Aluminium producer Norsk Hydro warns of Brazil bauxite shortfall

(RTTNews) - The UK market is trading higher in afternoon trading Thursday, amid some positive earnings news as well as consolidation in commodities prices.

Wayne Swan has threatened to blow a $2 billion hole in the Barnett Government's plan to lift royalty rates on iron ore miners, with every cent raised by the move likely to end up with other States and Territories.The Commonwealth Grants Commission has

Northland Resources (TSX: NAU) sees about twice as much cash flowing into its coffers once Kaunisvaara, its flagship iron-ore project in Sweden, reaches production in 2013. The projected boost in part stems from reconsideration of the price Northland's iron-ore pellets might command. "Northland has long been convinced that the market will highly value the high Fe-content (69%) and low levels of impurities (e.g. 1.1% SiO2 and 0.2% Al2O3) in its concentrate," the iron-ore junior noted in a press release.

Preliminary metallurgical test work was conducted on a composite sample of the haematitic saprolite ore from the Nkout Centre area of the deposit. The sample consisted of drill hole intersections from the central part of the deposit and had a head grade of 43.6% Fe. The aim of the test work was to determine the potential to produce a suitable blast furnace feed. The test work was conducted at SGS Mineral Services, Truro, UK.

A Mine Concept Study conducted by Steffen Robertson Kirsten (SRK) on the Bungaroo South project has confirmed both the technical and financial viability of a mine development. The mine plan supports a 15 million tonnes per year operation with a mine life of 15 years, with production possible by 2015.

The game of corporate musical chairs has ended with more frustrations than success for the two companies concerned, after BC Iron Ltd (ASX: BCI) got annoyed about Regent Pacific withdrawing its original bid, BC Iron then successfully got the bid reinstated through Australia's Takeovers Panel, and then deciding it didn't want to proceed. The end of this chain was the expert's report to BC Iron that, in summary, said Regent Pacific's bid was neither fair nor reasonable.

West Africa focused Bellzone Mining has released an initial resource estimate for its Kalia iron ore project in Guinea. The AIM-listed iron ore and nickel company announced an initial inferred JORC oxide resource of 111 million tonnes, graded at 38% Fe, which would be beneficiated using a standard gravity process to produce 58% Fe fines.

ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA), a subsidiary of ArcelorMittal, the world's biggest steelmaker, this week announced an agreement which may see the acquisition of an iron ore "resource" in the Northern Cape. At the same time, parent company ArcelorMittal announced its first quarter earnings, where, for the first time, it reported its mining interests as a separate segment.

Following on the footsteps of an ambitious, $80 billion plan to invest in Quebec's north announced earlier this week, the provincial government is looking at changing its Mining Act, the Montreal Gazette writes: Bill 14, amending Quebec’s Mining Act “in keeping with the principles of sustainable development” was presented Thursday in the Quebec National Assembly.