Today's Mining Pulse
Ximen Mining Deploys Robotic Dog to Accelerate Underground Surveys
Ximen Mining has introduced an autonomous robotic dog at its Kenville mine project in British Columbia, cutting underground survey time by roughly 30%. The move underscores a broader industry shift toward automation and faster, safer data collection.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Ganfeng invests $319M in Australian Mount Marion lithium mine
DRC Plans New Copper Megaproject in Greater Kasai With Integrated Energy Infrastructure
The Democratic Republic of Congo announced a plan to develop a large‑scale copper mine in Greater Kasai with China Railway Resources Universal Ltd. The mine targets 200,000‑500,000 tonnes of copper per year, positioning it among the country’s biggest projects. An integrated 250‑500 MW hybrid hydro‑solar power plant will accompany the mine to alleviate local electricity shortages. President Félix Tshisekedi has flagged the venture as a priority for diversifying the DRC’s mining base and spurring regional growth.
Masterclass Unpacks Global Mining Waste Opportunity
The mining sector faces a $3.4 trillion opportunity as historic tailings and waste rock contain vast amounts of unrecovered metals. Declining ore grades and soaring demand for critical minerals are pushing firms to view waste as secondary ore bodies. South Africa...
Australian Shares Slip 1.7% as Mining and Energy Stocks Drag ASX 200 Below 8,750
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 fell 149.9 points (1.69%) to 8,728.20 on Friday, extending early losses after Wall Street cues. Weakness in major miners and oil producers outweighed gains in technology shares, leaving the index below the 8,750 threshold.
Arsenic Levels Surge in Thailand’s Mekong River Sediments, First Detection on Mainstream
Thailand’s Pollution Control Department reported arsenic concentrations of 73‑296 mg/kg in sediment from the Mekong River mainstream, far above the 10 mg/kg safety threshold. The contamination, also found in three tributaries, is traced to unregulated mining activities upstream in Myanmar, prompting urgent...
Gas Reservation a Welcome Stop, but It’s Not the Destination
Australia’s Albanese government unveiled an east‑coast gas reservation requiring producers to keep 20% of output for domestic use, extending the 2017 Domestic Gas Security Mechanism that has never been triggered. The policy mirrors Western Australia’s 2006 reservation, which spurred billions...
LNG Vessel Pair Enriches MISC’s Fleet
MISC Group, a Petronas affiliate, announced the naming of two new‑generation LNG carriers—Seri Dian and Seri Dayang—built by Hanwha Ocean. Each vessel holds 174,000 cbm of LNG and incorporates smart, energy‑efficient technologies such as the ICER exhaust‑recycling system and a low boil‑off containment...
‘The Worst Time for Wheat’: US Farmers Face Losses to Extreme Heat and Drought
Extreme heat and drought across the Great Plains have devastated the 2025‑26 U.S. wheat crop. Kansas and Oklahoma, the nation’s top hard‑red winter wheat producers, experienced temperatures 10‑11°F above normal, leaving 44%‑49% of wheat in very poor condition and yielding...
Contentious Plan Moves Ahead to Process Leftover Ore at Idled Nova Scotia Gold Mine
Atlantic Mining Nova Scotia, a St Barbara subsidiary, secured $56 million (≈$41 million USD) in contracts to process three million tonnes of stockpiled ore at the idle Touquoy gold mine starting in November. The 14‑month operation will generate about 200 temporary jobs and extract...
Gold Fields Reviews INDIMIN Coach Experience at Cerro Corona Mine in Peru
Gold Fields and INDIMIN showcased the INDIMIN Coach digital assistant at ExpoCobre, highlighting its deployment at the Cerro Corona mine in Peru. The tool recovered an extra 153,000 tonnes of ore in 90 days, delivering a 3.4% production uplift over...
FTMining Launches Mining Service for BTC, ETH, XRP, & DOGE Holders
FTMining, a UK‑licensed cloud mining platform with over six million users, has launched a free cloud mining service for Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP and Dogecoin, complemented by a new mobile app. The service offers instant sign‑up bonuses ranging from $15 to...
