
Mining Titans Surge $250B Amid Iran Conflict, Valuing Sector at $2.41T
The MINING.com Top 50 miners posted a combined market capitalization of $2.41 trillion at the end of Q1 2026, up roughly $250 billion from the start of 2025. Valuations rose despite the US‑Iran war and a sharp drop in gold and silver prices, with copper only modestly down and lithium firms re‑entering the list. Six companies now exceed $100 billion in market value.
Singareni Collieries Company (SCCL) is preparing to bid in upcoming coal‑bed methane (CBM) auctions for three blocks in the Singareni region. The blocks, covering six districts in Telangana, hold an estimated 1.9 billion cubic metres of gas resources. Government officials have urged SCCL, with its 130‑year coal legacy, to participate and diversify into gas exploration. Securing a block would allow SCCL to tap into substantial CBM reserves and expand its energy portfolio.

Following US and Israeli strikes on Iran, Yemen’s Houthi rebels announced they will resume attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, ending a four‑month lull. BIMCO warns that ships linked to US or Israeli interests face heightened risk, though...
Lithium bottom: demand +25% as EV/ESS rebound; SQM+Codelco JV raises low-cost supply, tightens cost curve; prices ≈70% below 2022 — overweight low-cost lithium producers. — Viktor Kopylov, PhD, CFA More insights: t.me/si14Kopylov
Since its September 2025 debut, the Sprott Active Metals & Miners ETF (METL) has delivered a cumulative return exceeding 50%, outpacing the broader Natural Resources sector. The fund’s portfolio is notably overweight in copper and uranium, differentiating it from gold‑centric...
SQM reported FY2025 revenue of US$4.576 billion, a modest 1 % increase, while net income surged to US$588 million, reversing a US$404 million loss from the prior year. Gross profit rose to US$1.353 billion, and fourth‑quarter revenue jumped 23.3 % to US$1.324 billion, with net income up...
EU proposes CBAM treatment for pre-consumer aluminium and steel scrap to curb circumvention and boost traceability. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/02/eu-cbam-pre-consumer-scrap-proposal.html
The potential U.S. conflict with Iran will create an interesting dilemma regarding weapons re-arming and supply chains. Rare earth elements will come under even greater scrutiny, especially given the already strained trade relationship with China.

U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a January 2026 raid, removing the military threat to Guyana’s Essequibo region and clearing the path for the country’s oil expansion. Guyana’s offshore Stabroek Block, operated by ExxonMobil with Chevron and CNOOC,...

Chile’s Ministry of Health has authorized copper slag as an artificial aggregate for road and infrastructure projects under Supreme Decree 46, effective 12 February 2026. The decree permits use only after sanitary approval and confines applications to specified construction uses....

DELKOR India has completed a two‑month revamp of Tata Steel’s 145 m² horizontal belt filter in West Bokaro, a unit that operated continuously for 19 years. The upgrade introduced a site‑spliced 4.2 m belt, redesigned vacuum boxes and airboxes, and a stainless‑steel...

Daughter Craft No. 3, commissioned by Purus, is in final outfitting ahead of sea trials, with Volvo Penta IPS drives now installed. The vessel features IMO Tier 3 exhaust after‑treatment to curb emissions and has undergone extensive CFD and tank testing for optimal...

NASA’s Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) successfully used a solar concentrator, mirrors and software to heat simulated lunar regolith and generate carbon monoxide, a precursor to oxygen. The test confirmed that sunlight‑driven chemistry can extract usable gases from moon‑soil without Earth‑supplied...

Permian Resources Corp. says a wave of asset divestitures is looming as large oil‑and‑gas players unwind recent mega‑deals, and the Midland‑based operator is ready to act. The company can comfortably spend up to $3 billion on acquisitions through 2027 without stretching...

