Regis and Vault to form $10.7b gold producer

The Queensland Government has declared the Sugarbag Hill project in north Queensland a prescribed project to fast-track delivery.The $515 million ultra high purity quartz sand project is being developed by High Purity Quartz and is expected to support 600 jobs during construction and 140 ongoing jobs once operational.Ultra high purity quartz is an important material used to make products like semiconductors, specialised glass and equipment needed in advanced manufacturing.Further processing of the critical material is proposed at the Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct south of Townsville, with a pilot facility in Stuart and chemical storage at the Port of Townsville with high-quality quartz sand to also be exported through the port.High Purity Quartz chief executive Stuart Jones says the declaration provides certainty for the project.“This declaration allows us to progress project approvals more efficiently and with greater certainty as we move through the detailed feasibility study and engineering stage,” he said.“It recognises the importance of establishing a Queensland based supply of globally scarce ultrahigh purity quartz sand, which is critical for solar PV silicon wafer manufacturing.”Queensland Minister for Natural Resources and Mines Dale Last says the project will create hundreds of new jobs in the construction phase and ongoing operational jobs across the value chain.“With the Queensland resources common user facility and Graphinex’s battery anode hub just down the road, we’re committed to building sovereign capacity right across the critical minerals sector,” he said.“We’re serious about cutting red tape, driving faster approvals and delivering certainty to investors so they can get on with creating local jobs.”Subject to approvals, High Purity Quartz is targeting a final investment decision in early 2027 and commencement of construction in early 2028.

Fortescue (ASX: FMG) has significantly boosted its green energy spend to fast-track the delivery of its Pilbara green energy grid as the company finishes Q3 with a cash balance of $5.89b .During Q3, Fortescue shipped 48.4mt of iron ore, a 5% year-on-year increase, bringing the total volume for FY26 so far to a record high of 148.7mt, despite major weather disruptions impacting production at its Iron Bridge operations and lower realised hematite prices.Hematite C1 unit costs were 4% lower than the previous quarter, contributing to an average unit cost of US$18.52/wmt for the first three quarters of FY26.The company finished the quarter with a net debt of $2.24b after recording a capital expenditure of about $1.28b and a payout of $1.82b in interim dividends.Fortescue also confirmed its board had approved an additional $954m spend on top of the already approved $8.7b , to develop new green energy infrastructure to meet growing industry power demands, largely driven by data centres.Fortescue metals and operations chief executive Dino Otranto says the company is already seeing the benefits of decarbonising its operations.“Given volatility in global energy markets, there’s never been a clearer reason why this matters,” he said.Unlike other large renewable hubs, which feed intermittently into national or other power systems, Fortescue’s off-grid system is expected to be the largest of its kind dedicated to decarbonising major industry.Fortescue anticipates the 290MW of installed renewable capacity to meet the fixed energy requirements of its ore processing facilities, enabling daytime “green processing” across its Pilbara operations, by early 2027.The system is expected to ramp up to power all of Fortescue’s operations for 24-hour periods completely without fossil fuels by the end of 2027, well ahead of the companies previous Real Zero by 2030 target.Fortescue executive chairman Andrew Forrest says the company is already demonstrating in the Pilbara that heavy industry can operate on a fully integrated renewable grid.“We are now extending this model to new customers, particularly data centres, helping meet one of the fastest growing sources of demand in the world,” he said.Fortescue is expecting full completion of its Pilbara green grid by the end of 2028, which includes 1.2GW of solar capacity, more than 600MW of wind generation and 4-5GWh of battery energy storage.During the quarter, Fortescue also completed its acquisition of Alta Copper, making its official move into the copper industry as it took over ownership of the Cañariaco copper project in Northern Peru.

Core Lithium (ASX: CXO) will bring its Finniss lithium operation back into production after securing restart funding.The miner will move immediately into mobilisation, early works and development activities to position Finniss for first concentrate production in the September quarter of 2026.Core Lithium managing director Paul Brown says all major approvals are in place and there is a proven processing plant ready for restart.“Near-term ore feed will be sourced from the Grants open pit, providing a low-risk and rapid pathway to recommencement of concentrate production,” he said.“BP33 underground development will occur in parallel, supporting a transition to long-life, high-margin underground operations.“The company remains focused on safe, disciplined execution as it advances a staged restart program through 2026 and 2027 with first spodumene concentrate production targeted for the September quarter 2026.“First ore from Grants is targeted within one month of contractor mobilisation, with BP33 first ore expected in mid-CY27 and ramp-up to nameplate production of 1.2mtpa in mid-2028.“Employment levels at Finniss are expected to scale across construction and operations, supporting a material number of jobs over the project lifecycle.”The restart will be funded through a package comprising $99m (US$70m) in convertible notes from Glencore and InfraVia, a $71m (US$50m) senior secured loan from Nebari, and a fully committed $120m equity raising.Glencore lithium head Robin Francois comments on the development.“We share the government’s view that this operation is vital to the regions’ critical minerals strategy and is a key asset for achieving the Northern Territory Government’s ambition of a $40b economy by 2030,” he said.“This is another example of how Glencore’s unique marketing business can support Australian mining companies while we continue to expand as a leading supplier of critical minerals.”Together with existing cash and recent sale proceeds, the package is expected to fully fund construction and restart and provide liquidity during ramp-up as Finniss transitions toward steady-state operations.

Rio and Glencore at it again with mega merger talks  Mining majors Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) and Glencore have confirmed they have entered preliminary takeover discussions for a merger that could create the world’s largest resources company.This is not the first time Rio and Glencore have been in merger negotiations. In 2024, discussions between the companies were unsuccessful due to valuation, leadership and cultural differences after Glencore sought a merger ratio of about 40%, implying a premium of more than 25% based on valuation at the time, and pushed for chief executive Gary Nagle to lead the combined company.  If successful, the merger would be the latest major transaction seen by the sector following last year’s Anglo American $85b merger and acquisition with Canadian copper miner Teck Resources.  The current preliminary discussions are exploring possible combinations of some or all of the businesses, which could include an all-share merger between the companies. Copper appears to be the focal point of the merger as Rio moves towards becoming a global copper leader and acquiring Glencore’s substantial copper assets, including its Mount Isa operations in Queensland, aligns strategically with this shift. This news is the latest in a wave of copper acquisitions as companies around the world look to take advantage of growing global demand and soaring prices. Rio has been advancing its copper portfolio, including ramping up operations at Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia and pushing progress at Resolution Copper in the US. Rio expects to produce about 870,000t of copper in FY26, underpinned by production at its Oyu Tolgoi — which is anticipated to reach peak production of 500,000tpa in its lifetime — as well as its copper assets across the Americas.  Glencore’s copper outlook for FY26 is almost identical, with production expected to reach between 810,000 - 870,000t, and has a bullish growth outlook of 1.6mtpa by 2035.  Despite the shift in focus to copper, there is little synergy between the two miners' current operations — with iron ore forming the backbone of Rio’s business and Glencore remaining one of the world’s largest coal producers. Considering Rio unloaded the last of its coal assets in 2018 following investor pressure, how Glencore’s significant coal assets will align with Rio’s future is yet to be determined.  Though there is no certainty that an agreement will be reached, Rio has until February 5 to make a formal offer to Glencore.