De Beers cuts diamond prices to revive sales

De Beers made big cuts to its diamond prices as the world’s top producer tries to revive gem sales after the market ground to a halt last year. The industry almost came to a complete standstill in... 

Godongwana warns of difficult budget next month

South Africa’s finance minister warned that next month’s budget will be a “difficult one” as the nation’s ability to service its growing debt remains a challenge. Enoch Godongwana will table the... 

Norway just raised the stakes over deep-sea mining

The Norwegian Parliament last week greenlit seabed mining exploration in the country’s territorial waters, a decision that contravenes the advice of government scientists and is set to intensify... 

China’s drive for record coal spurs yet another deadly accident

The human toll of ever-increasing coal production in China is once again to the fore after thirteen were killed in a mine accident just days after the government said it will start a three-year... 

Codelco caps worst year in quarter century with copper production drop

Codelco indicated copper output declined last quarter from a year earlier, as the world’s biggest producer of the red metal strives to recover from mining mishaps and project delays. Production... 

Communities agree to end roadblocks at Chile lithium operations

Indigenous communities in northern Chile agreed to lift roadblocks that have restricted access to the country’s giant lithium operations since January 9. Members of the the regional indigenous... 

US agrees preliminary deal with Africa on extending Agoa by ten years, says Patel

The US has reached preliminary agreement with African nations to extend their preferential trade access by another decade, pending approval by Congress, South Africa’s trade minister said. "We... 

Copper up from lowest in nearly a month on China stimulus hopes

Copper rose from its lowest close since mid-December, as inflation data from China bolstered calls for stronger stimulus measures from Beijing. China’s consumer prices posted their longest streak... 

Rival bidders question selection of proposed partner for Durban container terminal

South Africa’s selection of Filipino billionaire Enrique Razon’s harbour firm as a partner to revive sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest container port is being questioned by losing bidders. Companies... 

Gold edges higher as US-led airstrikes on Yemen aid haven demand

Gold edged higher as US-led airstrikes on Houthi rebel targets in Yemen boosted haven demand. The military action against the Iran-backed group followed a string of attacks on vessels in the Red... 

Mining industry sees a way to navigate narco crisis in Ecuador

Ecuador’s budding mining industry sees a way through the violent mayhem sweeping the country, with operating mines and development projects expected to carry on as planned after stepping up... 

China’s Zijin plans stake in Canadian miner, testing security rules

Chinese mining firm Zijin Mining Group will acquire a 15% stake in Solaris Resources for about C$130-million, the Canadian miner said on Thursday. Zijin Mining Group plans to take a 15% stake in... 

Grupo Mexico weighs bid for First Quantum’s Spanish mine

Grupo Mexico is among several firms considering bids to buy a Spanish copper mine from First Quantum Minerals, as the Canadian metals producer seeks to bolster its balance sheet after its flagship... 

Forrest to advance 14 GW of new clean energy in Australia

Billionaire Andrew Forrest pledged to develop 14 GW of new clean power projects in Australia by 2030, offering a boost to the nation’s efforts to accelerate investments in renewable energy.... 

Uranium miners surge on $500m US enrichment push

Shares in uranium miners jumped globally after the US said it’s soliciting bids to boost domestic production of nuclear fuel in an effort to bolster national energy security. The Energy Department... 

South Africa prepares Bill to form State-firm holding company

South Africa’s minister of public enterprises will soon introduce a bill in parliament to establish a government firm that will own and manage at least 13 of the country’s state-owned companies.... 

South Africa stocks lose $50bn in eight-year foreign exodus

It’s been nearly a decade of waning foreign interest in South African stocks, with outflows exceeding $50-billion in that time. Last year was the eighth year in a row that foreign investors dumped... 

Union members stage demonstration at First Quantum's Panama mine

Hundreds of Panamanian construction workers staged a demonstration at a shuttered copper mine that has become the subject of nationalistic sentiment in the Central American nation. Members of the... 

Battery metal price plunge is closing mines and stalling deals

A meltdown in some of the most-hyped energy-transition metals is wreaking havoc across the mining world, stalling projects, scuppering deals and triggering a scramble for cash that promises to... 

India’s plans to double coal production, ignore climate threat

As climate diplomats at COP28 in Dubai debated an agreement to transition away from fossil fuels last December, India was facing another energy conundrum: It needed to build more power capacity,... 

