Asia Mining – Page 144 – Republic of Mining

COLUMN-Iron ore reality check shows small, but significant change – by Clyde Russell (Reuters U.K. – May 4, 2015)

May 4, 2015

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/

LAUNCESTON, Australia, May 4 (Reuters) – It’s time for a reality check all round in the iron ore market.

In recent weeks there has been a strong rally in prices, tentative signs that the headlong expansion of capacity will be reined in, calls for a producer cartel of some sorts and a small miner scrappily hanging on in the face of seemingly overwhelming adversity.

All of this makes for great drama and news headlines, but also should lead to questions and analysis as to whether anything has actually changed in the iron ore market.

The first reality check is that despite the near 27 percent rally in the spot Asian iron ore price between April 6 and April 27, the price remains extremely weak.

Iron ore ended last week at $56.20 a tonne, having retreated from the $59.20 reached on April 27, leaving the steel-making ingredient down 21 percent so far this year. It’s also roughly half of what it was this time last year and not much better than a quarter of the record $191.90 a tonne in February 2011.

Rio Tinto CEO says iron ore demand still strong in Asia – by Vicky Validakis (Australian Mining – May 4, 2015)

May 4, 2015

http://www.miningaustralia.com.au/home

Rio Tinto CEO Sam Walsh says commodity markets must remain open as debate continues to rage over his company’s iron ore strategy.

Speaking in Seoul, Walsh said when the commodity cycle became tough, there was a temptation to turn inward. “But we must keep our minds and our markets open,” Walsh said.

“There is a temptation to be parochial, to believe that artificial and temporary barriers will alleviate the pain of awkward transition — when to the contrary, being parochial may delay necessary change or amplify the response required.

“We can see such requests and pleas for new barriers, from some in government and some in business.”

While Walsh did not tie his comments directly to iron ore or the company’s Pilbara mines, they came at the same time FMG’s chairman Andrew Forrest had another go at Rio for its plans to ramp up production.

With iron ore prices down to around $US57 a tonne, major miners BHP and Vale announced revised plans to limit some production.

Iron ore streak extends to nine days – by Daniel Palmer (The Australian – April 29, 2015)

April 29, 2015

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

Iron ore has continued its march back toward $US60 a tonne in offshore trade amid rising hopes for more stimulus out of Beijing.

At the end of the latest session, benchmark iron ore for immediate delivery to the port of Tianjin in China was trading at $US59.20 a tonne, up 0.9 per cent from its prior close of $US58.70 a tonne.

The gains extend a withering run for the commodity that has come as a surprise to many, with a surge of over 25 per cent from its 10-year low of $US46.70 a tonne earlier this month. Much of this recovery has come in the past nine trading days, with iron ore last seeing a red session on April 15.

The developments have allowed for a strong bounce in stock prices within the iron ore sector, with BC Iron and Fortescue Metals leading the way.

The two WA-based miners endured a rare negative session yesterday during the current iron ore streak, with stock in both firms sinking around 5 per cent by the close as the broader market moved lower. Another lift in the commodity’s price overnight, however, leaves them primed to recover much of those losses during today’s trade.

Mongolia signals it will not pay US$100 million to Canadian uranium miner Khan Resources – by Terrence Edwards (Reuters/National Post – April 28, 2015)

April 28, 2015

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

The government of Mongolia signaled on Monday it will not abide by an international tribunal’s order to pay more than US$100 million to Canadian uranium explorer Khan Resources Inc., whose chairman died suddenly while in the country meeting with officials over repayment plans last week.

“The Mongolian government, in order to protect its own interests, will work for the invalidation of the arbitration award,” a statement by the justice minister, dated Monday, said.

The move comes just days after Jim Doak, Khan’s chairman and a well-known figure in Canada’s financial industry, died in Ulan Bator from reasons deemed to be natural causes on April 23, a day after talks between the two sides ended.

