Altius Minerals made a profit of $69.3 million, or $2.38 per share, in the three months ending January 31 — the Canadian iron ore producer's third quarter. That compares to a $102,000 loss in the same period last year. Quarterly revenues were 1.1 million versus $912,000 for the previous year's Q3. Altius also gained $84.6 million after transferring its 100% interest in the Kami iron ore property to Alderon Resources Corp. in exchange for 32.3 million shares of Alderon.

Gold futures rose for the second straight session as Japan’s strongest earthquake on record boosted demand for a haven asset, reports Bloomberg. Palladium fell for an eighth straight session, the longest slump since July 2008. Equities declined worldwide as officials said the death toll from the earthquake and tsunami may top 10,000. Technicians tried to contain damage from a second explosion at a nuclear plant north of Tokyo.

Reuters is reporting that FE Steel, the world's No 5 steelmaker, on Monday halted production at a plant near Tokyo and global fourth-ranked Nippon Steel suspended operations at two small plants: - JFE said shipments from its 10 million tonnes per year Higashi Nihon plant near Tokyo had virtually halted due to a power outage. - JFE resumed operations on Sunday of two blast furnaces at its Higashi Nihon plant, one of its two mainstay plants, which were idled after Friday's quake and tsunami.

A Practical Mine Ventilation Design and Control short course will be offered by Missouri University of Science and Technology and the Western Mining Safety and Health Transition Center May 4-6, on Missouri S&T's campus. Those who complete the course will receive 24 professional development hours.

This three-day course will provide a sufficient background to design and maintain an underground ventilation system. The materials taught apply to most underground situations, including coal, metal, and nonmetal mines, with the emphasis on practical applications.

The course is designed for ventilation and planning engineers, safety engineers and production, technical and supervisory personnel who require proficiency or a refresher course in mine ventilation. For the computer simulation section, experience on the use of computers is helpful but not necessary.

Australian uranium counters took a substantial hit on Monday in the wake of the crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in […]

As the country still reels from the devastation of a massive earthquake and tsunami, we provide a brief view of where Japan […]

Canadian gold miner White Tiger Gold Inc. has offered 0.40 of its share for each Century Mining share. The offer values Century at about C$1.82 a share -- more than three times the stock's Friday closing, according to Reuters: White Tiger's operations are mainly in Russia, including the Savkino and the Nasedkino project, while Century Mining's primary asset is the Lamaque gold mine in Quebec. The boards of both companies support the deal and White Tiger shareholders will own about 39 percent of the company.

Somerset - The coal mining industry didn’t learn much from the large number of retirements that occurred in the 1950s and 1960s, because it’s happening again, Blair McGill said.

“We’ve lost a generation,” he said. “Over half the managers could retire today if they want. To develop supervisors who can move to the second and third levels takes time and education.”

McGill worked in the mining industry in West Virginia for more than 43 years before his retirement. He was a supervisor in his early 20s.

The Pennsylvania State University Fayette Campus is offering a two-year mining technology associate degree program at the Allegany College of Maryland Somerset County Campus beginning in June. An informational session about the program was held at the college on Friday.

People in the Toowoomba area will be able to access specialist training in the State’s emerging industries at a new faculty of the Southern Queensland Institute of TAFE. Employment, Skills and Mining Minister Stirling Hinchliffe today toured the TAFE’s Faculty of Mining, Resources and Infrastructure as part of the Bligh Government’s Community Cabinet in Toowoomba. Mr Hinchliffe said SQIT introduced the new faculty this year to help meet industry demand for skilled workers.

“There is massive growth in the Queensland mining industry and it’s important we have enough skilled workers to meet those demands,” Mr Hinchliffe said. “We also want to see Queenslanders take advantage of the opportunities on offer."