Mining Weekly

Japan plans to fast-track talks with South Africa on a yen-denominated energy loan, while promoting its technology to blend ammonia with coal to reduce carbon emissions in a country that still generates most of its electricity from one of the dirtiest fossil fuels. The loan would be used by South Africa to extend its own energy transition aims, Japanese diplomatic officials said, asking not to be identified in line with government practice, during a visit by its Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi. The size of the loan was not specified.

Zambia-focused integrated copper producer and resource developer Jubilee Metals’ total saleable copper production for the nine months ended March 31 increased by 28.7% year-on-year to 2 177 t. Production at the Roan concentrator increased to 1 999 t of copper units, a 112.7% year-on-year increase.

JSE-listed DRDGOLD has delivered strong operational and financial results for the quarter ended March 31, driven by higher throughput, disciplined cost management and continued exposure to a favourable gold price environment. “The quarter demonstrates the resilience and cash-generating capacity of our business.

As copper smelters, miners and traders gather in Hong Kong for LME Week Asia, sulphuric acid prices are shaping talks over how low copper concentrate processing fees can go. Soaring prices for the acid, a byproduct of copper smelting, have buffered Chinese smelters from a collapse in treatment and refining charges, or TC/RCs, the fees miners pay smelters to process copper concentrate into refined metal.

BHP CFO Vandita Pant said on Wednesday that a new and broader set of investors were buying into the company as AI demand makes its exposure to copper more valuable. Shares in BHP, the world's biggest listed miner and top copper producer, rose to a record on March 2 and then fell amid a broad sector selloff as the war in Iran began, though they have since pared some of the losses.

Global coal operator Kinetic Development Group’s (KDG’s) wholly-owned special purpose vehicle Kinetic Crest has become the controlling shareholder of JSE-, ASX- and Aim-listed MC Mining, in which it holds a 51% interest. This follows the April 22 issue and allotment to Kinetic Crest of 28.87-million new fully paid ordinary MC Mining shares, as outlined in a previously announced share subscription agreement for $90-million, payable to MC Mining in phases.

Canadian junior exploration company Akwaaba Mining has successfully renewed the prospecting licence for the Kunsu project, in the Ahafo Ano South District of the Ashanti Region of Ghana, granted by the Minerals Commission of Ghana. The renewed licence, valid for a period of three years until April 28, 2029, will allow the company to continue exploration activities in the area.

Independent mineral exploration company General Copper Gold has entered into an option agreement with private arm’s length company Frantier Mining Namibia, granting General Copper the sole, exclusive and irrevocable option to acquire an 80% undivided interest in an application for an exclusive prospecting licence covering about 48 500 ha of land in Namibia. The licence area is located in central-north Namibia’s Otjozondjupa region in the eastern part of the Northern zone of the Damara Mobile Belt.

Following South Africa’s Northam Platinum reporting earlier this year that thousands of hydrogen-powered trucks are doing the rounds in China, France’s Lhyfe added on Monday, May 4 that by the end of 2025, China had already built the world's largest hydrogen vehicle systems, with nearly 40 000 fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) and 574 refuelling stations.
 Moreover, China's new hydrogen programme sets a target of 100 000 FCEVs by 2030.

The conditions under which the world's rarest and most valuable gem-quality diamonds – referred to as Cullinan-like, large, inclusion-poor, pure, irregular and resorbed (CLIPPIR) – form have remained poorly understood. With this in mind, a University of Cape Town- (UCT-) led study by the Kimberlite Research Group (KRG) at the Department of Geological Sciences, published in the journal Nature Communications, has used the chemistry of the mineral olivine in kimberlites as a window into the deep mantle, revealing that kimberlites carrying CLIPPIR diamonds consistently sample anomalous, iron-rich domains at the base of the lithosphere, more than 150 km beneath the surface.

Aim-listed Andrada Mining has announced the results of a second batch of diamond drilling from its Lithium Ridge project, in Namibia, saying the results continue to confirm the presence of consistent high-grade lithium mineralisation from surface to depth. These results further strengthen confidence in the scale and continuity of the mineralised system, while also confirming the presence of associated tin and tantalum mineralisation, the company points out.

London-listed Rainbow Rare Earths has informed shareholders that its board of directors is initiating a process to evaluate the potential benefits to the company of carrying out a stock exchange listing in the US. The company notes in a statement to shareholders that it remains focused on its core strategic priorities, which include the delivery this year of the definitive feasibility study at the Phalaborwa project, in South Africa, and the imminent start of a prefeasibility study at the Uberaba project, in Brazil, in conjunction with its US partner, the Mosaic Company.

ASX-listed PhosCo has announced a maiden mineral resource estimate for the KM and SAB phosphate deposits within the company’s Gasaat phosphate project in Tunisia, totalling 20.2-million tonnes grading 20.5% phosphorus pentoxide. The KM maiden resource is 12-million tonnes grading 20.5% phosphorus pentoxide while the SAB maiden resource is 8.2-million tonnes grading 20.6% phosphorus pentoxide.

JSE- and NYSE-listed metals mining company has announced that two employees have died in an incident at its Kloof 8 shaft on May 3. During preparations for a routine, scheduled shaft inspection, an inspection platform detached from the main winder conveyance, causing the inspection platform to uncontrollably descend down the shaft, which resulted in the fatal injury of two contractor employees, the company explains.

Hydrogen mobility and platinum group metals (PGMs) have been highlighted at North-West University (NWU) by the handing over of the mobile hydrogen refuelling and hydrogen generation system to Toyota South Africa Motors and the opening of the rapid prototype training and testing facility. Strongly reflected is the collaboration between PGM producer African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, NWU, South African National Energy Development Institute, Toyota and Hydrogen South Africa (HySA) in advancing hydrogen innovation through electrolysis technology development as part of South Africa’s clean energy transition.

TSX-V-listed Tsodilo Resources has announced a collaborative research initiative with the University of Cape Town (UCT) Department of Geological Sciences to support its critical minerals and rare earth elements (REE) exploration programme, in Botswana. The objectives of the programme include identifying and quantifying REE-bearing mineral phases using automated mineralogy; determining major and trace element compositions of key minerals; constraining the distribution of REEs at the mineral scale; using oxygen isotope geochemistry to infer the origin of ore-forming fluids; and developing a genetic model for REE mineralisation in the Gcwihaba skarn system.

Gold is no longer moving according to the classical rules investors are accustomed to, which reflects a deeper structural shift in the market, says brokerage and consultancy XS.com senior market analyst Rania Gule. In her view, the notable decline in gold prices near $4 626 despite escalating geopolitical risks and heightened global uncertainty reveals that traditional drivers such as the “safe haven” narrative are no longer sufficient to explain short-term price action.

Sumitomo Corp plans to sell its majority stake in the Ambatovy nickel project in Madagascar following a review of market conditions. The Japanese trading house said it will divest its 54% interest in Ambatovy, one of the world’s largest nickel mining and refining enterprises, during the first half of the current fiscal year to March 2027. The operation has suffered a string of production issues, most recently a devastating cyclone in February.

Aim-listed Caledonia Mining Corporation has announced that John Kelly intends to step down as chairperson of the board with effect from the end of the company’s AGM to be held on May 5. Caledonia reports that July Ndlovu, currently an independent nonexecutive director, has offered to become the new chairperson, subject to his election by the board.

London- and Toronto-listed Endeavour Mining has reported a strong start to the year, building on momentum from 2025 with another solid quarter of operational performance and record financial results. The company says it remains on track to meet its production guidance of between 1.09-million and 1.27-million ounces of gold, at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of between $1 600/oz and $1 800/oz.