Mining Weekly

Aim- and AltX-listed Shuka Minerals has completed the acquisition of Zambian mining company Leopard Exploration and Mining (LEM) and the Kabwe zinc mine after a protracted acquisition process. Shuka now owns one of the world’s richest and most notable zinc mines, with grades of up to 43% zinc.

Australia- and Canada-listed Perseus Mining has confirmed that a contractor employee has died following an offsite vehicle accident near its Bagoé gold mine, in Côte d’Ivoire. The company said on Friday that Moussa Doumbia, an employee of Perseus’ ore haulage contractor Binkadi, was fatally injured in the incident, which occurred on Thursday, near the Bagoé mine, part of the Sissingué gold complex.

Africa’s mineral wealth has become a focal point for the clean energy transition and advanced manufacturing and coordinated action by Africa can convert the continent’s mineral wealth into GDP growth, job creation, infrastructure development and greater global influence – all the things that Africa needs. But to maximise this potential, relationships with traditional and emerging trading partners must be enhanced. “Those that achieve this balance will reap the rewards,” Boston Consulting Group MD and partner Tycho Möncks and Boston Consulting Group partner and associate director Mikhail Nikomarov promise in an editorial to Mining Weekly that outlines practical steps for governments to build regional value chains and global alliances to enable ongoing wealth creation.

The Future Minerals Forum's (FMF's) conference is a “fantastic event that is growing in leaps in bounds”, convening important mining participants from around the world and streamlining connections.   Moreover, it provides a platform for participants to discern what is happening in the global marketplace regarding critical minerals.

TSX-listed Ivanhoe Mines has reported that copper production at the Kamoa-Kakula copper complex, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), reached 388 838 t of copper in concentrate in 2025, in line with guidance. Total copper production consisted of 385 808 t of copper in concentrate produced by the Phase 1, 2 and 3 concentrators, as well as 3 030 t of copper in concentrate produced by the slag concentrator located at the on-site smelter.

Gold miner Caledonia Mining Corporation, which owns and operates the Blanket mine, in Zimbabwe, intends to launch a private placement offering $100-million of convertible senior notes due 2033. Caledonia will also grant the initial buyers of the notes an option to buy up to an additional $20-million (aggregate principal amount) of notes.

Aim-listed Blencowe Resources has reported further exceptional high-grade purification results from testwork undertaken in association with Alkeemia – a specialist graphite processing organisation based in Porto Marghera, northern Italy – for the company’s Orom-Cross graphite project, in northern Uganda. The company says this is the first Orom-Cross purification testwork conducted within the EU and represents a bridge into that significant market moving forward.

TSX-listed Platinum Group Metals (PTM) says its primary business objective remains to advance the Waterberg project in South Africa’s Bushveld complex to a development and construction decision. The company advises that about half of a $21-million pre-construction programme remains to be completed on site, including work on initial road access, water supply, a first-phase accommodation lodge, construction power supply and a social and labour plan (SLP).

Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week on Tuesday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa positioned green hydrogen at the centre of Africa’s big energy opportunity – and then on Wednesday in the US, speakers at the Washington-based Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association webinar heralded expanded tax-benefit business structures through America's' Master Limited Partnerships as the harbingers of new sought-after US hydrogen expansion. In discussion with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the sustainability event, Ramaphosa emphasised the extent to which Africa’s superior sunshine, strong wind corridors, powerful river systems, and critical minerals place the continent in a distinctive position to lead the world in green hydrogen production.

Namibia-focused project developer Wia Gold has appointed Henk Diederichs as MD and CEO, effective February 1. Following the appointment, executive chairperson Josef El-Raghy will transition to the role of non-executive chairperson.

Diamond miner Lucara Diamond has increased its previously announced non-brokered private placement to C$165-million, citing strong investor demand, as it advances development of the Karowe underground project (UGP) in Botswana. The Vancouver-headquartered company said on Wednesday that it would issue up to 1.03-billion common shares at a price of C$0.16 a share, with gross proceeds of C$165-million.

With burgeoning demand for critical minerals globally, there is a need for secure, sustainable and resilient supply chains to ensure countries can capitalise on this momentum and their resources. This was highlighted by speakers at the Future Minerals Forum (FMF) conference, a yearly global critical minerals conference, being held this week in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Future Minerals Forum (FMF) has launched the inaugural Future Minerals Barometer, a pioneering tool designed to measure and track progress of critical mineral value-chain developments across supplier countries. Developed in partnership with McKinsey & Company and other sector experts S&P Global Market Intelligence, Global AI and GlobeScan, the barometer integrates stakeholder sentiment, data, market intelligence and project-level evidence into a single authoritative platform to guide global decision-making.

JSE-listed Northam Platinum has reported a 3.7% year-on-year increase in total equivalent refined platinum group metals (PGMs) produced from its own operations and a 14.8% year-on-year increase in chrome concentrate production for the six months ended December 31. Total equivalent refined metal production from own operations totalled 467 818 oz of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold (4E), while chrome concentrate production for the period totalled 822 759 t.

The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business will be holding the fifth Canada-Africa Business Conference in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, on February 5. The conference will have a strong focus on mining, energy, infrastructure and sustainable development, and will see the participation of investors, senior executives, policymakers and institutional partners from across Africa and Canada. “Namibia has built a strong reputation as a jurisdiction where mining investment can be undertaken responsibly, transparently, and in partnership with government and communities,” explained Country Manager of B2Gold Namibia John Roos. “The Canada-Africa Business Conference provides a valuable platform for practical dialogue between operators, investors, and policymakers, helping to advance projects that contribute to long-term national development, which we are pleased to support.”

TSX-V listed Millennial Potash has announced that it has initiated a definitive feasibility study (DFS) at its Banio potash project, in Gabon. The company has engaged ERCOSPLAN Ingenieurgesellschaft Geotechnik und Bergbau, a preeminent global potash specialist consulting company with significant experience in the West African Potash Basin, to complete a DFS for the Banio potash project.

ASX-listed uranium developer Deep Yellow has confirmed that newly appointed MD and CEO Greg Field will start in the role on February 2, earlier than initially anticipated. The company announced last month that Field would take the helm, and the board has now confirmed his start date as it moves towards key decision points across its development portfolio, including the Tumas project, in Namibia.

The Trump administration’s policies and repeated attacks on the independence of the Federal Reserve are bringing into question the role of the US dollar as the global reserve currency and driving demand for precious metals as fiat currency alternatives.  “Whilst gold is the primary focus as a monetary asset, demand is so strong that there is significant spillover into the other precious metals, supporting broad-based price increases. This trend looks unlikely to abate through 2026

Canada's Robex Resources has secured final court approval for its proposed merger with Australia's Predictive Discovery, clearing a key regulatory milestone for the transaction as the companies work toward completion in the first quarter of 2026. The Québec City-based company reported on Tuesday that the Québec Superior Court (Commercial Division) had issued a final order approving the previously announced merger, under which Predictive Discovery, through a wholly owned subsidiary, would acquire all the issued and outstanding common shares of Robex by way of a statutory plan of arrangement.

Rio Tinto has engaged JPMorgan and two other advisers on its potential acquisition of Glencore, a deal that could create the world's largest miner worth over $200-billion, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters. The other banks Rio Tinto has engaged are Evercore and Australian financial services group Macquarie, the person said. The roles are highly prized as bankers jostle for a share of potentially more than $100-million in advisory fees that such a deal could generate.