De Beers' final denouement?
August 11 - 17, 2008
MANY years ago, when I was working at the Financial Times, there was a file on a colleague’s desk that grew fatter by the week. “What’s that?” I asked one day. “That’s my pension. One day I’m going to write a book about De Beers,” he explained. “It’s like the Mafia, only worse. Either the book will make a fortune or they'll pay me a lot not to publish.”
Anvil's hardens Dikilushi focus
August 11 - 17, 2008
A DISAPPOINTING quarter for Anvil Mining but in the grand scheme of things it’s seen as little more than a minor blip in the company’s journey toward development of a significant, low cost copper business.
Not so Faso (Part II)
August 11 - 17, 2008
AN INVESTMENT bank report calling into question the prospectivity of Burkina Faso has been rubbished by a technically-strong company eyeing its own exploration acreage in the West African country.
Oklo targets Mali phosphate
August 11 - 17, 2008
MOROCCO may have two-thirds of the world’s phosphate reserves but Ross Brown figures there is a lot of sand between the vast fertiliser-mineral deposits and needy farmers along the Niger River in Mali. Hence the head of uranium and now phosphate explorer Oklo Uranium sees an opportunity to reinvigorate phosphate mining in Mali’s north.
Quick mining start is best Discovery path
July 28 - August 3, 2008
DISCOVERY Metals changed its name and has now done the same with its major project in Botswana. It also changed its managing director earlier this year and, make no mistake, while the company finds itself in the middle of what is shaping as another rich patch of copper country in Africa, the new boss is there to run a serious mining company rather than just being a successful explorer.
Anvil strengthened by Gertler support
July 14 - 20, 2008
PROOF of Anvil Mining’s bona fides have been delivered in spades with a stunning $C296.6 million raising last week amid the turmoil of world equity markets.
Lumwana powers up ... and down
July 7 - 13, 2008
NEAR enough is good enough for Credit Suisse as far as Equinox Minerals and its Lumwana copper project in Zambia is concerned. The company “remains one of our outstanding buys in resources globally” as it gears up for production, albeit a little late.
Not so Faso
July 7 - 13, 2008
BE WARY of those that speak in glowing terms about the gold potential of Burkina Faso.
Moatize shapes as company maker
April 28 - May 4, 2008
SPOT the odd one out: Escondida copper, Pilbara iron ore, Carajas iron ore, Queensland Bowen Basin coking coal, Mozambique’s Moatize coking coal region. Naturally if you picked Moatize then of course you are right – at least in this decade.
Congo miner looks for a new beat
April 21 - 27, 2008
ANVIL Mining has proved itself a superb operator in the mining business. In the 1990s it sniffed a development opportunity in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and just over ten years later it had some $US300 million in the bank to prove the opportunity was tangible. Where to now for the copper miner on the road to 100,000 tonnes of annual DRC copper production in 2010?
Exploration delivers more value
April 7 - 13, 2008
MID-TIER companies working in West Africa can get a greater return on shareholders’ funds from exploration than through acquisitions in the region, according to a London analyst.
Get set for more West African action
March 24 - 30, 2008
FURTHER corporate action in West Africa could be triggered by Lihir Gold’s announced takeout of Equigold, with Gold Fields one of the majors that’s been actively canvassing opportunities in the region over the past six months. Juniors such as Perseus Mining and Gryphon Minerals could be the sorts to figure in the thoughts of those with M&A on their mind.
Blind find a wake-up call
March 24 - 30, 2008
CANADIAN analysts have been impressed by a site visit to Perseus Mining’s flagship Ayanfuri gold project in Ghana, describing it as on the verge of being a world class discovery and noting the important implications of a recent exploration breakthrough made by the Australian-based junior.
Drilling for a takeover
March 10 - 16, 2008
XEMPLAR Energy is sitting on what could prove to be one of the largest uranium deposits in the world with exceptional development potential, yet the Canadian explorer would prefer not to become a miner.
Sub-Sahara prepares for Koka feasibility
March 3 - 9, 2008
SUB-SAHARA Resources is ready to launch a funding drive, and thereafter a feasibility study on a new gold project in Eritrea, after coming up with a one-million-ounce resource at Koka in the country’s north.