Gold One could dismiss more than 500 after mine sit-in

Gold One International could dismiss more than 500 workers at a South African mine after two incidents last year in which hundreds of employees stayed underground for days. The Sydney-based gold... 

African nations dominate top 10 economic growth spots in 2024

Africa faces economic headwinds this year, but some of the continent’s brightest sparks are shading it in a more hopeful light. Six of the top-10 performing economies in the world are forecast to... 

SA antitrust probe into rand-fixing collapses

South Africa’s Competition Appeal Court dismissed the cases against most of the 28 banks accused of colluding to fix the rand in the New York foreign exchange market almost a decade ago, Business... 

Goldman veteran Jeff Currie remains bullish on commodities this year

Jeff Currie, who spearheaded commodities research at Goldman Sachs Group for almost three decades, remains bullish on the sector for this year. Demand for raw materials is at record levels,... 

Fed pivot will dominate year of rate cuts in turn of global cycle

The coming 12 months are shaping up as the year of the interest-rate cut. After racing ahead with the most aggressive tightening campaign in decades during 2022 and 2023, central banks around the... 

Tianqi, LG, Eramet explore lithium options in Chile meetings

Some of the biggest players in the global battery supply chain held meetings with Chilean authorities late last year as the country with the biggest reserves of lithium gets ready to open up new... 

Peruvian miner Buenaventura sees Antofagasta as ally in copper growth plans

After a few weeks digesting Antofagasta’s surprise entry into its shareholder register, Buenaventura sees the new investor as an ally in its copper growth plans rather than a rival eying control of... 

Zimbabwe rescues 15 trapped miners alive – Mines Minister

An emergency operation managed to rescue all 15 small-scale Zimbabwean gold miners who had been trapped for four days after a shaft collapsed, according to Mines Minister Soda Zhemu. ”They are all... 

Gold CEO scandal is latest black eye for mining as setbacks mount

Endeavour Mining’s shock firing of its chief executive has capped a miserable three months for the global mining industry — and an equally painful period for its shareholders. The world’s biggest... 

Eskom ends grid access for Karpowership

Eskom Holdings said it will no longer reserve the transmission capacity it had agreed to set aside for winners of a South African tender for emergency power provision that didn’t meet a Dec. 31... 

Chinese miner takes Glencore's cobalt crown as output jumps 170%

China’s CMOC Group boosted its cobalt output by more than 170% last year, with surging production at a new mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo helping the company leapfrog Glencore as the... 

Gold Fields pushes back production at Key Chilean mine again

Gold Fields cut its production outlook for 2024 after announcing a new delay at a major project in Chile. The Johannesburg-listed company now expects to produce first gold at its Salares Norte... 

Coal financing is still booming – led by China

The amount of bank financing going to mining coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel of them all, remains at surprisingly high levels. Most of it is coming from China. A new report from researchers at... 

Australia wants to compete with China on critical minerals, minister King says

Australia wants to compete with China in producing and refining resources vital to the next phase of high-tech manufacturing around the world, according to Minister Madeleine King, backing the... 

Resource-rich Congo goes to polls, with Tshisekedi the front runner

Polls opened in resource-rich Democratic Republic of Congo as the nation’s citizens vote to choose their leaders for the fourth time since the end of decades of dictatorship and war. Incumbent... 

Shipping insurance for red sea transit soars after mounting attacks

The cost of insuring vessels that will transit the Red Sea jumped again this week after mounting attacks in the region forced some ships to avoid the vital waterway. Cover has now surged to about... 

Crumbling South African rail prompts Botswana to forge new route

Botswana has received unsolicited bids from investors to build a rail line to a Namibian port that will help avoid South Africa and its disintegrating logistics network. The 1 500 km... 

Australia adviser urges improved reporting of methane emissions

Australia needs to improve the accuracy of fossil fuel producers’ reporting on greenhouse-gas emissions, especially on methane releases from opencut coal mines, a review of the nation’s climate... 

Eskom soot pollution is at a 31-year-high, 42 times worse than China

Coal-fired power plants operated by South Africa’s state utility are emitting pollutants that primarily cause respiratory diseases such as asthma at almost 42 times the intensity of those in... 

Diamond sales slowly restart after efforts to halt price crash

The world’s two biggest diamond miners are selling stones again after the industry all but halted supplies in a desperate attempt to stop a collapse in prices. This year’s rout that was driven by...