Coal’s peak is here, but demise of dirtiest fuel will be slow

Global efforts to boost clean energy and rein in carbon emissions have had a clear impact on coal: consumption of the dirtiest fossil fuel is expected to peak this year. Total consumption of coal... 

US frackers are back to haunt Opec’s price strategy

Opec’s one-time nemesis — US shale — is rearing its head just months after the sector was all but written off as a threat to the cartel’s sway over worldwide oil markets. Drillers from the Permian... 

Friedland says $15 000/t copper needed to spur new mines

Copper prices need to nearly double in order to prompt mining companies to build costly mines to meet rising demand for critical materials, according to billionaire Robert Friedland. The mining... 

Bolivia takes a key step in long road to tapping vast lithium riches

Bolivia is cutting the ribbon on its first industrial-scale lithium plant, the dawn of what it hopes will be an export boom of the battery metal that could bring it back from the brink of economic... 

Australia expands list of critical minerals key to transition

Australia expanded its list of critical minerals deemed crucial to its energy transition and national security needs as the country boosts the strategically and economically important sector. The... 

Nedbank, Norfund to lend Pele Green R2.5bn for renewable power plants

Pele Green Energy has secured R2.5-billion in funding from lenders including Nedbank Group to help it build renewable power plants including one ordered by Anglo American Platinum. The other... 

Transnet halts plan to allow private companies to operate key rail line

State-owned ports and rail company Transnet withdrew a request for quotes for an operating lease on a freight-rail artery that connects its biggest port with its industrial hub, because changes in... 

Billionaire Adani’s new copper foray to further tighten world's ore supply

The planned start of billionaire Gautam Adani’s copper plant in India next year will spur a sharp rise in imports of concentrate, further tightening the global supply of ore on which smelters... 

Sasol says investors critical of its climate record have ‘flawed understanding’

Sasol has hit back at investors who said they would reject its climate-change report at an annual general meeting last month, before it was abandoned because of a protest. The petrochemicals... 

South32 invokes force majeure at Colombia ferro-nickel operation

South32 invoked force majeure at its Colombian nickel operations as community protesters block the movement of people and supplies to the giant open pit mine and smelter. “This affects all our... 

Eskom set for seventh full-year loss as power cuts grip South Africa

South Africa’s Eskom Holdings is on track to post its seventh consecutive full-year loss as the utility crumbles under the weight of its debt pile and high financing costs, poor plant performance... 

South Africa aims to fire up economic growth with port, rail revival

South Africa’s government and the business community set a target of boosting the economic growth rate by as much as six percentage points by fixing the country’s collapsing ports and freight-rail... 

South Africa takes a major step toward fixing work visa mess

South Africa’s home affairs minister signed planned changes to work permit regulations aimed at fixing a bureaucratic morass that’s frustrating the country’s biggest investors and exacerbating a... 

COP28 ends with deal on transition away from fossil fuels

The COP28 climate talks in Dubai ended in a deal that saw a commitment to transition away from all fossil fuels for the first time. The president of this year’s UN-sponsored summit, the UAE’s... 

As Chile prepares to open lithium assets, this Canadian miner is ready to pounce

Wealth Minerals is lining up funding for lithium drilling and testing in Chile as the Vancouver-based firm waits for the government there to disclose rules for new production areas. Financing... 

US sanctions Russian metals magnate Sviblov and gold, zinc firms

The US imposed sanctions on Russian mining magnate Vladislav Sviblov and several mining companies connected to him, including one that’s developing one of the world’s largest zinc mines. The... 

Record resources deals rescue a dim year for Australian bankers

Energy and mining deals have dominated Australia’s dealmaking scene like never before this year. About $A111.3-billion ($73-billion) of energy and mining deals have been announced in Australia... 

How coal giant Colombia is trying to wean its economy off fossil fuels

Colombia has become the first major coal producer to join a group of nations calling for the end of fossil fuels, in a bid to escape the economic trap it could face as the world ditches the... 

The world’s copper supply is suddenly looking scarce

A forecast surplus of copper going into 2024 has suddenly all but disappeared. The next couple of years were supposed to be a time of plenty for copper, thanks to a series of big new projects... 

US House approves Russian uranium import ban

The US House voted Monday to approve legislation that would bar the importation of enriched Russian uranium, sending the measure to the Senate where it has support but limited time for passage this... 

