TOP NEWS
Barrick, Newmont's Super Pit JV slashes FY'18 gold output guidance
Barrick Gold Corp. and Newmont Mining Corp.'s 50/50 joint venture in Western Australia, the Kalgoorlie Super Pit gold mine, expects lower production and higher costs for the full year after two rock falls that suspended operations in May, Mining Journal wrote, citing Newmont COO Tom Palmer. The joint venture now expects to produce 550,000 to 660,000 ounces at all-in sustaining costs of US$825/oz to US$875/oz in 2018. Previous guidance stood at 700,000 to 800,000 ounces at all-in sustaining costs of US$750/oz to US$800/oz. Palmer said it was likely that production in 2019 and 2020 would also be affected.
Analysts mostly upbeat on BHP's US$10.8B shale sale
Analysts from major banks said BHP Billiton Group selling its U.S. unconventional oil and gas assets to BP PLC for US$10.5 billion allows it to move on from an episode best left in the past, but one independent analyst who has compared the prices achieved per acre to the going rate when the Australian miner bought them said it has come off much worse. BHP agreed to sell its entire interest in the Eagle Ford, Haynesville and Fayetteville shales and Permian Basin onshore U.S. oil and gas assets for a combined US$10.8 billion, payable in cash, a deal that BP said would "transform" its own onshore oil and gas business. Merit Energy Co. unit MMGJ Hugoton III LLC is acquiring the Fayetteville assets for about US$300 million as part of the deal.
Noble Group flags up to US$140M Q2 loss; wins case against former CEO
Noble Group Ltd. said it expects a net loss of US$115 million to US$140 million for the second quarter due to restructuring and financing expenses and will not pay the coupon due July 30 for its 6.75% senior notes maturing 2020. As a result of the expected loss, its net asset position — defined as total assets minus total liabilities — was negative US$1 billion as of June 30. Meanwhile, the High Court of Singapore ruled in favor of the company and unit Noble Resources Ltd. in a US$48 million case made brought against them in 2012 by former Noble Group CEO Ricardo Leiman and his trustee company. Leiman sought damages from the company as it withheld bonuses, shares and options after his termination.
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* Teck Resources Ltd. closed the sale of its two-thirds interest in the Waneta Dam in British Columbia to BC Hydro and Power Authority for C$1.2 billion cash. Teck will record an after-tax gain of about C$820 million as a result of the sale, with no cash tax payable on the proceeds.
* Bankers Cobalt Corp. entered into an option with a private Namibian partner to acquire a 70% interest in the Kamanjab license in Namibia, which is prospective for base metals, precious metals and industrial metals.
BASE METALS
* Chilean mining union association Federación de Trabajadores del Cobre said Codelco plans to lay off an additional 2,800 people at the Chuquicamata copper mine on top of the 1,700 dismissals previously announced as part of a plan to transform the open pit mine into an underground operation, El Mercurio de Calama reported.
* Nevsun Resources Ltd. is on track to meet its full-year guidance as zinc concentrate production in the second quarter increased to 51.3 million pounds and copper concentrate output rose to 8.6 million pounds.
* Minera Frisco SAB de CV's second-quarter copper output increased 42% yearly, while gold, silver, lead and zinc production marked yearly decreases of 35%, 21%, 8% and 12%, respectively. Net sales slipped 5% to US$187 million.
* Volcan Compañía Minera SAA's suspension of mining activity at its Animón and Islay mines, part of its Chungar zinc mine in Peru, since the start of the year on safety concerns resulted in a 14% drop in zinc production to 56,400 fine tonnes, with lead production similarly dropping 13% to 10,800 fine tonnes in the second quarter.
* S&P Global Ratings said its ratings and outlook on Lundin Mining Corp. were not affected by its formal offer to acquire Nevsun for C$4.75 per share.
* Xinjiang Xinxin Mining Industry Co. Ltd. expects to record a net profit of not less than 6 million Chinese yuan for the first six months of the year, from a net loss of 64.5 million yuan. Consolidated revenue is targeted at 866 million yuan.
* Round Oak Minerals Pty. Ltd received approval from the state government of Victoria, Australia, to reopen a dormant copper-zinc mine, which is slated to generate more than 500 jobs, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
* Vedanta Resources PLC's Zambian unit said work at its Konkola copper mine's underground shaft four was suspended after a miner was killed in an accident, Reuters reported. The company will conduct an investigation.
PRECIOUS METALS
* Dragon Mining Ltd. started test mining activities at its Faboliden gold project in northern Sweden. The work will initially involve removing overburden from the test-pit area to prepare it for the planned extraction of 100,000 tonnes of ore from the test pit during the second phase in 2019.
* Lonmin PLC's platinum production for the third quarter of its fiscal 2018, including its Pandora and bulk tailings retreatment operations, fell yearly to 165,991 ounces, from 169,820 ounces in the prior year, at a production cost of 11,781 South African rand per ounce. The drop was due to a planned reduction of mining from generation one shafts as a result of closures.