Proof is in the drilling
March 3 - 9, 2008
WHAT a tease Ghana can be for Castle Minerals and other explorers, with its “cracker” gold in soil anomalies that prove less satisfying when drilled. Still, Castle has an efficient and relatively cheap assessment procedure in place, and given its prospects are on the famed Ashanti gold belt, it’s giving itself every chance of ultimately nailing a good one.
Congo line changes direction
February 25 - March 2, 2008
ANVIL Mining believes the involvement of experienced multi-lateral institutions such as the World Bank would be a positive development in the current review of mining rights in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Paladin to power on
February 11 - 17, 2008
NEW uranium producer Paladin Energy could expand its mainstay Langer Heinrich operation in Namibia to annual output of six million pounds by early next decade at a cost of $US100 million.
Williams ejects finance monkey
February 4 - 10, 2008
MINERAL Deposits will be hoping for some market traction after a finalising a debt package with three banks for development of its Sabodala gold project in Senegal, while elsewhere in the former French colony it remains on the lookout for buyers of its planned ilmenite production from the Grande Cote zircon project.
Record year for DRC copper miner
January 21 - 27, 2008
SUCCESSFUL copper miner Anvil Mining expects to produce more than 55,000 tonnes of copper and 1.3 million ounces of silver in 2008 from its three Democratic Republic of Congo operations following a record 2007 performance that saw more than 47,000t of copper produced.
Syama not far from Orezone spotlight
October 29 - November 4, 2007
RESOLUTE Mining shareholders and management may well have been licking their lips a few weeks back as fellow West African gold company Orezone forked out $US200 million for the 65%-stake it didn’t already own in the undeveloped Essakane gold project in Burkina Faso.
DRC to get $5B China loan
September 24 - 30, 2007
CHINA is to receive mining concessions and infrastructure toll revenue in return for $US5 billion in loans to the Democratic Republic of Congo, $US3 billion of which is expected to be used to fund major infrastructure projects such as a railway linking DRC’s southern mining heartland to the port of Matadi on the Atlantic coast, it has been reported.
Bannerman to grind down numbers
September 17 - 23, 2007
USE OF a high-pressure grinding roll comminution circuit instead of conventional SAG and ball milling could save Bannerman Resources Ltd up to 10% of the cost of its proposed $US400 million Goanikontes uranium project in Namibia, a scoping study has indicated.
Destination Africa
September 10 - 16, 2007
A LAND of seemingly unending promise – though one previously described as capital-hostile – has become a magnet for Australian mineral explorers and miners. Last week an investment conference in Perth, Western Australia, heard about a fresh wave of development projects which highlighted the prospects-to-permits transition gathering speed in Africa.
Centamin eyes 500,000ozpa
August 20 - 26, 2007
QUITE how long Centamin Egypt remains an independent company is the stuff of crystal balls, but if the line peddled by the majors, mid-tiers and juniors alike in the gold sector is more than just spin, then it seems likely it won’t be indefinitely.
More Ashanti action possible
August 20 - 26, 2007
THE southern end of the famed Ashanti gold belt could be the backdrop to some corporate action with Golden Star Resources and the Macquarie Bank-backed Adamus Resources among those potentially in the mix.
Lumwana uranium importance grows
July 30 - August 5, 2007
TALK about timing! Not only is Equinox Minerals busy developing a large copper mine in what is an unparalleled price environment for the red metal, it’s got an advanced uranium project on its hands that will be at the forefront of the supply response to the quite staggering uranium era underway.
World-class Terramin
July 23 - 29, 2007
FORMAL scoping is about to begin on what is emerging as a world-class zinc project in Algeria, with recent drilling at Terramin Australia’s mainstay Tala Hamza deposit indicating the potential for a mining operation that could ultimately yield up to seven million tonnes of ore annually.
Mines raise Guinea stakes
July 16 - 22, 2007
CONTINUING social unrest, political tensions and evident threats posed to foreign-company employees are among the serious risks confronting proponents of multi-billion-dollar mining projects in Guinea, according to a leading independent London-based business risk consultancy.
Analysts happy with Lumwana progress
July 2 - 8, 2007
EQUINOX Minerals Ltd is slightly behind schedule in concluding offtake arrangements for Lumwana copper concentrates but is close to an announcement, according to one of the analysts who recently returned from a site visit. Another says the company’s new $US45 million of contingency funding could come in handy.
