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Amplats, Sibanye's union wage talks stall; Mosaic to cut FY'19 phosphate output

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Amplats, Sibanye's union wage talks stall; Mosaic to cut FY'19 phosphate output

TOP NEWS

Amplats, Sibanye seek mediators as wage talks with AMCU hit deadlock

Anglo American Platinum Ltd., or Amplats, and Sibanye Gold Ltd. are looking to bring in mediators after wage talks with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, or AMCU, reached a deadlock, Bloomberg News reported. After AMCU reportedly declared a dispute, the South African platinum producers said they want to solve the matter internally instead of bringing it to arbitration at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration. Reuters also covers.

Mosaic to idle La. phosphate operations amid price slump

Amid declining prices, Mosaic Co. plans to idle its Faustina and Uncle Sam phosphate production facilities in Louisiana starting Oct. 1 to cut 2019 output by about 500,000 tonnes. The move is projected to tighten supply, rebalance the market and reduce inventories. Mosaic also plans to initiate US$250 million in stock repurchases, while its Mosaic Fertilizantes do Brasil Ltda. unit expects to achieve US$275 million in synergies this year, with an additional US$200 million targeted by 2022.

Syrah shares plummet on lower graphite output plans

Syrah Resources Ltd.'s shares on the ASX plunged 33% by Sept. 10 trading close after the company said it plans to reduce graphite production to about 5,000 tonnes per month in the fourth quarter due to a "sudden and material decrease" in the spot prices of natural flake graphite in China. The company also intends to review further structural cost reduction at the Balama graphite operation in Mozambique and across the company and conduct a strategic and operational review for 2020. Syrah said it expects to record a noncash posttax impairment of property, plant and equipment and mining assets of about US$60 million to US$70 million and an inventory write-down of about US$5 million in its interim results for 2019.

BASE METALS

* Nickel output from the Philippines during the first half increased 3% to 11.31 million dry tonnes, even as operations at 16 of the 31 nickel mines in the country were suspended due to maintenance or because of environmental and other offenses, Reuters reported, citing data from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau.

* Nickel Mines Ltd., owner of a 60% stake in the Hengjaya nickel industry rotary-kiln electric furnace project in Indonesia, agreed with partner Shanghai Decent Investment (Group) Co. Ltd. to limit its contractual option to further equity interest in the project to no more than 80% from the previous 100%.

* Cobalt 27 Capital Corp. said second-quarter production from its 8.56%-owned Ramu nickel-cobalt operation in Papua New Guinea decreased year over year to 22,490 tonnes of mixed hydroxide product containing 8,767 tonnes of nickel and 793 tonnes of cobalt.

PRECIOUS METALS

* Barrian Mining Corp. entered into a letter of intent to acquire the Troy Canyon gold-silver project in Nevada from privately owned Brocade Metals Corp.

* In a live Facebook broadcast, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said access to Lydian International Ltd.'s Amulsar gold project should be restored, urging protesters to remove a blockade at the site. The government will carry out an inspection to ensure Lydian's compliance with its permits.

* Maximus Resources Ltd. entered into a new deal to sell its Burbanks gold mill in Western Australia to Mineral Ventures Pty. Ltd. after terminating a lease-option deal in April with GBF Mining and Industrial Services Pty. Ltd. The sale is expected to be complete this month.

* Petropavlovsk PLC swung to a profit of US$14 million in the first half from a year-ago loss of US$40 million. Gold revenue climbed 13% to US$305 million as gold sales volumes increased 12% to 225,100 ounces on a yearly basis. The results included a net US$38 million of other finance gains, partially offset by a US$14 million increase in interest expense.

* MaxTech Ventures Inc. signed a binding letter of intent to acquire the Panama gold project from Benton Resources Inc.

* Beacon Minerals Ltd. produced its maiden gold bar from the Jaurdi gold project in Western Australia. Commercial production at the project is planned to start Oct. 1.

* Ardiden Ltd. estimated a maiden mineral resource for the Kasagiminnis deposit, part of its Pickle Lake gold project in Ontario, of 790,000 tonnes at 4.3 g/t gold containing 110,000 ounces.

* A preliminary economic assessment on Integra Resources Corp.'s DeLamar gold-silver project in Idaho defined a posttax net present value, discounted at 5%, of US$357.6 million, a 43% internal rate of return and a 2.4-year payback period based on gold and silver prices of US$1,350 per ounce and US$16.90/oz, respectively.

* The joint venture of Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd. and Southern Gold Ltd. was granted the permit to develop the Gubong gold mine in South Korea.

