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Banks prepare €7B debt for thyssenkrupp's elevator sale; Vale cuts pellet target

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Banks prepare €7B debt for thyssenkrupp's elevator sale; Vale cuts pellet target

TOP NEWS

Report: Bankers preparing €7B debt for thyssenkrupp's elevator unit sale

Bankers are putting together debt financing of up to €7 billion to support a potential sale of thyssenkrupp AG's elevator business, Reuters reported, citing banking sources. The sale process, which started earlier this month, is expected to progress within the next two weeks following the dismissal of CEO Guido Kerkhoff, who lost the trust of investors after the German conglomerate struggled under his watch, the report said.

Vale further decreases FY'19 iron ore pellet guidance due to market conditions

Vale SA further decreased its full-year production guidance for iron ore pellets to 43 million tonnes from the previously revised 45 Mt, citing temporary market conditions. The mining giant said that the change will not affect its 2019 iron ore and pellet sales target of between 307 Mt and 332 Mt. Meanwhile, the company will launch a new iron ore pellet product in the first quarter of 2020 to meet an expected rise in demand in China, Reuters reported.

Brazil court lifts final embargo on Norsk Hydro's new Alunorte tailings area

The Brazilian federal court lifted the final embargo on Norsk Hydro ASA's DRS2 bauxite residue disposal area at the Alunorte alumina refinery. The ruling will allow the company to resume commissioning activities at DRS2, which is intended to replace the DRS1 tailings area.

DIVERSIFIED

* Chile's Supreme Court ordered another environmental review of Minera Andes Iron's US$2.5 billion Dominga iron ore-copper project to hear the demands made by activists and claims by the company, Reuters reported.

BASE METALS

* Vedanta Ltd. is seeking approval from India's Tamil Nadu state administration to repair its Tuticorin copper smelter, which has been deteriorating since its closure over a year ago, Bloomberg reported, citing the CEO of the company's Sterlite Copper unit, Pankaj Kumar. The prolonged closure has cut India's copper cathode production by 40% from a year earlier to 457,245 tonnes in the 12 months ended March 31, while its refined copper exports dropped 87% to about 50,000 tonnes, according to data from the nation's trade ministry.

* Saracen Mineral Holdings Ltd. entered a binding agreement to acquire Talisman Mining Ltd.'s subsidiary Talisman Nickel Pty Ltd., owner of the Sinclair nickel project in Western Australia.

* Stavely Minerals Ltd. shares had surged over 250% by Sept. 26 ASX trading close after the company reported a "stunning" copper-gold discovery at the Thursday's Gossan prospect within its namesake project in Victoria, Australia.

* Tintina Mines Ltd. entered a non-binding letter of intent to acquire the shares of NSR Resources Inc. it does not already own. The proposed deal will allow Tintina to use NSR's financial resources to develop its Red Mountain molybdenum project and the Watson Lake claims, both in Yukon.

* Consolidated Zinc Ltd. took up full ownership of the Plomosas zinc mine in Mexico after completing the acquisition of the remaining 10% stake from Retec Guaru SA de CV

* Keras Resources PLC will distribute its 33.71% shareholding in Calidus Resources Ltd., with its shareholders receiving 1 Calidus share for every 3.44229 Keras shares held. The board of the London-listed junior believes the demerger will release significant value to shareholders and give them direct exposure to both companies' business interests.

PRECIOUS METALS

* Newmont Goldcorp Corp. is ready to resume talks with protesters as soon as they lift their blockade at the Peñasquito gold mine in Mexico, Reuters reported.

* Canadian mining exploration and development company Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. will be looking for opportunities arising out of the closure of three of Sibanye Gold Ltd.'s shafts to further expand its Platreef platinum group metals project in South Africa. Ivanhoe's president Tony Giardini told investors at a conference in London that development at the Platreef mine was proceeding very well, and the company is now looking at the best way to advance the project.

* Eldorado Gold Corp. launched an at-the-market equity program, which allows it to issue up to US$125 million in shares from treasury at prevailing market prices. Part of the proceeds will be used to fund its capital expenditure at the Kişladağ gold-silver mine in Turkey and the Lamaque project in Quebec.

* Defense Minister Mahamat Sala said a Sept. 24 landslide at an illegal gold mine in northwestern Chad killed about 30 people, and more people might still be buried in the rubble, Reuters reported. Illegal gold mining in the Tibesti region near the Libyan border, where the mine is located, has grown significantly in recent years, often by the influx of refugees from Sudan or rebels fighting the army, according to the newswire.

* China's net gold imports via Hong Kong in August jumped nearly 61% to 12.997 tonnes from an eight-year low of 8.085 tonnes in July, Reuters reported, citing data from the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department.

