Know What's Happening in Mining
Know What's Happening in Mining
Iran war pushes global coal demand higher
The U.S. and allies’ conflict with Iran is prompting nations to lean on coal as oil and gas supplies falter. Coal consumption has risen by about 1.3 billion tonnes since 2020, reaching 8.8 billion tonnes, driven by higher demand in India, China and Europe’s shift away from Russian gas.
The Ministry of Mines and Energy convened a one‑day pilot stakeholders’ dialogue in Arthington on Feb 20 to address gaps between mineral rights, land rights and community obligations. Participants including chiefs, civil‑society groups, GIZ and LEITI examined regulatory, fiscal and environmental challenges and stressed transparent revenue use. Deputy Minister William Hines emphasized channeling mining proceeds into roads, hospitals and lower electricity tariffs to spur industrial growth. The forum is a preparatory step for a national mining conference later this year.
On February 24, a collapse at an artisanal mine on the outskirts of Kolwezi in Lualaba Province killed several Algerian workers, prompting Prime Minister Judith Suminwa to condemn the tragedy and pledge stronger safety oversight. She cited a December 2025 ministerial report...
At Mining Indaba 2026 in Cape Town, Lualaba province positioned itself as the world’s leading cobalt producer, emphasizing its pivotal role in the energy transition. Governor Fifi Masuka Saini highlighted the region’s stable, investment‑friendly governance and alignment with international mining...
The Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford, in partnership with the Natural Resource Governance Institute, has launched a five‑day executive programme titled “Managing Mining, Oil and Gas for National Development.” Applications open on 2 March 2026, targeting senior leaders from government, industry,...
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s mineral export prices are set to fall in the week of Feb 23‑28, 2026, with tin posting the steepest decline to $48,089 per ton, a $1,667 drop from the prior week. Copper, gold, and zinc also...
A MiningWatch Canada field report reveals Canadian miner Baru Gold Corp is seeking to develop a gold mine on Indonesia’s Sangihe Island, a biodiversity hotspot. The grassroots Save Sangihe Island (SSI) coalition is mounting legal challenges and community actions to...
Philex Mining Corp posted a net income of P929.69 million in 2025, a 14.7% rise year‑over‑year, driven by record‑high gold and copper prices and a favorable peso exchange rate. Revenues climbed 8.2% to P8.85 billion, while core net income surged 43.6% to...
The Democratic Republic of Congo has launched a nationwide airborne geophysical and geological mapping programme, overseen by a newly formed steering committee chaired by Mining Minister Louis Watum Kabamba. Spanish firm Xcalibur Multiphysics Group SL secured the contract to conduct...
The Zambian government praised Kansanshi Mining PLC for hosting a Tender and Bid Workshop aimed at strengthening local suppliers and contractors in the North‑Western Province. Deputy Permanent Secretary Luckson Mulumbi highlighted the workshop’s role in advancing local content and reinforcing...
Vizsla Copper Corp. has secured a lease extension on Alaska Mental Health Trust lands at its Palmer project through August 2033. The high‑grade volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit hosts 4.77 Mt of indicated resources averaging 1.69% copper, 5.17% zinc, plus notable silver and...
Kibali gold mine posted record revenue of about $2.3 billion in 2025, a 40% jump from 2024, despite a 2% dip in gold output to roughly 673,000 ounces. Barrick’s 45% share generated $1.04 billion, while the mine’s contribution to group earnings rose...
The blog showcases Claude, Anthropic’s AI, compiling recent mining studies (2024‑2026) that use toll‑milling as a base case, highlighting projects in Canada, Argentina, and Australia. It outlines the operational, commercial, metallurgical, financial, regulatory and strategic risks inherent to toll‑milling arrangements....
The University of Manitoba has partnered with silica‑sand producer Sio Silica to pilot a quantum gravimetry network that monitors groundwater changes in real time. The initiative follows the company’s revised mining proposal in the Rural Municipality of Springfield after the...
Renault's Ampere division has signed a development agreement with Basquevolt to accelerate lithium‑metal battery prototypes for future electric vehicles. The partnership targets pre‑A sample cells that could deliver up to 450 Wh/kg energy density while cutting capital costs and energy use...
Mars announced a power purchase agreement with Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners for 70% of the output from the newly commissioned 277 MW Kölvallen wind farm in Sweden, delivering roughly 670 GWh of clean electricity each year. The deal marks the confectioner’s second...
