Obama unveils long-awaited fracking rules

Xstrata's relentless appetite for coal, particularly the metallurgical variety, was again evident on Thursday after it bought Talisman's Peace River deposit for $500 million.

China, the world’s largest supplier of rare earth, may almost double exports this year, meeting quotas set by the government as lower prices continue to stimulate demand.

Mongolia's plans, first mooted in 2010, to sell a stake in its Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi coal-mining company  to the public faces more delays over politics and regulatory problems while talks with companies to developed the western block of the largest coking coal deposit on the globe are also on ice.

Ivanhoe announced on Thursday its Australian project is producing copper and gold ahead of schedule. Last week the company said Ivanhoe Australia is on the chopping block as its mega-mine in Mongolia requires all its financial resources.

Peru's Madre de Dios gold-rich region is losing US$560,000 a day as a result of informal miners' protests happening in the area since Monday, said the country’s president of the regional chamber of commerce, Roman Meza.

BHP Billiton would not be willing to negotiate with the unions on strike at its coal mines in Australia and had said the battle is "likely to get tougher before it's over", an e-mail published by ABC’s PM reveals.

The country's deputy energy and mining minister says the new regulation that changes the rules on foreign ownership of mines applies to all companies and is not aimed specifically at Freeport McMoRan.

Hudbay Minerals (TSE:HBM) rang in the fourth quarter with a $34.3 million profit or 21 cents per share, compared to $7.9 million or seven cents a share at the end of 2010.

VANCOUVER, March 7, 2012 /CNW/ - Extorre Gold Mines Limited (AMEX: XG; TSX: XG; Frankfurt:E1R, "Extorre" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement pursuant to which Canaccord Genuity Corp. (the "Underwriter"), has offered to purchase, on a bought deal private placement basis, 3,530,000 common shares (the "Shares") of the Company at a price of C$7.10 per Share for total gross proceeds of C$25,063,000 (the "Offering").