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Bloomberg

Bloomberg delivers business and markets news, data, analysis, and video to the world, featuring stories from Businessweek and Bloomberg News.

Rio arrives in lithium with a survival-of-the-fittest mentality

10th October 2024 Rio Tinto is muscling in on the lithium market after a precipitous price collapse for the battery metal, betting it can build a portfolio of huge, low-cost mines that will outlast weaker rivals. The miner has been looking to build a lithium business for years, and its planned $6.7-billion... →

Coal expansion helps lure insurers back to producer Whitehaven

10th October 2024 Whitehaven Coal, one of Australia’s largest coal producers, shelved a planned special purpose vehicle originally intended to provide in-house insurance after finding external insurers willing to take on the risk. The development follows Sydney-based Whitehaven’s $3.2-billion purchase of... →

Court blocks top Africa port deal as Maersk contests award

9th October 2024 A South African court temporarily blocked a deal between the nation’s state-owned logistics firm and a company owned by Filipino billionaire Enrique Razon to expand and run sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest container port after AP Moller-Maersk challenged the award. Maersk unit APM Terminals was among... →

Ex-Glencore execs must wait until 2027 for bribery trial

9th October 2024 A group of former Glencore executives accused of bribery and corruption in West Africa by the UK will have to wait until 2027 to face a trial. England’s criminal courts are suffering from a crippling backlog of cases exacerbated by years of underfunding, the coronavirus pandemic and lawyer strikes. →

France nears disbursement of second climate loan to South Africa

9th October 2024 France is nearing the disbursement of a second loan to South Africa’s Treasury under the Just Energy Transition Partnership programme. “We are in the final stages of preparing a second loan,” adding to the €300 million ($329 million) it distributed about 18 months ago, David Martinon, France’s... →

Cameco eyes expansions of uranium mines on rising nuclear demand

9th October 2024 Cameco, one of the world’s top uranium producers, is considering expanding some of its mining projects as global demand for nuclear power rises, according to its top executive. “We’ve got some fantastic uranium ore bodies, and we’re looking to extend and expand those where we can,” CEO Tim... →

Cameco CEO Tim Gitzel says growing demand for power poses the best fundamentals he has seen for nuclear in his 40-year career.

Investors with $15tr signal new approach to miners

8th October 2024 Investors need to adopt a new approach to the mining sector if that industry is to meet the growing demand for minerals and metals needed for the green transition. That’s the central message in a report published Tuesday by a coalition of some of the world’s biggest investors, including... →

South African antitrust body faults grocers over high food costs

8th October 2024 South African food producers and retailers have been slow to pass on the effects of declining cost pressures to cash-strapped consumers, an issue that may warrant further investigation, the nation’s antitrust agency said. Cost pressures are easing because of an end to rolling power outages, the... →

Iron-ore pushes higher on hopes more China stimulus is coming

7th October 2024 Iron-ore rose — following two sharply weekly gains — on speculation China’s top economic planner will unveil more stimulus measures at a press briefing on Tuesday morning. The steelmaking staple advanced almost 3% in Singapore, after surging 18% over the previous two weeks. The briefing will... →

France’s Orano sees progress developing uranium mine in Mongolia

7th October 2024 A long-delayed, multi-billion dollar uranium project in Mongolia under development by French State-controlled miner Orano could start producing the nuclear fuel by 2030, the company said. Commercial output from the Zuuvch Ovoo mine could begin after five years of construction, pending the... →

Angola diamonds not under sanctions but Russia link is obstacle

7th October 2024 Angola’s State-owned diamond producer said some clients were deterred by its partnership with Russia’s Alrosa PJSC, but underlined that its output doesn’t fall under western sanctions. Russian diamond giant Alrosa holds a 41% stake in Angola’s Catoca operation, which also owns just over half of... →

North Carolina quartz mine owner says Helene damage was minimal

7th October 2024 The owner of a North Carolina quartz mine that’s a key source for high-purity quartz used in global semiconductor manufacturing said its operations sustained only minor damage in the wake of Hurricane Helene. Cleanup and repair activities are underway at the Spruce Pine mine and restoring power... →

Green hydrogen hype fades as high costs force project retreat

4th October 2024 Climate-friendly hydrogen was one of the most-hyped sectors in green energy. Now the reality of its high cost is taking its toll. In recent months, some of the biggest would-be developers of the fuel have canceled projects, axed orders and scaled back investment plans. The low-carbon fuel is... →

