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AngloGold flags cutting up to 2,000 South African jobs in restructuring drive

TOP NEWS

AngloGold flags cutting up to 2,000 South African jobs in restructuring drive

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. will lay off up to 2,000 workers across its South African operations as part of a restructuring aimed at paring losses. The miner cited several operational challenges, including falling production and rising costs, as the reason for the retrenchments. AngloGold, whose remaining assets in South Africa include the Mponeng gold mine and a tailings treatment operation, employs about 8,200 people in the country. In response, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union said it won't allow its members to be "robbed of their livelihoods by the sheer pursuit of profit over people," while the National Union of Mineworkers urged all trade unions to create a united front to save jobs in the sector.

Report: Rusal resumes aluminum shipments to some customers

United Co. Rusal PLC resumed aluminum shipments to some customers last week following an extension of the deadline for companies to wind down contracts with the Russian producer under U.S. sanctions, Reuters reported, citing sources. The U.S. government moved its winding down deadline to Oct. 23 from June 5 and previously said it would consider lifting the sanctions if major Rusal shareholder Oleg Deripaska ceded control of the company. Meanwhile, VTB Bank CEO Andrey Kostin said the bank is prepared to give Rusal more time to settle its loans, Reuters reported, citing the TASS news agency.

Vedanta hikes final dividend after swing to profit in FY'18

Vedanta Resources PLC swung to a profit attributable to shareholders of US$236 million in its fiscal 2018, ended March 31, from a US$23 million loss a year ago. Revenue surged 33% year over year to US$15.36 billion on the back of strong commodity prices and volume ramp-ups. Meanwhile, reversal of a previously recorded noncash impairment charge of US$1.46 billion at Oil & Gas was partially offset by a US$758 million noncash impairment charge at Iron Ore Goa. Vedanta announced a final dividend of 41 U.S. cents per share. Vedanta also ceased construction and all other activities at the proposed second plant at its Tuticorin copper smelter in Tamil Nadu, India until it secures a renewed environmental clearance for the project. The application is expected to be decided by the authorities on or before Sept. 23.

DIVERSIFIED

* Vedanta Resources Chairman Anil Agarwal plans to step back from running the diversified conglomerate once Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan steps in as its new CEO in August, the Financial Times reported. The appointment of Venkatakrishnan, who has held the same post in AngloGold Ashanti since 2013, would give Agarwal space to focus on his charitable interests, including helping underprivileged women and children.

* Oil major BP PLC has invested US$20 million in "ultra-fast charging" battery developer StoreDot Ltd. in what at least one analyst says is another indicator that oil companies may soon add battery metals miners to their acquisition target list. StoreDot is developing a new type of electric-car battery that will aim to achieve a charging experience that is comparable to the time spent to refuel a traditional car.

* According to ABC, BHP Billiton Group aims to close the gender gap within the group by 2025 and continues to train women for mine jobs through a program at its Mount Arthur coal mine in New South Wales.

BASE METALS

* Botswana's Court of Appeal reversed a high court ruling to take Tati Nickel Mining Co. Pty. Ltd. out of provisional liquidation as the decision did not consider the impact on creditors, Reuters reported. Tati has been under provisional liquidation since October 2016, and the liquidation was extended twice to pave the way for a deal with investors. The high court took the company out of liquidation in April after the lapse of the last extension.

* Hindustan Copper Ltd. is forming a joint venture with Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation Ltd., or CMDC, to explore and mine copper in India's Chhattisgarh state, The Hindu wrote. Hindustan Copper will hold a 74% interest in the joint venture while the rest will be owned by CMDC.

* Jilin Jien Nickel Industry Co. Ltd. received a notice from the Shanghai Stock Exchange that its shares will be delisted as the company has booked consecutive earnings deficits in its annual earnings reports from 2014 to 2017.

* Avanco Resources Ltd. warned that it may have to scale back some operations in Brazil to preserve fuel stocks due to a nationwide truck driver strike. The strike may disrupt the supply of consumables for mining and processing at the Antas copper project and delay the transport of copper concentrate to port.

* Telson Mining Corp. started commercial production at its wholly owned Campo Morado zinc-lead-silver-gold mine in Mexico's Guerrero State.

* A preliminary economic assessment on Fireweed Zinc Ltd.'s Macmillan Pass zinc project in Canada's Yukon Territory pegged an after-tax net present value of C$448 million at an 8%, discount, an internal rate of return of 24% and a payback period of four years. Pre-production capital is pegged at C$404.4 million while sustaining capital was estimated at C$649.4 million for a total project cost of C$1.05 billion.

* Minotaur Exploration Ltd. entered into a binding agreement with Syndicated Metals Ltd. to acquire nine exploration permits for minerals, collectively known as the Highlands copper-gold project, covering an area of 776 square kilometers in Queensland, Australia.

* Chakana Copper Corp. doubled its land position at the Soledad copper property in Peru, which it is optioning from Condor Resources Inc., via the acquisition of four new breccia pipes surrounding the project.

* Harfang Exploration Inc. acquired via staking 132 mining claims across 6,202 hectares in Quebec's Labrador Through that are prospective for copper, nickel, platinum and palladium mineralization.

* Unionized workers at Imperial Metals Corp.'s Mount Polley copper mine in British Columbia have downed tools following a three-hour lockout by the company. The lockout intended to break an impasse on the renewal of a collective agreement that was determined at the end of 2017.

