Today's Mining Pulse
Indonesia grants export monopoly to state trader, targeting $66B in resource revenues
Indonesia’s employers association and major mining cartels have endorsed President Prabowo Subianto’s new export monopoly, giving exclusive rights to state‑controlled trader PT Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI). The policy aims to capture roughly $66.13B in annual resource revenues and curb historic tax leakage estimated at $908B.
Also developing:
Viridis in Advanced Talks for Brazil Rare Earths Project
Viridis Mining and Minerals is in advanced negotiations with European and U.S. buyers for off‑take of its Colossus rare‑earths project in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The company has explicitly ruled out Chinese partners, positioning the venture as a Western‑focused supply source. Viridis recently opened a research and processing centre capable of handling 100 kg of ore per hour and aims for steady‑state production by late 2028. The project’s capital estimate is $360‑$370 million, potentially rising to $400 million, with financing slated for completion in Q3.
Newmont's Record Cash Flow Signals Gold Sector Appeal
Gold miner bellwether newmont record free cash flow generation. Sector should start attracting generalists. https://t.co/lcaPr4xhHU
Kolkata-Based Rashmi Group to Invest ₹35,000 Crore Across Steel, Power, Mining Sectors in Bengal
Rashmi Group, a Kolkata‑based conglomerate, announced a ₹35,000 crore (≈ $4.2 billion) investment in West Bengal to boost steel capacity by 7 MTPA and develop three coal mines. Over ₹30,000 crore will fund the steel expansion, while ₹5,000 crore targets mining operations in Birbhum and Paschim Bardhaman....
Iran‑U.S. Standoff Highlights U.S. Dependence on Imported Critical Minerals
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they forced a U.S. F‑35 to retreat and shot down an MQ‑9 drone, while a Washington Examiner analysis warns the United States imports 100% of twelve critical minerals, including graphite, gallium and manganese. The contrast spotlights...
African Oil & Gas Block’s Farm-Out One Approval Shy of Completion
Europa Oil & Gas announced that its associate Antler Global secured approval from Equatorial Guinea's Ministry for Mining and Hydrocarbons to complete a farm‑out of the EG‑08 block to Beijing‑based Fuhai Energy. The deal still requires overseas direct investment (ODI)...
Evonik Partners with University of Guanajuato on Sustainable Mining Chemistry
Evonik has teamed up with the University of Guanajuato’s School of Mining to create sustainable, low‑toxicity chemicals for mineral processing. The collaboration taps Evonik’s industrial‑scale biosurfactant platform to meet soaring demand for copper, gold, rare‑earths and other essential ores while...
University of Edinburgh Grants E-Waste Metals Recovery Rights
The University of Edinburgh has granted Lithium Universe exclusive rights to a low‑temperature, organic‑ligand process called Gold Copper Diamide Extraction (GCDE) for recovering gold and copper from e‑waste. The method avoids cyanide, mercury and high‑energy smelting, delivering high‑purity metals with...
Monsters of Rock: Miners Take Leap to Add Supply in Latest Lithium Renaissance
Lithium prices have rebounded sharply, with spodumene concentrate peaking at US$2,870/tonne before easing toward US$2,500/tonne. The rally follows a year‑long “lithium winter” and is driven by booming EV battery builds, AI‑fuelled data‑center expansion and renewable‑grid storage needs. Benchmark Minerals projects...
U.S. to Auction Seabed‑Mining Leases, Sparking a New Advisory Market for Consultants
The U.S. Department of the Interior announced three competitive auctions for seabed‑mining blocks in American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands and Alaska, covering roughly 875,000 sq km. The unprecedented move is expected to generate a nascent market for management‑consulting firms...
Argosy Minerals Boosts DFS Progress with 99% Lithium Purity Result at Rincon Pilot
Argosy Minerals announced that its Rincon lithium pilot achieved 99% lithium chloride purity and a 94.4% maximum yield, confirming the core process technology. The results de‑risk key assumptions for the upcoming Definitive Feasibility Study and support the planned 12,000‑tonne‑per‑year production...
As Economic Case for Deep-Sea Mining Weakens, Industry Should Halt Urgency to Begin Operation (Commentary)
The commentary argues that deep‑sea mining’s economic case is collapsing, citing recent reports that project meager revenues—such as less than $350,000 annually for each African beneficiary under proposed benefit‑sharing schemes—and highlight that 82 financial institutions, managing roughly $27.5 trillion, are restricting...
