| AROUND THE
WORLD - USA & CANADA |
|
|
|
Rio Tinto Investing to Complete Kitimat Modernization
Rio Tinto has approved an additional $2.7-billion capital investment for the ongoing modernization program at the Rio Tinto Alcan aluminum smelter in Kitimat, British Columbia. The investment will allow completion of the $3.3- billion project in 2014.
The Kitimat modernization project will increase the smelter’s production capacity by more than 48% to about 420,000 mt/y. First metal is expected to come on stream in the first half of 2014, with an expected ramp up of nine months...... read
more |
|
|
BHP Billiton Reviewing Its Diamonds Business, Sells Chidliak Interest
BHP Billiton announced on November 30, 2011, that it was reviewing its diamonds business, comprising its interests in the Ekati diamond mine and the Chidliak exploration project in Canada. Subsequently, on December 20, the company reported it had agreed to sell its 51% interest in the Chidliak project to Peregrine Diamonds, giving Peregrine, the project operator, 100% ownership of the project. Under the terms of the agreement, Peregrine will pay BHP Billiton C$9 million over three years and grant BHP Billiton a 2% royalty on future production.... read more
Top
|
|
|
Donlin Gold Receives Updated Feasibility Study
Donlin Gold LLC, which is owned equally by subsidiaries of NovaGold and Barrick, has received an updated feasibility revises a feasibility study completed in April 2009, with updated mineral reserves and resources, and updated capital and operating cost estimates. NovaGold announced the study results. If put into production in accordance with the study, the Donlin project would be among the world’s largest low-operating- cost and long-lived gold mines.... read
more
|
|
|
| AROUND THE
WORLD - Latin America |
|
|
|
Protests Shut Down Conga Project in Peru
Newmont Mining reported November 30, 2011, that, in agreement with the Government of Peru, it had suspended construction activities at the Conga mine-development project near the operations of the Yanacocha gold mine in Peru as a result of ongoing protests. The Conga project and the Yanacocha mine are owned 51.35% by Newmont, 43.65% by Buenaventura, and 5% by the World Bank’s International Finance Corp. The project received development approval from its owners at the end of July 2011. Capital costs to develop the project are estimated at more than $4 billion, and production is planned to be in the range of 600,000 to 700,000 oz/y of gold and 160,000 to 240,000 lb/y of copper…… read
more |
|
|
Capital Costs Rise for Caserones Development
Pan Pacific Copper announced in late November 2011 that estimated capital costs to develop its Caserones copper and molybdenum project in Chile have increased to $3 billion from the original estimate of $2 billion. Despite the increase, the company still believes the project has sufficiently favorable economics to justify development, and construction is progressing in line with the original schedule. Pan Pacific is owned by the Japanese companies JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corp.; Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co., Ltd.; and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. The increase in capital costs for Caserones results primarily from the impact of the stronger Chilean peso against…. read more
|
|
|
|
| AROUND THE
WORLD - Australasia |
|
|
|
Xstrata Transitions to Underground Mining at Ernest Henry
Xstrata Copper started underground mine production at its Ernest Henry operation 38 km northeast of Cloncurry in north Queensland in early December 2011, marking the site’s transition from open-pit mining, which is now complete, to underground mining and magnetite processing. The underground production start is a major milestone in an A$589-million project to extend Ernest Henry operations to at least 2024. During the first phase of underground mining, ore is being trucked via a decline at a rate of approximately 3 million mt/y for processing at an on-site concentrator into concentrate containing about 25,000 mt/y of copper and 35,000 oz/y of gold. Second phase development is based on sinking of a hoisting shaft to a depth…. read
more |
|
|
Minmetals Advancing Dugald River Project
Minmetals Resources reported in mid- December 2011 its board of directors approved spending A$157 million for the next stage of development at its Dugald River zinc project in northwest Queensland. At design capacity, the project is expected to produce 200,000 mt/y of zinc in concentrate from an underground mine with a life of more than 22 years. By-products will include 25,000 mt/y of lead and 900,000 oz/y of silver in concentrate …. read
more
Top |
|
|
|
| |
|
Oyu Tolgoi Construction 70% Complete
Ivanhoe Mines reported in November 2011 that overall construction at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold-silver complex in the South Gobi region of Mongolia would be 70% complete by year-end 2011. Key elements of the project were ahead of schedule, including the concentrator complex, primary crusher and tailings-thickening ponds. Commercial production of coppergold- silver concentrate is scheduled to begin in the first half of 2013. The Oyu Tolgoi project is owned 66% by Ivanhoe Mines and 34% by the Mongolian government, with Rio Tinto holding a 49% interest in Ivanhoe Mines. In mid-December 2011, an independent arbitrator upheld Rio Tinto’s claim in respect….
