Australian Mines signs off-take deal with Korea’s SK Innovation

Australian junior miner Alcyone Resources has poured its first silver bullion from its 100%-owned Texas silver and polymetallic project in Queensland it acquired 18 months ago, after starting in early April this year to re-irrigate the existing silver-rich heaps at the Twin Hills mine. Alcyone says its forecast cash operating cost is around A$15/ounce which provides strong margins with the silver price hovering above A$30/ounce. It expects to start full-scale operations by the September 2011 quarter at an initial annualised rate of 1.5-2.0m ounces. The ASX-listed penny stock is up some 120% so far this year.

India's Tata Steel on Thursday agreed to sell its 26 percent stake in Australia's Riversdale to Rio Tinto for $1.1 billion, giving the Anglo-Australian giant full control of the coal miner. Tata, the world's No 7 steelmaker, will sell shares in an open offer at A$16.5 each. Riversdale shares closed little changed at A$16.50 in Sydney on Thursday before Tata Steel's announcement.

In April/May, Peel Mining Limited (ASX:PEX) undertook an 18 line kilometre IP survey over the historic Tulloch silver mine and Rockvale arsenic mine areas in preparation for an upcoming drill programme. Peel is pleased to report that multiple zones of strong shallow chargeable anomalism have been identified, many of which are coincident or proximal to known historic workings. These chargeable IP responses are interpreted as areas of possibly concentrated sulphide mineralisation and will be high-priority targets for future drill programmes.

World no.2 iron ore miner Rio Tinto is investing $676 million to speed up its iron ore expansion by six months to capture demand as rival plans to boost production are impeded. Rio said on Wednesday it expects to increase its capacity by 50 percent to 333 million tonnes a year by the first half of 2015.

Diversified Australian miner Astra Mining announced on Wednesday plans to list on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange before the end of August after two days earlier inking a deal to enter the Nigerian market and further expand its global presence. Deal-hungry Astra Mining’s global portfolio includes gold and tin interests in south east Asia and southern India, coal mines in Australia, iron ore in India, manganese in Africa and the commercialisation of a new high-strength steel technology from a base in Hungary.

Catalpa Resources and Conquest Mining have agreed to merge and buy a new asset from Newcrest Mining, Perth Now reported. The newspaper says the new entity will acquire a 70 percent stake in Newcrest's Cracow gold mine and will also buy the Mt Rawdon gold mine from Newcrest: In a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange Catalpa and Conquest said the merged company will be in a position to produce 400-450,000 ounces of gold by 2013, putting it into to the top five of the local gold producers. The combined market cap would be about $1.2 billion.

More than 400 workers at Melbourne-based BHP Billiton coking coalmines began strikes on Tuesday for the first time in a decade, disrupting production from the world’s largest exporter and adding to the woes of an industry already hard hit by summer floods. Analysts believe the industrial action, added to the 15% cut in annual production caused by monsoon rains and a cyclone, will support rampant prices for steel-making coal which hit an all-time high in April of $330 per tonne.

WPG Resources announced on Tuesday it has reached a major milestone for the development of its flagship Peculiar Knob (pictured) iron ore mine south east of Coober Pedy in South Australia, after receiving government approval. WPG also said that the company expects that the Mining and Rehabilitation Program for Peculiar Knob will be approved during July. Forecast production at 3.3 million tonnes annually destined for the Asian market is set to commence in late 2011, with sales in the June quarter 2012. Shares in the company jumped 3% amid a flat broader Australian market.

PNG Gold Corporation outlined its exploration, development and financing plans for the Imwauna project, Normanby Island, Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea. The property contains numerous vein systems that outcrop at surface. The main vein system discovered to date - the Imwauna vein system - hosts high grade, low sulphidation, near-surface epithermal gold-silver mineralization.