First time ever: Gas overtakes coal in US power mix

Australia’s BHP Billiton has finalised its acquisition of US shale gas producer Petrohawk, BHP announced on Sunday. BHP has secured the 97.4% of the outstanding shares in the Texan company which it did not already own, in a deal worth $12.1 billion.

The battle for Macarthur Coal is poised to intensify after news that Anglo American is considering a challenge to Peabody and ArcelorMittal's $4.7 billion hostile bid. Anglos, the world's fifth most valuable miner, is studying Macarthur's finances, media reported at the weekend. Anglos has been restructuring aggressively under chief executive Cynthia Carroll (pictured) and with second quarter 2011 profits of $4 billion has the necessary cash. But a rumoured joint bid with China's Citic could turn out to be the decisive factor to beat Peabody and ArcelorMittal's offer as Citic has already built up a 24% stake in Macarthur. Miners are scrambling for coal assets and coal for power-generation has averaged about $130/tonne this year from less than $100 in 2010. Coal now accounts for 30% of global energy use, the highest since 1970.

The young miners descend on rickety ladders made of branches into the makeshift coal mines dotting Jaintia Hills in northeast India, scrambling sideways into “rat hole” shafts so small that even kneeling becomes impossible. Lying horizontally, they hack away with picks and their bare hands: Human labor here is far cheaper than machines. Many wear flip-flops and shorts, their faces and lungs blackened by coal. None has a helmet. Two hours of grinding work fills a cart half the size of a coffin that they drag back, crouching, to the mine mouth, where a clerk credits their work. Most earn a dollar or two an hour.

According to the US Energy Information Administration, coal production will fall 1.7% in 2011 hampered by widespread flooding in the west of the country. It is a steeper decline than previously forecast and the agency also predicts a further decline next year. Nevertheless, strong demand from Asia and Europe for steam and metallurgical coal has pushed US coal exports up 35% in the first half of the year and should reach above 100 million tons by year’s end, the highest level in nearly 20 years. Global coal consumption advanced 7.6% last year and at a faster pace than crude oil, natural gas and nuclear, according to statistics published by oil giant BP. Coal now accounts for 30% of global energy use, the highest since 1970.

Anglo American is exploring a bid for Macarthur Coal that would challenge Peabody Energy Corp.’s $4.9 billion offer for the Australian miner, said two people with knowledge of the matter. Anglo American, part owner of the world’s biggest platinum and diamond producers, is studying Macarthur’s finances, said one of the people, who declined to be identified as the talks are private. Buying Brisbane-based Macarthur would give Anglo steelmaking-coal mines in Australia as prices trade near a record. Peabody and its bidding partner, ArcelorMittal, took their offer directly to Macarthur shareholders after talks with the board collapsed.

Great Panther escaped the mayhem on the markets and ended Thursday up 3.6% on the TSX after announcing it shipped 100 tonnes of silver-gold pyrite concentrates from its Guanajuato operation to a new buyer in Mexico. Last week the company disappointed the markets with quarterly results that showed a drop in revenues due to the shipping delays and lower silver production as a result of falling grades. The volatile stock is down almost a quarter over the last month.

One year ago, the board of directors of Potash Corp of Saskatchewan announced they had received and rejected a $38.6 billion hostile bid from BHP Billiton. The Globe and Mail argues the deal had a profound impact on the country and is best remembered by the confusion it revealed around the Investment Canada Act. And while the federal government's blocking of the deal certainly hurt the reputation of BHP Billiton and its CEO Marius Kloppers, the miner is now accelerating development of its massive Jansen potash project in the province, one of $13 billion worth of approved projects at the resource giant.

Gold futures hit a record high of $1,829/oz on Thursday while global stock markets suffered one of the bloodiest days of an already disastrous month with banks and miners bearing the brunt. The losses came after renewed fears about Europe's debt crisis and more bad news about the US economy. In the flight to safe havens, gold and silver were the only gainers. The value of the precious metal is up sevenfold from its August 1999 low of $251/oz shortly before global central banks started limiting bullion sales. Many observers believe that decision was the turning point for gold although it would take almost another decade before breaching the $1,000/oz level.

#tarsands #oilSANDS http://twurl.nl/ik6z8h.” The link will get you to a page on API’s website on oil sands. What caught Brant’s attention was at first that all these tweets were identical and posted at the same time. Later on came more