Today's Mining Pulse
Chinese financing fuels a $98 billion mineral power shift
A wave of $98 billion in Chinese financing and heightened U.S. diplomatic activity has thrust critical minerals into the geopolitical spotlight. Resource‑rich nations such as the DRC, Brazil and Zambia are leveraging their mineral wealth to negotiate better terms and assert greater control over strategic industries.
Also developing:
Eni Ships Venezuelan Crude to Europe After Two-Year Gap
Italian energy giant Eni loaded a 1‑million‑barrel cargo of heavy Venezuelan crude bound for Spain, the first European shipment in almost two years. The cargo left the Jose terminal aboard the Marshall Islands‑flagged tanker Front Cruiser after U.S. licenses cleared PDVSA’s partners for broader exports. Previously, trading houses such as Trafigura and Vitol dominated Venezuela’s oil sales under the January supply deal. Eni’s move broadens Venezuela’s export destinations and could shift European crude‑supply dynamics.
Eramet's Nickel Quota Slashed 70%, Threatening Indonesian Supply
Eramet’s Weda Bay Nickel received a 70pc lower 2026 quota, raising new concerns over Indonesian ore supply. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/04/eramet-weda-bay-nickel-quota-cut-raises.html
5 Minutes with… Thea Van Rossum
Thea Van Rossum, chief science officer of Koonkie, explains how the company’s Mining Microbiome Analytics Platform (M‑MAP) is building the first large‑scale, searchable database of microbial DNA from mine sites. A recent partnership with Rio Tinto produced a comprehensive inventory of...
Trident Intersects 4.61 G/T Au over 38.48m From 77.00m, Including 5.48 G/T over 26.14m From Hole 26028 – 200m ENE...
Trident Resources reported assay results from the first nine diamond holes of its 2026 winter program at the Contact Lake Gold Project. Hole CL26028 returned 4.61 g/t Au over 38.48 m, including a 33.16 g/t hit over 1.89 m, while hole CL26025 intersected 11.97 g/t...
Resources Top 5: FIN’s Maiden Drilling Strikes Wide Sulphide Zones at Cabin Lake
FIN Resources reported its maiden drilling at the Cabin Lake gold project in Canada, intersecting 114 m of massive sulphide mineralisation at the Arrow prospect. Historical drilling at Arrow has returned high‑grade zones such as 31.4 m at 15.2 g/t Au, bolstering the...
Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe Further Tightens Screws On Minerals Beneficiation
Zimbabwe's cabinet approved a strict minerals‑beneficiation framework that mandates a Value‑Added Compliance Certificate for every export permit and creates a decentralized network of university‑based analytical hubs. The policy follows a recent blanket ban on raw lithium exports and seeks to...
Iran Can Hold Hormuz Longer; US Strikes Won’t Spark Crisis
Seven weeks later, many taboos broken: 1) Iran can’t block the Strait of Hormuz. Yes, it can, and for far longer than the oil market thought it would be possible. 2) If the US attacks, an energy crisis follows. Sure, gasoline...
Earthquake Forces Underground Stoppage at Cadia
Newmont has suspended all underground operations at its Cadia mine in New South Wales after a 4.5‑magnitude earthquake struck the area on Tuesday evening. The quake’s epicentre was just 3 km from the site, making it the strongest seismic event recorded...
R-Evolution Adding a New Dimension to Airborne Imagery at Vale Legacy Mine Site
Hexagon’s R‑evolution has launched hybrid airborne imagery and LiDAR missions over Vale’s 1,908‑ha Mina de Águas Claras legacy mine in Brazil. Using Leica Geosystems’ hybrid system, the flights will map more than 20 sq km at 10‑cm resolution, generating a high‑density 3‑D...
Hancock, Wright and Rhodes in Supreme Court Reckoning
After decades of litigation, the Hancock and Wright families are now before Western Australia’s Supreme Court over royalty rights to the Hope Downs mine. Recent evidence suggests the Wright heirs are entitled to a share of the mine’s lucrative royalties....
