Members of a Filipino tribe are protesting after the country’s second richest businessman agreed to enter a nickel joint mining venture with a Chinese concern on the island of Palawan. Palawan was in the news recently when the Puerto Princesa subterranean river on the island was chosen as one of the world’s new seven wonders of nature, according to organizers of a global poll conducted via social media. The Philippine government vigorously campaigned for the 8.2 kilometer navigable underground river in a bid to boost tourism. South Korea’s Jeju Island, Indonesia’s Komodo and South Africa’s Table Mountain were also among the list.

Canadian gold royalties company Franco-Nevada aims to raise C$340-million in an equity offering, it said on Tuesday. The TSX- and NYSE-listed firm said it would use the cash for acquisitions, working capital and general corporate purposes.

Pacific Crest Transformers, a leader in the design and construction of liquid-filled distribution transformers, announces that it offers cost and energy-efficient station and substation transformers ideal for mining applications.

Gebr. Pfeiffer will be providing the MPS 200 BK mill and related engineering services for Calgon Carbon Corporation's Pearl River Plant in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

Vermeer Corporation and Vermeer Western Australia and Northern Territory are pleased to announce that Fortescue Metals Group of East Perth, Australia, has agreed to purchase 14 Vermeer® Terrain Leveler® surface excavation machines (SEMs) to be used in Fortescue’s vast mining operation located in Western Australia.

Diamonds were the talk of the Tower of London on Tuesday 8 November at a private dinner held to mark the start of a three-day summit to identify the world's most famous diamonds. With over 100 diamonds in the world at 100 carats or more, the criteria for Famous Diamonds must necessarily extend beyond size to focus on the rare qualities and historical provenance of these extraordinary gemstones, for example The Golden Jubilee, the world's largest faceted diamond in the King's Royal Palace in Thailand, The Centenary which has recently returned to the Sultan of Brunei after spending years in a London safety deposit box, the Incomparable hidden in the US and The Light of Peace in the Middle East.

Xinhua reports the chief of China's work safety watchdog on Saturday decried the poor safety standards at a coal mine where rescuers had pulled out 30 bodies and are still searching for 13 others following a gas outburst three days ago. Director of the State Administration of Work Safety Luo Lin, who led a investigation of the Sizhuang Coal Mine, located in the county of Shizong in southwestern Yunnan province, described the mine's safety measures as "very poor." The mine was found to be operating illegally, having had its license revoked a year ago, according to a statement from the provincial coal safety supervision bureau. Latest official data shows that more than 2,600 people died in mining accidents in 2009.

South Africa's Gold Fields Ltd is likely to take an option to acquire a 60% stake in an undeveloped gold-copper deposit in the Philippines before April, its chief executive said on Thursday. The company said in September it had made a non-refundable down payment of $66 million for an option to acquire the stake.

Animation Insider reports SpongeBob SquarePants contributes a hefty amount to Nickelodeon Consumer Product's estimated $5.5 billion in annual, worldwide retail sales. For international coin collectors – or for that one die-hard SpongeBob fan who must have absolutely everything – two companies are partnering with Nickelodeon to manufacture a limited run of four, one-ounce, silver legal tender, based on the cartoon. PFG Precious Metals from Chicago, a wholesale precious metals company, and the New Zealand Mint, a respected minter legal tender for four and a half decades, are now accepting orders for SpongeBob silver.

Preliminary exploration work carried out by Solid Energy, New Zealand’s state-owned coal producer, indicates there is potential for a combined underground and […]