This issue of IMPN includes the astonishing news that a coal mining company is acquiring 10 new longwall mining systems and 12 new sets of gateroad development equipment. No it is not a company in China but is New World Resources, leading producer of hard coal in the Czech Republic and Central Europe. The major capital investment program of approximately €300 million is for its wholly-owned subsidiary OKD a.s., the Czech Republic’s largest hard coal mining company. The company is also examining an interesting cross-border operation into Poland.

Late November saw a rush of project announcements by Rio Tinto, including two new iron ore mines in Western Australia and the decision to take the Diavik diamond mine underground.

Galore Creek bites the dust – NovaGold and Teck Cominco have announced they will suspend construction activities at the Galore Creek copper-gold-silver project in northwestern British Columbia. A recent review and completion of the first season of construction indicate substantially higher capital costs and a longer construction schedule for the project. This, combined with reduced operating margins as a result of the stronger Canadian dollar, would make the project, as now conceived and permitted, uneconomic at current consensus long-term metal prices.

Meanwhile, Anglo American has approved Los Bronces copper development project in Chile. It will raise annual production to transform Los Bronces into one of the largest copper mines in the world.

Mwana Africa with its Hunters Road nickel project and the Freda Rebecca gold mine is showing it is possible to work in Zimbabwe. Nevertheless it has been very difficult there, as Executive Chairman Oliver Baring explains.

There is much coal news including Altona’s huge CTL project in South Australia, Riversdale Mining has signed an important JV with Tata for coal in Mozambique and RUSAL’s move into coal in Kazakhstan.

There is news of mining returning to its hard rock cradle in England’s South West with South Crofty tin mine and Hemerdon tin and tungsten mine looking to re-open. And there is much much more in over 30 pages of project news released within the past two weeks.

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