Grant Edey, Khan’s CEO, said in an e-mail that the meeting was short because the two sides “remained apart in their respective positions” and the company is confident the award will be upheld.

China plans new commodity superhighway, altering energy trade flow – by Ilan Solomons (MiningWeekly.com – April 24, 2015)

April 27, 2015

http://www.miningweekly.com/page/americas-home

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – China’s Go West strategy of encouraging coastal to inland flow of capital and people will result in the formation of a new commodity superhighway, says advisory firm Wood Mackenzie (Woodmac).

This new superhighway will impact the energy trade flows within China and externally, through the new Silk Road routes, and will link the country from east to west, onwards to Central Asia and beyond.

“This represents a significant business and investment opportunity for China’s western region,” states Woodmac. Woodmac principal Asia economist Cynthia Lim explains China’s Go West policy is already under way and is often touted as the country’s “silver bullet” to ensure long-term gross domestic product (GDP) growth, as China’s economically dominant coastal regions approach maturity.

“The coastal provinces will have to upgrade their industries to higher value-add sectors, such as services, while industries will relocate inland, westwards. This is shifting the regional distribution of demand centres and power generation; and the impact will become more apparent over the next two decades.

China is burning through its natural resources – by Vladimir Basov (Mining.com – April 26, 2015)

April 27, 2015

http://www.mining.com/

China is the world’s top mining country, but lack of local reserves of main mineral commodities forces local companies to hunt for mining deals globally.

Since nearly all essential production data has became available to the public, this is a good time to determine the biggest mining countries throughout the world in terms of their domestic mines output.

Due to lack of a common methodology, a simple principle of appreciated mining points credited to countries comprising the top 10 was used in this preliminary estimation.

For example, the leader in copper production was awarded 10 points, whereas a country sitting on tenth place earned one point. If a country placed out of the top 10 producers for a particular commodity, it earned zero mining points.

To simplify calculations, no weights reflecting the importance of each commodity, and other modifying factors, were taken into account. Only those most important for the world economy and most popular among investable mineral commodities, have been considered.

Philippine mining regulator cautious on nickel prices – by Erik dela Cruz (Reuters U.S. – April 27, 2015)

April 27, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

MANILA – (Reuters) – The Philippines’ mining industry regulator said on Monday two new nickel mines would help boost production of the country’s top metal export this year, but prices may remain weak amid tepid demand from top consumer China.

The Southeast Asian country was last year’s biggest nickel ore supplier to China’s producers of nickel pig iron, used in stainless steel production, after previous top supplier Indonesia banned exports of unprocessed metallic minerals.

Leo Jasareno, director of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), said nickel output this year should rise with the entry of the Libjo and Agata mines in the south.

“These new nickel mining projects are expected to boost the 2015 nickel production of the country, with the expected mine output of Libjo and Agata about 714,000 dry metric tons and 1,360,000 dry metric tons respectively,” he said in a statement.

Average nickel prices rose 11.6 percent last year to $7.56 per pound, boosting the value of the country’s overall metallic output to a record high 137.53 billion pesos ($3.1 billion), MGB data released on Monday showed.

Telfer, Giustra deny they tried to influence Russian uranium deal with donations to Clinton Foundation – by Peter Koven National Post – April 25, 2015)

April 27, 2015

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

A pair of Canadian mining magnates are denying suggestions that they donated to the charitable foundation of former President Bill Clinton and his family to help win U.S. approval to sell a uranium company to Russia.

Frank Giustra said the allegations have nothing to do with him, and are merely an attempt to “tear down” presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and her election campaign. Ian Telfer, meanwhile, said he committed the funds before he ever realized he would do the deal with the Russians.

The New York Times reported on the donations in an explosive article this week. The story involves a former Canadian mining company called Uranium One Inc., in which Giustra and Telfer were two of the key principals.

In 2010, Uranium One began a process to sell itself to Rosatom, a state-controlled nuclear giant in Russia. Uranium One had assets in Kazakhstan and the United States, and multiple U.S. government departments had to sign off on the deal. One of them is the State Department, which was led at the time by Hillary Clinton.