Larvotto Closes in on First Antimony Ingots at NSW Mine
Larvotto Resources is on track to start producing antimony, gold and tungsten at its Hillgrove mine in New South Wales by mid‑2026, with the processing plant undergoing a US$46 million refurbishment and slated for wet commissioning in August. The project will...
Hidden Defects in Chalcopyrite Promise Cleaner Copper Extraction
Chalcopyrite, the primary source of copper, contains hidden atomic defects and trace elements that could enable cleaner, more efficient copper extraction, supporting the growing demand for sustainable energy technologies. materialsinnovation
Wirtgen: Flexibility, Precision Guarantee the Right Material Size
Wirtgen introduced the Vario Impact Sizer (VIS) for its 220 SM(i) 3.8 surface miner, delivering precise, on‑drum control of maximum particle size in opencast mining. The system uses a split baffle plate with five gap settings and four scraper‑hole cover positions, allowing...
Canada’s Helium Shortage Threatens Hospitals and Tech
Helium Is More Than Balloons. It’s A Crisis Canada Can't Ignore "Unlike oil or gas, there is no substitute for helium. You can’t switch fuels or scale alternatives. When helium is in short supply, critical systems slow down or stop. Hospitals...
Hanzhong Zinc Adds 30 T/Yr Indium, Bol
Hanzhong Zinc commissioned new 30 t/yr indium capacity, strengthening China’s by-product metals supply chain. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/04/hanzhong-zinc-indium-capacity-expansion.html
Copper Output Remains Lofty
Global copper smelting activity rose in March, driven primarily by China, which saw its inactive capacity decline for a second consecutive month. Worldwide inactive smelter capacity fell to 11.7%, while the active capacity reached a record 10.73 million metric tons, up...
Brent Crude Edges up Ahead of Fresh US-Iran Talks
Brent crude futures rose to $95.16 per barrel, up 0.39%, while U.S. WTI slipped to $91.04, down 0.26%. President Donald Trump signaled a second round of U.S.-Iran talks but confirmed he will not attend, and a U.S. destroyer ordered two...
Sierra Nevada Sets the Stage for As Safra Drilling with High-Grade Copper and Gold Samples
Sierra Nevada Gold announced that rock‑chip sampling at its As Safra project in Saudi Arabia returned exceptionally high grades, including up to 7.63% copper and 32.9 g/t gold. The 60‑sample program highlighted a 400 m high‑grade corridor in the Central Gold Zone and...
Australian Developer Moves Ahead with Modular Green Hydrogen Production Plant
InterContinental Energy (ICE) announced it has secured up to AUD 1.6 million ($1.14 million) in Australian federal funding to develop a digital twin for its patented P2(H2)Node modular system. The company also signed the first licence for the node, marking the transition from...
Gold Miners Lead Early Bull Cycle Awareness Phase
Gold miners are leading the market once again. Since January 2025, their performance has far outpaced every other sector. This could mark one of the most important comebacks in mining history. So where are we in the bull cycle? I would argue we are...
Waratah Minerals Drilling Keeps Extending High-Grade Gold Mineralisation at Spur Project
Waratah Minerals' aggressive 10‑rig drilling campaign at its Spur project in New South Wales has extended high‑grade gold mineralisation in both the Consols and Spur zones. In the Consols zone, hole SPD025 added 75 m of strike continuity and 100 m up‑dip,...
Gold Mine Stops Underground Operations After magnitude-4.5 Earthquake
Newmont’s Cadia gold mine in New South Wales halted all underground operations after a magnitude‑4.5 earthquake struck just west of the site on April 15. The tremor, the strongest ever recorded in the Central West region, prompted an immediate evacuation...
Bloom Energy's Oracle Deal Spurs Scandium Boom
Congratulations to Bloom Energy $BE on their deal with Oracle The koala is absolutely thrilled to see the demand growth trajectory for bloom boxes inflect higher and higher 4kg per 100kw scandium density (Gemini screenshot below) is ~40 tonnes per GW Let’s...
Helium Stocks Poised for Takeover Bid Amid IPO Un
Helium equities looking for a bid for sure. If North America helium doesn’t public this cycle got to wonder.
