Dow Jones reports Norilsk Nickel's (PINK:NILSY) board will consider a buyback at $306 a share next Tuesday, a source close to the company's board said Wednesday. Norilsk may spend up to $4.5 billion on the buyback of a 7.7% stake in the company.

The Canberra Times reports Australia's proposed emissions trading scheme – which will evolve from the carbon tax being implemented next year – has won praise from Beijing, where it will be the model for one of six Chinese pilot programmes to be introduced in 2013. Earlier this week the EU also endorsed the controversial Australian plans and announced the start of talks for the eventual linkage of carbon trading by 2015. The carbon tax is vociferously opposed by Australia's coal export industry, the world's largest, which will be forced to pay a levy of $25 per metric tonne of carbon pollution next year.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 7, 2011) - Columbus Silver Corporation (TSX VENTURE:CSC) ("Columbus Silver") has entered into a memorandum of understanding (the "MOU") under which the publicly-listed U.S. company Santa Fe Gold Corporation (OTCBB:SFEG) ("Santa Fe") has conditionally agreed to acquire all of its outstanding common shares ("Shares") for CDN$0.20 per share in cash (the "Acquisition"). If successful, the Acquisition will be completed as a plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia).

The price of December gold – the most actively traded contract – dropped by almost $80 to trade below $1,800 an ounce on Wednesday morning. By midday bullion had regained some of its footing but was still down just over 3% or $56.60, at 1,816/oz in New York as traders banked profits. Gold has declined $120 in less than 24 hours after setting an intraday record of $1,923.10 an ounce on Tuesday. During August the metal added 12% as investors sought a safe haven from the slumping US economy and the continuing debt crisis in Europe. Despite the losses many analysts believe gold will hit $2,000 an ounce soon as talk of another round of monetary stimulus or a direct injection into the economy as part of a jobs programme lead to more cheap money entering the financial markets.

ABC News reports that Queensland is looking to the private sector to help it build a $2.6 billion dam and $2 billion off-shore cargo facility. Premer Anna Bligh said on Tuesday that the Queensland Treasury had been tasked with investigating investment opportunities to fund the Connors River Dam and proposed multi-cargo facility at Abbot Point. The government expects to approach the market in early 2012.

Kivalliq News Online: The Kivalliq Mine Training Society, which provides Inuit in the Kivalliq with mining skills, knowledge and experience, will lose Canadian government funding in 2012, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper has made no mention of continuing it.

In the year and a half the society has been operating, more than 680 Inuit have been trained, 350 of which have gained meaningful employment in mine-related jobs. "A renewal of the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership Program or the development of a program of similar nature is an essential step in protecting that training," stated Geoffrey Qilak Kusugak, the mine training society's chair person.

Regional mining sites across South Australia will be able to partner with Registered Training Organisations to apply for funding to train Aboriginal job seekers, Government News reports.

Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation Minister Grace Portolesi said the Commonwealth will provide $500000 to the program in 2011-12 in addition to the state government’s equivalent amount. “The State Government is working with the Commonwealth, Aboriginal communities and industry to halve the gap in employment outcomes in the community between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people by 2018,” Ms Portolesi said.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Sept. 7, 2011) - Advanced Explorations Inc. (the "Company" or "AEI") (TSX VENTURE:AXI)(FRANKFURT:AE6) is pleased to announce that work continues in support of the Roche Bay Feasibility Study ("FS"). In addition to this summer's resource and geotechnical drill programs the Company has initiated a number of metallurgical studies looking to optimize concentrate process and quality while reducing the associated operating and capital cost. To date there have been five independent metallurgical studies undertaken (two in Canada, two in Germany and one in China) which support the previously reported results that a high quality concentrate can be produced. The Company does expect to provide a further update on the C- Zone resource as part of this ongoing work with the intention of expanding the FS resource base.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 7, 2011) - Astral Mining Corporation (TSX VENTURE:AA)(TSX VENTURE:AA.WT)(PINK SHEETS:AAMJF)(FRANKFURT:A7DA) ("Astral" or "the Company") is very pleased to announce commencement of diamond drilling on its 4,168ha Los Crestones gold-silver project, located within the Sierra Madre gold-silver belt of western Mexico in Sinaloa state. Three parallel vein/breccia zones, named Corona, Bohemia and Indio will be tested in this first-ever drilling program at Los Crestones. Astral plans to complete a minimum of 2,500m of HQ and NTW sized diamond core drilling during the program using a highly mobile diamond drill supplied by Energold Drilling Mexico.