Mining Weekly

Training and development solutions provider Comodex Consultancy, in partnership with the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Mining Engineering Department, on April 17 hosted the pioneer Mine Mentor MineReady Skills Extravaganza competition. The competition was held at the Sibanye-Stillwater mine simulacrum facility on UJ’s Doornfontein campus. It aims to prepare students for the real demands of the mining industry, exposing them to safety, pressure, decision-making and execution.

The Minerals Council South Africa joined Ekapa Minerals in commemorating the loss of five colleagues at a memorial service at the company’s mine in Kimberley, in the Northern Cape, on April 17. Minerals Council CEO Mzila Mthenjane was joined by other senior Minerals Council colleagues at the memorial service to honour the five people who died in an underground mud-rush incident on February 17.

Mining and metals company Sibanye-Stillwater and the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (Necsa) on Friday announced their research collaboration to advance nuclear medicine for cancer treatment. This followed Sibanye-Stillwater’s announcement on Thursday that it is partnering with precious metals and technology company Heraeus in a joint research and development project aimed at developing a generation of innovative, cost-efficient glass fibre bushings.

Results from metallurgical test work at the Bengwenyama platinum group metals (PGM) project in South Africa’s Limpopo province indicate that up to a fifth of Southern Palladium’s future revenues could come from chrome. In an announcement on the ASX and JSE on Friday Southern Palladium reported that the results from its latest metallurgical test work not only confirm the high-grade nature of the Bengwenyama upper group two (UG2) mineral resource but also suggest that chromite concentrate recoveries of more than double initial estimates are achievable.

ASX-listed Lotus Resources has resumed uranium production at its Kayelekera mine, in Malawi, after processing operations had to be suspended on April 4, following fire damage to two electrical control panels in the drying and packaging area. Lotus notes that interim engineered panels have been successfully installed, allowing processing operations to resume.

Research firm BMI – a Fitch Solutions Company – is revising its 2026 nickel price forecast to $16 600/t from $15 800/t previously, following an earlier upward out-of-cycle revision this year, reflecting a structurally firmer price environment despite expectations for prices to continue to moderate. In its latest ‘Outlook for nickel prices’ report, BMI explains that nickel prices traded at elevated levels in January, reaching year‑to‑date highs, before losing momentum following the onset of the US–Iran conflict on February 28 as macroeconomic sentiment deteriorated.

Aim-listed Cora Gold has signed a binding term sheet for a $120-million gold stream with Eagle Eye Asset Holdings (EEA) to support the development of Cora’s Sanankoro gold project, in Mali. Cora explains that the stream, subject to conditions precedent, removes future funding requirements for the project, enabling the company to move forward with pre-production workstreams with confidence.

ASX-listed Paladin Energy has revised upward its full-year guidance for triuranium octoxide (U3O8) produced from the Langer Heinrich Mine, in Namibia, following a period of ramp-up and transition to full mining operations. The combination of successful mobilisation of the mining fleet, improved feed grade and high recovery rates from the processing plant have resulted in year-to-date production of 3.6-million pounds of triuranium octoxide.

The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR), which is now preparing for a prolonged period of fuel supply and pricing pressure as a result of the damage to energy infrastructure during the war in the Middle East, remains confident of ongoing security of supply. However, the department is deeply concerned about the outlook for fuel prices, especially in relation to diesel, and is also urgently reviewing the composition of its Basic Fuel Price (BFP) formula to align it to the new sources of supply that have been secured since the start of the crisis and to address the issues that have given rise to the imposition of diesel surcharges.

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has confirmed that it received an application from Eskom on April 10 in relation to a 62c/kWh tariff offer for the ferrochrome sector and has indicated that the Energy Regulator is aiming to reach a decision by the end of June. Nersa’s electricity subcommittee is scheduled to approve, on April 17, the publication of a consultation paper on the amendment to the Negotiated Pricing Agreements with the Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture and Samancor Chrome ferrochrome smelters to provide the tariff relief.