Ivanhoe Mines Posts 71,417 Tonnes of Copper Anodes in Q1 2026, Signaling Ramp‑up at Kamoa‑Kakula
Ivanhoe Mines announced that its Kamoa‑Kakula mine produced 71,417 tonnes of copper in blister and anode form in the first quarter of 2026, including 63,671 tonnes from its on‑site smelter. The result supports the company's guidance to exceed 500,000 tonnes...
Helium Startups Face Five Key Challenges Amid Middle East Crisis
Top 5 issues for helium startups in Middle East crisis ⚾️Reduced production capacity ⚾️Increased costs ⚾️Strategic adjustments ⚾️Partnerships and logistics ⚾️Leverage government support
Exxon Holds Near‑Monopoly on Ultra‑Pure Helium for Chipmakers
Chip Makers Need Ultra-Pure Helium and Exxon Is Nearly the Sole Source of Six Nines Purity https://t.co/zcuJfHv9fX
YOLOv11 Model Detects Unsafe Coal Mining Behaviors
Researchers have enhanced the YOLOv11 object‑detection framework with attention and anchor‑optimization modules to identify unsafe miner behaviors in underground coal mines. The dual‑model system, combining YOLOv11 and YOLOv11‑Pose, achieved 95.7% mean average precision, 95.3% accuracy and 95.1% recall on a...
Sinopec to Source Russian Oil Directly After US Waiver
Translation: With President Trump Waver, SINOPEC can but the Russian oil "DIRECTLY" without STS or intermediaries. Sinopec buys Russian oil to replace Mideast supply after US waiver, sources say
Iran Reverts to State-Controlled Oil Export Model
⚾️I have no idea about the implications... but one thing is clear, they know things that we don't. ⚾️Please share your thought if you are familiar with these issues. 🛟Iran ends intermediary oil sales, returns to state-controlled export model...
Monash Research Uncovers New Pathway to Cleaner Copper Production
Monash University researchers identified microscopic defects and trace elements in chalcopyrite that can be leveraged to improve copper extraction. The study, published in Nature Geoscience, shows that tiny amounts of silver destabilize the mineral’s surface, boosting recovery rates. This insight...
Robots Become Modern Miners, Extracting Gold From E-Waste
California was started by gold miners who dug gold out of the ground. Today I met Sina who is digging gold out of old electronics with robots. Video will be up tomorrow. Turns out there is a lot of gold (and...
New Lithium Finds Slash Battery Costs, Accelerate 100% Renewable Shift
With the discovery of 30% more world lithium resources in one year, battery-electric vehicle and stationary battery storage prices should continue to drop rapidly, facilitating world electrification and the inevitable transition to 100% WindWaterSolar across all energy sectors.
DEScycle Technology Being Tested by Cisco
London‑based DEScycle announced that Cisco will trial its modular metals‑recovery platform on printed‑circuit‑board scrap at DEScycle’s demonstration plant in Wilton, UK. The pilot will process large‑batch PCB feedstock to generate recovery data, assess cost‑benefit and evaluate integration into Cisco’s reverse‑supply...
15 Charts that Explain Why the Strait of Hormuz Shutdown Matters for the Global Economy
The United States announced a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz on April 12, effectively shutting down one of the world’s most vital commodity corridors. The closure halts exports of crude oil, LNG, jet fuel, diesel, ammonia, sulfur, helium and...
Explorers Podcast: GoldArc Targets Big Leonora Find as Production Nears
GoldArc Resources is accelerating drilling across its Leonora North and South projects in Western Australia while forging mining partnerships to generate cash flow from existing assets such as Mount Stirling and Stirling Well. The company plans to launch a campaign‑style...
2026 IS THE PERFECT STORM: How Constrained Oil Supply, Record Commodity Demand, Rising Budget Deficits, & a Dovish Fed Are...
The article warns that 2026 is a “perfect storm” for hard assets as constrained oil supply, surging commodity demand, expanding US deficits, and a dovish Federal Reserve converge. Iran’s new toll‑gate strategy in the Strait of Hormuz creates a structural...