BHP workers consider strike action at some Australian mines

Workers critical to the operation of five Australian coal mines owned by BHP Group are readying to vote on industrial action that could involve strikes before the end of the year, the AFR reported,... 

There’s a way to quit coal without wrecking jobs and communities

It’s a persistent global conundrum: Can policymakers close coal mines and power plants without ruining local economies in the process? In August, a delegation of Vietnamese officials looking to... 

Chilean copper smelter project drawing interest from China

Chinese groups are exploring the possibility of participating in a copper smelting project in Chile — some of them in a bid to lock in supplies of a key metal in the energy transition. Officials... 

SA may need $136bn for energy transition – study

South Africa cannot escape the need to spend significantly on new wind and solar power plants, a BloombergNEF study shows. Under a range of scenarios considered by researchers the country may need... 

South Africa set to pick Dan Marokane as new Eskom CEO

Dan Marokane is expected to be appointed as the new CEO of South Africa’s state power utility Eskom Holdings after an almost year-long search for a candidate, according to people familiar with the... 

EU carbon tax could cost Africa $25bn, AfDB chief says

Africa could lose as much as $25-billion annually due to the European Union’s new carbon border tax, hurting the continent’s trade by penalizing valued-added exports such as iron and fertilizers,... 

Current account deficit narrows as imports slip

South Africa’s current account deficit shrank by much more than expected in the third quarter, buoyed by a surge in the trade balance as the volume of imports fell. The deficit on the current... 

China’s CMOC says geopolitics helped drive Australian mine sale

Chinese copper and cobalt miner CMOC Group, which sold a controlling stake in its Northparkes mine in Australia earlier this week, said a changing geopolitical situation was one of the reasons for... 

G-7 to ban Russian diamonds starting next year

Group of Seven nations have agreed to ban Russian diamond imports from the start of next year in the latest move to curb Russia’s ability to fund its invasion of Ukraine. While the G-7 and its... 

Russian uranium import ban teed up for US house floor vote

Legislation that would bar the import of enriched Russian uranium into the US has been teed up for a vote in the US House of Representatives. The Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act, by... 

Chile targets 1Mt copper boost in tightening market

Chile is targeting an acceleration of its nascent copper-production recovery over the coming years in what would help fill a predicted supply gap as the energy transition spurs demand for the... 

Surge in lithium stocks raise hope rout in EV metal almost done

A sudden jump in the share prices of Chinese lithium producers is spurring optimism that a rout in the electric vehicle battery metal may be coming to an end. China’s two biggest producers —... 

Deadly attack spurs plea for Peru crackdown on unlicensed mines

Mining executives in Peru are imploring authorities to crack down on escalating violence by informal miners, which this weekend cost the lives of nine staff members of a large, legal gold mine.... 

Eskom, Sasol pollution harms children, government studies find

Two studies ordered by South Africa’s government into the impact of air pollution on community and child health showed emission limits it imposed on companies that emit the toxins are insufficient.... 

Investors are seeing past 75% lithium plunge, Chile’s Enami says

Chile’s State-owned Enami will be in a position to choose a partner for a sprawling lithium project by mid next year, saying a plunge in prices of the battery metal hasn’t damped the interest of... 

Global coal use at power plants will peak in 2023, Rystad says

Global power-production from coal will peak this year as surging deployment of renewables displaces the dirtiest fossil fuel, according to research from Rystad Energy. Burning coal will produce... 

Congo government extends suspension of ERG’s Boss Mining

The Democratic Republic of Congo extended the suspension of Eurasian Resources Group’s Boss Mining copper and cobalt project for at least three months amid ongoing environmental and safety... 

Mining giant Vale says China can't control price of iron-ore

China may be the world’s biggest buyer of iron ore, but even that powerful position doesn’t mean that Beijing can succeed in dictating prices for the steelmaking ingredient, said the head of No. 2... 

Blank-cheque firm in talks to merge with South African gold mine

Rigel Resource Acquisition Corp, a New York-listed blank-cheque company, is in talks to combine with a South African gold miner, people with knowledge of the matter said. The deal could value... 

Codelco appoints new CFO, strategy head to navigate copper woes

World No. 1 copper supplier Codelco appointed new heads of finance and strategy as the Chilean state copper behemoth battles slumping production and rising debt. Alejandro Sanhueza will become...