Three years ago Mining Weekly reported on Anglo American being involved with emission-free taxis driving around the German city of Berlin and the hope was expressed that the same could be done with South Africa’s enormous tax fleet as Toyota was also involved. Now a media release just received states that MMD Group, a global manufacturer of material sizing and handling systems, has signed an agreement with Anglo American, giving MMD the intellectual property rights to TraxIQ, a system-level materials handling solution, originally developed by the mining company.   

Precious metals and technology company Heraeus Precious Metals and mining and metals processing group Sibanye-Stillwater have partnered on a joint research and development project aimed at developing a generation of innovative, cost-efficient glass fibre bushings. This initiative focuses on platinum/palladium alloys enhanced through Heraeus’ proprietary dispersion hardening (DPH) technology, with the goal of enabling more economical glass fibre production, while supporting the development of new palladium applications.

South Africa’s minerals-endowed Northern Cape province has attracted more than R105-billion in investment pledges in new and expanded mining, energy and agriculture projects, with an expected 19 800 new jobs to be created as a result. The investment accords were signed at this week’s inaugural Northern Cape Investment and Jobs Conference in Kimberley. The three-day conference was attended by over 900 stakeholders, including government Ministers, industry leaders and prospective investors, to catalyse investment and growth opportunities in the province’s green energy, minerals and mining, agriculture, industrialisation, infrastructure and logistics, and tourism sectors.

Ivanhoe Mines has a "captive audience" for its sulphuric acid in the Democratic Republic of Congo, its CEO said on Wednesday, as prices for the chemical soar on limited supplies due to the Iran conflict. Vancouver-based Ivanhoe this year started selling sulphuric acid as a byproduct of copper smelting at its Kamoa-Kakula project to other mine operators on the DRC copper belt, which need acid to dissolve copper from ore in a process known as leaching.

Platinum, with which South Africa is more endowed than any other country on earth, is supporting humanity’s space leaps, the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) notes in its latest 60 Seconds feature. The journey around the moon by the Artemis II astronauts has set the stage for a new era of lunar exploration, which will include establishing a human presence on the moon.

German political foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung South Africa (FES SA), in partnership with the South African nonprofit organisation (NPO) the Sam Tambani Research Institute (SATRI), on April 14 launched the Strengthening Workers’ Active Participation in South Africa’s Just Transition project (SWAP). The project’s objective is to strengthen the capacities of at-risk workers, communities and community-based associations and organisations (CBAOs) to negotiate with local authorities and the private sector in Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo for a just and worker-centric transition from coal to renewable energies and low-emission green value chains.

South Africa’s mining sector entered 2026 with robust momentum, posting notable year-on-year production gains in February largely on the back of platinum group metals (PGMs) and China’s stockpiling of key steelmaking inputs. However, the sustainability of this growth is questionable as much of the expansion reflects base effects rather than a structural demand shift across mineral commodities, Minerals Council South Africa acting chief economist Bongani Motsa outlines in a media release to Mining Weekly.

Technology company ABB has been awarded a contract to deliver gearless mill drive (GMD) and ring-geared mill drive (RMD) technology for gold mining and exploration company Harmony Gold Mining Company’s Eva copper project in Queensland, Australia. Once installed, the combined GMD and RMD systems will provide high availability and the functionality needed to process copper ore efficiently across the life of the mine.

With gold prices remaining elevated, platinum continues to offer a premium yet accessible alternative for value-conscious and luxury jewellery buyers, Platinum Guild International (PGI) CEO Tim Schlick says. "The momentum we observed across key regions in the fourth quarter validates platinum’s growing relevance in today’s jewellery market,” he adds.

A series of workshops to promote and support greater intelligence and collaboration in minerals exploration in key mining jurisdictions in sub-Saharan Africa are to be conducted by global mining major BHP. The first of these is being held in Johannesburg, co-hosted by the JSE, Africa’s largest stock exchange by market value, and additional sessions will be held in the coming weeks in Namibia, Angola and Zambia.