Alamos Greenlights Copperstone Gold Mine in Arizona
Minera Alamos announced it will spend roughly $58 million (C$80 million) to rebuild the Copperstone underground gold mine in Arizona, targeting first production in mid‑2027. The pre‑feasibility study projects 46,000 ounces of gold per year for six years, delivering an after‑tax NPV...
US Deploys AI Agents to Speed Critical Minerals Recovery
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory introduced CICERO, an AI‑driven, semi‑autonomous platform that designs and runs experiments to recover critical minerals from industrial waste in days instead of months. By linking a liquid‑handling robot, a sample‑handling device,...
New Eco-Friendly Method Cuts Lithium Extraction Costs
Researchers say they’ve found a new way to extract lithium, a crucial metal used in the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles and energy storage arrays. This new technique could be more environmentally friendly and cheaper than existing ones.
Panama Ready to Unveil Key Audit on First Quantum Copper Mine – by Staff (Mining.com – May 28, 2026)
Panama will publish the final third‑party audit of First Quantum Minerals’ Cobre Panamá copper mine on Friday, amid renewed anti‑mining protests. The audit, now in its technical verification stage, follows six preliminary reports and is being released by Environment Minister Juan...
The U.S. May Not Need to Import Lithium for Much Longer
The US Geological Survey has identified roughly 2.3 million metric tons of lithium oxide in the Appalachian region, a reserve large enough to replace 328 years of U.S. lithium imports at 2023 levels. The find could power an estimated 130 million electric...
BHP, Fortescue Warn China’s Influence over Iron Ore Will only Grow – by Peter Ker and James Thomson (Australian Financial...
Australia’s two largest iron‑ore producers, BHP and Fortescue, warned that China’s state‑backed steel cartel is tightening its grip on the sector. Protracted contract talks between BHP and China Mineral Resources Group, which represents roughly 80% of Chinese steel mills, ended...
SQM Targets 300,000t of Lithium per Year in Chile and Moves Forward with Codelco on the Salar Futuro Project Worth...
SQM reported a strong first quarter in 2026 and announced plans to lift its Chilean lithium output toward 300,000 tonnes per year. The company, together with state‑owned Codelco in the Nova Andino Litio joint venture, will submit an environmental impact...
Mining Industry Warned: Certainty Requires Partnership with First Nations – by Jacqueline M. St. Pierre (Sudbury Star – MAy 25,...
At the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada convention in Toronto, the Anishinabek Nation warned that certainty in critical‑mineral projects cannot be achieved without genuine partnership with First Nations. Grand Council Chief Linda Debassige emphasized that sidelining Indigenous rights undermines the...
Boston Metal Raises $75M
Boston Metal announced a $75 million financing round, bringing its total capital raised to over $500 million. The new funds will accelerate deployment of its patented Molten Oxide Electrolysis (MOE) platform for commercial‑scale production of critical metals such as niobium, tantalum, vanadium...
ReElement Technologies Achieves Tungsten Separation and Purification Capability
ReElement Technologies, backed by American Resources Corp., demonstrated a chromatography‑based process that purified tungsten from a 28% concentrate to 99.9% purity, marking one of the few domestic capabilities in the United States. The achievement showcases the company’s modular, multi‑feedstock platform,...
Has Ecuador Started Fracking? New Oil Project Causes Confusion and Concern
Ecuador's state oil firm Petroecuador announced a pilot hydraulic‑fracturing project in Block 57, a limestone‑rich field in the Amazonian Sucumbíos province. The operation, carried out with China National Petroleum Corp.'s subsidiary CCDC, aims to produce about 930 barrels of oil per...
India-Canada Talks Target $50B Trade by 2030, Spotlight Critical Minerals
India’s commerce minister Piyush Goyal met top Canadian CEOs to map a bilateral roadmap that aims to triple India‑Canada trade to $50 billion by 2030. The talks emphasized critical‑mineral processing, a pending free‑trade agreement and a $1.9 billion uranium supply deal, signaling...
CHARTS: How the Sulphuric Acid Crunch Is Driving up Critical Minerals Costs
Benchmark Mineral Intelligence reports that the Middle East conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have sent sulphuric acid prices soaring, more than doubling in some regions. The price spike has pushed sulphuric acid from a 3% to...
