO of Australian gold-copper miner PanAust Ltd., which the former purchased a few years ago in a A$1.2 billion listed takeover battle, The Australian reported.

* Intrepid Mines Ltd. entered into a farm-in and joint venture agreement to earn up to an 80% interest in Ausgold Ltd.'s Doolgunna Station base metals-gold project in Western Australia.

BASE METALS

* Indonesian state-owned firm PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Persero) secured financing for the acquisition of Rio Tinto's stake in the Grasberg copper project in Indonesia, The Australian Financial Review reported.

* Avanco Resources Ltd. does not expect a material impact on C1 cash costs or all-in sustaining costs for the second quarter, after resuming mining activity at its Brazilian copper operations. Operations were suspended in late May amid a truck drivers' strike in the country.

* An independent estimate of grades and tonnage was completed for Galileo Resources PLC's 85%-owned Star Zinc property in Zambia using data from a recent diamond drill program. The company said that the conceptual resource estimate defined a total of 485,000 tonnes grading an average 15.4% zinc using a nominal 3% zinc cutoff, noting that it is not a formal resource estimate and there is no guarantee of one.

* Silver Bull Resources Inc. granted a South32 Ltd. unit the option to acquire a 70% stake in the former's Sierra Mojada zinc project in Mexico for US$100 million and form a 70/30 joint venture over the property. The transaction will see the South32 unit subscribing for 70% of the shares of Silver Bull's Minera Metalin SA de CV, which holds the Sierra Mojada claims.

* Talisman Mining Ltd. is said to be considering a A$70 million offer from Sandfire Resources NL for the acquisition of the former's 30% stake in their Monty copper-gold joint venture in Western Australia, The West Australian reported. The proposed deal, which is A$22 million above Talisman's A$48 million market capitalization, includes a 1.5% net smelter royalty on any future discovery within the 324 square kilometers joint venture area.

* Beaufield Resources Inc. increased its wholly owned land package in the Tortigny-Troilus district of Quebec by staking an additional 348 claims over 18,995 hectares, bringing the total holdings to 810 claims for 42,849 hectares. The new claims cover a number of high-priority base and precious metal targets near its Tortigny copper deposit.

* Afritin Mining Ltd. appointed local contractor Ino Invest for the first phase of construction of plant civil works at its flagship Uis tin mine in Namibia, with construction targeted for completion in the third quarter. Phase one is designed to process 500,000 tonnes per annum.

* First Cobalt Corp. completed the acquisition of US Cobalt Inc.; the latter will become a First Cobalt unit and will be delisted.

* Hammer Metals Ltd. terminated an option allowing a unit of Newmont Mining Corp. to earn up to a 75% interest in a 250-square-kilometer area in the Mount Isa copper project in Queensland, Australia.

* Two miners were killed in a rockfall incident at an abandoned Moroccan lead mine, Reuters wrote, citing state news agency MAP.

* BMR Group PLC agreed to pay Blue Square Minerals Ltd. up to US$800,000 as compensation for work to secure restoration of a small-scale mining license of the company and corporate advisory and technical support services related to the Kabwe zinc project in Zambia.

PRECIOUS METALS

* Once the undisputed world's largest gold producer, Toronto-based Barrick Gold Corp. barely managed to hold on to the title in 2017; its attributable output of 5.3 million ounces for the year was a mere 57,000 ounces over that of second-place Newmont Mining Corp. and a far cry from the more than 8 Moz of gold Barrick produced in 2007. With production expected to sink to 4.4 Moz in 2019, the Canadian gold miner appears entrenched in the No. 2 spot, at least for the foreseeable future, the Metals and Mining Research team at S&P Global Market Intelligence reported.

* The reported all-in sustaining costs of the largest gold producers remained largely the same, at a weighted average of US$899/oz in the first quarter, a small increase compared with the same companies' weighted average in the previous quarter. While several companies reported a significantly different — higher or lower — AISC in the first quarter, the majority shifted by less than 10% in either direction, the Metals and Mining Research team at S&P Global Market Intelligence reported.

* Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk PLC is seeking a ruling from the U.K. Takeover Panel about whether a group of dissident shareholders is working in concert to take control of the company, the Financial Times wrote, citing sources. The group, which collectively owns a 30% interest, is calling for an overhaul of the miner's board and is seeking to bring back a former CEO. If the panel determines that there is collusion, it would cap their ability to buy more shares, unless they are prepared to make a takeover offer.