Nike has appointed long‑time manufacturing executive Cimarron Nix as its new chief sustainability officer, effective March 15. Nix will report to COO Venkatesh Alagirisamy and relocate from Singapore to Nike’s Beaverton headquarters. She succeeds Jaycee Pribulsky, who departed for a...
Assistant Secretary of Defense Michael Cadenazzi joined a live event with Ryan Evans to assess the current state of the U.S. defense industrial base. The dialogue covered a surge of venture‑capital‑backed startups, the dominance of legacy primes, and the urgent...

The UK OECD National Contact Point has ruled a complaint from Senegalese artisanal fishers against the Grand Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) gas platform admissible. The complaint alleges pollution, denied fishing access, and an inadequate environmental impact assessment by BP and partners....

NatPower Marine warns that the UK’s flagship shore‑power projects in Aberdeen and Portsmouth are faltering because soaring industrial electricity prices and a punitive pricing framework make diesel generators cheaper than grid‑connected power. The company attributes the delays to structural policy...

Enaex has commissioned a fully electric mechanised emulsion charging unit at Minera Santa Cruz (MSC) gold‑silver mine in Argentina. The 100 % electric system eliminates diesel engines, cutting underground emissions, noise, and ventilation costs while boosting safety. Jointly developed with MSC,...
UK hot‑rolled coil (HRC) prices are trading at an average €62 per tonne discount to north‑European benchmarks after Tata Steel UK closed its last blast furnace in September 2024. Imports have surged from 770,000 t in 2023 to 1.4 million t in 2025,...

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil forfeiture complaint to permanently seize the motor tanker Skipper and its 1.8‑million‑barrel Venezuelan crude cargo. Authorities seized the vessel off Venezuela in December 2025 after it operated without nationality and falsely claimed...

A worker died in an early‑morning incident at Prospect Lithium Zimbabwe's processing plant, specifically in the conveyor‑belt section. Police arrived later in the afternoon and the body remained on site for almost twelve hours before being released to relatives at...

Chinese battery giant CATL and German automaker BMW have signed a letter of intent to deepen their partnership, targeting data exchange for the EU battery passport. The two will run pilot projects using the Catena‑X open data ecosystem to enable...
Super Copper Corp. announced an upsized brokered private placement, now targeting $6 million in net proceeds, up from its original $2 million goal. Each unit consists of one common share and a warrant exercisable at $1.15 for three years, with closing expected...
MP Materials posted a fourth‑quarter revenue of $52.7 million and net income of $9.4 million, buoyed by a U.S. Department of War price‑floor agreement. The company recorded a 12% year‑over‑year increase in rare‑earth oxide concentrate, producing a record 50,692 metric tons, and more...
Maersk announced it will reroute several U.S. and other services from the Red Sea to the Cape of Good Hope, citing unforeseen security constraints in the region. The changes affect both ME11 and MECL routes, with one westbound and two...
Gunnison Copper (TSX:GCU) lifted its preliminary economic assessment, pushing the project’s net present value to $1.95 billion and the post‑tax IRR to 23% while extending mine life to 21 years. Capital spending rose 18% to $1.54 billion, reflecting operational upgrades such as...

Canada Is Being Destroyed By Bureaucracy & Over Regulation It takes an average of 19 years to get an approval to build a new Mine Australia's shipping Liquid Natural Gas to Canada's East Coast: Canada has 300 years of Gas Reserves Let's look...
National and international NGOs condemned the Quevedo Criminal Court's decision to imprison three environmental defenders for four years and impose a fine of fifteen basic salaries. The rulings are part of a broader wave of criminalisation targeting 32 activists opposing...
Silver has become a strategic material for the clean‑energy transition, with solar photovoltaics now accounting for roughly 17% of global silver demand. Primary ore grades are falling, pushing the industry toward higher‑grade, above‑ground sources such as retired solar panels that...

California’s Air Resources Board has set an August 2024 deadline for companies to file mandatory greenhouse‑gas (GHG) emissions reports covering Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. The state’s climate‑action statutes, including AB 32 and SB 32, require detailed carbon accounting to enforce its cap‑and‑trade...
Manganese X Energy is moving its Battery Hill pre‑feasibility study forward in New Brunswick by launching a targeted geotechnical drilling program—three holes totalling about 550 metres—and deepening metallurgical process optimization with Kemetco Research. ABH Engineering is steering the PFS schedule and...