Sylvania Platinum posted a 110% year‑on‑year jump in net revenue to $99.8 million for the six months to 31 December, driven by a 25% rise in 4E PGM production and a 55% increase in basket prices. Adjusted EBITDA surged 414% to $51 million...
Australia’s fuel tax credits scheme is costing taxpayers nearly $10.8 bn this fiscal year – roughly $30 m a day – by refunding excise on diesel and petrol for miners, farmers and other heavy‑fuel users. Critics label it the nation’s most expensive...
Appia Rare Earths & Uranium Corp. announced diamond drilling on its Ultra Hard Rock target in Goiás, Brazil, intersecting a 300‑metre interval grading 2.55% TREO, including a 1.7‑metre zone at 14.27% TREO. The results come from a carbonatite‑hosted system, delivering...
The article argues that the United States must seize early leadership in space mining to secure economic, energy and geopolitical advantages as extraction technologies become viable. It highlights the trillion‑dollar profit potential of asteroid resources and the strategic value of...
Malaysian tanker owner Orkim has signed a six‑month time‑charter for its 2012‑built Orkim Citrine MR2 tanker with PETCO Trading Labuan, the trading arm of Petronas. The agreement, effective at the end of February 2026, includes an option to extend another six...
Mitsubishi Shipbuilding has shipped the first ammonia fuel supply system (AFSS) and ammonia gas abatement system (AGAS) for Japan Engine Corporation’s inaugural ammonia‑fueled marine engine, model 7UEC50LSJA‑HPSCR. The AFSS delivers ammonia to the engine safely and steadily, while the AGAS...
Critical One Energy has received Ontario Ministry of Energy and Mines Exploration Permit PR‑24‑000227 for its Howells Lake antimony‑gold project in the Thunder Bay Mining District. The project, located 120 km west of the Ring of Fire, contains a historic resource...
Volta Metals Ltd. announced a major resource expansion at its Springer rare‑earth project, now totaling 176.1 Mt with a 1,248% rise in indicated resources. Near‑surface zones exceeding 1% TREO support open‑pit potential, while a funded 6,000‑m drill program and a gallium...
South African Police Service warned that illegal mining has resurged, becoming a coordinated organized‑crime threat across Gauteng, North West, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Free State, Northern Cape and KwaZulu‑Natal. Syndicates are re‑occupying abandoned shafts, using heavy equipment and engaging in armed clashes while expanding chrome...
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is pushing sodium‑ion batteries to the forefront of the EU’s industrial strategy, urging the next 2028‑2034 Multi‑Annual Financial Framework to allocate dedicated funding. EESC President Séamus Boland argues that sodium‑ion technology offers a...
Atlas' Burden Shifting to $6 Copper? Bitcoin's Gravity Pull - Copper may need to remain above $6 a pound or else. If the economically and stock-market-sensitive industrial metal follows falling Bitcoin, iron ore, crude oil and Chinese government-bond yields, it...
A Lot Riding on Copper Remaining Over $6 - Copper, the S&P 500 and US Treasury 30-year yield on the same scale may emphasize the implications of some normal reversion. That the metal hasn't had a year since 2021 without...
The European Council gave final approval to the Omnibus I simplification package, dramatically scaling back the EU's corporate sustainability reporting and due‑diligence rules. The agreement retains a 1,000‑employee threshold for the CSRD but adds a €450 million revenue floor, cutting roughly...
Is Copper a Prudent Short? Next to its industrial commodity and inflation companions -- iron ore, Brent crude oil and Chinese Government 10-year Bond yields (CGBs) -- copper might be too hot. From a base of 100, starting with our iron...
Looking forward to catching up with the Rock Star @Q2Metals team next week at #PDAC and talking about all their greatest hits. 👀 maiden resource coming soon... $QTWO.V
Brazil's foreign trade council approved a resolution that eliminates import duties on high‑efficiency SHA256 Bitcoin miners—those above 200 TH/s and under 20 J/TH—effective through January 2028. Three days later, French utility Engie signaled interest in installing such miners at its 895 MW Assu...