* Pan American Silver Corp. said that the security situation on the access roads to its Dolores silver mine in Mexico improved following increased patrol and enforcement by the country's authorities. As a result, road transport of diesel fuel, cement and other supplies to the mine resumed. The company recently reduced activities at Dolores as a safety measure, although it does not expect the move to have a material impact on its annual production guidance.

* Diatreme Resources Ltd. and Superior Resources Ltd. agreed to vend their respective interests in the Tick Hill gold joint venture in Queensland, Australia, into an upcoming IPO by Carnaby Resources Ltd. on the ASX.

* Five illegal miners in Indonesia were killed in a mine collapse, Reuters wrote, citing the country's Disaster Mitigation Agency. A sixth miner remains unaccounted for.

* Havilah Resources Ltd. agreed to sell the Benagerie mining lease, which hosts the Portia gold and North Portia copper projects in South Australia.

* Shanta Gold Ltd. estimated a JORC-compliant mineral resource at its Singida gold project in central Tanzania of 12.3 million tonnes at 1.84 g/t gold containing 725,000 ounces.

BULK COMMODITIES

* Vedanta Resources PLC unit Vedanta Ltd. executed an approved resolution plan for the acquisition of a 90% stake in debt-laden steelmaker Electrosteel Steels Ltd. The company deposited an upfront 53.20 billion Indian rupees in escrow in connection with the transaction.

* Institutional investors with US$28 trillion in assets under management urged leaders of the world's major industrial nations to "phase out thermal coal power worldwide by set deadlines." "The global shift to clean energy is underway, but much more needs to be done by governments," a group of more than 300 investors wrote in advance of the G-7 summit in Canada on June 8-9.

* The U.S. Treasury Department further extended the deadline for investors to divest stakes in sanctioned Russian company En+ Group PLC and its unit EuroSibEnergo to Oct. 23, Reuters reported.

* British Prime Minister Theresa May told President Donald Trump during a telephone call that the U.S.'s move to impose import tariffs on European Union steel and aluminum were "unjustified and deeply disappointing", Reuters reported, citing May's spokesperson.

* EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said the bloc could move to impose preliminary measures to safeguard its steel and aluminum sectors by July, although a full investigation will take about nine months, Reuters reported.

* Mexico said it would take the U.S. to the World Trade Organization to settle a dispute over steel and aluminum tariffs, joining the EU in seeking the trade body's involvement against the measures, Reuters reported.

* Christine St-Pierre, Quebec's minister of international relations, said the Canadian province will press the U.S. government to exempt its smelters from the aluminum tariffs, Metal Bulletin reported. The smelters in Quebec make most of the aluminum exported from Canada, most of which is bounds for the U.S. Meanwhile, Quebec's deputy premier Dominique Anglade said the government will support the Canadian aluminum sector to make sure they maintain jobs following the U.S. tariffs.

* Aspire Mining Ltd.'s draft feasibility study for the 547.7-kilometer Erdenet-to-Ovoot rail project in Mongolia estimated an equity net present value, discounted at 8%, of US$276 million and a 13.6% equity internal rate of return after taxes.

SPECIALTY

* Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said he hopes the country can use its about 20 million tonnes of rare earth reserves, which he said are the world's third-largest, in building new energy technologies, Reuters reported. "We wish to cooperate in research and development and transfer of advanced technologies in mining and in-depth processing of rare earth in order to create high value-added and environment-friendly products," Phuc said.

* Bacanora Lithium PLC said Japanese battery chemicals trader Hanwa Corp. has agreed in principle extend its initial five-year lithium off-take agreement with the company for another five years. The company also plans to begin the stage-two expansion at its Sonora lithium project in Mexico to boost production to 35,000 tonnes per year from 17,500 t/y.

* Northern Graphite Corp. inked a memorandum of understanding with a European commodity trader to sell 100% of the projected output from the Ontario-based Bissett Creek graphite project in China.

* Sunrise Resources PLC signed a second nonbinding memorandum of understanding for the potential supply of perlite from its CS pozzolan-perlite project in Nevada. The identity of the potential customer is being kept confidential for commercial reasons.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* The Australian Bureau of Statistics' latest Business Indicators data showed that the country's resources sector recorded gross operating profits of A$30.31 billion in the March quarter, up from A$28.65 billion in the previous quarter and topped a record A$28.92 billion set in March last year, The Australian reported.

* China warned the U.S. that any trade deals between the two countries will be invalid if the U.S. implements tariffs and other trade measures, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The Daily Dose has an editorial deadline of 7 a.m. Hong Kong time. 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.