TOP NEWS
BHP to keep Escondida's copper output at 1.2 million tonnes over next 10 years
BHP Billiton Group's 57.50%-owned Escondida copper mine in Chile is expected to produce between 1.13 million tonnes and 1.23 million tonnes of copper this year, and the company intends to keep producing about 1.2 million tonnes of copper per year from the mine for the next 10 years, The Australian reported. The company noted that the ramp-up at the mine is almost complete after investing about US$8 billion in the project over the past six years.
Norsk Hydro commits 500M kroner to upgrade Alunorte, expands scope of independent review
Norsk Hydro ASA will invest 500 million Norwegian kroner to upgrade the water treatment system at its Alunorte alumina refinery in Brazil. The planned upgrade is expected to be completed within the first quarter of 2019. The company has also expanded the scope of the ongoing independent review of the refinery, and will launch an internal audit after an infraction notice from Para state's Secretariat of Environment and Sustainability.
Vale CEO seeks new dividend policy based on cash flow
Vale SA CEO Fabio Schvartsman is leaning towards the introduction of a new dividend policy that is hinged on the company's cash flow generation, instead of its financial results, the Financial Times reported. The company's board is expected to decide on the policy this month, as Vale aggressively cuts debt to set the stage for steadier cash returns to shareholders over the coming years.
BASE METALS
* Colombia's constitutional court said in a ruling that South32 Ltd.'s Cerro Matoso nickel mine must "provide comprehensive and permanent attention" to indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities affected by the mine's operations and directed the company to pay damages to these communities collectively through a special fund, Reuters reported.
* KGHM Polska Miedz SA expects daily copper ore output at its Sierra Gorda mine in Chile to increase by 18% to 130,000 tonnes in 2019, from the current 110,000 tonnes of ore per day, Reuters reported, citing CFO Stefan Swiatkowski.
* Codelco Chairman Oscar Landerretche Moreno revealed that, due to higher copper prices, the miner made a profit of US$2.88 billion in 2017, Mining.com reported, citing a report published in local paper La Tercera. The state-owned miner had posted a pretax profit of US$435 million for 2016, swinging year over year from a loss of US$2.19 billion.
* Carnavale Resources Ltd. signed a deal to acquire three gold tenements, namely M28/0378, E28/1477 and E28/2226, forming the Grey Dam nickel-cobalt project and part of KalNorth Gold Mines Ltd.'s Kurnalpi gold project in Western Australia for A$110,000.
* Alara Resources Ltd. signed a heads of agreement with South West Pinnacle Exploration Ltd. to form a joint venture providing drilling and mineral exploration services in Oman.
* Rox Resources Ltd. restructured its Bonya copper joint venture with Arafura Resources Ltd. The revised deal sees Rox divesting 11% of its 51% interest in the joint venture minerals, in exchange for a 40% stake in the tungsten and molybdenum mineralization at the project, previously wholly owned by Arafura.
* PT Timah Tbk. is targeting output of 2 million tonnes of tin per annum by 2021, Indonesia's Antara News Agency reported. The company's tin ingot output reached 31,000 tonnes in 2017, with 60% derived from offshore mining, said Trenggono Sutioso, the company's business and commercial development director. Timah will continue to look for new deposits to meet its production guidance, Sutioso added.
* Avanco Resources Ltd. posted a maiden resource estimate for the Pantera copper project in Brazil of 20.8 million tonnes at 1.7% copper and 0.2 g/t of gold, containing 350,000 tonnes of copper and 140,000 ounces of gold, in the inferred category.
PRECIOUS METALS
* Hecla Mining Co. will acquire Klondex Mines Ltd., which holds the Fire Creek, Midas and Hollister gold mines in Nevada, in a deal valuing the latter at US$462 million. The Canadian assets of Klondex will be spun out to its existing shareholders.
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* Nkwe Platinum Ltd. received a nonbinding proposal from 60.47%-shareholder Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd. for the latter to acquire Nkwe's issued share capital that it does not already own for 8 Australian cents each.
* Sierra Metals Inc. said a strike initiated by a group of unionized contract workers at its polymetallic Yauricocha mine in Peru ended, following negotiations between the two sides. The labor action will not have any impact on the company's 2018 production and cost guidance.
* Pacific Topaz Resources Ltd. signed a nonbinding letter of intent to acquire privately held mineral exploration company Western Atlas Resources Inc. Closing is anticipated within 50 to 75 days, subject to various approvals.
* Bluebird Merchant Ventures Ltd. is on track to complete the feasibility studies for the Gubong and Kochang gold mines in South Korea in the third quarter.
* Panex Resources Inc. signed an earn-in agreement to acquire up to an 80% interest in Scotgold Resources Ltd. unit Scotgold Resources Portugal Ltda., which holds the Pomar license.