* Yamana Gold Inc. swung to attributable net income in the second quarter of US$18 million, or 2 U.S. cents per share, from a year-ago net loss of US$39.9 million, or 4 cents per share. Revenue climbed to US$431.5 million from US$428.1 million. On a gold-equivalent basis, Yamana raised its second-quarter output to 240,271 ounces, due to higher-than-planned gold production.
* Eldorado Gold Corp. lifted its full-year gold production forecast to between 330,000 and 340,000 ounces from 290,000 to 330,000 ounces previously, mainly due to the improved production forecast for its Kisladag mine in Turkey. The company's gold production in the second quarter surged 56% year over year to 99,105 ounces.
* Royal Bafokeng Platinum Ltd. anticipates a loss per share of between 13.5 cents and 10.5 cents in the first half.
* Regis Resources Ltd.'s group ore reserves as of March 31 increased 86% to 4.06 million ounces, while group mineral resources fell 2% to 7.86 million ounces.
* Detour Gold Corp. investor Paulson & Co. Inc. nominated eight directors to overhaul the explorer's board, Bloomberg News reported.
* Rift Valley Resources Corp. signed a new letter of intent for a business combination with Metrolink Solutions Inc. in a merger of equals.
* Jaxon Mining Inc.'s share price jumped over 31% on July 26 after the company announced the discovery of five major copper-gold mineralized trends within the Red Spring project area, part of the Hazelton silver-gold-copper project in British Columbia.
BULK COMMODITIES
* Hancock Prospecting Pty. Ltd.'s off-market takeover offer of 4.2 Australian cents per share for Atlas Iron Ltd. is now unconditional. The offer is scheduled to close Aug. 3.
* Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. CEO Elizabeth Gaines said the company's 60.72%-owned Iron Bridge magnetite project in Western Australia is economically viable at current prices, The Australian reported. However, securing a go-ahead for the US$1.5 billion project will need additional studies on the market outlook, costs and size.
* Separately, Gaines insisted that its acquisition of a 19.9% stake in Atlas Iron was a strategic investment, saying it took a position in the junior miner to ensure it had a "seat at the table," The West Australian reported.
* Vale SA CEO Fabio Schvartsman said the scarcity of the company's trademark top-quality ore will shield it for the foreseeable future from the impact of a global trade war, which has hurt other minerals, Reuters reported. Separately, the mining major is considering the sale of noncore joint ventures as part of a plan to simplify its structure, Metal Bulletin reported.
* NV Bekaert SA's consolidated revenue increased 3% yearly to €2.15 billion in the first half, resulting from increased volumes, the aggregate effect of passed-on wire rod price increases and price-mix boosting organic sales growth.
* Mexico's Compañía Minera Autlán SAB de CV reported EBITDA of US$25.9 million in the second quarter, marking a yearly decrease of 5.8%. The drop was attributed to increases in operating costs, such as energy, and higher prices for importing manganese ore and coke. Sales, meanwhile, increased 12% to US$101.1 million.
* IRC Ltd.'s second-quarter iron ore concentrate production increased 53% yearly to 580,933 tonnes, with iron ore sales increasing 47% to 555,677 tonnes, due to record monthly and production and sales volumes at the K&S mine in Russia.
* Mineral Resources Ltd. signed an option to earn up to a 50% joint venture interest in Brockman Mining Ltd.'s Marillana iron ore project in Western Australia.
SPECIALTY
* Hastings Technology Metals Ltd. signed an exclusive mandate with German bank KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH for the provision of up to A$250 million in senior debt facilities to finance the Yangibana rare earths project in Western Australia.
* Anglo American PLC unit De Beers SA expects to close its acquisition of Peregrine Diamonds Ltd. in a month to six weeks' time, Reuters reported. Peregrine owns the Chidliak diamond project in Nunavut, Canada.
* Northern Minerals Ltd. officially opened the pilot plant of the Browns Range heavy rare earths project in Western Australia's East Kimberley region. In a statement, the state government said the project will be a "major job-creator" for the Kimberley region and Western Australia.
* Tando Resources Ltd. was granted the mining rights for the SPD vanadium project in South Africa. The company plans to commence drilling there in August.
* Gem Diamonds Ltd. recovered a 100.5-carat, top white color, Type IIa diamond from its Letseng mine in Lesotho, the 11th diamond of over 100 carats this year.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* Rio Tinto launched a partnership with the Regional Chambers of Commerce & Industry Western Australia aimed at supporting and enhancing the capabilities of local businesses in the Karratha and the Pilbara inland regions.
* Tanzania plans to set up a minerals exchange by the end of the year as the East African country looks to reap the benefits from its resources, Bloomberg News reported, citing Minerals Minister Angellah Kairuki.
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.
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