Latest News

Hazer Group’s CDP passes heat treatment milestone The hot reactor at Hazer Group’s (ASX:HZR) commercial demonstration plant (CDP) has passed a major heat treatment milestone. Main reactor works and the critical conditioning step of post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) have been completed of the hot reactor, marking a major milestone in the hot reactor fabrication process. Successful non-destructive testing has been performed — before and after the heat treatment — confirming the fabrication quality required for service has been achieved. The hot reactor body has now begun final machining and assembly, before being shipped to site in the coming weeks. Pre-commissioning at the commercial demonstration plant is...

Newmont receives clearance in Australia and Japan for Newcrest acquisition Newmont has received further clearance for its acquisition of Newcrest Minerals (ASX:NCM). Following a review by Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB), the Treasurer has cleared Newmont to proceed with the acquisition, issuing a No Objection Notification (NON). The NON is conditional upon compliance with standard tax conditions associated with the Commonwealth taxation laws. In early September, Japan’s Fair Trade Commission issued a clearance letter allowing closing of the proposed transaction to proceed any time after September 30, 2023. Furthermore, in August the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission cleared the proposed acquisition and conveyed its recommendation to the FIRB. Remaining regulatory approvals...

Initial testwork demonstrates up to 99% gold recovery at McTavish East Initial testwork has demonstrated recoveries of up to 99% at the McTavish East prospect within the Kookynie gold project in WA. Carnavale Resources (ASX:CAV) completed initial leach test work over McTavish East with samples collected from aircore drilling completed in September 2022 and reverse circulation drilling completed in May 2023. A total of 16 200-250gm ore grade samples were taken and leach tested for 24 hours. Samples were selected from both oxide and fresh rock material, with recoveries in the oxide totalling 99% and between 97% and 99% in the fresh rock. Carnavale has planned further metallurgical testwork to boost...

Glencore achieves government certification of rehabilitation for Ulan Glencore has received NSW Government sign-off for 76ha of rehabilitated mined land at its Ulan coal mine complex. The rehabilitation has met all closure criteria and objectives set by the Department of Planning and Environment and the NSW Resources Regulator. Ulan Coal’s environment and community manager Lucy Stuart said the rehabilitation provides habitat for a wide range of flora and fauna. “The certification covers two former open cut mining areas that now comprise 57 hectares of red iron bark and grey box forest, and 79 hectares of native woodland,” she said. “Our detailed monitoring programs have identified...

BHP Mitsubishi Alliance enters renewable power agreement with CleanCo BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) has entered a renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) with Queensland’s publicly owned energy generator and retailer, CleanCo. The new agreement will run until 2030 and extends an existing low carbon emission power agreement between BMA and CleanCo that is currently running to the end of 2025. This second PPA will enable BMA to continue to source half of its expected electricity needs from low greenhouse gas emission sources such as solar, wind and pumped hydro. BHP President Australia Geraldine Slattery commented on the new agreement. “We are increasing renewable electricity at BMA in line with our decarbonisation commitments...

Anson Resources ramps up production at demonstration plant Anson Resources (ASX:ASN) has ramped up production at its demonstration plant and it now continuously producing lithium carbonate from brines from its Paradox lithium project. The battery-grade lithium carbonate is being produced at Anson’s sample demonstration plant at its Lithium Innovation Centre in Florida. The ramp-up in production marks a key step in Anson’s qualification process with potential offtake partners as it enables the company to provide samples to potential end-users as part of a structured product supplier qualification process. The production rate is steadily increasing and is targeting 1tpa by the end of the year, sufficient to...

New strike extensive pegmatites discovered at Morrissey Hill Multiple new, wide and strike extensive pegmatites have been identified at Reach Resources’ (ASX:RR1) Morrissey Hill lithium project in WA. The individual pegmatites extend up to 2km in length and over 30 metres in width with the majority hosted within mafic volcanics and mafic sediments of the Leake Springs Metamorphics group. Combining the potential strike length of the Bonzer pegmatite field with these new pegmatites suggest a total strike length of prospective pegmatites at Morrissey Hill to span more than 10km. However, this could extend even further as it does not include the potential for additional strike from ‘blind’ pegmatites...

Northern Territory kicks off 15th Resources Week The Northern Territory Resources Week has kicked off for another year, bringing together The South East Asia Australia Offshore and Onshore Conference (SEAAOC), Mining the Territory Conference and the Environmental Management and Decarbonisation Forum. In its 15th year, Resources Week is an opportunity to send a message to investors loud and clear that the Northern Territory is a world class destination for mining. The Northern Territory’s resource industry is worth around $6.2b and is one of the largest job creators with around 5300 people directly employed by the sector. It supports hundreds of small businesses across all regions and delivers millions of resource...

Kapunda copper project receives key environmental approval The Kapunda copper project has received a key environmental approval from the South Australian Government. Terramin (ASX:TZN) and its joint venture partners Environmental Copper Recovery (ECR) received approval for the next phase of in-ground work on the in-situ recovery. Thor Energy (ASX:THR) also holds a 30% equity in ECL. This phase of work — Site Environmental Lixiviant Test (SELT) — will be a push/pull trial and will involve mixing a biodegradable solution with groundwater for placement within the orebody. The solution will reside in situ for a period of time while being sampled and monitored and then will be extracted and the...

Monadelphous awarded $100m Kathleen Valley construction contract Engineering company Monadelphous (ASX:MND) has been awarded a $100m multidisciplinary construction contract with Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR). The contract is for the construction of the wet plant at the Kathleen Valley lithium project in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The contract scope includes the installation of 1200t of structural steel, 20,000m of piping, 600 mechanical equipment items, 200 platework items, the SAG mill, magnetics circuit, flotation circuit, tails treatment, tantalum recovery circuit and concentrate dewatering. Combining the structural, mechanical, piping (SMP) and electrical and instrumentation (E&I) work enables vertical integration of mechanical and electrical construction of the wet plant and underpins confidence to deliver first...

James Bay Minerals begins trading on ASX James Bay Minerals (ASX:JBY) began trading on the ASX today following a highly successful $6m initial public offering (IPO). The Perth-based lithium explorer has secured an extensive and highly strategic ground position in the heart of the La Grande Greenstone Belt in Quebec, Canada. Following several world-class lithium-pegmatite discoveries, this belt has risen to prominence in recent times. James Bay Minerals has plans in place to begin exploration immediately with exploration programs scheduled to begin in parallel with expanding its in-country exploration and administration teams. Work includes...