Lumwana profits within sight
May 28 - June 3, 2007
BIG TIME earnings are just around the corner for Equinox Minerals Ltd – now mining at Lumwana in Zambia’s north-west – as it maintains a construction schedule aimed at getting one of the world’s major new copper operations into production by the second quarter of next year.
Senegal stocks could rise
April 16 - 22, 2007
A MARKET re-rating could be in the wind for Mineral Deposits Ltd as financing is finalised and construction accelerates at the multi-million ounce Sabodala gold project in the West African country of Senegal.
Nikanor costs climb
April 2 - 8, 2007
MAJOR new copper contender Nikanor plc has announced a significant cost blowout and the failure to reach financial agreement with Chinese parties that were to back its 250,000 tonne per annum copper cathode project based on redevelopment of the KOV mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Despite the double whammy, the company maintains the economics of the project remain “highly attractive”.
Strategies face early test
March 26 - April 1, 2007
GUNFIRE in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital of Kinshasa over the past few days will undoubtedly cause some consternation for the business development strategists at Xstrata and Rio Tinto, both of whom have recently signalled interest in the copper rich country that has been back into vogue of late following democratic elections and the successes achieved by the likes of First Quantum Minerals Ltd and Anvil Mining NL.
Under Egyptian sands
March 26 - April 1, 2007
FIVE of the world’s top 10 gold miners have visited its Sukari gold project over the past 12 months, while its maiden North American roadshow reportedly attracted about $C300 million in subscriptions for equity. It appears the gold world is unquestionably starting to sit up and take notice of Centamin Egypt Ltd.
Bogoso bugs ready for work
March 19 - 25, 2007
THE world’s biggest gold BIOX plant is now in the commissioning phase in Ghana, with owner Golden Star Resources Ltd aiming to produce 280,000 ounces at the Bogoso project after spending $US167 million on the bio-oxidation expansion.
Competition fuels investment heat
February 22 - 28, 2007
THE THREAT of Chinese entities being given greater access to mineral resources in some African countries at the expense of non-Chinese companies may be looming on the horizon as a sovereign risk issue, but it is not currently deterring a wave of fresh exploration and early project assessment investment all over Africa, according to the head of a leading mining consulting group.
Anvil turns up the heat
February 15 - 21, 2007
ANVIL Mining NL chief executive Bill Turner is currently showing investors the fruits of the company’s labours in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the latest initiative being the $US13 million installation of an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) and associated infrastructure at the 80% Kulu copper project. Capital payback is expected inside 12 months.
The languid leopard
February 1 - 7, 2007
SHOULD they laugh or cry? That’s the question Nkwe Platinum Ltd shareholders will be asking themselves after a bittersweet Christmas-New Year period that brought into sharp relief the key challenge of operating in the new South Africa.
Cashed up
January 25 - 31, 2007
EMERGING nickel company Albidon Ltd looks to be well and truly bankrolled in the event further “business development opportunities” emerge even after it spends around $US65 million over the next 12-18 months building its new Munali nickel mine in Zambia.
Ferrochrome major digs in
December 14 - 20, 2006
CHINESE investment in Africa’s minerals has been welcomed with open arms by some of the continent’s impoverished nations. But not by ferrochrome producers in South Africa, the regional economic power and a country with increasing trade ties with China. Led by Xstrata, they are now mounting a more vigorous push to limit China’s supplies of chrome ore and exert greater control over pricing of the vital end-product.
Rough but ready
December 7 - 13, 2006
RHETORIC is a particularly cheap commodity in a trouble-wracked place like the Democratic Republic of Congo. Hence merely claiming the country is on the verge of being a key exploration and mining destination is unlikely to cause the enthusiasm of those holding mining and exploration purse strings to overflow. However, progress on a raft of significant projects over the next 12-18 months could seriously shift attitudes.
Irons in the fire
November 30 - December 6, 2006
MINING executives looking for a case study on how to operate successfully in difficult jurisdictions need go no further than Australian-Canadian company Anvil Mining Ltd. The copper miner is more than half way through completing its third development in five years in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and all going to plan it will reach 100,000 tonnes of annual copper capacity before the turn of the decade.