Fox News uses input from New York Times reporter (!) for ‘Clinton Cash’ piece – by Erik Wemple (Washington Post – April 23, 2015)

April 24, 2015

http://www.foxnews.com/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/

Earlier this week, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow devoted considerable time to examining the agreements of major media outlets with Peter Schweizer, the author of “Clinton Cash,” a soon-to-be-released book highlighting overlaps between the work of the Clinton Foundation and Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state.

No surprise, said Maddow, that Fox News would be partnering with such an author, who advised Sarah Palin and assisted the George W. Bush White House with speechwriting. Some surprise, said Maddow, that a news org like the New York Times would strike an exclusive agreement with Schweizer.

Now for an even bigger surprise: Not only did the New York Times work with Schweizer; it also worked directly with Fox News! See the segment below, in which New York Times investigative reporter Jo Becker provides input for the report of Fox News host Bret Baier on a “bombshell rocking the Clinton campaign.”

How Putin’s Russia Gained Control of a U.S. Uranium Mine – by William Kennedy and Andy Hoffman(Bloomberg News – April 23, 2015)

April 24, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Since 2013, the nuclear energy arm of the Russian state has controlled 20 percent of America’s uranium production capacity.

Rosatom’s acquisition of Toronto-based miner Uranium One Inc. made the Russian agency, which also builds nuclear weapons, one the world’s top five producers of the radioactive metal and gave it ownership of a mine in Wyoming.

The deal, approved by a committee that included then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, also followed donations from Uranium One’s Canadian chairman to the Clinton Global Foundation, the New York Times reported on Thursday.

In an interview with Bloomberg News, Ian Telfer, the former Uranium One chairman and current chairman of Goldcorp Inc., said he pledged a donation of $3 million to the Clinton charity in March 2008, “when it was never contemplated that at some point in the future the Russian government would become a major shareholder of Uranium One.”

Why did the Russian government want Uranium One? Russia is only the world’s sixth-largest uranium miner, but has a huge nuclear fuel industry. Rosatom had built that business partly by processing uranium from Soviet warheads decommissioned under the so-called megatons-to-megawatts agreement signed with the U.S. in 1993.

Local mining magnates drawn into American political arena – by Nelson Bennett (Business Vancouver – April 24, 2015)

April 24, 2015

http://www.biv.com/

Vancouver mining magnates Frank Giustra and Goldcorp Inc. (TSX:G) chairman Ian Telfer made generous donations to former U.S. president Bill Clinton’s charitable organization at a time when the company they built was acquiring assets in Russia and the U.S., according to the New York Times.

The story suggests the donations may have helped Giustra and Telfer conclude deals that eventually resulted in the Canadian mining company, Uranium One, being acquired by the Russia’s Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corp. It suggests former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might have had a hand in approving the deal.

Several major U.S. media outlets have weighed in, saying there appears to be little, if any, evidence that Hillary Clinton would even have had knowledge of the deal.

Neither Telfer nor Giustra deny making donations to the Clinton Foundation, but insist there was no lobbying on their behalf from either Bill or Hillary Clinton as a result of the donations.

Telfer told Business in Vancouver that the timelines don’t line up to support the suggestion that Hillary Clinton – former U.S. Secretary of State – would have even been in a position to help his company. Telfer is the former chairman of Uranium One.

Up to $1 trillion in gold is held by temples in India. Now Modi wants them to monetize this vast hidden wealth – by Rama Lakshmi (Washington Post/National Post – April 24, 2015)

April 24, 2015

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

MUMBAI — Workers for the centuries-old Shree Siddhivinayak Temple here spent hours unpacking gold coins, heavy wedding necklaces and lustrous pendants from a closely guarded “strong room.” By the time gold-buyers began mingling with worshippers at the sweltering sanctuary on Tuesday, the jewelry auctioneers were ready.