Canadian Innovator ELEMISSION Wins Global Open Innovation Colab at GRX26
Canadian mining‑tech firm ELEMISSION won the Global Open Innovation Colab at GRX26 in Perth, beating five other finalists with its eCore real‑time ore characterisation platform. The eCore system uses laser‑induced breakdown spectroscopy to deliver laboratory‑grade mineral data directly from drill...
Equinor Cleared for Wildcat Well Drilling Op in North Sea
Equinor received a drilling permit from Norway’s Offshore Directorate to explore wildcat well 34/10‑56 S in the North Sea. The well sits in production license 050 HS, where Equinor holds a 70% working interest and Petoro owns the remaining 30%. Drilling will...
Regional Buyers ‘Quite Excited’ by Dinson Steel as Manhize Plant Powers Zimbabwe’s 2030 Ambition
Dinson Iron and Steel Company's $1.5 billion Manhize integrated mill has begun shipping steel products, drawing enthusiastic feedback from regional buyers. The plant has slashed Zimbabwe's steel import bill, saving an estimated $500 million a year, while exports jumped from 413 tonnes in...
Fastmarkets Clarifies Inclusion of Government-Set Benchmark Pricing in Indonesia Nickel Ore Assessment
Fastmarkets clarified its pricing methodology for Indonesian nickel ore after the government revised the HPM benchmark formula. The new decree, effective April 15, raised the corrective factor for 1.6% nickel ore to 30%, added cobalt, iron and chromium, and switched...
Lake Victoria Gold Reports Imwelo Project Geotechnical Review Results, Tanzania
Lake Victoria Gold released the results of a geotechnical review at its fully permitted Imwelo gold project in northwestern Tanzania. The study confirmed strong to very strong basalt, porphyritic basalt and granite cores with compressive strengths up to 166 MPa, while...
US and South Africa Open Minerals Investment Talks
The United States and South Africa have launched preliminary talks on mining, investment and infrastructure projects, convening roughly 25 officials in Johannesburg. The meeting, the highest‑level bilateral mineral dialogue of the year, aims to identify projects that could benefit from...
Ventura Offshore Picks Weatherford for Búzios Field MPD Operations
Weatherford has secured a managed pressure drilling (MPD) contract from Ventura Offshore for operations on the SSV Victoria rig in Brazil’s Búzios field. The deal includes delivery of Weatherford’s G3 Integrated Riser Joint MPD system, rig preparation, integration and long‑term aftermarket...
Rolls-Royce Wants to Cut Mining's Biggest Fuel Bill by 30%
Rolls‑Royce Power Systems is developing a hybrid drive system for open‑pit mining haul trucks that could cut fuel consumption by roughly 30%. The company plans to start field testing the technology at an active mine site in autumn 2026. If...
Heritage Mining Drills Multiple High-Grade Intercepts at Melba Project, Ontario
Heritage Mining Ltd. announced high‑grade gold intercepts from drill hole ML3855-001 at its Melba Project in northeastern Ontario, including 9.34 g/t Au over 2 m and a peak of 21.74 g/t Au over 0.5 m. The results confirm visible gold in core and support...
Turkey Looks to Expand LNG Imports From Algeria
Turkey is set to renegotiate its LNG supply contract with Algeria, which currently delivers 4.4 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas annually and expires in September 2027. The new deal aims to raise imports to 6‑6.5 bcm per year and could extend the...
Focus Graphite Announces One of the Largest Identified Graphite Deposits Globally at the Lac Tetepisca Project
Focus Graphite announced an upgraded NI 43‑101 mineral resource estimate for its 100% owned Lac Tetepisca project in Quebec, identifying 120,163 kt of indicated graphite at 10.27 % Cg and 24,143 kt of inferred material at 9.88 % Cg. The estimate uses a conservative 3.5 % cut‑off...
ConocoPhillips Gets Norway’s Blessing to Restart Greater Ekofisk Fields
Norway’s Ministry of Energy approved ConocoPhillips’ Previously Produced Fields (PPF) project in the Greater Ekofisk area, enabling redevelopment of the Albuskjell, Vest Ekofisk and Tommeliten Gamma fields via a subsea tie‑back to the Ekofisk Complex. The plan calls for 11 new wells...
Is This a New Era for Platinum? Its Miners Think So
Platinum prices have surged to about $2,800 an ounce, roughly double 2023 levels, driven by renewed automotive demand for hybrids and internal‑combustion engines and new uses such as ruthenium in data centres. South Africa, which supplies 70% of global platinum,...