PRECIOUS METALS

* A higher realized gold price drove a 7% year-over-year increase in Nord Gold SE's net profit in the first quarter to US$42.4 million, the Russia-focused miner said. Revenue amounted to US$300 million, up from US$293.1 million the year before, while EBITDA fell to US$126 million from US$131 million.

* Beaufield Resources Inc. signed a letter of intent granting Bonterra Resources Inc. an option to acquire a 70% interest in the Duke gold property in Quebec. The property comprises 81 claims covering 3,590 hectares and is located near Bonterra's Urban Barry properties, which host the Gladiator gold deposit and extensions.

* Adventus Zinc Corp. and Salazar Resources Ltd. agreed to add the latter's Santiago gold project to the companies' exploration joint venture in Ecuador. Santiago comprises a single concession covering 2,350 hectares, and several vein occurrences identified on the property so far have yielded good sampling results for gold and silver.

* A preliminary economic assessment of Eastmain Resources Inc.'s Eau Claire gold project in Quebec defined a posttax net present value of C$260.2 million, discounted at 5%, with a 27% internal rate of return and a 3.1-year payback period.

BULK COMMODITIES

* Adani Enterprises Ltd. enlisted Rothschild to help sell a stake in its Abbot Point port operations in Queensland, Australia, a move that sources familiar with the matter said could help the company raise funds for the Carmichael coal project in the same state, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

* Pan Asia Corp. Ltd. takeover target New Emerald Coal Pty. Ltd. was placed into voluntary administration and a receiver was appointed by a secured creditor, which intends to proceed to a deed of company arrangement.

* The most severe form of black lung disease has been increasing dramatically among coal workers in central Appalachia, a development that could put further strain on federal programs that provide healthcare for retired miners. Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago's School of Public Health found that the proportion of miners applying for black lung benefits who were diagnosed with progressive massive fibrosis, or PMF, has increased dramatically since 1978, with a significantly accelerated rate of increase since 1996, the university said.

* India filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization challenging the U.S. government's tariffs on steel and aluminum, Reuters reported. India's claim seeks to recover a cost of US$31 million imposed on its aluminum exports and US$134 million on steel.

* Heinrich Hiesinger's role as CEO of ThyssenKrupp AG is more precarious than it has ever been as he prepares to introduce a new strategy to appease impatient investors, including Cevian and Elliott, Reuters reported, citing sources. "Hiesinger's days are numbered if there is no 180-degree turnaround with regard to the strategy," a banking source said.

* China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection criticized officials from Aluminum Corp. of China's Lanzhou branch in China's Gansu province for the "unsatisfactory" and "untimely" handling of toxic waste, Reuters reported. Several Lanzhou city officials were interviewed or cautioned about the same case, according to the report.

* Colombia's coal production for the first quarter dropped 11.7% year-over-year to 19.6 million tonnes, Reuters reported, citing data from the country's Energy and Mining Ministry. The world's fifth largest producer, in the same period 2017, produced 22.2 million tonnes of coal.

SPECIALTY

* Kazakhstan's National Atomic Co. Kazatomprom JSC completed its first delivery of natural uranium concentrates to Brazil's state-owned nuclear fuel producer, Indústrias nucleares do Brasil, or INB. According to the state-owned uranium miner, it won the bid to supply natural uranium concentrates to INB, but the company did not disclose further details on the supply deal.

* An updated preliminary economic assessment on the first phase of Peregrine Diamonds Ltd.'s Chidliak project in Nunavut, Canada increased planned diamond production by 44% to 16.7 million carats. The new study incorporates expanded resources at the CH-6 and CH-7 kimberlite pipes and defined an after-tax net present value of C$679 million, at a 7.5% discount rate, with a 31.1% internal rate of return.

* An updated resource estimate for Advantage Lithium Corp.'s flagship Cauchari property in Argentina determined that the project hosts inferred resources of 3 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent in approximately 1.2 cubic kilometers of brine grading 450 mg/L of lithium and 4,028 mg/L of potassium, with 9.5 million tonnes of potassium chloride.

* The Coega Special Economic Zone in South Africa is at an advanced stage of constructing facilities that will supply gigawatt factories with manganese, a key ingredient in most lithium-ion batteries, Mining Weekly reported.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* International mining firms remain hesitant to tap Argentina's mineral deposits given the lack of clarity on environmental rules, overlapping federal and local taxes and varying provincial regulations, Reuters reported. Mining Secretary Daniel Meilan acknowledged that more needs to be done to rebuild investor trust in the industry. Meilan, however, noted that the industry might bounce back if Congress approves an agreement signed between President Mauricio Macri and mining provinces to unify industry regulations.

* South Africa's Mine Minister Gwede Mantashe said that he and the country's Department of Mineral Resources are willing to make use of the 'use it or lose it' principle for mines that are under a care and maintenance state, Mining Weekly reported. Mantashe said there is a high number of shafts in this state, and this is negatively affecting the industry's production number as well as employment prospects.

* The Minerals Council of Australia welcomed the start of talks between Australia and the EU over a free trade agreement, saying the deal would allow for better trade, investment and economic relationship between the regions, Mining Weekly wrote. Formal negotiations will begin in June and MCA interim CEO David Byers noted that coal, gold and lead are among Australia's largest goods exports to the bloc, worth about A$8.8 billion in 2017.

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