BULK COMMODITIES

* Vale upsized its previously announced debt buyback to about US$1.08 billion from US$1.00 billion.

* Starting in January 2020, the International Maritime Organisation will require ships to use lower-sulfur fuel, a new rule that will add about US$2 per tonne to BHP Group's iron ore shipments from Pilbara, Western Australia, to China, The Australian reported.

* Perth's Magistrate Court slapped a A$50,000 fine on BHP after it neglected to close a road damaged by floods in 2016 that resulted to a worker sustaining a back injury while driving a fuel haul truck en route to the Yandi iron ore mine in Western Australia.

* German steelmaker Salzgitter AG expects to record a pre-tax loss for the full year after increasing by about €140 million, as of Sept. 30, the risk provisions related to a cartel probe. The company had anticipated a 2019 EBIT of between €125 million and €175 million.

* Incoming thyssenkrupp AG interim CEO Martina Merz resigned as chairwoman of auto supplier SAF-Holland SA, Reuters reported.

* For its fiscal second quarter, Jupiter Mines Ltd. produced 890,995 tonnes of manganese from its 49.9%-owned Tshipi Borwa manganese mine in South Africa.

* Western Resources Corp. unit Western Potash Corp. entered a binding agreement to supply Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. with the full phase one output from the Milestone potash plant in Saskatchewan.

* Canyon Resources Ltd.'s total resource estimate for the Minim Martap bauxite project in Cameroon grew 62% to 892 million tonnes at 45.1% aluminum oxide and 2.8% silicon oxide, using a 35% aluminum oxide cut-off grade.

SPECIALTY

* Rio Tinto reiterated its desire to stay active in the diamond sector despite the impending closure of the Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia in 2020, Reuters reported. "Diamonds is a business we like a lot. It’s a very high-margin business in line with our strategy of value over volume," said Arnaud Soirat, Rio's chief executive for copper and diamonds.

* Syrah Resources Ltd. defended its disputed claim of depressed graphite market prices across all flake sizes, which financial advisory Hartleys said could impact project financing for hopefuls like Battery Minerals Ltd. Syrah's CEO, Shaun Verner, told S&P Global Market Intelligence that the company recently saw weaker prices "across the board" for graphite prices, regardless of users' differing specifications.

* Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund, Samruk-Kazyna sold nearly 9.9 million JSC National Atomic Co. Kazatomprom global depositary receipts at US$13 apiece, for proceeds of US$128.2 million, in an accelerated bookbuild via the London Stock Exchange and Astana International Exchange. The sale reduces Samruk-Kazyna's ownership to 81.2% from 85%, raising Kazatomprom's free float to 18.8%. It was necessary because of the stock's lack of liquidity, a source familiar with the matter told S&P Global Market Intelligence.

* AMG Advanced Metallurgical Group NV signed a multiyear contract to supply Glencore PLC's Glencore AG unit with all of its ferrovanadium output from its existing and future facilities in Ohio.

* Five Star Diamonds Ltd. and Spirit Banner II Capital Corp. terminated a deal that granted Spirit Banner an option to acquire Five Star's diamond projects in Brazil. Five Star said it intends to explore opportunities in other commodities due to difficulties in the diamond sector for the past two years.

* Element 25 Ltd. completed the sale of the Cummins Range rare earths project in Western Australia to Sagon Resources Ltd.

* Lithium Australia NL's option to acquire the Youanmi lithium project in Western Australia has expired.

* Lucara Diamond Corp. recovered a 9.74-carat blue diamond and a 4.13-carat pink diamond from its Karowe diamond mine in Botswana. The gems will be auctioned during the company's fourth-quarter tender in December.

* Greenpower Energy Ltd. ceased its Guyana operations and is seeking buyers for its 51% stake in Guyana Strategic Metals Inc. unit, which owns the Morabisi rare earths-lithium project.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* According to Moody's, mining companies are facing challenges in securing water access for their properties due to depleting water resources in many countries that host large mining operations, such as Peru, Chile, Australia, South Africa and Mongolia.

* The Toronto Stock Exchange recognized the 30 top-performing stocks for the past three years based on dividend-adjusted share price appreciation. Among those listed were Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd., Trilogy Metals Inc., Ivanhoe Mines, Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corp., Anglo Pacific Group PLC, North American Palladium Ltd., Gran Colombia Gold Corp. and Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd.

* Nine countries joined the U.S. in its initiative to develop strategic minerals used to make electric vehicles, Reuters reported, citing Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The countries are Argentina, Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Congo, Namibia, Peru, the Philippines and Zambia.

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