Category: Commodities

NEWMONT Goldcorp’s board of directors have unanimously approved the execution phase of the Tanami Expansion 2 project. The expansion will allow the miner to access the Auron deposit, first discovered in 2008, below the Callie orebody and could extend the mine life beyond 2040. Tanami Expansion 2 includes the construction of a 1460m shaft, additional capacity in the processing plant and supporting infrastructure that would allow the project to remain profitable as the mine heads 2140m below surface. Newmont Goldcorp began commercial production at the expansion project in 2017, and announced in March 2019 that the $245m power station project was complete. The execution phase of Tanami Expansion 2 represents a significant milestone for the operation. Newmont Goldcorp chief executive,…

THE Samarco joint venture between Vale SA and BHP Group has been given approval to resume operations at the Germano iron ore plant in Brazil, four years after a fatal dam collapse there. It is understood that 10 of the 12 members of Minas Gerais state environmental council, known as Copam, voted in favour of an operational corrective licence for the mine. Samarco has had its operations halted since the 2015 Fundão waste dam collapse that killed 19 people and resulted in flooding across more than 600km in one of the worst environmental disasters in the country’s mining history. The mining dam failure had affected the downstream Santarem dam, causing a “significant release” of mine tailings to flood the nearby…

WITH nickel recently posting its best quarter in almost a decade and the recent Paydirt 2019 Australian Nickel Conference in Perth, it’s no surprise that the future of the metal has been the talk of the town. The London Metal Exchange (LME) nickel price hit $US18,620/t early last month, having opened the year at $US10,435/t.  This has been partially fuelled by concerns around the impact of Indonesia’s decision to bring forward a ban on exports of raw nickel ore by two years. The ban will take effect from January 1, removing an estimated 350,000t out of the global sea trade.  Another geopolitical wobble impacting prices was the Government of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), an autonomous region within…

BLACK Cat Syndicate (ASX: BC8) has reported that its Myhree deposit near Kalgoorlie, WA, has uncovered a large gold interval grading 1130g/t. The interval was 0.5m and within a broader intercept of 1.7m grading 335.96g/t gold. Infill drilling is underway at the deposit to update the resource and provide further information on the geological, geotechnical and metallurgical characteristics of the mineralisation. Other assays received to-date included1.7m at 335.96g/t from 52.2m, 7m at 9.84g/t gold from 59.5m, 4.74m at 5.99g/t gold 166.3m, and 3.04m at 3.07g/t gold from 140.6m. Part of the Bulong gold project, the Myhree and Trump deposits are undergoing open pit feasibility studies by Black Cat, due for completion in the June 2020 quarter with extensional RC drilling kicking…

PALADIN Energy has completed the first of a two-part prefeasibility study (PFS1) to assess the restart of its Namibian uranium mine, Langer Heinrich. The company said that it can return to production after a rapid 12-month ramp-up and would require about US$80m to return to production levels of about 5.2mlb pa. The capital would be divided into US$38m needed for plant repair and US$42 needed for working capital. Production could increase to about 6.5mlb pa through expansion of the mine during the ramp-up period, which the company said would target the processing of high and medium-grade ore over a six-year period at an additional cost of $US30m. PFS1 put the mine potentially back in production within 12 months of securing…

AUSTRALIA’S biggest new gold mine, Gruyere, has hit commercial production ahead of schedule, with annual guidance for gold production predicted to be at the upper end on 75,000-100,000oz. The JV between WA company Gold Roads (ASX: GOR) and South African giant Gold Fields has been ramping up to be slightly ahead of the deadline since the ball mill was commissioned in early August. The $621m Gruyere mine, 200km north-east of Laverton, was Australia’s last major gold discovery since 2013, and took the JV just six years to reach commercial production. Commercial production was defined by the predetermined rate of 70pc throughput of nameplate capacity at a minimum average gold recovery rate of 85pc of expected mine metallurgical recovery. The company…

DACIAN Gold (ASX: DCN) looks to be back on track after announcing it had delivered 42,000oz in its preliminary Q3 results. Dacian has been clawing its way back from a vicious stock dump in June when it lost about three quarters of its value after the company was forced to lower its guidance twice in three months. While June quarter production guidance lowered from 50,000oz-55,000oz to 36,000oz-38,000oz, it is now in line with the projected first half of FY2020 guidance of 150,000oz to 170,000oz. The company paid back a scheduled $10.8m debt repayment, and increased its cash and gold on-hand position by $8.3m to $53.9m, leaving the outstanding bank debt at $94.7m. Dacian said that the mill reconciliation for the…

NEOMETALS (ASX: NMT)  has entered into an MoU with the Institute of Multipurpose Utilization of Mineral Resources Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (IMUMR) to develop the $692m Barrambie Titanium Vanadium project in WA. The MoU will lay the foundations for a potential 50:50 commercial production JV. IMUMR is a leading metallurgical institute in China with recognised expertise in, and relationships with China’s titanium and vanadium chemical processing industry, and global titanium-vanadium production houses. At an estimated total indicated and inferred mineral resource of 280.1mt at 9.18pc titanium and 0.44pc to 80m vertical depth, the Barrambie deposit is considered to be one of the world’s largest, high-grade titanium-vanadium deposits. Neometals’ cashed-up potential Chinese partner has the ability to fast track the…

THE Qld Department of Environment and Science has granted Pembroke Resources environmental authority (EA) for its 100pc owned Olive Downs coal project in Central Queensland. The EA authorises the activities for Olive Downs’ 79-year mine life, and provides the conditions for the operation of the mine. The 813mt open cut JORC resource holds a 2bt underground target, with 514mt open cut JORC reserves, and is a similar size to Adani’s Carmichael mine. Pembroke said that 90pc of the coal would be used for steelmaking. Pembroke chief executive, Barry Tudor, said the company was “looking forward to Federal Government approval under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, and the granting of a mining lease so that it can begin construction”.…

METALICITY Limited’s (ASX: MCT) latest drilling program has confirmed mineralisation extensions at the Kookynie project in WA’s eastern goldfields. The three holes at Leipold, McTavish and Champion bring the total brownfields exploration project to nine holes, with Metalicity indicating that a “significant” mineralisation exists beyond the historical data. The company said it would continue with “a staged, systematic drill program designed to not only address gold grade and geology relationships to a level to support a mineral resource estimate, but metallurgy, geotechnical and density aspects to aid in potential feasibility studies at a later date”. The Kookynie project includes six prospects, with Leipold, McTavish and Champion targeted for this program. Drilling at Leipold yielded 9m at 7.31g/5t gold from 34m;…

THE Australian Government has released a Critical Minerals Strategy Report, exposing huge holes in the supply chain as tensions between Beijing and Washington heat up. The 17 elements that make up the rare earths are vital to high-tech appliances for both domestic and military use, and the heavy rare earths are the fundamental component in the powerful magnets used in electric vehicle motors. The report highlights Australia’s status as the world’s second largest producer of rare earths, and therefore perfectly positioned to supply the US with the high-tech elements, particularly the heavy rare earths that China has traditionally dominated. Resources and Northern Australia Minister Matt Canavan said that the Critical Minerals Strategy would prepare Australia to become the alternative to…