Rio Silver Inc. $RYO.V $RYOOF Invites Investors to Meet Management at PDAC 2026, the World’s Premier Mining Convention by @GlobeNewswire https://t.co/eUKzVCTQ6h https://t.co/yt5LEIMExi
Japan has identified a large rare earth deposit of its own, but it's not going to change global supply dynamics. Here's the situation... #rareearths #japan #geopolitics https://t.co/2WX7oeO6Jm
Anglo American posted a 6% year‑over‑year rise in adjusted EBITDA to $6.9 billion, driven by higher copper and iron‑ore prices, while losses in its other divisions slashed net profit after tax 70% to $610 million. The company kept its final dividend at...
The Lofa Senior Professionals Group hosted a workshop on Feb 19 2026 to unveil a ten‑year roadmap for a Liberian‑owned mining venture in the Wologizi Range. The plan proposes a three‑tier ownership split—40% government, 40% strategic investor, 20% community trust—and seeks $1.5‑2.5 billion...
Three climate‑justice nonprofits have filed a Virginia Supreme Court notice to appeal the State Corporation Commission’s approval of Dominion Energy’s $1.47 billion, 944‑megawatt Chesterfield natural‑gas plant. The appeal, filed through the Southern Environmental Law Center, invokes the Virginia Environmental Justice Act...
Microsoft has signed a 15‑year agreement with Sierra Leone‑based Rainforest Builder to purchase up to 1.8 million carbon removal credits. The credits will be generated by Project Buffalo, a large‑scale reforestation effort that aims to plant over 10 million trees across 15,000...
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s president has replaced Gecamines’ chairman and CEO, appointing former justice minister Deogratias Ngele Masudi as chairman and EY mining partner Baraka Kabemba as chief executive. Gecamines, a state‑owned miner with minority stakes in copper‑cobalt projects...
The International Council on Mining & Metals (ICMM) warned that heightened government oversight is tightening the global metals cycle, curbing the explosive price spikes typical of past supercycles. In its 2025 Tax Contribution Report, ICMM members paid $37 billion in taxes...
Nike Japan has secured a virtual power purchase agreement with Mitsui & Co. that delivers renewable energy certificates from 16 domestic solar farms, covering 100 % of the retailer’s electricity consumption across stores, distribution centers, and offices. The deal incorporates 3 MW...
RCT has installed Epiroc’s AutoNav Tele on an Aramine L350D loader at the Reward Gold mine in New South Wales, enabling remote operation in narrow‑vein underground conditions. The loader arrived from France and required a custom‑built mini AutoNav hut due...
The Union Cabinet is set to approve Joint Declarations of Intent with Germany and Canada on critical minerals. The agreements will target joint exploration, sustainable mining, supply‑chain resilience and technology transfer for minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare...
Whitehaven Coal partnered with Caterpillar to install autonomous haulage system (AHS) trucks at its Daunia underground mine, expecting a significant boost in productivity. The AHS rollout delivered lower than projected tonnage and frequent downtime, undermining the anticipated efficiency gains. These...
Journalists probing the Rubaya coltan landslide that killed more than 200 miners were barred by M23 rebels on Jan. 28, highlighting a tightening media blackout in eastern DRC. The disaster, tied to unsafe artisanal mining, underscores the mineral‑fuelled conflict between rebel...
.@dunne_insights: “China controls roughly 70 percent of rare earth mining and over 90 percent of processing capacity. Without a thriving domestic EV industry creating sustained demand, America lacks the economic incentive to build the…supply chains.” https://t.co/hU5loovdzh
The Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (ZIDA) is pressing the government to fast‑track the launch of an E‑Cadastre system that digitally records mining tenements. The platform, long delayed, is now slated for a 2025 rollout after recent investor inquiries at the...
Transport & Environment research finds that an EU fleet‑electrification law could provide 57 % of the electric‑vehicle sales carmakers need to meet their 2030 CO₂ targets, but only if the Commission raises the proposed targets. The current draft sets an average 45 % EV...
Zimbabwe’s Energy and Power Development Minister July Moyo used the opening of the second SADC Sustainable Energy Week to call for tighter regulatory harmonisation and stronger public‑private partnerships across the region. He argued that aligned laws, tariffs and standards would boost...
The Queensland government has granted True North Copper $400,000 under its Collaborative Development Program to evaluate the potential value of legacy mine waste at the Mt Oxide site in the state’s northwest. The funding is intended to fund detailed sampling, metallurgical...
Marten Falls First Nation has filed the final environmental assessment for a 184‑kilometre all‑season access road linking the remote community to the provincial highway network north of Nakina. The submission, announced jointly with Ontario’s government, represents a key milestone in...
