The latest issue of International Mining Project News is now available – the next issue will be January 11. This fortnightly project watch is a great way of keeping up to date with your peers – other mining companies, other consultants or other engineering companies. These issues build into a global mine project overview. If you are a supplier – it is full of potential sales leads. Contact [email protected] for more details and a free trial. This issue has reports on 20 prefeasibility studies, eight feasibility studies, 20 projects in development, eight new mines that have gone into production, six existing mines that are expanding, six merger and acquisition announcements and many new appointments to new positions. The following are just some of the projects covered in this edition.
The report covers 27 gold projects, 17 copper, eight iron ore and silver projects, five coal, four uranium and zinc projects, two rare earths and cobalt projects, and one project each on graphite, diamonds, mineral sands, vanadium, titanium, lithium, molybdenum, potassium, magnesium, nickel, PGMs and chrome.
There is a First Quantum Minerals (currently trying a hostile takeover of Inmet Mining) update on the expansion of the sulphide treatment facilities at the Kansanshi mine and development of the Trident project including advances at the Enterprise nickel project and an increase to the throughput capacity at the Sentinel copper project, all in Zambia. Board approval for the sulphide expansion project and the development of Enterprise was granted on the strength of the recently-announced uplift in Mineral Resources and Reserves estimates at Kansanshi and Enterprise.
Inmet Mining announced an increase to Proven and Probable mineral reserves at its 80% owned Cobre Panama project. The additional mineral reserves from the Balboa, Brazo and Botija Abajo deposits increase Cobre Panama’s total estimated contained copper by 27% to some 26,000 Mlb. Estimated contained gold increases by 41% to about 7.3 Moz. The additional mineral reserves have been integrated into a revised mine plan that extends the estimated mine life from 31 to 40 years.
ArcelorMittal and Nunavut Iron Ore have agreed that Nunavut Iron Ore will increase its interest in Baffinland Iron Mines Corp from 30% to 50%. In consideration, Nunavut Iron Ore will increase its share of funding for development of Baffinland’s Mary River iron ore project. Mary River property is located on North Baffin Island in the Qikqtani Region of Nunavut. It is one of the largest and richest undeveloped iron ore projects in the world and the project involves the construction, operation, closure and reclamation of an open-pit mine. Based on the current defined mineral reserve at Deposit No. 1., the total annual designed output will be optimized to between 18 and 30 Mty of ore.
Jubilee Platinum is in an advanced stage of discussions for a proposed business combination or merger by way of a proposed scheme of arrangement with Australian listed Platinum Australia Ltd (PLA). The merger will create a large Anglo-Australian-South African platinum mining group with the potential to be a significant producer within the top five platinum producers in the world.
Formation Metals is making good progress with the construction of its 100% owned Idaho Cobalt Project (ICP), managed by JDS Energy & Mining. The ICP is comprised of the development of a mine and construction of a concentrator at a primary cobalt deposit in Lemhi County near the town of Salmon, Idaho, and the retrofit and construction of an EW cobalt production facility in Shoshone County, near Kellogg, Idaho, USA.
U.S. Rare Earths has added Dr Sam Sinha, a leading geochemist and rare earths separation expert, to the company’s Advisory Board. “We are delighted to bring a scientist of Dr Sinha’s stature onto our Advisory Board,” said Kevin Cassidy, interim CEO of U.S. Rare Earths. “The separation process is an integral part of the rare earths supply chain, and Sam’s expertise will help us shape our development efforts.” His work in separation science and processes is recognised worldwide. The company is especially interested in his work to advance ‘green’ separation techniques, which look to be more efficient than the industry standard – and substantially more biodegradable. His research and technology breakthroughs in the use of organic solvents could have a major impact on rare earths processing, in terms of efficiency, costs and sustainability.
Midway Gold has closed a $70 million private placement financing. The primary use of the proceeds will be to advance the Pan heap leach gold project towards production, including the ordering of long-lead time capital equipment, as well as engineering studies to advance the Gold Rock gold project, which are close to each other in Nevada.
Aurcana Corp announced that the commissioning and testing phase has been successfully completed and the Shafter silver mine in Texas is now in commercial production.
Golden Band Resources Inc. provided an update on the commissioning of its Komis open pit mine and the continued ramp up of production. A bonanza grade (approximately 9,300 g/t Au) gold pipe was recently discovered there.
MacPhersons Resources has announced approval to proceed with the new Merrill Crowe plant along with introducing a gravity circuit to the proposed 480,000 t/y Nimbus plant expansion at its 100% owned Nimbus silver-gold-zinc project.
OJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel has signed a Protocol of Cooperation with OJSC Russian Agency for Insurance of Export Credit and Investment to establish a partnership and develop long-term, effective and mutually beneficial cooperation aimed at providing insurance coverage for the company’s copper smelter construction project in Indonesia. The project involves erecting a copper smelter with a throughput of up to 400,000 t/y of copper. Norilsk Nickel is currently going forward with a prefeasibility study involving Gipronickel Institute expertise.