TOP NEWS
First Quantum shares jump on US$1.12B Jiangxi Copper deal
First Quantum Minerals Ltd.’s shares increased as much as 5% to their highest since May after Jiangxi Copper Co. Ltd. said that it will purchase Cupric Holdings Ltd. from Pangaea Investment Management Ltd., First Quantum's largest shareholder with a 17.6% stake, for US$1.12 billion. The transaction adds to speculation on First Quantum amid heightened expectations for copper deals, as the metal is viewed as a critical ingredient in low-carbon technologies, Reuters reported.
Petra Diamonds to halt operations due to power emergency in South Africa
Petra Diamonds Ltd. is in the process of halting its mining operations in its Cullinan, Finsch, and Koffiefontein projects in South Africa due to a declared power system emergency by electricity utility Eskom, and an unprecedented move to Stage 6 load shedding, further to a technical fault at the Medupi power station that has led to a shortage of capacity.
Boliden expects €10M hit from nationwide strikes
Swedish mining and smelting company Boliden AB expects nationwide strikes in Finland to impact its annual operating profit by about €10 million. The company said the strikes affecting its Harjavalta copper-nickel smelter, Kokkola zinc smelter and Kevitsa nickel-copper mine will last until Dec. 12.
DIVERSIFIED
* Australian mining giant BHP Group’s chief technology officer, Diane Jurgens, will leave the company in early 2020 to return to the U.S. to pursue other opportunities and be closer to family. Rag Udd, vice president for technology global transformation, will be Jurgens' acting replacement, effective Dec. 14.
* Chile's export revenue dropped 12% year over year to US$5.28 billion in November, Reuters reported, citing data from the country's central bank. Revenue from Chile's copper exports decreased 8.7% during the month to US$2.77 billion, while lithium exports fell nearly 6% to US$67 million.
BASE METALS
* Legend Mining Ltd.'s stock soared as much as 100% after it emerged from a trading halt and announced the discovery of massive nickel-copper sulfides at the Rockford project within its Fraser Range property in Western Australia. The 70.15-meter disseminated sulfide halo that was discovered starts at 76 meters below surface and is open in all directions.
* Northern Fox Resources Inc. signed an earn-in option deal to acquire up to 61% interest in Cadillac Ventures Inc.'s Thierry copper mine property in Ontario.
* Adriatic Metals PLC's admission to the London Stock Exchange is expected to commence on Dec. 12, under the ticker ADT1.
* Western Areas Ltd. noted that most staff at its Forrestania nickel project in Western Australia returned to work over the weekend following repairs after a bush fire. The company said it does not expect any impact to nickel production or cost guidance for fiscal 2020.
PRECIOUS METALS
* North American Palladium Ltd. said that all of the required regulatory approvals with respect to the takeover of all the company's shares by an affiliate of Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. have been obtained. The transaction is expected to close on or about Dec. 13.
* Great Northern Minerals Ltd. estimated a total inferred resource of 29,721 gold ounces within 256,504 tonnes grading 3.6 g/t gold for its Golden Cup gold mine in Northern Queensland, Australia.
* Genesis Minerals Ltd. entered into a farm-in and joint venture agreement with Kin Mining NL over the Desdemona South JV gold project in Western Australia.
* Lefroy Exploration Ltd. secured an application for a tenement to cover a prime land position, known as Burns, within the Eastern Lefroy tenement package, which is part of the greater Lefroy gold project in Western Australia.
* Jadar Resources Ltd. signed a sale and purchase agreement with Wealth Minerals Ltd. to acquire Minera Wealth Peru S.A.C., holder of the Yanamina gold project in Peru.
* Blue Lagoon Resources Inc. secured an option to acquire 80% of ExGen Resources Inc.’s Gordon Lake gold property in Canada’s Northwest Territories.