Aqua Metals Posts $10.8 M Cash, Debt‑free Balance as Battery‑recycling Milestones Accelerate
Aqua Metals (AQMS) announced a cash balance of $10.8 million and the elimination of all long‑term debt after its Q4 2025 earnings call on May 14, 2026. The company also disclosed $20 million raised in 2025 and key commercial‑scale recycling achievements, positioning its first AquaRefining...
Kodiak Reports Positive Results From Metallurgical Testwork on the MPD Project
Kodiak Copper Corp announced the results of its second metallurgical program on the MPD copper‑gold project in British Columbia. Rougher flotation tests achieved up to 91.1% copper, 81.4% gold and 80.4% silver recoveries at a coarser 150 µm grind, reducing energy...
Quantum Critical Metals Reports Zinc Mineralization at Prophecy Property, Northern British Columbia
Quantum Critical Metals announced assay results from a site visit to its wholly owned Prophecy zinc prospect in northern British Columbia. Eight of 16 grab samples showed anomalous zinc concentrations up to 22,000 ppm (2.2 % Zn) and lead up to 5,930 ppm,...
Ebola 'Unlikely' To Impact DRC Copper, Cobalt Operations
Fitch Solutions' BMI unit says the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC is unlikely to significantly affect large‑scale copper and cobalt mining. While the virus presents genuine health risks for artisanal coltan and tin miners in the northeast, major projects are...
White Gold Launches Largest Drill Push
White Gold Corp announced its 2026 exploration program in Yukon, launching its largest diamond‑drilling campaign with three rigs to grow resources at four near‑surface gold deposits and test new targets across its 305,102‑hectare land package. The current resource estimate includes...
UK Inquiry Thrusts Tungsten Mining Into Defence Minerals Spotlight
British MPs have opened a parliamentary inquiry into the role of critical minerals, especially tungsten and rare earths, in the nation’s defence strategy. The probe highlights the UK’s heavy reliance on imported tungsten—over 90% sourced from China—and examines how supply‑chain...
KCM Accelerates Recovery with US$600 Million Investment and Renewed Focus on Safety, Growth, and Copper Production
Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) has poured roughly $600 million into a two‑year revitalisation drive, part of a broader $1 billion program aimed at modernising its operations. The company set a target of 300,000 tonnes of copper output per year by 2031, aligning with...
Q&A: Thunderstone’s CEO on Whether Mining Can Extract More Metal with Less Rock
Thunderstone, a U.S. startup, is developing electrified in‑situ mining technology that uses high‑voltage discharges to manipulate fluid permeability in ore bodies. Early laboratory work on high‑porosity nickel laterite shows leach‑solution concentrations that match or exceed conventional benchmarks, especially in previously...
Chinese State Firms Snap Up Indonesian Stainless‑Steel Assets After Jiangsu Delong Bankruptcy
When Jiangsu Delong, the world’s second‑largest stainless‑steel producer, filed for bankruptcy in 2024, Chinese state‑owned enterprises moved quickly to acquire its Indonesian assets. China First Heavy Industries secured the nickel‑rich feedstock, underscoring Beijing’s strategy to lock down critical minerals for...
Botswana President Duma Boko Pursues Zero‑Tariff Diamond Deal with Donald Trump
Botswana President Duma Boko is negotiating a deal with former US President Donald Trump to eliminate the 15% tariff on Botswana diamonds and explore joint projects on newly discovered rare‑earth deposits. The talks target a zero‑tariff outcome and broader US...
Rwanda: The Mine and the Factory
Rwanda’s Rulindo mine now pulls 120 tonnes of tungsten ore each month and feeds three state‑of‑the‑art processing plants, lifting mineral export earnings from $373 million in 2017 to $1.75 billion in 2024. Across Africa, more than 13 countries have imposed export bans on...
Water Security a Growing Risk for SA Mining
South Africa’s mining sector faces escalating water‑security risks, with bulk water supplies expected to be disrupted across several regions in 2025, according to the Minerals Council’s annual review. The council called for policy certainty, infrastructure reform, and reliable energy and...
Control Without Ownership: How China’s Party-Business Networks Dominate Indonesia’s Mineral Supply Chains
In 2024 the bankrupt Chinese stainless‑steel producer Jiangsu Delong saw its Indonesian nickel assets quietly taken over by a mix of Chinese private firms and the state‑owned China First Heavy Industries. The takeover illustrates Beijing’s broader strategy of embedding Communist...