Local Private Firm to Deliver SURF EPCI for Indonesian Gas Project
West Natuna Exploration Limited, a Conrad Asia Energy subsidiary, awarded Indonesian contractor Timas Suplindo an engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract for the subsea umbilical, flowline and riser (SURF) scope of the Mako gas project in the Natuna Sea....
CATL, Rio Tinto Team up for Mining Electrification and Recycling
CATL and Rio Tinto partner to advance mining electrification, recycling and critical minerals circularity. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/05/catl-rio-tinto-partnership-targets.html
WPM Secures Full Gold
$WPM has a precious metals stream on junior $GENM's Marathon Pd-Cu Project in NW Ontario. Fully permitted & shovel-ready. Construction targeted H2 2026. Wheaton gets 100% gold + 22% platinum. Great leverage to Pd, Cu & Au @GenMining
Silver Storm Mobilises Contractors at La Parrilla Mine
Silver Storm Mining announced that it has mobilised Mexican contractors MINPRO and Constructora Mexgeo to begin underground development at its fully owned La Parrilla silver mine in Durango, Mexico. The mobilisation effort is slated for completion by May 2026, paving the way...
American Pacific Unveils Assay Results From Madison Project
American Pacific Mining released underground assay results from its Madison Copper‑Gold Project in Montana, revealing copper concentrations as high as 25%, gold up to 3.19 g/t and silver up to 27.2 g/t. The sampling covered a newly identified breccia pipe and the...
EU Russian Arctic LNG Imports Hit $4.4bn Record Despite Sanctions Measures
EU imports of Russian Arctic Yamal LNG surged to a record 6.69 million metric tonnes in the first four months of 2026, a 17.2% increase from a year earlier. At current Dutch TTF prices, European buyers paid roughly $4.4 billion for the...
Loadquip Salt Harvester for Mardie
Loadquip, an Australian OEM, has delivered a 1,500‑tonne‑per‑hour salt harvester to BCI Mineral for its Mardie operation on the Pilbara coast. The machine moves across salt ponds, scoops bulk salt and directly loads it onto trailers, automating a task traditionally...
Loadquip Salt Harvester for Mardie
Loadquip, a Queensland OEM, has engineered a 1,500‑tonne‑per‑hour salt harvester for BCI Mineral’s Mardie operation on the Pilbara coast. The mobile system traverses evaporation ponds, scoops salt, and directly loads it onto trailers, streamlining the logistics chain. Designed for continuous...
China’s Covert Oil Import Cuts Cap Prices, Flatten Differentials
COLUMN: China is quietly slashing oil imports, an invisible hand that's rebalancing the market in the middle of the Hormuz closure. (The shift has not only capped benchmark oil prices, but also triggered a collapse in physical differentials) @Opinion https://t.co/GND1uXtbwV
Altitude Pinpoints Three Priority Copper-Gold Targets at Byrock Ahead of Drilling
Altitude Minerals announced three priority copper‑gold porphyry targets at its Byrock project in New South Wales, identified through new gravity, passive seismic, 2025 magnetics and alteration studies. The company has secured drill permits and an RC rig, with drilling slated...
US LNG Exports Burning Bright
The United States has emerged as the de facto leading LNG exporter after recent attacks crippled Middle‑East liquefaction capacity, said Jeff Wilson of Howden at the Marine Insurance Greece conference. U.S. liquefaction capacity has risen from virtually zero in 2012 to...
How Electrification Is Driving Copper Demand>
Electrification is turning copper into a cornerstone of the global energy transition, boosting demand across electric vehicles, renewable power, and data centers. Grid expansion and infrastructure upgrades embed copper in capital‑intensive projects, tying its consumption to long‑term capex cycles rather...
Earl Grey Environmental Approval Brewing
Covalent Lithium has submitted an expansion proposal for its Earl Grey lithium project in Western Australia, prompting the EPA to release a report to the state environment minister. The agency has opened a three‑week public appeal period for stakeholders to...
Zodiac Targets Ammonia Shipping with Hanwha Deal
London‑based Zodiac Maritime, controlled by Eyal Ofer, has placed an order for three very large ammonia carriers (VLACs) with South Korean builder Hanwha Ocean, with options for two additional ships. The contract, valued at roughly $575 million overall and $345 million for...