Iran Conflict Fuels Massive Commodity Price Surges
Since the start of the Iran war... Sulfur: +67% Jet Fuel: +66% Urea: +51% Diesel: +50% Heating Oil: +40% WTI Crude Oil: +37% European Natural Gas: +34% Gasoline: +32% Fertilizer: +31% Brent Crude Oil: +31% Coal: +14% Palm Oil: +10% Iron Ore: +7% Rice: +4% S&P 500: +1% $VIX: -8%
Echoes of DeGrussa: New Wave of Explorers Drive Murchison Copper Revival
The Murchison region of Western Australia, once revitalised by Sandfire’s 2009 DeGrussa copper‑gold discovery, is seeing a fresh surge of exploration as copper prices hit record highs. ASX explorers BOA Resources, Solstice Minerals and Neometals have secured new tenements and...
African Mining Attracts $250 Billion ESG‑Linked Investment Wave
Africa’s mining industry is drawing an estimated $250 billion of ESG‑linked financing as demand for copper, cobalt, lithium and rare earths is set to quadruple by 2035. Structured instruments such as sustainability‑linked bonds and ESG‑linked loans are unlocking capital for projects...
Omai Soars on Resource Update in Guyana
Omai Gold Mines announced a 22% increase in its contained gold, lifting total resources to 8 million ounces and upgrading roughly half into higher‑confidence categories. The update propelled the stock 10% higher to a record C$2.34 per share, valuing the company...
World Lithium Reserves Surge, Fueling Full EV Transition
New data: no shortage of lithium in the world for a 100% WWS transition. @USGS says known world lithium resources increased by 30% in one year, from 115.1 in 2024 to 150 million tons in 2025. That is enough for 19 billion...
IMF Adds Olive Oil to Its Commodity Basket.
I just realized the IMF has expanded the basket of commodities it tracks, adding olive oil (among others). I think my job is done here.
Argentina to Start 8 New Lithium Projects by 2030
Argentina plans to commission eight new greenfield lithium projects by 2030, more than doubling its installed production capacity to 409,000 metric tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). The projects, ranging from Rio Tinto's 60,000‑t/yr Rincón to smaller 8,000‑t/yr developments, will...
Yttrium Prices Surge 140‑Fold Amid China Restrictions
ICYMI Rare earth yttrium hits new high, up 140-fold in 1 year on China curbs Crazy https://t.co/IlKp0JP6Ny via @NikkeiAsia
Copper Rises to 6-Week High as Iran Talks Raise Hopes
Copper surged 1.8% to $13,284.50 a ton on the London Metal Exchange, reaching its highest level in six weeks. The rally follows renewed optimism that the United States and Iran will resume peace talks and that Tehran may pause shipments...
Tiger Gold Doubles Down at Ceibal, Strong Buy
New pick @tigergoldcorp doubles down at Ceibal, with 2 rigs targeting a large-scale #gold system inside the broader 20k-meter program across the Quinchía project in Colombia’s Mid-Cauca belt. The corridor is already showing scale. Stock is a Strong Buy: https://t.co/znPTsmgY4L
Phase II Drills Confirm 1.9 Km Silver‑Gold Vein
Phase II drills at @Pacifica_Silver's Claudia project confirm the vein now stretches 1.9km—14 of 16 holes intersect #silver-#gold mineralization. See JVs Dig the Definition & his important statement after the map. Stock still in Buy range, won't be forever https://t.co/CDliwrkZwb
Deep-Sea Wildernesses Are More Important than the Promise of Seafloor Mining (Analysis)
Deep‑sea ecologist Andrew Thaler recounts his 2008 Solwara I expedition, concluding that the hydrothermal‑vent ecosystem’s unparalleled biodiversity and fragile connectivity make commercial mining untenable. The site, rich in copper, gold and rare‑earth metals, also hosts unique species such as Alviniconcha snails,...
U.S. Will Let Iran Oil Waiver Expire as Blockade Tightens Grip on Global Flows
The Trump administration will let the 30‑day waiver that permitted Iranian oil shipments at sea expire on April 19, tightening the sanctions blockade. The waiver, issued on March 20, had allowed roughly 140 million barrels of Iranian crude to reach global markets, easing...