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Why China Is So Interested in Kazakhstan – by Daisuke Wakabayashi (New York Times – July 18, 2024)

https://www.nytimes.com/

Kazakhstan’s bounty of so-called critical minerals has enriched the country and grabbed the attention of entrepreneurs scrambling to control the ingredients needed to fight climate change.

Kenges Rakishev, one of the richest men in Kazakhstan, stepped off a private jet at a Soviet-era airport and hopped into the lead car of a convoy of sport utility vehicles. The cars tore down a two-lane road, zipping past the snow-covered steppe in eastern Kazakhstan at 90 miles per hour.

Riding shotgun, Mr. Rakishev gestured toward the vast emptiness. “Nothing, right?” he said with a chuckle. “But it’s a unique opportunity.” That opportunity is in nickel, a key mineral used in electric vehicles and other clean energy technologies. Kazakhstan, a mineral-rich country in Central Asia, has a lot of nickel, and Mr. Rakishev is investing tens of millions of dollars to extract it.

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Would Canada allow Rio Tinto to buy Teck? Miners aren’t so sure – by Alisha Hiyate (Northern Miner – July 12, 2024)

https://www.northernminer.com/

The federal government’s attempt to clarify its rules for foreign investment in mining is instead causing more confusion as the industry grapples with changing rules under the Investment Canada Act. But Rio Tinto’s interest in buying Teck Resources, as reported by Sky News, could serve as a test for what the feds will allow as it tries to keep critical minerals available for Canada.

Last week, the federal government formally approved Glencore’s purchase of a 77% stake in Teck’s coal business. At the same time, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne issued a statement saying the government would only greenlight future foreign takeovers of “important Canadian mining companies engaged in significant critical minerals operations… in the most exceptional of circumstances.”

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Rio Tinto mulls potential bid for Teck — report – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – July 12, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Rio Tinto (ASX, LON, NYSE: RIO) is said to be studying potential takeover bids for smaller rivals, including Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A, TECK.B) (NYSE: TECK), Canada’s largest diversified miner, which successfully fended off Glencore’s (LON: GLEN) $23 billion attempt to buy the company last year.

The world’s second largest mining company has held talks with bankers over a potential offer for the Canadian target, but is not immediately planning to launch a bid, Sky News reports citing unnamed sources.

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World would need 55 per cent more copper mines to meet EV transition goals: study – by Theresa Balocating (National Post – July 12, 2024)

https://nationalpost.com/

‘I think there’s a disconnect between, what the intentions are to meet the global warming challenges and the reality of the materials that are going to be required’

The transition to greener, more sustainable transportation is impracticable as copper mine production cannot keep up with the rising global demand for electric vehicles, according to a new study.

“I think there’s a disconnect between, what the intentions are to meet the global warming challenges and the reality of the materials that are going to be required,” said Dr. Lawrence Cathles, an earth and atmospheric sciences professor at Cornell University.

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Marathon mine developer eyes 2025 construction start – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – July 4, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Generation Mining focusing on copper amid permitting delays, hunt to secure project financing

Generation Mining president-CEO Jamie Levy wants to assure all that the Marathon palladium-copper mine will get built. Ever since the Toronto junior miner first appeared on the north shore of Lake Superior in 2019, the company has been a press release-generating machine with its ambitious plans for an open-pit operation.

But in recent months, there’s been a lull in news flow that’s prompted a few concerned investors to ask Levy if the project is stalled.

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Copper consolidation: How merging several operations in British Columbia’s Highland Valley created Canada’s largest copper mine – by Ailbhe Goodbody (CIM Magazine – July 02, 2024)

https://magazine.cim.org/en/

Copper was first discovered in British Columbia’s Highland Valley porphyry copper district in 1899, but production did not start until Bethlehem Copper Corporation’s property began operations in 1962.