Serval Resources has launched its 2026 exploration programme on two licences owned by Kalahari Copper Limited (KCL) in Botswana’s Kalahari Copper Belt, following a conditional agreement to acquire KCL. The first activity is a ground magnetic survey on licence PL061,...
High‑tech mining has embraced automation, AI‑driven haulage and remote operation centres, yet firms struggle to recruit young engineers. Despite the sector’s digital transformation, a perception gap and limited exposure in STEM pipelines keep talent scarce. Universities lag in offering curricula...
Tariff volatility under the Trump administration is forcing U.S. brands to rethink where they source products. Executives like Brooklinen's COO note that shifting production to a new country takes months, not weeks, and domestic cotton supplies are limited. Companies are...

The EPA’s own analysis shows that only 27 of the nation’s 219 coal‑fired power plants would need costly upgrades to meet the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). Despite this, the Trump administration rolled back the stricter limits on...

Deflation May Reign If Metals Meet High-Price Cure - That orange juice and cocoa were the worst-performing commodities in 2025, after being among the best in 2024, may foreshadow metals in 2026. In the history of the Bloomberg Commodity Spot...

CHART OF THE DAY: The cost of European CO2 allowances has fallen ~20% in recent days after several key countries asked Brussels for a reform. Italy has gone as far as asking the Emissions Trading Syste to be suspended. CO2...

Nigeria’s Mining Cadastre Office has completed the digitisation and validation of its mining licence registry, making the country the 11th African nation to achieve this milestone. The move, announced by Director‑General Obadiah Simon Nkom at an African Minerals Development Centre...

From Top Commodity Value to Stretched Speculation - Metals 2026: The Bloomberg All Metals Total Return Subindex represents the top-performing sector over time, but metals may have entered the high-price cure stage of a bull market. The highest-velocity rallies since...
A very interesting day at Thacker Pass. A great team building America’s return to #lithium respectability. @LithiumAmericas $LAC https://t.co/Nl37fx3jlX
Ontario’s government is pledging additional cash to accelerate mining development, announcing C$140 million for road work to the Ring of Fire and billions for high‑capacity power lines. The province upgraded Kinross Gold’s Great Bear project under the One Project One Process...
America’s net import reliance for critical minerals in 2025, along with the primary countries supplying them between 2021 and 2024 https://t.co/89QwEHKe16 via @visualcap
Stock market volatility is still buried. Falling cryptos, T-bond yields and spiking precious metals volatility may trickle down. https://t.co/SeGPI6EvAe
In this episode of Polar Geopolitics, host Eric Pagli discusses China's growing interest in the Arctic, focusing on Greenland's critical raw material potential, with insights from China specialist Gerhard Hegelund and Greenland mining expert Nick Bake‑Heilman. The conversation explores China's...
ICYMI: Glencore to buy almost $115 million of cobalt from industry veteran Weisfisch, sources say https://t.co/mu9OLpnjiO
Exclusive: GKN cancels plans for magnet factory in setback for Europe's rare earths plans https://t.co/KLadnSKxvw

SACIM completed its first public auction of industrial diamonds in Antwerp, selling 288,000 carats between 16‑20 February 2026. The sale involved 67 international buyers from China, India, the United States and Italy, marking the return of Congolese diamonds to the...

Is Lithium about to pull 'a Silver' in March and April? $ALB $SQM $LIT $LAC https://t.co/Db55dIPSLT
Adelayde Exploration $ADDY.CA $SPMTF Engages Geologic Firm for Work Program on the Sisson North Tungsten Project Directly Bordering Northcliff Resources Ltd. by @newsfile https://t.co/ZGqKQPGqqU
India prioritizes national security and economic growth above aggressive, ideologically driven climate policies seen in some European countries. India seeks to cut power sector coal imports by 30% this year, sources say https://t.co/bA7W0ywe6Y