Latest News

URANIUM producer Paladin Energy has agreed to sell a 25 per cent stake of its flagship project in Namibia to state-owned subsidiary China Uranium Corporation, following several years of softened prices for the nuclear material. The US$190 million partial sale of Langer Heinrich uranium mine will reportedly provide an essential cash boost for Paladin, which has battled significant debt in the face of deteriorating uranium prices since the Fukushima nuclear disaster nearly three years ago. Although both the respective boards at Paladin and China Uranium have approved the transaction, the sale is still dependant on certain Chinese regulatory approvals, including the National Development and Reform Commission. These final approvals are expected to be obtained by mid 2014. China Uranium, under...

CANADIAN precious metals company Osisko Mining has formally rejected a “hostile” takeover bid by fellow Canadian gold producer Goldcorp, labelling the move ‘opportunistic” and “inadequate”. In mid January, Vancouver-based Goldcorp announced it had placed an offer to acquire all outstanding common shares from Osisko, filing a takeover bid circular document with Canadian securities regulators and the US Securities Exchange Commission. Under the terms of the offer, Osisko shareholders would have received 0.146 of a Goldcorp common share, plus CAD$2.26 in cash for each Osisko common share tendered. The offer valued Osisko at CAD$2.6 billion in total. Goldcorp’s offer was widely reported to be the one of the biggest mining sector deals in more than a year, despite the softened global...

FOLLOWING months of uncertainty surrounding the future of the Bronzewing gold project, Metaliko Resources has entered an agreement to acquire the project from the administrator of Navigator Resources. Metaliko entered a $4.82 million deal to purchase all of the shares in Navigator Bronzewing – a wholly-owned subsidiary of Navigator Resources – resulting in 100 per cent ownership of the Bronzewing project in the south Yandal gold belt of WA. Navigator produced gold from the project until May 2013, when the operations were put under care and maintenance. Navigator began reporting financial troubles early in 2013, with ongoing high project costs said to be plaguing the project. Below forecast gold production from Bronzewing, as a result of processing issues throughout the...

FOUNDED in 1996 and incorporated in WA, Hyspec Mining Services has become the premier supplier of replacement hydraulics parts and service equipment to the mining and exploration industry in Africa. For more than 17 years Hyspec has assisted mining contractors, drilling companies and mine support businesses to reduce operational costs, improve equipment availability and increase production – 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Hyspec provides replacement hose assemblies and associated parts from more than 65 mine site based workshops to cater for the wide range of heavy duty mining and drilling equipment operating on mine sites. Hyspec workshops are fully fitted out, complete with stock, machines and tools, and can be either client managed or Hyspec managed. The...

INTERNATIONAL consulting company Knight Piésold is an environmental and engineering service provider supplying to the mining, power, water, transportation and construction sectors. With a team of more than 900 experienced professionals in offices around the globe, Knight Piésold delivers high quality, specialised services and innovative solutions that respect social, environmental and economic responsibilities. Within the mining industry, Knight Piésold’s expertise has been used on hundreds of projects worldwide, including both open cut and underground projects. The company specialises in tailings and waste management, with a particular focus on waste characterisation, tailings disposal, heap leach pads and environmental services. The safe and effective disposal of mining waste presents both technical and environmental challenges. Knight Piésold recognises the uniqueness of each mining...

THE Papua New Guinea Government has seized ownership of the giant Ok Tedi copper and gold mine, resulting in the closure of an associated charitable trust worth about $96 million in projects for the local community. In September, PNG Prime Minister Peter O’Neill forced through a bill giving the state complete ownership of Ok Tedi, on the Fly River in Western Province, replacing shares owned by the PNG Sustainable Development Program (PNGSDP) – which supported local programs with profits from the mine – with shares owned by the government. PNGSDP reported that 100 development projects worth about $96 million had been closed down by late October, including support for schools, hospitals and aid posts across the country, as well as...

PERTH-based miner Sundance Resources has raised $40 million from Noble Resources and an investor consortium to proceed with its Mbalam-Nabeba iron ore project in Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. As part of the deal, Noble will invest $20 million though unsecured convertible notes, at a 10 per cent interest rate, which can be converted into a 30 per cent stake for a future marketing firm for the project. Noble will also receive 200 million options, excisable at 12 cents a share if the marketing firm does not proceed. The investor consortium – comprising Blackstone, the DE Shaw Group and Senrigan – would invest the other $20 million through a convertible note issue, which could later be used...

SIGNIFICANT progress is being made at Cradle Resources’ Panda Hill niobium project in Tanzania, with test work and preliminary economic assessment programs ahead of schedule. The company reported that metallurgical test work and environmental and social impact assessments were at an advanced stage. Cradle managing director Grant Davey said the company was on track to complete all preliminary work by early 2014. “The study is progressing well, on time and on budget, with excellent results to date,” he said. “It is worth noting that a lot of the work being done on this study is at a pre-feasibility study level and we are working with world-class consultants. “We will have a clear, credible picture of this exciting project when the...

ONE of NSW’s largest underground coal producers has announced it will cut up to 120 positions from its seven mine sites across the state, due to ongoing tough market conditions. In late October, Centennial Coal stated the decision was based on record-high production costs, a weak US dollar export thermal coal price and a “stubbornly high” Australian dollar. Centennial has placed two of its mines on care and maintenance in the past 12 months, in an attempt to stem its production costs and to raise productivity. While some improvements had been achieved, gloomy market conditions were proving too strong against business profitability, the company stated. “Unfortunately, as there are few signs of an immediate improvement, and following the conclusion of...

NEW statistics show WA’s resources sector improved last financial year on the back of iron ore and gold sales, despite widespread market volatility. The Mineral and Petroleum Industry 2012-13 Review by the WA Mines and Petroleum (DMP) department found iron ore and gold accounted for 84 per cent or $65.3 billion of all mineral sales in 2012-2013. Fuelled by a strong international demand, particularly from China, iron ore was the state’s strongest seller for the period, with 73 per cent of total sales at $56.4 billion. According to the report, the falling Australian dollar helped the sector cope with falling commodity prices, which resulted in 513 million tonnes of iron ore exports; a 13 per cent increase on the previous...

RESOURCES giant BHP Billiton and subcontractor HWE Newman Services have been fined more than $200,000 for a fatal incident in August 2008. Mobile maintenance supervisor Paul Sparkes, 29, was killed while working at BHP’s Yandi iron ore mine, (then operated by HWE) near Newman in the Pilbara. Mr Sparkes was hit in the arm by a tyre-handling device, which had broken off the machine body after the tyre of a heavy earth mover overinflated. Five years after the incident, the Perth Magistrates Court found BHP and HWE guilty of failing to provide sufficient training for Mr Sparkes’ position, and for failing to provide the necessary equipment for safe tyre assembly. BHP was fined $102,000 and HWE $136,000. Both companies will...