Third mine disaster in a decade tests ESG boundaries in Brazil

Investors were swift to dump debt of Braskem after the Brazilian petrochemicals maker’s salt mine partially collapsed in December — a situation that has forced tens of thousands to evacuate the... 

Albemarle lays off 4% of its global workforce

Albemarle, the world's largest lithium producer, has laid off more than 300 employees, or 4% of its workforce, as part of a previously announced round of cost-cuts, The Information news site... 

Codelco pays heavy price for ramping up debt burden to fund over-budget projects

Codelco is paying a heavy price for increasing its already heavy debt load to finance late and over-budget projects that are needed to maintain its status as the world’s biggest copper supplier.... 

Climate change risks raising South Africa premiums, insurer says

Climate change poses the most significant threat for South African insurance companies and risks raising premiums and the cost of reinsurance, a top official at its biggest insurer by assets said.... 

Russian tycoon Nesis’s group sells Polymetal stake to Omani fund

CT Holding, led by Russian billionaire Alexander Nesis, sold its entire holding in a gold producer to a Omani state-backed fund. ICT’s unit closed the deal to sell 23.9% in Polymetal International... 

Battery metals bust spurs output cut at leading lithium mine

Australia’s biggest lithium mine and one the world’s flagship projects has become the latest battery-metals venture to feel the pain from faltering demand growth, with output set to be trimmed as... 

Hedge fund that's up 227% makes commodity bets on rate-cut talk

XIB Asset Management, the Canadian hedge fund that gained more than 200% in the first two years of the pandemic, is now betting that gold and uranium will outperform as interest rates decline. The... 

Vedanta’s quarterly profit declines on weak prices, higher costs

Billionaire Anil Agarwal’s Indian mining company Vedanta reported an 18% drop in quarterly profit on weak prices of key metals such as zinc and aluminum and higher finance costs. It posted a... 

Battery-metal price plunge closing mines, 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... 

Plaintiffs demand €582m from TÜV Süd over Brazil dam burst

More than 1 400 plaintiffs are demanding over €582-million in damages from German industrial inspector TÜV Süd over its alleged role in the deadly collapse of a dam in Brazil, their lawyers said on... 

Saudi Arabia to import meat from new Brics partner South Africa

Saudi Arabia will start importing South African beef and lamb products as part of an investment push into the continent’s most developed economy. The kingdom’s Food and Drug Administration lifted a... 

Uranium producer Niger launches mining sector overhaul

Niger temporarily suspended the granting of new mining licenses, the first step in an audit of its mining sector as it seeks to boost government revenue. The country will also take stock of... 

DP World’s $2bn Mozambique port expansion gets approval

Mozambique approved an extended deal for DP World, Grindrod and other operators of its biggest port, including a $2-billion expansion that will further draw cargoes away from neighboring South... 

Australia lithium miners start cost-cutting drive on price rout

Australia lithium miners are cutting jobs, trimming exploration budgets and reviewing dividend payments following a slump in prices of the key component in electric-vehicle batteries. Core Lithium... 

Winners of China’s 2023 coal-buying bonanza face a tougher year

China’s coal-buying bonanza last year benefited suppliers of higher-grade fuel the most, but 2024 is likely to prove more challenging for imports generally as the world’s biggest buyer dials back... 

Aurubis moves to terminate CEO’s contract after copper scam

Aurubis is preparing to terminate the contract of its CEO and two other executive board members, as the copper producer seeks to move on from a giant raw-material scam. The company’s supervisory... 

Nickel prices keep slumping even as mines close

Nickel continued its slump, heading toward the lowest level in more than three years, even as the collapse in prices for the metal force mines to shutter. The metal used in stainless steel and... 

Codelco wins shareholder approval to secure first lithium asset

Codelco, the world’s biggest copper producer, won approval to buy Lithium Power International after shareholders of the Australian junior voted in favor of a takeover that diversifies the Chilean... 

Nickel price crash seen strengthening Indonesia's grip on supply

A prolonged slump in nickel prices is stress-testing producers worldwide, raising the prospect of sweeping mine closures that will deepen Indonesia’s dominance of global supply. The metal used in... 

Forrest shuts nickel mines after prices crash

Wyloo Metals, the private nickel producer owned by billionaire Andrew Forrest, is shutting down its Western Australian mines due to a sharp slump in prices for the key transition metal. The mines... 

Two Australian resource-rich regions facing destructive storms

Two Australian resource-rich regions are bracing for potentially damaging storms that could lead to flooding, the latest threats after months of extreme weather events. A tropical low developing... 

Trafigura’s former battery metals co-head Wetterwald is leaving

Mehdi Wetterwald, who was briefly co-head of battery metals at Trafigura Group, is leaving the trading house in the latest senior departure from its metals unit. Wetterwald, who joined Trafigura... 

Lula pushes ally for Vale CEO as Brazil’s iron-ore miner weighs succession

Political lobbying as much as boardroom maneuvering could determine who wins the race to become the next boss of Vale, the world’s No. 2 iron-ore producer. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da... 

Gold riches fuel Sudan militia’s war to rule nation, UN says

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group is using large-scale proceeds from gold mining to fund its devastating war against the nation’s army, according to United Nations... 

Key African economies to hold off from rate cuts until second half of 2024

African central banks due to decide on interest rates in the next three weeks are poised to maintain tight monetary policies, in contrast to their emerging market peers in Europe and Latin America,... 

Cyclone forming near Australia's coast may have 'severe impact'

Australia’s resource-rich Queensland state is bracing for its second tropical cyclone in a little more than a month, with a storm off the coast expected to strengthen during the weekend. A... 

Endeavour Mining says former CEO to lose $29.1m in pay

Endeavour Mining is stripping its former CEO Sébastien de Montessus of $29.1-million in renumeration after he was fired earlier this month for “serious misconduct". The London-based gold miner... 

Adani says green hydrogen can repeat solar's path to low costs

Billionaire ports-to-coal tycoon Gautam Adani has called for a renewed global focus on lowering green hydrogen prices to spur the clean fuel’s adoption in emissions intensive industries. Lowering... 

China cobalt buyers use global glut to challenge pricing

China’s battery industry has seized on a glut in the global cobalt market to push through a change in the way the commodity is priced. A rapid expansion of cobalt mining in Democratic Republic of... 

Alcoa threatens to shutter Spain complex amid mounting losses

Alcoa's CEO said mounting losses at the company’s Spain production complex leave few options other than to shutter the operation. William Oplinger said in a call with analysts Wednesday the San... 

IMF sees TotalEnergies restarting Mozambique LNG project in early 2024

A group led by TotalEnergies will likely resume work on a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique early this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, after a raid by Islamic... 

Egypt grapples with impact of Red Sea hits on Suez Canal revenue

Egypt pushed ahead with an increase in transit fees through the Suez Canal this week, as a need for foreign currency trumped a fall in maritime traffic due to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red... 

AustralianSuper to swoop on lithium stocks after price collapse

Australia’s largest pension fund plans to double its exposure to local lithium stocks over the next five years, after a price rout made producers of the key battery material more affordable.... 

Godongwana says no imminent plan to tap reserves

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana played down the likelihood of a decision soon to tap a R497-billion contingency fund held on behalf of the country by the central bank. “For the moment there is... 

Top copper supplier Chile raises price forecast

Top copper supplier Chile raised its price projections for the metal based on the prospect of easing of credit conditions in the US and growing demand in the shift away from fossil fuels. State... 

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...