BHP's Port Hedland Export Operations the ETU's Next Target
The Electrical Trades Union (ETU) announced a vote on work stoppages for electrical workers at BHP's Port Hedland bulk‑export terminal. BHP ships more than 280 million tonnes of iron ore through the port each year, making it a linchpin of its...
EU Zinc Imports Drop 2025 as Dutch, German Demand Slumps
EU zinc imports fell in 2025 as Dutch and German buying weakened despite stronger Italy demand. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/05/eu-zinc-imports-fell-in-2025-as-dutch.html
US‑Backed Rare Earth Firms Sue Over Tech Theft
US-backed rare earth rivals clash over alleged technology theft Legal battle erupts between mining companies supported by Trump administration to break dependence on China https://t.co/vOimm9aspJ via @ft
Komatsu, ABB Working on Joint Dynamic Energy Transfer Proposition
Komatsu and ABB are expanding their dynamic energy transfer technology beyond trolley‑assist systems, developing a “side arm” rail solution to be demonstrated at Komatsu’s Arizona Proving Grounds. The joint system aims to deliver up to 40 MW per galvanic section, enabling...
A Pivot Away From Coal Could Help Queensland’s Economic Diversification: DG
Queensland Director‑General Damien Walker told the Mandarin Future Ready Public Service summit that Australia must pivot away from coal to boost economic diversification and raise its economic complexity. He warned that the nation’s current low complexity leaves it exposed to...
Atomic Eagle Sharpens Muntanga North Uranium Drill Targets
Atomic Eagle completed 53km of a 100‑meter spaced ground radiometric survey at its Muntanga North uranium project in Zambia, confirming and refining airborne anomalies across five priority zones. The survey recorded 424 out of 854 readings above natural background, with...
Xpedra Resources Extends Shallow Gold System with RC Drilling at Springfield
Xpedra Resources (ASX:XPD) announced additional shallow gold intersections from its maiden reverse‑circulation drilling at the Springfield deposit in New South Wales. The latest three holes delivered a best result of 52 m at 1.35 g/t Au, including 4 m at 5.69 g/t, confirming a...
West Wits Breaks Into Ready-Made South African Gold Production Zones
West Wits Mining announced that its 1 West decline has successfully intersected the historic 2 Level mining horizon at the Qala Shallows deposit in South Africa. The breakthrough gives the company immediate access to legacy underground stopes, allowing it to bypass a...
U.S. Scores Major Rare Earth Win With Greenland Deposit Deal
REalloys (NASDAQ: ALOY) signed a definitive 15‑year offtake agreement for 15% of Phase 1 production from the Tanbreez heavy‑rare‑earth deposit in southern Greenland, securing dysprosium and terbium for U.S. defense applications. The deal expands REalloys' feedstock network as it builds the...
China Keeps Rare Earth Pressure on Washington After Trump Summit
China’s rare‑earth export restrictions remain largely intact despite the Trump‑Xi summit, keeping heavy rare earths such as dysprosium, terbium and yttrium at roughly 40‑50% of pre‑restriction volumes. The United States is accelerating domestic supply‑chain projects, highlighted by a $400 million DoD...
Responsible Mining Cost/Benefit Study: “Economically Rational and Strategically Important”
The Rocky Mountain Institute released the first quantitative assessment of responsible mining using the IRMA framework, finding that responsible practices add just 0.4% to a mine’s total capital expenditures over its life. Interviews with four IRMA‑certified miners, material purchasers, and...
Marathon Port Reopens, Boosting GenMining’s Copper‑Pd Project
Port of Marathon reactivation = major win for NW Ontario mining. @GenMining’s Marathon project (just 10km away) holds 532 million lbs payable copper planned + strong Pd credits. One of Canada’s few fully permitted critical mineral mines. $GENM.TO
Loopholes Undermine Palm Oil Industry’s Antideforestation Pledges
The palm oil sector’s No‑Deforestation‑No‑Peat‑No‑Exploitation (NDPE) pledges now cover roughly 83% of refinery capacity in Indonesia and Malaysia, yet satellite data show 31,000 hectares of forest were cleared for palm oil in Indonesia in 2025, a slight rise over 2024....