More labour unrest is brewing at South African mines. Reuters reports that workers poised to strike at 16:00 GMT today at Xstrata's operations across the country. The strike is over an employee share ownership program, Reuters said, quoting a union spokesman. More workers are expected to down tools at the start of the Monday morning shift.

A former BC Premier was among those who witnessed a shocking and unusual protest earlier this week at a gathering of Canadian and European energy leaders. Gordon Campbell, who was recently named Canada's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, was making his first official appearance in his new role when a man and woman suddenly stripped down to their undergarments and jumped onto the conference table. The Vancouver Sun describes what happened next: British poet Peter Bearder a.k.a Pete the Temp, clad in Union Jack boxers, and British/Australian UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Emily Coats, in white Maple-Leaf underwear, dumped molasses on themselves and then jumped onto a table in the gilded conference room to kiss and fondle each other for roughly a minute.

Harry Winston Diamond shares fell 11 cents on Friday despite a successful Q3 production report. The company (TSX:HW, NYSE:HWD) said it processed 3% more ore at its 40%-owned Diavik Diamond Mine in the Canadian north, producing 1.9 million carats from 0.6 million tonnes of ore. That translates to an 8% increase in recovered carats from the same period in 2010 due to higher processed ore grades, says Harry Winston.

Bloomberg reports that three environmental groups have filed a lawsuit seeking to halt the proposed Highland Reylas mountaintop removal mine in Logan County, West Virginia. The West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition and the Sierra Club filed the lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court in Huntington challenging a permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The groups claim the corps failed to consider scientific studies that say mountaintop removal mines pose health threats to residents.

Despite bans on export of iron ore from India, the price of the steelmaking ingredient has fallen in China. Business Standard reports that the price of iron ore originating from India has dropped 12% in Chinese markets to $168 a tonne, compared to $191 a tonne two weeks ago. The website quotes the chairman of Maya Iron Ores, a commodities brokerage, saying that Chinese steelmakers and traders expect the market to drop even further due to global financial turmoil and reduced demand:

The price of gold rose sharply this week, adding over US$40 to end Friday’s session at US$1,679 per ounce. Demand for the yellow metal was driven by weakness in the US dollar, which fell against the euro as positive developments in the European debt crisis boosted Europe’s single currency.

Europe's biggest mining project may be approaching the finish line after a dozen years of opposition and delays, and could enter its final stage late next year, a Rosia Montana Gold Corp executive told Reuters on Friday. Rosia Montana is majority-owned by Gabriel Resources which have spent more than $500 million under no fewer than seven different CEOs advancing the project since the Canadian firm first obtained the concession in 1999. It is believed the be one of the richest deposits in Europe with 314 tonnes of gold and 1,500 tonnes of silver and where mining activity dates back to the 1st Century.

After launching its eBay bullion center in May, the online retailer published a handy infographic this summer to look at buying trends. Looking at absolute number of items sold, California leads the way, probably due to the size of the state, but on a per capita basis, Alaska comes first. The study also found that silver items were the most popular, followed by gold. Platinum was a distant third.

In play Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) jumped higher by more than 7% in pre-market trading to over $80/share after the UK's Independent newspaper reported that Anglo American (LON:AAL) and BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) may bid for the company. By mid-afternoon the volatile stock – over the past 12 months shares in Walter Energy have traded as low as $56 and as high as $143 – had settled back to trade up around 2%. Global miners are scrambling for coal assets as metallurgical coal trades at record levels above $330/tonne. Walter Energy, which also produces coal seam gas, would follow BHP's August $12 billion buy of US shale gas company Petrohawk.