Copper

Anglo-Swiss miner Xstrata (XTA.L: Quote) reported a 6 percent decline in copper output in the first quarter due to severe weather conditions at its Collahuasi mine in Chile and lower grades at its Alumbrera mine in Argentina. Overall, the miner said adverse weather conditions including flooding in Queensland and Western Australia, tropical cyclone Yasi and heavy rainfall in South Africa, Colombia and other parts of South America impacted production during the period.

Small B.C.-based junior Serengeti Resources (TSX-V: SIR) signed on a sizeable partner to explore territory thick in prospective copper-gold porphyries. Mining giant Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE: FCX) inked an exploration agreement with Serengeti Resources that could see a 51-49-percent joint venture in Freeport's favour formed on Serengeti's Choo and Tchentlo properties, not far from Thompson Creek Metals' Mt. Milligan copper-gold project.

The Pebble Partnership has approved US$91 million of program expenditures this year with the objective of completing a prefeasibility study next year, which will lead to the beginning of permitting for the massive Alaskan copper, gold and molybdenum project under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Activities to be undertaken this year at the Pebble Project include engineering to complete a pre-feasibility project design in 2011, as well as environmental studies to finalize an Environmental Baseline Document in preparation for project permitting.

Greystar Resources Ltd. (TSX:GSL)(AIM:GSL) is pleased to announce receipt of a positive scoping stage Preliminary Assessment under National Instrument 43-101 ("Scoping Study") for an underground only operation at its 100%-owned Angostura gold-silver project in northeastern Colombia. Image by Greystar Resources Ltd.

No word yet from China's Jinchuan Group as to whether the company is officially in the market for Canada's Lundin Mining. Canadian media reports claim a consortium headed by Jinchuan, which includes sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp., was planning a takeover bid for the Canadian base metals miner.

Copper output in Zambia, Africa's top producer of the metal, will rise to 2 million tonnes by 2015 from around 900,000 tonnes this year as new mines open and others are expanded, the country's finance minister said on Saturday.

The months-long saga over the future of Lundin Mining took another interesting twist on Friday, when a consortium of Chinese companies jumped in with a potential bid, according to a story in The Globe and Mail. Lundin has been the target of two takeover bids, the first by Inmet Mining, which recently fell through, and the second by Equinox Minerals, which unveiled a $4.8 billion hostile takeover bid to counter the Inmet offer. That deal was derailed when China's Minmetals Resources tried to acquire Equinox, which has since been acquired by Barrick Gold, which presented a richer offer worth $7.3 billion.

Inmet Mining bettered its earnings in the first quarter compared to Q1 of last year, Reuters reported: Inmet Mining's (IMN.TO) first quarter profit rose on higher metal prices and higher sales volumes, the Canadian copper producer said on Thursday. Inmet earned C$59.4 million, or 97 Canadian cents a share, from continuing operations. That compared with C$49.4 million or 96 Canadian cents a share in the year-ago period. The Toronto-based company sold its 18 percent stake in Ok Tedi Mining for $335 million in January.

Wolverine Minerals Corp. (TSX-V:WLV) min is pleased to announce that after a comprehensive review of historical information and analysis of the results of last year's programs, it has now finalized its work program and budget for the 2011 field season on the Company's Yukon properties optioned from Strategic Metals Ltd ("Strategic"). Estimated expenditures will be approximately $5 million, with the majority of this work to be focused on eight of the Company's core properties. Through Archer, Cathro & Associates (1981) Limited ("Archer Cathro"), all crews, camps, equipment, drills, helicopters and other necessary supplies have been arranged and the following programs will begin on June 1, 2011: Image by Wolverine Minerals Corp.: DDD-Shamrock property.