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Asia Mining

A 100-Year-Old Australian Coal Mine Returns as Prices Double – by Rajesh Kumar Singh and Archana Chaudhary (Bloomberg News – September 14, 2016)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd. has ramped up output at the 100-year-old Wongawilli coking coal mine in Australia and is set to resume operations at another in Mozambique as prices more than doubled this year.

The New Delhi-based company is producing about 100,000 metric tons a month at the mine in Australia’s New South Wales, which it started in July, and has sought regulatory approval for resuming output at the Russell Vale mine in the same area, Chief Executive Officer Ravi Uppal said.

The company, which is one of India’s largest steel producers, plans to resume operations this month at its Chirodzi coal mine in Mozambique and produce 300,000 tons a month, he said.

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Ahead of more suspensions, Philippine miners question review process – by Manolo Serapio Jr (Reuters U.S. – September 13, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

MANILA – Philippine miners facing more mine suspensions under an environmental review backed by President Rodrigo Duterte have stepped up their criticism of the process, questioning the inclusion of anti-mining activists in the review teams.

The world’s top nickel ore supplier has halted operations of 10 mines, eight of them nickel, for environmental infractions, and the government has said more suspensions will be announced this week. The crackdown is aimed at enforcing stricter environmental protection measures, with Duterte warning the nation could survive without a mining industry. But miners have labeled the review a “demolition campaign”.

The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines, which groups 21 of the country’s 40 metallic miners, said it had “trouble appreciating” the inclusion in mine audit teams of groups such as Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), which translates to Alliance To Stop Mining.

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Appearance and elusive reality in China’s zinc mining sector – by Andy Home (Reuters U.S. – September 8, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

LONDON – What could bring the zinc bull party to an untimely end? Well, obviously, there is the potential for Glencore to reactivate the 500,000 tonnes of mine capacity it has idled since late last year.

Given zinc’s stellar outperformance so far this year is predicated on a tightening raw materials market and the promise that this will feed through to metals shortage, the timing of any restarts will be a critical part of the equation.

Glencore, not surprisingly, is keeping its cards close to its chest. The other nagging concern for the many bulls out there is that Chinese mines will respond to higher prices by lifting production and filling any supply gap.

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Indonesia evaluating mining rules as 2017 deadline on metal exports nears – by Wilda Asmarini (Reuters U.S. – September 8, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

JAKARTA – Indonesia’s mining ministry is scrambling to find a way around a deadline on mineral processing that could prevent some miners, including U.S. copper mining giant Freeport-McMoRan Inc, from exporting minerals from the country from 2017.

Under a government regulation introduced in 2014, miners of copper, zinc, lead, manganese and iron are restricted to exporting partially processed minerals until January 2017, after which only shipments of refined metals will be allowed.

The export curbs – which have cost Indonesia billions of dollars in lost revenue – were intended to shift sales from unprocessed raw materials to higher-value finished metals, but smelters have been slow to materialise as low commodity prices have made them economically unviable.

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G20 kicks steel overcapacity can down the road again – by Andy Home (Reuters U.S. – September 7, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

LONDON – When G20 leaders met in the Chinese city of Hangzhou this week, they did so under, if not quite blue skies, at least smog-free skies. That’s because the Chinese authorities had ordered hundreds of industrial plants in and around the city to close.

A survey of 32 construction-steel mills in the region by industry consultancy Mysteel found almost half had either halted or curbed output since July. Such is the nature of a command economy.

What the rest of the G20 would really like to see is that same draconian action extended permanently to more Chinese steel capacity. Ideally around 300 million tonnes of it.

Because while everyone is agreed that overcapacity in the steel sector is “a global issue” requiring “a global solution”, to quote the U.S. government Fact Sheet on the G20 meet, the fact of the matter is that a large part of that steel overcapacity is in one country.

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China’s Swoop on Boeing Supplier Points to Aluminum’s Future (Bloomberg News – September 6, 2016)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

China’s emergence as the world’s biggest aluminum maker has shaken up the industry, creating a surplus that forced competitors to close plants as profit fell. Alcoa Inc., an iconic U.S. producer for more than a century, has shuttered all but one smelter and plans to split itself in two. While some companies begin to show signs of stanching the red ink, there’s probably more disruption ahead.