South Africa plans insurance vehicle for infrastructure projects

4th October 2024 South Africa is launching a credit-guarantee facility to boost private sector involvement in the country’s ambitious infrastructure investment plans, reducing the need for public spending. “We are looking to manage levels of risk associated with projects or project sponsors in attracting private... →

Deputy Finance Minister David Masondo

South Africa fires up diesel turbines to keep power cuts at bay

4th October 2024 Eskom has been using diesel-fuelled auxiliary turbines extensively to stave off power cuts in South Africa following delays in restoring some generation capacity. The utility fired up the units after 2 685 megawatts of capacity failed to return to service on September 23 as planned, Eskom said in... →

Sudden shift in China metals sentiment drives LME week optimism

4th October 2024 Metals traders arriving in London for LME Week were in for a surprise as they caught up with friends and customers from China. For the last couple of years, the biggest consumer and producer has been a buzzkill for metals bulls — but now suddenly Chinese representatives were among the most... →

Gold miners say they’re now disciplined as dealmaking heats up

4th October 2024 With gold prices at a record high, mining companies are back hunting for deals while trying to reassure investors that they’ve learned from past mistakes of overspending. There has been a flurry of activity in recent months, with Gold Fields’ $1.6-billion purchase of Osisko Mining and AngloGold... →

China's fast-growing copper champion is reshaping global metal supply

3rd October 2024 Chen Jinghe was not long out of university when a government official handed him the assignment that would change his life. Go to Zijin mountain, he was told, and find gold. It was 1982, and the geology graduate found himself on forested slopes in the remote, humid highlands of southeastern... →

Vale backs Brazil critical minerals fund in nod to government

3rd October 2024 Vale is committed to investing in Brazil’s first fund to support critical minerals as it seeks to diversify, the new chief of the world’s No. 2 iron-ore supplier said Wednesday. Vale has 90% of its revenue coming from the steelmaking ingredient and wants to boost copper production, CEO Gustavo... →

South African CEOs see ‘green shoots’ as economic mood improves

2nd October 2024 Sentiment about South Africa has improved since the formation of a coalition government but the nation needs to be cautious about complacency, according to chief executive officers at two of the nation’s biggest financial-services companies. While “the sentiment has changed,” not very much has... →

Photo by Donna Slater
Discovery CEO Adrian Gore

South Africa’s reforms in spotlight as nation woos investors

2nd October 2024 South Africa will need to expedite reforms that can boost economic growth to sustain investor inflows that have flooded in since the formation of a coalition government, according to the world’s largest investment banks. Since the African National Congress aligned with business-friendly parties... →

Deputy President Paul Mashatile

South Africa courts UK investors to fund infrastructure plans

1st October 2024 South Africa’s infrastructure development agency has restructured its pipeline of planned projects to make them more attractive to the private sector as state officials court investors in the UK. Deputy President Paul Mashatile is leading a ministerial delegation on a weeklong roadshow to London,... →

Deputy President Paul Mashatile

Mashatile sees South Africa's growth accelerating in 2025

30th September 2024 Economic growth in South Africa is expected to accelerate next year as the country recovers from output-sapping power cuts and the nation’s new coalition government focuses on investing in infrastructure, South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile said. “We think that by next year we could be... →

Deputy President Paul Mashatile

Panama sees exports of stockpiled First Quantum copper as viable

30th September 2024 Panama’s finance chief said he sees no good reason why First Quantum Minerals shouldn’t export the large volume of copper stockpiled at its shuttered mine in the country. The government is working with a third party on an environmental assessment to quantify the amount of copper concentrate... →

Panama Finance Minister Felipe Chapman

Chile pinpoints new lithium areas for private-sector development

27th September 2024 Chile has identified new lithium areas that will be offered to the private sector as authorities attempt to tap more of the world’s biggest reserves of the battery metal, despite a current glut in the global market. Seventeen months after unveiling its strategy for lithium, President Gabriel... →

Chile Mining Minister Aurora Williams

China stimulus likely to boost Australian economy, Chalmers says

27th September 2024 Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers hailed China’s new stimulus effort as a “really welcome development” for both his nation and the global economy after meetings with counterparts in Beijing during a two-day visit. Chalmers said he had discussed China’s plans to boost its economy in his meetings... →

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers

Glencore copper mine in Congo locked in €800m royalty row

27th September 2024 A Glencore-owned copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo is embroiled in a row over royalties with local tax authorities. The government body – known by its French acronym DGRAD – says that Kamoto Copper Co (KCC) owes the Congolese state a little over €800-million ($894-million),... →

