Freeport profit pops higher; miner makes progress in Indonesia

The highly politicised nature of the Pebble Mine and mining development in general in the area makes any statement dangerous.

“People were beginning to believe that gold can stand up against all crises, but the last six months proved that theory wrong.”

Traders said support given to Greece to stay in the Eurozone at the weekend's G8 meeting and a stronger dollar hurt the yellow metal.

No injuries or damage to company assets, but all production activities are halted until power is restored.

Investors have “defriended” gold recently in favor of the dollar, as Greek and French voters rejected austerity measures.

Even though gold prices can experience declines that appear to be unfounded, demand from various categories and parts of the world continue to provide support to prices.

Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, global mining giant Rio Tinto (NYSE: RIO ) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

Gold demand in China may surge as much as 30 percent this year as rising incomes boost consumption, helping the country topple as the world's largest bullion market on an annual basis, according to the World Gold Council.

With its massive production potential, northern Saskatchewan is securing its seat as one of the best locations in the world to mine gold.