Reuters Africa reports a company chaired by Australian iron ore magnate Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest wants to reopen a nickel mine in Western Australia shut more than 15 years ago. A successful restart of the Mount Windarra mine by Poseidon Nickel Co , would mark Forrest's return to nickel mining after quitting the board of Anaconda Nickel in 2002 and founding Fortescue Metals Group , Australia's third-largest iron ore company.
Minmetals is not finished acquiring companies to add to its stable of base metal mines, according to Bloomberg. The state-run Chinese miner, with operations in Australia and Laos, a month ago snapped up Anvil Mining for $1.3 billion, thus expanding its reach into Africa. Anvil’s key asset is the Kinsevere mine, located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bloomberg reports the firm is planning more takeovers because it needs to extend the life of its mines and boost valuations. Minmetals' stock is undervalued compared to other comparable raw materials producers and consummating more deals would help raise its valuation, says the story, quoting a manager at First Asset Investment Management Inc.:
Anglo American (LON:AAL) has discovered what could be Europe's largest nickel deposit in a bog in Finnish Lapland. Helsingin Sanomat reports exploration drilling by the British-American mining giant has found samples of ore containing 4% nickel in the Viiankiaapa mire area north of Sodankylä. That compares to 0.4% nickel in the nearby Kevitsa deposit being developed by First Quantum Minerals (TSE:FM), which has spent about 300 million euros constructing a new copper-nickel mine. The news site says Anglo American plans to double the number of drill holes to chart the width and depth of the deposit. The ore body is believed to extend to the surface and measure one kilometre long by half a kilometre wide.
London-listed ENK has announced the first nickel production from its Acoje pilot plant located 250 km north of Manila in the Philippines. Approximately 50 kg (dry weight) of nickel hydroxide product (NHP) was released from the filter press on October 25.
Royal Nickel (TSE:RNX) plans to advance its Dumont Nickel project, which is estimated to generate $1.1 billion after tax NPV, after receiving a prositive pre-feasibility study. The company, which made the announcement on Tuesday, expects production to start in 2015. On Wednesday afternoon Royal Nickel's stock was down 1.27% to 78 cents a share. The company says there will be a staged development so it can lower cost and risk. Initial capital expenditure of $1.1 billion for 50 ktpd operation is planned.
London-listed ENK has announced the first nickel production from its Acoje pilot plant located 250 km north of Manila in the Philippines. Approximately 50 kg (dry weight) of nickel hydroxide product (NHP) was released from the filter press on October 25.
Australian copper and zinc miner Kagara Ltd. (ASX:KZL) is selling its Lounge Lizard nickel mine. "Kagara and its adviser Goldman Sachs & Partners Australia have commenced discussions with potential purchasers of Kagara’s nickel assets. Kagara expects to finalise the sale process during the first quarter of 2012," Kagara said in a statement on Monday. Reuters reported that Kagara's mining partner, Western Areas, is not interested.
Mechel OAO, one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, has announced that its Southern Urals Nickel Plant has opened an experimental industrial complex to produce ferronickel. The industrial complex will produce ferronickel by electric smelting. The complex's launch is part of the reconstruction of the plant's smelting facilities, aimed at increasing production efficiency, lowering production costs and dramatically reducing the volume of waste released into the atmosphere. The new technology will also allow the plant to significantly decrease operating costs by excluding several expensive components from the technological cycle. The 12MW complex's annual production capacity is some 4,500 t of ferronickel, with an average 20% nickel content. The smelting complex was designed by Bateman Engineering in South Africa, based on state-of-the-art technical developments employed for the ferroalloy industry and environment protection. In developing the project Bateman used an integrated approach, which made possible a combination of lower production costs with higher metal extraction levels and improved equipment endurance and reliability."Launching this unique industrial complex for ferronickel production, with its 12MW electric furnace, which will be used to master the technology and train our personnel, marks the beginning of the plant's sweeping modernisation. The development strategy implemented by the plant is due to ensure not only the present, but also the future for South Urals Nickel Plant and dramatically improve the facility's economical and ecological parameters," Mechel OAO's Chairman of the Board of Directors Igor Zyuzin said in a statement.
The company's board has approved a strategy that envisages investments to the tune of $35 billion between 2011 and 2025 to expand its resource base and raise output. The board of Russian miner Norilsk Nickel has approved a strategy that envisages
Canada's number one coal producer and world-leading nickel miner, Sherritt jumped 10.2% on Wednesday after reporting a doubling of quarterly net earnings and good progress at its massive Ambatovy project in Madagascar. Sherritt will start production at Ambatovy in the first quarter of next year. The company has already spent more than 90% of the planned $5.5 billion to build what will be the world's biggest nickel mine with the capacity to produce 60,000 tonnes of nickel and 5,600 of cobalt a year. Sherritt and its Asian partners have made the largest investment in the island's history and will make nickel the country's number one export for the next 27 years.