Fastmarkets Proposes to Raise Frequency of Normalization Coefficient for Daily Iron Ore Indices: Pricing Notice
Fastmarkets has proposed moving the normalization coefficient for its Iron ore 61% Fe fines and 62% Fe fines CFR Qingdao indices from a monthly to a daily update cycle. The change is intended to better mirror rapid intra‑month price movements...
US and South Africa Hold Talks on Mining Deals After Year of Tensions
U.S. officials and South African mineral authorities met in Washington to revive mining partnerships after a year of diplomatic friction. The talks focused on joint ventures in platinum‑group metals, lithium and copper, with U.S. firms such as Freeport‑McMoRan and Newmont...
Woodsmith Activity Continues to Ramp Back up as Fluor Awarded Feasibility Study Services Contract
Fluor Corporation has been selected to conduct the feasibility study for Anglo American’s Woodsmith polyhalite mining project in North Yorkshire. The underground mine will extract up to 13 million tonnes of low‑carbon fertilizer per year and transport it via a 37‑km...
Monsters of Rock: Albemarle Rides Lithium Turnaround to Print Cash in March Quarter
Albemarle posted a 670% year‑over‑year profit surge in the March quarter, propelled by a dramatic rebound in lithium prices and higher production volumes. Spodumene prices have risen above $2,750 per tonne, with UBS forecasting a peak of $4,250 per tonne...
Govt Says 101 Mineral Blocks Started Operations Since Auction Regime Began in 2015
The Ministry of Mines reported that 101 mineral blocks have been operational since India introduced the auction regime in 2015. The figure reflects coordinated efforts between the centre and states to fast‑track statutory clearances and production start‑ups. Odisha leads with...
Lula Urges US Firms to Invest in Brazil’s Rare Earths
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula publicly urged U.S. companies to invest in Brazil’s nascent rare‑earth sector after a recent meeting with former President Donald Trump. Lula highlighted Brazil’s estimated 20 percent share of global rare‑earth reserves and the country’s ambition to become a...
BW Offshore Secures Firmer Timeline for UK North Sea FPSO
BW Offshore has renegotiated the contract for its UK North Sea FPSO, BW Catcher, replacing the previous extension clauses with a fixed term that runs to December 31, 2030, plus or minus six months. The amendment, effective retroactively from February 1, 2026, adds roughly $490 million...
Copper Holds Steady at $13,393/Ton as Traders Eye US‑Iran Truce
Copper settled at $13,393 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, ending a three‑day rally as market participants weighed a potential US‑Iran truce. The pause reflects uncertainty over whether the Strait of Hormuz will reopen, a factor that could...
West Coast Outlines Pathway to Potential Near-Term Development at Elizabeth Hill Following Maiden Silver MRE
West Coast Silver (ASX:WCE) announced a development roadmap for its Elizabeth Hill silver project in Western Australia after releasing a maiden resource estimate of 2.8 Moz contained silver (141,000 t at 617 g/t). The plan focuses on rapid de‑risking, low‑capital open‑pit mining and...
Asara Resources Raises $60m to Fast-Track Kada Gold Project Exploration
Asara Resources secured a $60 million institutional placement to accelerate exploration at its flagship Kada Gold Project in Guinea. The funding, issued at $0.125 per share in two tranches, will support resource extension, infill drilling and broader regional programs, with $50 million...
Political Risk Wipes Out Frontier Mining Stocks Fast
TSX mining wipeouts: $GQC.V crashed ~56% as DR halted Romero gold project amid protests. $S.TO pressured by new Trump Cuba sanctions on mining. Political risk destroys value fast in frontier spots.
Mozambique to Seize 15% State Stake and Ban Raw Mineral Exports
Mozambique's draft mining law, set for a May 7 parliamentary debate, would guarantee the state a minimum 15% equity share in every mining project and prohibit the export of unprocessed minerals. The move is framed as a bid to capture...
Cyanide‑free Romero Mine Halted Amid Protests
GoldQuest Romero (DR): Underground mine, no cyanide (flotation), site runoff water only, waste backfill + dry stack tailings. Suspended May 2026 amid protests in middle of environmental studies.