Rio Tinto aims to produce copper in Arizona by end of decade

26th September 2024 Rio Tinto aims to start churning out copper from a long-delayed mining project in Arizona by the end of the decade, according to CEO Jakob Stausholm. “From a permitting point of view, we are towards the end of the process,” Stausholm said Thursday in an interview with Bloomberg TV. “We’re... →

Rio Tinto CEO Jakob Stausholm

South Africa household wealth rises to highest level in a year

26th September 2024 South Africa’s household wealth rose in the second quarter as an increase in the market value of their assets outstripped that of their liabilities — in part due to a strong stock market rally, the central bank said. The ratio of net wealth to nominal disposable income rose to 393% in the three... →

Zijin wants its Africa copper mine to rival the world’s biggest

26th September 2024 China’s Zijin Mining Group Co. is considering an expansion of its jointly-owned copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo that would place it among the world’s biggest single sources of the metal. Zijin would like to scale up the massive Kamoa-Kakula mine in the African copper belt to... →

Harris vows to create US critical minerals stockpile, incentives

26th September 2024 Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to create a national stockpile of critical minerals, saying a cache of the materials used in everything from batteries to defense systems is needed for economic and national security. The plan, part of a broader $100-billion industrial policy vision Harris’... →

Kamala Harris

US-led group weighs funding more mineral projects to counter China dominance

25th September 2024 A US-led coalition of countries is looking at funding more minerals projects using a financing network aimed at combating China’s dominance of metal supply chains. The Minerals Security Partnership has already announced support for 13 projects since the collaboration began in 2022 and it’s... →

Jose Fernandez

China mining heavyweights partner with Zimbabwe on lithium mine

25th September 2024 Chinese miners Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt and Tsingshan Holding Group are defying low lithium prices to develop a deposit of the battery metal with a Zimbabwean state company. The two firms already operate lithium projects in the southern African country and will complete a study before building a... →

China’s Tianqi to keep fighting for role in SQM lithium deal

25th September 2024 Tianqi Lithium vowed to continue its battle for a say in a planned deal to share ownership of one of the world’s biggest lithium operations, a case the company sees as crucial for future Chinese investment in Chile. The Chinese firm, which owns 22% of Chilean miner SQM, is trying to force it to... →

Australia clears coal mine expansions in hit to green goals

25th September 2024 Australia approved the expansion of three coal mines, sparking criticism of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s administration and its efforts to keep emissions in check. The government cleared an extension of operations at Whitehaven Coal’s Narrabri, MACH Energy Australia's Mount Pleasant and... →

South Africa’s coalition government triggers wave of investment

23rd September 2024 The formation of South Africa’s business-friendly coalition government has triggered a wave of investment announcements and positive sentiment not seen in years, spurring hope that Africa’s biggest economy may finally be finding its footing after a lost decade-and-a-half. Within days of the... →

ArcelorMittal South Africa CEO Kobus Verster says there is more positive outlook for the country.

Trafigura’s new boss is ex-soldier who says profit comes first

23rd September 2024 A couple of months ago, the man in line to be Trafigura’s next CEO, Richard Holtum, gathered the commodity trader’s staff in Singapore. His message was a simple one, according to several people who were there: it’s time to set aside distractions and focus on what’s most important — making... →

Australia eyes completion of US critical minerals pact this year

23rd September 2024 Australia expects to conclude an agreement with the US over critical minerals before the end of the year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. Critical minerals and their supply chain will be very important for global growth going forward, Albanese told reporters in Philadelphia on Friday after... →

Australian Prime Minister Tom Albanese

Rio Tinto chair warns mining deals won't solve supply crisis

23rd September 2024 The world needs more mines to cope with rising demand for key energy-transition metals like copper, as mergers and acquisitions will not plug a looming supply gap, Rio Tinto Group chairman Dominic Barton said. “As an industry, we’re not going to inorganic our way out of this challenge,” Barton... →

Dominic Barton

Zambian miners resist State taking bigger stake in resources

23rd September 2024 Zambian mining companies met with the government to resolve differences over a proposed legal change that would potentially give the state a bigger share of its mineral resources. Draft legislation under consideration in the southern African country’s parliament would enable Zambia to “acquire... →

First Quantum's Sentinel mine

Biden awards $3bn to boost domestic battery production

20th September 2024 American Battery Technology and lithium-producer Albemarle are among 25 companies getting more than $3-billion in funding from the Biden administration to boost domestic production of advanced batteries and components. The funding — part of a broader White House goal of creating an American... →

US President Joe Biden

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