Mining Weekly

Eskom has announced that Dan Marokane – who was named group CEO on December 8, almost a full year after André de Ruyter formally resigned – will assume office on March 1, 2024. Previously, Eskom indicated that Marokane would join the organisation no later than March 31, 2024, so as to allow him time to finalise his existing responsibilities.

A new platinum group metals (PGM) recycling facility has opened in China, where the autocatalyst recycling market is expected to grow at the rate of 18% a year. Recycled PGMs are calculated to offer carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction of up to 98% when compared with mined PGMs.

South African freight rail operator Transnet said late Thursday it resumed partial service on the line connecting to the country's main coal export terminal, four days after two trains collided and blocked the tracks. The first line leading to the Richards Bay coal terminal was declared safe for the passage of trains on Thursday night, Transnet said in a statement, adding that service on the second line is expected to resume on Saturday.

ASX-listed Danakali has warned shareholders to be cautious about accepting offmarket offers for their shares, nothing that it has become aware of predatory activity by parties offering shareholders less than 10% of the value of their shares. Danakali has received reports of offers as low at 1c a share, compared with the current cash backing of about 10.5c per share – or less than 10% of the underlying cash value of the shares.

US-based Piedmont Lithium has announced it will sell a portion of shares it holds in Aim-and ASX-listed Atlantic Lithium to Atlantic’s biggest shareholder, Assore International. The Nasdaq- and ASX-listed company will sell 24.3-million shares of Atlantic at £0.25 apiece, putting about $7.8-million in its coffers.

Endeavour Mining is stripping its former CEO Sébastien de Montessus of $29.1-million in renumeration after he was fired earlier this month for “serious misconduct". The London-based gold miner said in a statement Thursday that de Montessus forfeits $17.6-million, which includes a $2-million annual bonus for last year and $15.6-million in unvested share awards. Endeavour Mining is also clawing back $10-million for a one-off award granted in 2021 and $1.5-million cash bonus for 2022, the company said.

TSX-V-listed Diamcor Mining has announced its intention to complete a convertible loan financing of up to C$2-million consisting of unsecured convertible promissory notes. The company expects that C$1.25-million of the financing will be subscribed for by existing large shareholders and management of the company.

The introduction of an electronic cadastral system to record and enable online access to mining data is imminent, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe emphasised in an interview with Radio 702 host Clement Manyathela on Thursday. Mantashe disclosed to Manyathela that agreement had been reached with the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) for the introduction of a cadastral system – a set of records and maps that describe the ownership, boundaries, value, and use of land parcels within a jurisdiction.

Australia-listed explorer Elevate Uranium is accelerating its growth strategy in Namibia, underscoring its confidence in the country’s uranium potential. The exploration company kicked off its 2024 drilling programme at its Namibia portfolio with four reverse circulation (RC) drill rigs and will add a fifth rig by the end of the March quarter.

Aim- and JSE-listed Kore Potash has advised that the consortium it is in talks with to provide financing for the Kola project, in Congo-Brazzaville, will soon provide a financing proposal, while an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract also nears finalisation. The company aims to complete the financing of the $1.8-billion Kola project and move to start construction as soon as possible.

An exploitation lease, or mining licence, for gold and associated minerals has been issued to TSX-V-listed Aton Resources for its 100%-owned Abu Marawat Concession, in the Eastern Desert of Egypt. The existence of a commercial discovery at the Hamama and Rodruin projects has also been agreed by the company and the Egyptian Mineral Resources Authority (EMRA).

JSE-listed chrome producer Merafe Resources has appointed former Royal Bafokeng Platinum CEO Steve Phiri as an independent nonexecutive director, with effect from February 1. Phiri holds B luris, LLB and LLM degrees and he has more than 20 years of experience in the South African mining sector including various roles at Royal Bafokeng Platinum, where he served as CEO, and Royal Bafokeng Holdings.

London- and Toronto-listed gold miner Centamin delivered a solid performance in 2023, producing 450 058 oz and delivering on its yearly guidance for a third year. Centamin has set its production guidance for this year at between 470 000 oz and 500 000 oz as its flagship Sukari mine, in Egypt, continues to improve output against the backdrop of a strong gold price environment.

Global mining and metals companies have committed at Davos to take urgent action to support a nature-positive future by 2030 that promotes the health, diversity and resilience of species, ecosystems and natural processes. International Council of Metals and Minerals (ICMM) members, representing a third of the global industry, have pledged that meeting the demand for critical materials must not be at the expense of nature.

Aim-listed Kropz has made the final drawdown of R52-million related to a bridge loan facility it secured with its major shareholder, African Rainbow Capital Fund, in December. The full R115-million loan was meant to meet the immediate cash requirements of the Elandsfontein phosphate mine, in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

Research agency BMI on January 17 unpacked the key themes for metals and mining for the year, highlighting that the sector is making a modest recovery amid global deceleration. BMI commodities analysis head Sarbin Chowdhury says the agency has an overall positive view on metal price forecasts, which are averaging slightly higher this year than in 2023 and above pre-2020 levels. However, there will not be a return to the high price surges of 2022.

As part of its 2023 Preliminary Production and 2024 to 2026 guidance, published this week, TSX-listed First Quantum Minerals has reiterated its commitment to delivering the S3 Expansion project at the Kansanshi mine, near Solwezi, in Zambia. The announcement was made as part of a stock market announcement providing guidance on recent and future production across the company’s operations.

South Africa-linked mining luminaries are playing roles in an initiative to transform the metals industry with clean technology. Being targeted for metals is the elimination of energy-intensive smelters, toxic chemicals and strong acids.

London-listed Kenmare Resources, which operates the Moma titanium minerals mine in northern Mozambique, produced 986 300 t of ilmenite for the 2023 full year, within its revised guidance range for the year. Output of its other products met or exceeded original guidance, MD Michael Carvill said in a trading update published on January 17.

Specialist flake graphite company Tirupati Graphite has raised gross proceeds of £1.05-million by way of a private placing of 9.5-million new ordinary shares. Optiva Securities acted as sole broker and bookrunner to the company.