BULK COMMODITIES
* Noble Group Ltd. will not make payments due on its US$379 million notes due 2018 and US$750 million notes due 2022, Reuters reported.
* Kobe Steel Ltd.'s incoming president and CEO, Mitsugu Yamaguchi, indicated that the company may seek mergers or external partners for one or more of its business units as the company faces a difficult challenge to re-establish its reputation following a data fraud scandal, Reuters reported. "I will fully carry out my responsibilities to prevent any recurrences and regain trust," Yamaguchi said.
* Rio Tinto tapped Swiss investment bank UBS Group AG to explore a possible listing of the company's Pacific Aluminium Pty Ltd. unit on the ASX, Reuters reported, citing two industry sources.
* BHP and Vale SA joint venture Samarco Mineração SA appointed Rodrigo Alvarenga Vilela as interim CEO, replacing Roberto Lúcio Nunes de Carvalho, Metal Bulletin reported.
* China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd.'s commercial coal output slipped 10.4% year over year to 22.4 million tonnes in February, while monthly coal sales dropped 13% to 33.5 million tonnes.
* Alumina refineries in China's Henan province may delay the planned restart of operations due to rising costs for bauxite amid a supply shortage, Reuters reported, citing Antaike. Alumina refineries and aluminum smelters in parts of the country slashed their production by 30% during the November to March heating season to combat air pollution.
* The European Commission called for industry feedback on a 10-page list of U.S. products that could be subject to import tariffs, in case the U.S. government does not grant the EU exemption, Reuters reported. The commission earlier said it could retaliate by setting duties of 25% on a range of U.S. products.
* Effective March 19, the U.S. Commerce Department will start accepting requests for product exclusions from the country's newly implemented steel and aluminum import tariffs, but the agency could take up to 90 days to make determinations.
* Meanwhile, the While House said President Donald Trump is in negotiations with several countries on the possibility of granting exemptions to the trade tariffs, Reuters reported.
* According to a report by German magazine Der Spiegel, the U.S. is seeking to cap exports of the metals from Europe at 2017 levels in exchange for providing the EU exemption from the steel and aluminum tariffs, Reuters wrote.
* Goa's mining industry body sought clarity from the Indian government on the suspension of iron ore mining operations in the state and warned that failure to resume activities could result in job losses, Press Trust of India reported.
* Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co., Ltd. will retain the prices of its products at current levels for the second straight month in April to allow the market to absorb three consecutive months of rate hikes, Reuters reported.
SPECIALTY
* Investors enamored with Australian and Toronto-listed graphite plays should take heed that the market could be turned on its head within five years as multiple disruptors lie in their path, experts warn. Warwick Grigor, who started Sydney-based private investment bank Far East Capital Ltd. Research Division with Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. chairman Andrew Forrest, told S&P Global Market Intelligence that the graphite market is at a "critical point," with known strong demand ahead but which won't have an impact for another three years potentially.
* Chile's new government has not made a decision over whether to support a petition filed by state development agency Corfo to block the sale of Nutrien Ltd.'s 32% stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile SA to China's Tianqi Lithium Industries Inc. and will review the consequences of the move, Reuters reported, citing a government official.
* Prospect Resources Ltd. updated its pre-feasibility study over the Arcadia lithium project in Zimbabwe, estimating a pretax net present value, discounted at 10%, of US$340 million, a 77% internal rate of return and a two-year payback period. The company updated the study after a 70% increase in reserves tonnage at the project to 26.9 million tonnes at 1.31% lithium oxide, and 128 parts per million of tantalum pentoxide, which is expected to support a mine life of over 20 years.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* As Kazakhstan prepares to implement more measures this year to attract mining investment, Western Australia, on whose regime its new mining code is based, has warned about resources companies' methods of reducing tax payments. The Asian country's tax code was amended on Jan. 1 to remove the profit tax for miners and allow exploration deductions, and S&P Global Market Intelligence has learned that more amendments are on the way later this year to increase its attractiveness as a mining jurisdiction.
* Major miners have not shied away from backing Colombia-focused juniors in the past year, suggesting their appetite for new developments and discovery in Colombia may be picking up. "I think it's going to explode over the next two or three years," Continental Gold Inc. CEO Ari Sussman said. "We're seeing the beginning stage of an influx of large companies into Colombia."
* Chile's newly appointed Mines Minister Baldo Prokurica said in an interview with La Tercera that the government was preparing a decree seeking to attract foreign investments into the country, Reuters reported. The government of President Sebastian Pinera pledged to reactivate US$50 billion in mining investments that have been held back by red tape.
* Mali is in talks with mining companies for the revision of the country's mining code, but could implement the new law unilaterally if an agreement is not reached, Reuters reported, citing Economy Minister Boubou Cisse.
The Daily Dose is updated as of 7 a.m. London time, and scans news sources published in Chinese, English, Indonesian, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Thai and Ukrainian. Some external links may require a subscription.
