Indonesia to Limit Nickel Smelter Development in Green Energy Drive
Indonesia has announced plans to limit the construction of nickel smelters in the country in order to encourage the production of high-value products. The country’s investment minister, Bahlil Lahadalia, said that the focus should be on downstreaming with 80% to 100% value addition, and that any new smelters should be powered by green energy. The country is also considering mandating...
Consortium of Hong Kong and European investors to revive Australian nickel and cobalt refinery for EV batteries
A consortium of Hong Kong and European private investors are investing over USD 1 billion to revive a mothballed nickel and cobalt refinery in Australia by turning mining waste into materials for electric car batteries. The refinery, Yabulu, is located in Queensland and aims to become one of the world’s top ten producers of refined nickel within 18 months to...
Former Gold Mine to Host Largest Underground Caverns in History for Neutrino Experiment
The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is currently under construction in a former gold mine in the U.S. state of South Dakota. The experiment will feature the largest underground caverns in history, with two main caverns that are seven stories tall, 100 metres long and 19.5 metres wide, and a third utility cavern that is three stories tall, 150 metres...
Europe’s largest deposit of rare earth metals discovered in Kiruna, Sweden
LKAB, a mining company based in Sweden, has identified significant deposits of rare earth elements in the Kiruna area, which are essential for the manufacture of electric vehicles and wind turbines. The company reports mineral resources exceeding one million tonnes of rare earth oxides, making it the largest known deposit of its kind in Europe. Who LKAB, a mining company...
Timmins nickel mine could be one of Canada’s largest carbon capture and storage facilities
Canada Nickel Company is promoting its Crawford Project – a nickel mine in Timmins, Ontario – as one of the largest carbon capture and storage facilities in the country. The company claims that the mine, which is an ultramafic deposit, has the potential to capture and sequester large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) through a process it calls In-Process Tailings...
Aluminium Dunkerque restarts idled production capacity
Aluminium Dunkerque, one of Europe’s largest aluminium smelters, has begun to relaunch production capacity that was idled last year due to soaring electricity costs. According to a spokesperson for the company the site, which halted around a fifth of its output in the fourth quarter, should reach full capacity by the end of May. The move follows an easing in...
London Metal Exchange Chair Resigns in Wake of Nickel Trading Scandal
The chair of the London Metal Exchange (LME), Gay Huey Evans CBE, announced that she will step down from her role in the wake of a nickel trading scandal that has shaken the exchange. The scandal, which was sparked by volatile prices in the nickel market in March due to the war in Ukraine, prompted the LME to shut its...
LME Implements New Deferral Rules Amid Low Stockpiles and Controversy over Copper Outlook
The London Metal Exchange (LME) has introduced new rules allowing for deferral in order to prevent future squeezes on its warehouse inventories. These rules come with costly fees, however, and traders on the LME have expressed concern over the dwindling inventories. The tight stockpiles reflect the tension that has gripped metals markets for much of this year, a result of...
Platinum Outshines Other Precious Metals in 2022
Based on Kitco analytics Precious metals had a mixed performance in 2022, with platinum being the top performer, up nearly 11% on the year. Silver came in second, with a gain of nearly 3%, while gold ended the year flat. Palladium was the biggest loser, down around 6% in 2022. These precious metals showed their best performance in the last...
Canada’s Kuya Silver Consolidates Northern Ontario Mining Project
Canadian miner Kuya Silver announced in early January that it was finalising the acquisition of battery materials refiner Electra Battery Materials’ assets in the two companies’ Silver Kings joint venture in Northern Ontario. This deal will boost Kuya’s ownership in the Silver Kings Project from 75% to 100%. To finalise the deal, which covers about 16,600 hectares of silver and...
Indian aluminium industry seeks government intervention in Budget 2023 for removal of tax on raw materials
The Aluminium Association of India (AAI) has called for government intervention in the form of supportive measures to address challenges faced by the aluminium industry, including rising foreign imports, a declining market share and escalating costs. The AAI has specifically requested the removal or rationalization of taxes on key inputs for the sector, such as calcined petroleum coke, caustic soda...
Civmec to Equip Rio Tinto’s Western Range Iron Ore Project for $230mn
The diversified mining conglomerate Rio Tinto has awarded engineering company Civmec a contract worth 330 million Australian dollars ($229 million) to build and modify facilities for its Western Range project in the iron ore-rich Pilbara region in Western Australia, Civmec announced on 9 January. Under the contract, Civmec will build a new run of mine (ROM) pad, a primary crushing...
Constellium secures multi-year supply agreement with Daher for aerospace aluminium products
Constellium SE, a leading producer of aluminium products, has announced a multi-year contract with Daher, a French aircraft manufacturer, to supply a wide range of flat-rolled aluminium products. The contract will focus on supplying materials for Daher’s TBM and Kodiak aircraft, and will include joint supply chain initiatives and product development. Who Constellium SE, a publicly traded company that specializes...
DR Congo to Modernise Gold Trade, Attract Foreign Investment with Tax Incentives
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is working to transform itself from a producer to a processing country, according to Finance Minister Nicolas Kazadi. To achieve this goal, the government has signed a deal with the United Arab Emirates to buy all gold produced by the artisanal sector and is putting infrastructure in place to formalise the market. Most of...
Canadian Lion Copper and Gold announces agreement for Stage 2 Programme of Work with Nuton
Lion Copper and Gold Corp. announced that it has completed the Stage 1 Programme of Work and has reached an agreement with Rio Tinto America Inc. (“Rio Tinto”) on the scope of the Stage 2 Program of Work with Nuton, a Rio Tinto venture. Rio Tinto will now provide Stage 2 funding of USD 5,000,000 and an immediate advance of...
Platinum-cobalt alloy developed as catalyst for next-gen hydrogen fuel cells
The high cost of platinum, a valuable metal that is the main catalyst for the chemical reactions in next-generation hydrogen fuel cells, has been a barrier to the widespread adoption of this technology. However, scientists have engineered a platinum-cobalt alloy to act as a catalyst, greatly reducing the amount of platinum needed to achieve the same or even better performance....
Leading Nickel Companies to Watch in 2023 as Market Remains Tight
According to Investorintel, nickel prices have had a strong year in 2022, rising 43% to reach $28,199 per tonne at the time of writing. This increase has been driven by strong demand and limited new supply in the market. Looking ahead to 2023, the nickel market is expected to remain tight, although some analysts are concerned about potential new supply...
Russia’s Largest Lithium Deposit to Go Under Hammer in 2023
Russia’s largest lithium deposit, the Kolmozerskoye field, is set to go up for auction in 2023 with an initial price of 1.6 billion rubles. Heavily sanctioned by western governments, with no easy way to trade with global lithium suppliers, Russia was forced to restart the Kolmozersky lithium project to secure supplies of the metal, an essential ingredient in high-capacity power...
Canada announces USD 3.8 billion critical minerals strategy to address global demand for clean technology
The demand for critical minerals including lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper, rare earth elements, potash, uranium and aluminum is increasing as the world moves towards a global net-zero economy and the adoption of clean technologies such as solar panels and electric vehicle batteries. These minerals are not only essential for clean technology, but also play a crucial role in creating...
Scientists create tiny metallic snowflakes using gallium
Scientists in New Zealand and Australia have made a significant discovery in the field of nanomaterials by creating tiny metallic snowflakes. Who Professor Nicola Gaston and research fellow Dr Steph Lambie, both of Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, and Dr Krista Steenbergen of Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington, collaborated with colleagues in Australia led by Professor Kourosh...