* Americas Gold and Silver Corp. agreed to form a 60/40 joint venture with Eric Sprott's 2176423 Ontario Ltd. to recapitalize mining operations at the Galena complex in Idaho. 2176423 Ontario must invest US$20 million by Oct. 1 to earn its 40% stake.

BULK COMMODITIES

* The Queensland Court of Appeal ruled in favor of New Hope Corp. Ltd. related to the third stage of its New Acland coal mine in Queensland, Australia, and against Oakey Coal Action Alliance Inc. The court further ruled in favor of the company's New Acland Coal Pty. Ltd. unit on the matter of groundwater, saying "the original land court recommendation was infected by apprehension of bias."

* Vale SA's Feijao iron ore tailings dam disaster has prompted miners in southern Africa to reassess indemnity agreements for in-country directors of local subsidiaries, among a raft of measures to better prepare for and mitigate any such incidents on the continent in the future. Global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills' Johannesburg-based environmental director, Matthew Burnell, said in an interview that African miners now have a "heightened awareness" of a greater risk to communities from any potential incident due to their location in proximity to their operations.

* The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union published advertisements slamming BHP Group's new contract employment model, calling it a "cheap move" that creates two classes of workers with huge pay gaps deployed across its Australian coal mines, The Australian Financial Review wrote.

* KONE Oyj tapped German law firm Hengeler Mueller as an adviser on its planned bid for thyssenkrupp AG's elevator business, Reuters wrote, citing two people familiar with the matter.

* Chilean steelmaker CAP SA said its Guacolda 2 port in northern Chile will resume operations within the next 60 days, but the facility will not reach full capacity this year compared with 2018 levels, daily La Tercera reported. The operations were suspended in November 2018 after an accident that resulted in the death of a worker.

* Davenport Resources Ltd. received a three-year extension to January 2023 for its 457-square-kilometer Küllstedt and Gräfentonna potash exploration licenses in Germany.

* Russia's VTB Bank PJSC denied a Financial Times report that said it was in talks with Chinese companies about a potential share sale in En+ Group IPJSC, Reuters wrote.

* Hebei Jinxi Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. will invest 30 billion Chinese yuan in a 10 million-tonne-per-annum steel plant in Fangchenggang city in China's Guangxi province, China Securities Journal reported.

* Meridian Mining SE was granted a trial production license for its Espigão manganese project in Brazil that is valid until March 6, 2021.

SPECIALTY

* Tianqi Lithium Corp. temporarily halted the development work on the second stage of its A$300 million lithium hydroxide plant in Western Australia, which would have doubled the annual production capacity to 48,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide, in line with global demand, The Australian Financial Review reported. The company will focus on commissioning and achieving practical completion of the first stage by October-end.

* PJSC Alrosa's rough and polished diamond sales in the January-to-August period totaled US$2.16 billion, including rough diamonds sales of US$2.13 billion. Sales in August amounted to US$181.8 million. The company is in talks with several global jewelry retailers about marketing its fluorescent diamonds branded Luminous Diamonds, which many traders consider lower quality, Reuters reported, citing CEO Sergei Ivanov.

* Israel Chemicals Ltd. plans to increase its production capacity of bromine compounds with an investment of about US$50 million. It will increase the production capacity of TBBA, a bromine compound mainly used in manufacturing circuit boards, by up to 25,000 tonnes per year and of FR1025, a polymeric flame retardant, by 50%.

* Rio Tinto launched the Argyle Pink Everlastings Collection, a new offering of rare pink diamonds from its Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia.

* Savannah Resources PLC was conditionally given 25-year approvals for two mining concessions at its Mutamba heavy mineral sands project in Mozambique, operated under a joint venture with Rio Tinto.

* Melior Resources Inc. units Goondicum Resources Pty. Ltd. and Melior Australia Pty. Ltd. appointed a voluntary administrator after failing to secure funds to continue operations due to the underperforming Goondicum ilmenite mine in Queensland, Australia.

* Stornoway Diamond Corp. applied to the Superior Court of Quebec for creditor protection to allow restructuring. Stornoway also entered into a letter of intent allowing Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd. and certain secured creditors to acquire the company's assets and assume its debt and ongoing obligations related to the Renard diamond mine in Quebec.

* The government of Saudi Arabia intends to enrich uranium for its nuclear power program, with a tender to be issued in 2020 for the country's first two nuclear power reactors, Reuters reported, citing Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* The Brazilian government wants China to increase its investment in the South American nation's mining, oil and logistics industries, Reuters reported, citing Brazilian Vice President Hamilton Mourao. Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Brazil in November as the two countries aim to strengthen ties, the report said.

* Finland's new government plans to increase taxes on fossil fuel used for transport, part of an effort to make the country carbon-neutral by 2035, Reuters reported, citing the country's environment ministry.

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