After dominating the market for raw aluminum, China wants to expand its ability to make higher-value products with the commodity. The biggest step so far was the announcement last week that Chinese aluminum entrepreneur Liu Zhongtian will acquire Cleveland-based Aleris Corp. for $2.3 billion.

The deal gives the founder of China’s largest producer of extruded aluminum greater access to American and European technology, as well as buyers that include aerospace manufacturers like Boeing Co. and automakers such as Audi.

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Philippine Nickel Ore Exports May Drop 30%, Top Miner Says – by Ian C. Sayson (Bloomberg News – September 4, 2016)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Shipments of nickel ore from the Philippines may shrink by as much as 30 percent this year as the world’s top supplier cracks down on errant miners and after some companies cut output in the first half due to weak prices and poor weather, according to the head of one of the biggest producers.

Volumes are expected to drop at least 20 percent compared with a year earlier, Dante Bravo, president and chief executive officer of Global Ferronickel Holdings Inc. said in an interview. The suspension of mines during an audit initiated by new President Rodrigo Duterte means that more than 100,000 metric tons of contained nickel production have been lost, Bravo said, citing a company estimate.

“This audit is a follow-through of what President Duterte said during the campaign, that he will take a look into mining,” said Bravo, adding that Global Ferronickel’s operations had been assessed and “we have complied with everything.”

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Pierpont: Tale of two miners shows tin is tough – by Trevor Sykes (Australian Financial Review – September 1, 2016)

http://www.afr.com/

Anguished reader Geoff Muers emailed Pierpont for help a fortnight ago because he didn’t understand what was happening to Kashbah Resources (KAS). He thought it looked very odd because of its history of huge share price rallies, numerous trading halts and volatile share prices.

The fact that the share price had recently run from 4¢ to 6¢ and then back to 3¢ might also have been preying on his mind. Pierpont may not be the ideal savant to help Geoff, though, because he has a longstanding dread of investing in Australian-based tin companies, with the outstanding exception of Metals X.

Metals X has successfully revived the great old tin working of Renison, thanks to a decade of really hard work by chief executive Peter Cook and his chairman Peter (Talky) Newton. Renison accounts for some 6 per cent of world tin production and is one of the few listed tin miners in the world.

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D-Day Looms for Nickel Market as Top Shipper Checks on Mines – by Cecilia Yap (Bloomberg News – September 2, 2016)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

The global nickel market will discover the severity of the Philippines’ mining audit next Thursday as President Rodrigo Duterte’s government presents the findings of the checkup and announces support for communities affected by any further suspensions. Benchmark prices surged.

The audit in the world’s largest mined nickel supplier has been completed after 16 teams fanned out across the country to assess compliance with environment and welfare rules, according to Leo Jasareno, the official in charge of the examination. The results and community-support program will be presented by Environment Secretary Gina Lopez, Jasareno said in an interview in Manila.

“It’s not about money, it’s about happiness,” said Environment Undersecretary Jasareno, a former head of the mines bureau with almost four decades’ of experience in the industry. The government and Lopez “would not want to see a mine profitably operating but filled with complaints,” he said.

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Chinese Takeovers Trigger Global Backlash Ahead of G-20 Summit – by Rich Miller (Washington Post/Bloomberg – August 26, 2016)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/

(Bloomberg) — Forget about Yankee go home. Now it’s Chinese go home.

From Australia blocking a bid for a power network to the U.K.’s review of a proposed Chinese-funded nuclear plant, opposition to China’s outward push is opening a thornier and potentially more treacherous front in the country’s economic tug-of-war with the rest of the world. And it’s coming as China prepares to host a Sept. 4-5 summit of Group of 20 leaders.

Unlike festering frictions over trade, the new front is in an area — investment — where the global rules of engagement are more amorphous and where national security interests are more prominent. That raises the risk of a rapid escalation of tensions that can’t be so easily contained.

“The implicit accusation when rejecting overseas direct investment is much stronger than trade,” said James Laurenceson, deputy director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology in Sydney.

