The United States is re-evaluating the strictest elements of a ban on Russian diamonds from the Group of Seven major democracies, after opposition from African countries, Indian gem polishers and New York jewellers, seven sources said. The sanctions package, agreed in December and including a ban across the European Union, represents one of the industry’s biggest shakeups in decades.
Minerals Council, Geoscience, IDC going all out to boost South African exploration
A collective effort was apparent on Friday when Minerals Council South Africa, the Council for Geoscience and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) spoke on the same platform to promote a return to growth in the shrinking South African mining industry. Minerals Council South Africa CEO Mzila Mthenjane, Council for Geoscience CEO Mosa Mabuza, Junior Exploration & Mining Leadership Forum chairperson Errol Smart, who is also the CEO of Orion Minerals, IDC junior mining fund’s Siyabonga Mahlangu and many others showed common thought and vision on what must be done. (Attached also watch Creamer Media video.)
Glencore expands adherence to standards, reporting frameworks to ensure sustainability
Global diversified miner Glencore’s emissions and energy use increased in 2023, but the group continues to make strides in managing its operations sustainably and according to ever-evolving standards.
Glencore’s total energy use last year was 202 PJ, compared with 194 PJ in 2022. Renewable energy sources delivered 5.4% of Glencore’s total energy needs in 2023, compared with 7.6% in 2022.
Hummingbird says Corica restarts operations at Kouroussa
Aim-listed Hummingbird Resources has reported the remobilisation of mining services provider Corica Mining Services at the Kouroussa gold mine, in Guinea. Corica in March suspended work at the mine following a dispute with Hummingbird about certain payments, which it believed it was due.
Green Energy, Manganese Metal Co, Anglo American make headlines
Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer unpacks Nedbank’s belief that Green Energy is a reindustrialisation opportunity for South Africa; Manganese Metal Co’s first-mover advance to enter the manganese battery metal market; and Anglo American’s proposed demerging of Anglo Platinum and De Beers, which could mean value elevation for the miner.
BHP needs to bid about £32 a share for Anglo, JPMorgan says
HP Group would need to boost its latest offer around 30% to reflect fair value for Anglo American and its key copper assets, JPMorgan analysts said in a note.
They raised their price target for London-listed Anglo to £27.75 a share after reexamining the value of its copper assets, and said the discount for the shares to the implied value of BHP’s offer was at its greatest level, implying the market sees a deal as unlikely.
Petra weathers lower diamond prices in latest tender
Independent diamond miner Petra Diamonds’ sixth tender cycle for the 2024 financial year yielded $44-million from the sale of 371 000 ct. CEO Richard Duffy says like-for-like prices were marginally down through this seasonally quiet period, being 2.6% lower than for Tender 5, with demand slightly muted owing to Indian holidays and the continued slow recovery in the Chinese market.
China’s April coal output falls to lowest level since Oct 2022
China’s coal production in April fell to its lowest level since October 2022, statistics bureau data and Reuters records showed on Friday, as continuing mine safety inspections curbed output.
Output was 371.67-million metric tons last month, down 2.9% from a year earlier, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. That was also down 7% from March.
Today’s well-supplied market for critical minerals ‘may not be a good guide for future’
A new International Energy Agency (IEA) report describes the sharp decline in critical mineral prices over the past year as a double-edged sword, cautioning that, while it has been a boon for clean energy deployment and affordability, it is a bane for critical mineral investment and diversification. The ‘Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2024’ highlights that, following two years of dramatic increases, the prices of critical minerals fell steeply in 2023, returning to levels last seen before the pandemic.
Greater man/machine collaboration needed as AI, automation evolve – Cawood
In the new world of digitised and automated mining that is headed towards increased dependence on AI to solve problems and facilitate complex processes, University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) School of Mining Engineering Professor Fred Cawood has warned against an overreliance on such technologies without human checks and balances in place. “If you find yourself in a space where you can’t perform a certain activity, you will have to get the experts to help you because we can get it seriously wrong with automation if we do not understand the risks involved. So, thou shalt not automate that which thou cannot do thyself,” he said at the Mind Shift conference hosted by Mine Equipment Manufacturers of South Africa, in Sandton, on May 16.