Fire breaks out at one of Australia’s two oil refineries

South32 (ASX: S32) has completed its divestment of the Cerro Matoso mine and smelter in Colombia.

Element 25 (ASX: E25) has secured commitments for an $18m share placement to fund the expansion of its Butcherbird manganese project in WA to 1.1mtpa of manganese oxide concentrate.This follows the June 2025 announcement that the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) would support the project with a $50m investment.Element 25 managing director Justin Brown comments on the expansion.“Expanding Butcherbird is an important part of our strategy to sell manganese concentrate to steel industry partners as well as using it as feedstock in our plans to produce HPMSM,” he said.“We are pleased with the support from new and existing shareholders in this placement, particularly in light of the challenging market backdrop.”Under the placement, the company will issue 60 million fully paid ordinary shares at an issue price of $.30/share, representing a 9.1% discount to the last close price on April 8. The placement is expected to settle on April 22.

Brightstar receives major approval for Goldfields project Brightstar (ASX: BTR) has received approval from the WA Government for the open pit development of the Lady Shenton project in Menzies.With the Mining Development and Closure Proposal approved by the WA Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration and the previously approved Native Vegetation Clearing Permit, the Lady Shenton deposit is now “mine ready” for production.Brightstar managing director Alex Rovira comments on the approval.“This signifies a key milestone for the development of our Menzies assets, which once in operation will represent the first mining to occur since the successful Selkirk mining JV in 2024,” he said.“Lady Shenton is now ‘mine ready’ and represents a low capex, high-margin deposit for Brightstar that complements the broader Goldfields Hub development.“With over 4moz of mineral resources on granted mining leases, Brightstar has a strategic objective of developing both the Goldfields and Sandstone projects in the coming years as part of our aspiration to be a multi-asset, mid-tier scale WA gold producer.”Brightstar plans to release an updated definitive feasibility study (DFS2.0) and a development update and timeline for the Menzies and Laverton gold projects later this quarter.

Mineral sands downturn forces $565m Iluka adjustment Critical minerals producer Iluka Resources (ASX: ILU) has flagged a $565m pre-tax hit tied to its mineral sands business as weak demand continues to weigh on prices.The update comes amid renewed policy uncertainty after Reuters reported the Trump administration is stepping back from plans to guarantee price floors for US critical minerals projects, citing funding constraints and the complexity of setting market pricing.Iluka still exceeded its 2025 production guidance, delivering 559kt of zircon, rutile and synthetic rutile while reducing cash costs.Iluka says the FY25 charges comprise two exceptional items: a $350m non-cash impairment and a $215m inventory value reduction.The impairment is centred on Iluka’s mineral sands operations after the company moved in September to suspend production at the Cataby mine and the synthetic rutile kiln 2 (SR2).The suspension, effective December 1, was largely driven by subdued demand for mineral sands and their associated downstream products.Iluka also flagged a 35% reduction in Cataby’s remaining ore reserve with the revised mine life expected to be four years from resumption of mining.Iluka is still progressing its downstream build at Eneabba in WA. Upon commissioning in 2027, Eneabba will be one of the few rare earths refineries operating outside of China.