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This startup is protecting Afghanistan’s prized rare emeralds – by Parija Kavilanz (CNN Money.com – August 29, 2016)

http://money.cnn.com/

In Afghanistan, where decades of warfare have ravaged the country, there’s a beautiful green oasis tucked between the mountains that’s home to something rare and precious.

The Panjshir Valley, located north of Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, is an area rich with more than 172 emerald mines. Known as Panjshir emeralds, the gems boast a unique bluish-green color that make them among the country’s most-iconic treasures.

Entrepreneur Habib Mohebi grew up in Kabul hearing about the emerald mines from friends local to that area. Years later, that knowledge would reconnect him to his homeland in a distinctive way.

Mohebi is the co-founder of Aria Gems, a company that mines and exports Panjshir emeralds.

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Two killed in clashes in eastern India as anger over land use rises – by Jatindra Dash (Reuters U.s – August 30, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

BHUBANESWAR, India (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Two people were killed and more than 30 injured when villagers protesting the loss of their homes to a power plant clashed with police in eastern India, in violence highlighting the disputed nature of land use in the country.

Police opened fire late on Monday in Gola in Jharkhand state after hundreds of villagers demanding more jobs and better compensation from Inland Power Ltd. threw stones and ransacked the company’s offices, a senior police official said.

“A meeting between the displaced persons and the management was going on when some people rushed into the premises and vandalized the property,” said Inspector General M.S. Bhatia.

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Mongolia asks Rio Tinto to speed up work on giant copper mine – by Terrence Edwards (Reuters U.S. – August 30, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

ULAANBAATAR – Mongolia’s prime minister has asked Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto to step up the pace of construction at the giant Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine, part of efforts to revive the country’s debt-ridden economy.

Jargaltulga Erdenebat assured Rio Tinto’s copper chief Arnaud Soirat that Mongolia would honor its past agreements with Rio Tinto, and called on the company to do the same. “For Oyu Tolgoi, the Mongolian policy to work together with Rio Tinto is already set,” he was quoted as saying in a statement posted on Mongolia’s official government website <zasag.mn/news/view/14686>.

“You need to comply with contract obligations and speed up the momentum of work,” he told Soirat, adding that Oyu Tolgoi should procure construction materials like cement from Mongolian service providers only.

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4 Nickel Miners Set to Soar On Philippines Crackdown – by Daniel Shane (Barrons – August 30, 2016)

http://www.barrons.com/

The prospect of stricter mining laws could threaten supplies from one of the world’s biggest nickel producers.

Drug pushers aren’t the only victims in a crackdown by hardline Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte. The Southeast Asian archipelago’s freshly-minted government has taken aim at miners, telling them to shape up or shut down. That could be a boon for nickel miner stocks elsewhere in the region, which should benefit from any disruptions in supply.

Tough guy Duterte, elected in a landslide vote this summer, has made no secret of his “big problems” with the Philippines’ mining industry, who he accuses of skirting environmental rules and “destroying the soil of our country.” That could cause a global supply crunch for the metal – which is mainly used in making stainless steel – as the Philippines makes up a fifth of global output.

It sells most of it to China. Filipino authorities have closed several mines already with more to shutter soon, helping lift nickel prices by around 20% to $5 a pound.

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Chinese-owned Zhongwang USA enters U.S. aluminum market with Aleris buy – by Luc Cohen(Reuters U.S. – August 30, 2016)

http://www.reuters.com/

NEW YORK – Zhongwang USA LLC, backed by Chinese aluminum magnate Liu Zhongtian, said on Monday it would buy U.S. aluminum company Aleris Corp in a bet by the billionaire that the nascent U.S. automotive aluminum sector will be the industry’s next big growth market.

The $2.33 billion deal comes as Liu and Zhongwang International Group Ltd, the parent of Zhongwang USA, are embroiled in a dispute over U.S. import duties amid broader trade tensions between the U.S. aluminum industry and China. It marks the biggest entry by a Chinese company into the U.S. aluminum industry since trade tensions began ramping up in recent years.

Zhongwang International is parent of China Zhongwang Holdings Ltd, the world’s second-largest producer of aluminum extrusions. It has been accused of evading U.S. import duties on extruded products, prompting an investigation by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC).

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