Machine learning yields positive results for Gran Colombia

An alleged unit from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, blew up Tuesday heavy equipment at the Colombian coal mine Cerrejon, in the northern province of La Guajira, part owned by BHP Billiton.

Over $1 million has lost Bolivia so far due to the conflict over rights at the silver, tin and zinc mine that used to belong to commodity trader Glencore (LON:GLEN), but that President Evo Morales nationalized last June.

Canadian explorer Mariana Resources (LON:MARL, TSX:MRY) said the latest set of drilling results from the Calandria Sur deposit in Argentina were “good” with 13 of 21 holes returning “significant intersections” of gold and silver.

The company says it expects construction costs to be about $158 million for the project and that commercial production will begin in the second half of 2014.

Canadian Baja Mining (TSX:BAJ) shareholders continue to be anxious about the future of the company’s flagship Boleo project in Mexico, as its South Korean partners were unable to decide on the second stage of financing for the copper-cobalt-zinc mine development, the miner said Tuesday.

Chilean state-own Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, began construction of the access tunnels to the new level of its El Teniente copper mine on Tuesday.

The Peruvian government confirmed it will end Monday a state of emergency imposed in early July in the country’s northern region, where violent protests against Newmont Mining's (NYSE:NEM) controversial $4.8 billion Conga project left five dead and dozens injured.

Colombia’s energy and mining minister Federico Renjifo, who assumed the position on Thursday, said he is aware he’ll face difficult times as analysts are predicting a slowdown in demand for the country’s commodities in coming years, but he said he’ll make sure the sector remains competitive and attractive to foreign investors.

Newmont Mining's (NYSE:NEM) $4.8 billion copper-gold project in Cajamarca Peru remains as one of the company’s priorities, but further development will be done on a very measured basis, told MINING.com the company’s head of communications, Omar Jabara.