“This is not a regular gold coin that you would buy from a gold shop — it contains the Lord’s blessing,” a temple board member said, holding up a tiny coin, probably left by a devotee years ago. It eventually sold for four times its face value.

Wealthy Hindu temples such as this one are repositories for much of the $1 trillion US worth of privately held gold in India — about 22,000 tons, according to an estimate from the World Gold Council. In 2011, one temple in south India was found to have more than $22 billion in gold hidden away in locked rooms rumoured to be filled with snakes. Another has enough gold to rival the riches stashed at the Vatican, experts said.

But little of it is contributing to the Indian economy, and now Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is looking to monetize India’s vast hidden wealth. In coming weeks, the government plans to begin a program that will allow temples to deposit their gold into banks to earn interest and circulate in the economy, rather than sit idle in musty vaults. The gold, officials said, would be melted down and sold to jewellers.

Jim Doak, Canadian mining executive, found dead in Mongolia (CBC News Business – April 24, 2015)

April 24, 2015

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business

Chairman of Khan Resources was well-known Bay Street personality and frequent BNN commentator

The Canadian Press – A published report says Jim Doak, a well-known Bay Street personality who regularly appeared as a commentator on business channel BNN, has died while on business in Mongolia.

The Globe and Mail, citing sources, said Doak, 59, who was chairman of uranium exploration and development company Khan Resources, was found dead Thursday morning in a hotel room.

The public relations officer for the Police Authority of Mongolia confirms the death of an unidentified Canadian man on the 16th floor of the Blue Sky hotel in Ulan Bator. The officer said a preliminary autopsy found there was no foul play but added that a final autopsy report would be available in four days.

The federal government confirmed that a Canadian has died in Mongolia, but would not provide details. A Foreign Affairs spokesman said consular officials were in contact with authorities to gather more information.

Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation as Russians Pressed for Control of Uranium Company – by Jo Becker and Mike McIntire (New York Times – April 25, 2015)

April 23, 2015

http://www.nytimes.com/

The headline in Pravda trumpeted President Vladimir V. Putin’s latest coup, its nationalistic fervor recalling an era when the newspaper served as the official mouthpiece of the Kremlin: “Russian Nuclear Energy Conquers the World.”

The article, in January 2013, detailed how the Russian atomic energy agency, Rosatom, had taken over a Canadian company with uranium-mining stakes stretching from Central Asia to the American West. The deal made Rosatom one of the world’s largest uranium producers and brought Mr. Putin closer to his goal of controlling much of the global uranium supply chain.

But the untold story behind that story is one that involves not just the Russian president, but also a former American president and a woman who would like to be the next one.

At the heart of the tale are several men, leaders of the Canadian mining industry, who have been major donors to the charitable endeavors of former President Bill Clinton and his family. Members of that group built, financed and eventually sold off to the Russians a company that would become known as Uranium One.

Beyond mines in Kazakhstan that are among the most lucrative in the world, the sale gave the Russians control of one-fifth of all uranium production capacity in the United States.

Indonesian crunch could prompt rethink of protectionist mineral export policy – by Jewel Topsfield (Sydney Morning Herald – April 23, 2015)

April 22, 2015

http://www.smh.com.au/

The Indonesian government’s push to increase revenue from the troubled mining industry by 50 per cent this year could force it to rethink bad policies, according to a lawyer from an Indonesian firm specialising in mining law.

The Indonesian mining industry is facing tough times due to the plummeting prices of some of its key exports including coal, tin and nickel and protectionist policies that ban the export of unprocessed minerals.

Coal production dropped by 21 per cent in the first three months of 2015 compared to the same period last year and mineral producers are laying off workers, mothballing high-cost mines and postponing capital expenditure.

Australian miners with exposure to Indonesia include BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Newcrest Mining and Cokal Ltd.

“The current difficult economic times for the mining industry and the government are going to force a change of policy,” Bill Sullivan, from Indonesian law firm Christian Teo Purwono & Partners, told a forum in Jakarta.