read
more
|
|
Tethyan Copper Files for Arbitration
Tethyan Copper Company in November 2011 filed for international arbitration to protect its legal rights at the Reko Diq copper- gold project in northwest Balochistan province, Pakistan. The filing followed summary refusal by the Government of Balochistan in mid-November of the company’s Mining Lease Application (MLA). Tethyan Copper originally submitted the MLA to the Government of Balochistan in February 2011, following submission of the project feasibility study in August 2010. Tethyan Copper is a joint venture of Antofagasta plc and Barrick. Antofagasta…. read
more
|
|
|
| |
London Mining Starts Up at Marampa
London Mining started up its Marampa iron ore project in Sierra Leone in mid- December 2011, validating plant design by producing a concentrate grading 65% iron and 3.5% silica. First exports from Sierra Leone were scheduled for shipment before the end of December. Marampa production will ramp up to more than 160,000 mt of concentrate per month during the first half of 2012, and full-year production is expected to total 1.8 million mt. London Mining’s "Pride of Marampa" transshipment vessel will be commissioned during the first quarter of 2012, enabling the loading of Capesize vessels…. read more
|
|
|
|
Frontier Rare Earths Signs Development Agreement
Frontier Rare Earths, a junior Canadian company headquartered in Toronto, and Korea Resources Corp. (Kores) have signed a definitive agreement to form a joint venture to accelerate development of Frontier’s Zandkopsdrift rare earth project in South Africa’s Northern Cape province. In conjunction with the signing, Kores said it will form a consortium of several leading Korean companies to join the joint venture, including Samsung Group, Hyundai Motors Group, GS Group, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Group, and AJU Group……
read more
Top
|
|
|
|
| |
Westmoreland to Acquire Kemmerer Mine
Westmoreland Coal Co. has agreed to purchase Chevron Mining’s Kemmerer mine in the Hams Fork Region of southwestern Wyoming for $179 million plus approximately $14 million in working capital. It is anticipated the purchase price will be funded through a combination of cash consideration of approximately $74 million, plus the assumption of approximately $118 million in certain liabilities, including postretirement medical, pension, black lung and asset retirement obligation liabilities. Over the last five years, Kemmerer has produced, on average, 4.7 million tons of …. read more
|
|
|
|
Cokal Confirms Indonesian Met Resources
Metallurgical coal prospector Cokal Ltd. recently completed the initial geological report for its Bumi Barito Mineral (BBM) coal project in Indonesia, which confirmed a 60 million metric ton (mt) inferred resource of metallurgical coal. The coal quality consists of about 60% coking coal and 40% PCI.
Cokal Executive Director Pat Hanna said the maiden inferred resource estimate covers an area which occupies only 8% of the total lease area. There is significant upside …. read more
|
|
|
|
Southern Kuzbass Processes Elga Sample
Russian coal and metal producer Mechel OAO said that Southern Kuzbass produced the first coking coal concentrate from the massive Elga deposit. A sample lot of 4,000 metric tons of Elga coking coal was washed at the Southern Kuzbass Sibir prep plant. The quality of the concentrate ranks the Elga deposit among the higher-value grades of coking coals, according to Mechel. "Use of the Elga deposit’s coking coal will provide Mechel’s coke and chemical facilities with fully internally-sourced fuel, which will enable us to significantly improve our coke products’ quality and guarantee our independence…. read
more |
|
|
|
Orvana Minerals Corp. announced that Roland Horst has resigned as CEO and as a director. Bill Williams, vice president of corporate development, has been appointed president and CEO, and as a director. Agne Ahlenius, director general of Orvana’s flagship El Valle-Boinás/Carlés project in northern Spain, has been appointed COO replacing Carlos Mirabal, who has moved from his position as COO and president to become executive chairman of Orvana’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Empresa Minera Paititi S.A. Jim Jacques has been appointed vice president of operations in addition to his responsibilities as general manager of the Copperwood project in Michigan, USA.
Thunder Mountain Gold, Inc. has appointed Eric T. Jones president and CEO; Jim Collord has been appointed vice president and COO; and R. Llee Chapman, a member of the company’s board and audit committee chairman, has been appointed CFO. Pete Parsley will remain vice president and exploration manager.
Brigus Gold Corp. announced Richard Allan, vice president and COO, has left the company. Jennifer Nicholson has been promoted to executive vice president. She will continue to be responsible for investor relations and communications but will now also have responsibility for human resources and operations support.
Gekko Systems has appointed Peter Henderson senior metallurgist.
Former E&MJ Editor Richard W. Phelps passed away during December. He keenly understood the financial side of mining and managed the magazine through the difficult 1990s era. Prior to his career in publishing, he worked in mine finance. He was a mining engineer, an alumni of the Missouri University of Science & Technology (formerly known as the Missouri School of Mines) and his family has asked that donations be made to the MS&T Mining Engineering Dept.
