The latest issue of International Mining Project News, has reports on 23 prefeasibility studies, 15 feasibility studies, 31 projects in development, six new mines that have gone into production, 11existing mines that are expanding, 11 merger and acquisition announcements and many new appointments to new positions. The report covers 42 gold projects, 19 copper, 13 iron ore, six silver projects, five zinc, rare earths, uranium and coal projects, four on lead, graphite and lithium, three nickel, molybdenum, potash and manganese projects, and one project each on platinum group metals, phosphate, tungsten, vanadium, titanium, aluminium, diamonds, lignite and antinomy. Contact [email protected] for subscription information.
First Quantum Minerals and its wholly-owned subsidiary FQM (Akubra) today announced that common shares of Inmet Mining Corp, representing 85.5% of the outstanding Inmet shares (on a fully diluted basis), have been validly tendered to the offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Inmet. The Offeror has taken up and accepted for payment all such shares and will pay for them on or before March 27, 2013. The combination of the First Quantum and Inmet assets has created one of the world’s leading copper producers with a geographically diversified portfolio of high-quality operations and development projects in eight countries across four continents.
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. 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.
On March 21, IAMGOLD Corp announced that the gold processing plant at the Westwood mine in Quebec has started up. Initially processing stockpiled ore from the adjacent Mouska mine, in 2013 the plant is expected to produce some 140,000 oz of gold, 60,000 oz from the 30-year old Mouska mine and about 80,000 oz from the new Westwood mine. The first gold pour, which is expected at the end of March, will likely be sold to a refinery in the second quarter of 2013.”We are building a solid reputation for our success in starting up mines on time and on budget” said Senior Vice President Project Development of IAMGOLD, Denis Miville-Deschênes.”Our previous startup was in mid-2010 at the Essakane mine in Burkina Faso, six months ahead of schedule” IAMGOLD President and CEO, Steve Letwin, said, “The same in-house engineering team who constructed Essakane, has now completed the development of Westwood and refurbishment of the old Doyon plant to process Westwood ore. The team’s success increases our confidence in our capability to meet our 2013 production guidance.”
Encanto Potash along with The Honourable Bernard Valcourt, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development and Muskowekwan First Nation Chief Reginald Bellerose announced an important milestone in the development of the first on-reserve potash mine in Canada. The Muskowekwan First Nation potash mine project has been accepted by the federal government under the First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act (FNCIDA). The Act will enable the federal government to enact regulations that incorporate a provincial regulatory regime to govern commercial and industrial activities within a province. The federal government and the Muskowekwan First Nation will begin discussions with the Province of Saskatchewan to explore a potential regulation under FNCIDA relating to the proposed mine.
Angola, the fifth-largest diamond producer by value, plans to start production at four new gem mines within a year, national diamond company Endiama EP has said. Two kimberlite mines in Tchiuzo in Lunda Sul province and Chiri in Lunda Norte may start by late this year or early 2014, Antonio Freitas, a spokesman for the company, said in an interview with Bloomberg in Luanda. Two alluvial mines are due to start output this year, he said. “Production in 2013 will probably be around the same quantity as last year, maybe a bit more,” Freitas said. Angola produced 8.3 Mct in 2012, Freitas said, the same amount as the previous year.
India’s third-largest steel producer is backing the emerging iron ore story in South Australia in a $10 million deal with junior Apollo Minerals. Apollo will farm its three iron ore projects — in South Australia, Western Australia and West Africa — into a new vehicle that will be majority-controlled by Jindal Steel and Power’s Australian arm, leaving a suite of base metals projects the main focus of Apollo. Apollo Chief Operating Officer Dominic Tisdell: “Jindal is going through a major international growth phase and they are looking to expand their iron ore steel production up to 20 Mt/y, and they need to source a lot of that iron ore offshore.”
The Federal Department of Mineral Production (DNPM) in Brazil has approved the PAE (Economic Development Plan) for Centaurus Metals’ flagship Jambreiro iron ore project in southeast Brazil. This effectively represents the penultimate approval required before the issue of the Installation Licence (LI), which allows on-site development to proceed.
Emerging Ghanaian gold producer, Noble Mineral Resources’ current strategy is to complete the refurbishment, recommissioning and ramp-up of the Bibiani project, to establish the company as a profitable gold producer. To this end, since the recent refinancing process with Resolute Mining, a number of near term objectives have been progressed. The Investec Project Loan Facility, and Resolute’s $15million unsecured short-term loan facility were both settled in full with payments of $18.77 million and $15.35 million respectively. In addition, the process of reconciling and paying down the company’s trade creditors is underway and progressing well. The procurement of equipment and supplies required to complete refurbishment and recommissioning of the 3 Mt/y Bibiani processing plant is advancing, with orders placed for the longest lead-time items, including a fluid coupling for the crusher with a lead-time of approximately 18 weeks.
Stope production at Ivanhoe Australia’s Starra 276 underground mine has commenced successfully, with stope blasting and production loading being achieved. This follows completion of development at Starra 276 in February 2013. Starra 276 is the third underground mine that Ivanhoe Australia has successfully re-commissioned for its Osborne copper-gold project and is a key pillar in the copper-gold strategy at Osborne. Mining at Starra 276 will continue to ramp up until its full production rate of approximately 650,000 t/y is reached – expected in the second quarter 2013.
At the Tulkubash project, which is part of the Chaarat project area located in the north west of the Kyrgyz Republic, production is to commence with heap leach operation – reducing capital cost and power requirements. Production is targeting second half 2013. There has been an increase in gold resources to 5.76 Moz following the 2012 drilling season.
ArcelorMittal has completed the first instalment of its sale of a 15% interest in ArcelorMittal Mines Canada for $1.1 billion to a Consortium led by POSCO and China Steel Corp.