* Nusantara Resources Ltd. signed a nonbinding term sheet with PT. Indika Energy Tbk for up to US$80 million in funding for the Awak Mas gold project in Indonesia, with the facility expected to close in early 2020. Indika Energy will invest up to US$40 million in Nusantara unit PT Masmindo Dwi Area to secure up to 40% of the project. Indika Energy will spend US$15 million for an initial 25% stake and pay US$25 million to acquire an additional 15%.
* Titan Minerals Ltd. raised its all-share takeover bid for Core Gold Inc., valuing each share of the target at 52.3 Canadian cents per share.
* IronRidge Resources Ltd. kicked off an about 6,500-meter aircore drilling program at its Zaranou gold project in Cote d'Ivoire to test an about 8-kilometer strike with hard-rock artisanal mining, anomalous geochemistry and coincident magnetic anomalies.
* Vango Mining Ltd. secured an about 8.79% stake in Lodestar Minerals Ltd. through a A$600,000 investment.
* MegumaGold Corp. agreed to earn up to a 70% interest in Genius Metals Inc.'s Meaghers gold property in Nova Scotia via a staged earn-in.
BULK COMMODITIES
* The Nigerian government is expected to sign a memorandum of understanding with a Russian firm in January 2020 for the revival of Ajaokuta Steel Co. Ltd.'s rolling mill, Xinhua reported, citing the country's minister of mines and steel, Olamilekan Adegbite. The minister said that funds are already in place for the project, and a committee has already been set up.
* The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority allowed Swiss billionaire Martin Haefner's BigPoint Holding AG to increase its stake in steelmaker Schmolz + Bickenbach AG as part of a planned capital increase.
* The Minnesota Court of Appeals reversed the renewal of the wastewater discharge permit for U.S. Steel Corp. Minntac iron ore mine made by the state's Pollution Control Agency, Associated Press reported. The agency first issued the permit in 1987 and renewed it last year despite a dispute whether the mine has to comply with a state law intended to protect wild rice beds by limiting sulfate discharge. The court sent the dispute back to the agency for further proceedings.
* Cadence Minerals PLC struck a deal with Brazil's Amapa state to restore a life-of-mine railway concession between the Amapa iron ore mine and the Santana Port. The deal is one of the major preconditions for Cadence to proceed with its planned acquisition of up to 27% of project owner DEV Mineração SA.
* Giyani Metals Corp. selected Lazenby Holdings Pty. Ltd. to undertake the environmental cleanup work at the K.Hill and Otse manganese deposits in Botswana, in accordance with the Environmental Management Plans approved by the country's Department of Environmental Affairs.
* Webco Industries Inc. reported a year-over-year decline in its net income to US$3.2 million, or US$3.46 per diluted share, in the first quarter of fiscal 2020, from US$9.8 million net income, or US$10.47 per diluted share, as net sales declined by 10.6% to US$122.5 million from US$137.0 million.
SPECIALTY
* If the U.S. government starts buying uranium from domestic producers, it may need to pay substantially more than current spot uranium prices to incentivize an increase in U.S. uranium production, according to some uranium mining experts.
* Savannah Resources PLC unit Matilda Minerals Lda. was granted a mining license over a new concession that forms a key part of the Mutamba heavy mineral sands project in Mozambique, which is a joint venture with Rio Tinto. The license covers 11,948 hectares and is valid until April 2044, with the possibility to be extended for additional 25 years. The license is the first of three contiguous concessions to be issued that will result in the full tenement permitting of Mutamba.
* Novonix Ltd. entered into a conditional agreement to supply lithium-ion battery anode material to SAMSUNG SDI, an international manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries.
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* Peninsula Mines Ltd. said that a previously announced deal with Battery Mineral Resources Ltd. to merge their graphite tenements in South Korea into one company, Korea Graphite Co. Ltd., will no longer proceed.
* Lithium Consolidated Ltd. entered a formal share sale agreement to acquire Warrigal Mining Pty. Ltd., which holds the right to secure some 26 exploration permits in Western Australia.
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