URU Metals has applied for the renewal of the prospecting rights that make up its Zebediela nickel project, in South Africa. The Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) has completed a site visit, a precondition of any prospecting rights renewal process and granted the renewal in principle for prospecting right 148PR, the right which forms the primary prospecting right over all known mineralisation at Zebediela.
Commodity traders expect nickel, the silvery-white metal used to make stainless steel, to be a winner from the electric-vehicle revolution -- it’s a key component of batteries. But a Chinese metals giant with a knack of upending markets is threatening to spoil the party. Tsingshan Holding Group announced last month it’s building an Indonesian plant to produce nickel-cobalt salts for the battery market.
Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds recovered 240 733 ct of diamonds at a grade of 23.8 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) from its Liqhobong mine, in Lesotho, during the quarter ended September 30 – the first quarter of its 2019 financial year This compares with the 263 512 ct recovered at a grade of 25.7 cpht in the fourth quarter of the 2018 financial year, ended June 30.
Coal exploration, development and mining company MC Mining has signed the first coal offtake agreement for hard coking coal (HCC) to be produced at its Makhado hard coking and thermal coal project, in Limpopo. The agreement was entered into between MC Mining subsidiary Baobab Mining & Exploration – the owner of the Makhado project – and Chinese State-owned enterprise Huadong CoalTrading Centre (HDCTC), as well as the China Forestry Group.
Russian diamond miner Alrosa has joined the Tracr diamond industry blockchain traceability platform that fellow miner De Beers is developing. Alrosa’s involvement brings the world’s two largest diamond producers together in the pilot programme that aims to provide enhanced assurance for consumers and trade participants about the authenticity of their diamonds.
Nickel company Horizonte Minerals has confirmed the economics of its Araguaia ferronickel project, in Brazil, with the completion of a feasibility study, setting up the company to advance offtake agreements and secure funding for the $443-million development. The Aim- and TSX-listed company aims to have its funding plan in place by mid-2019, ensuring that the project could advance on a “rapid” development timeline, targeting first nickel production in late 2021 or early 2022.
The Star Diamond Corporation has received environmental approval from the Saskatchewan government for its Star-Orion South project, near Prince Albert. The project already has a positive federal environmental assessment decision in the bag.
Base metals miner New Century Resources has loaded the first zinc concentrate from its Century mine, in Queensland, for export. The first shipment will consist of 10 000 t of zinc concentrate, and will be delivered to smelters in China.
The world’s biggest miners are cranking up spending for the first time in half a decade as well as pursuing more takeovers – and investors are flashing hazard lights as commodities prices slide and as doubts swirl over the outlook. Capital expenditure among the ten largest metals and mining companies is forecast to advance to about $35-billion this year, the first annual rise since 2013, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