Several other large-tonnage, low-grade copper operations were developed in the area, including Lornex Mining Corporation’s Lornex mine (controlled by Rio Algom) in 1972 and Highmont Mining and Teck’s Highmont mine in 1980.

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Copper’s unicorns – by Frik Els (Mining.com – July 1, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Tech venture capitalists invest in startups and get to call them unicorns. Startups like Juicero, famous for $700 a pop “smart” chopped fruit squeezers and being one of Silicon Valley’s dumbest moments, Wag! (oh? you have a dog walking app that sends updates on the frequency and consistency of pet number 2s? – here’s $300 million) and In-Real-Life or IRL, a chat app made for bot to bot communication.

The official definition of a unicorn is a startup with a $1 billion valuation while still a private company. There are more than 1,500 unicorns globally and a variety of investment products that track them. Your humble correspondent felt that the mining industry deserves a similar category of company.

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Hedge Funds’ Bullish Copper Bets Run Into China’s Slowdown (Bloomberg News – June 23, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — As copper surged to record highs last month, several senior Chinese traders started trying to contact western hedge fund managers whose names they’d only read in the press. For years, the veteran traders’ privileged insight into their own economy had given them an edge in the copper market, where China accounts for more than half of global demand.

But now they were bewildered. Everything in China pointed to a market that should be slumping, and yet prices were soaring on a wave of speculative money. What were they missing?

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Top 20 Copper Producing Countries in The World – by Faheem Tahir (Yahoo Finance/Insider Monkey – April 29, 2024)

https://finance.yahoo.com/

Copper; the first metal manipulated by humans, still stands as one of the most important metals. From its use in mobile phones, laptops, homes, and automobiles, copper is the third most used metal in the world. According to USGS, an average US resident requires 12 pounds of copper each year to sustain their lifestyle. Furthermore, it is believed that this demand is going to continue to grow in years to come.

Research presented in Yahoo Finance shows that the global market for copper was $308.67 billion in 2023 and it is forecasted to grow to $504.93 billion by 2033, projecting a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.04% during the forecasted period.

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Investing in Africa’s Copperbelt – The Race for EV Metals (Gulf Africa Review – June 21, 2024)

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U.S., Japanese, and European companies are investing in Africa’s Copperbelt, employing cutting-edge technology to extract essential electric vehicle metals like copper and cobalt.

The global demand for electric vehicle (EV) metals has spurred a surge in investments in Africa’s Copperbelt, a region straddling Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Companies from the U.S., Japan, and Europe are increasingly leveraging advanced technologies to identify and extract critical minerals such as copper and cobalt, challenging China’s dominance in the region.

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Copper Frenzy Draws Mining Giants to Argentina After Milei’s Reforms – by Jonathan Gilbert and James Attwood (Bloomberg News – May 22, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Global mining heavyweights including Lundin Mining Corp., Glencore Plc and First Quantum Minerals Ltd. are piling into Argentina as a new government intent on luring foreign investment propels the companies closer than ever to opening up vast copper deposits in the red-hued Andes.

It’s part of a colossal wave of spending needed worldwide to prevent a supply crunch for the metal, a critical component of the electrification push to slow climate change.

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Along Peru’s mining corridor, Big Copper faces a snarl of trucks – by Marco Aquino (Reuters – June 19, 2024)

https://www.reuters.com/

LIMA, June 19 (Reuters) – Surging copper prices this year have brought startling growth in the number of trucks carrying copper from illegal mines in Peru, jamming roads, causing accidents and creating hazardous conditions especially after dark along the Andean country’s key “mining corridor” highway, industry sources told Reuters.

With copper demand soaring as the world rapidly moves toward electric vehicles and clean energy, illegal mining has been booming. Trucks linked to artisan and illegal mining operations have been crowding vehicles from mines like Chinese-controlled MMG Ltd’s Las Bambas, Hudbay’s Constancia and Glencore’s Antapaccay.

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New York Copper Market Tightens Again, Piling Pressure on Shorts – by Mark Burton and Jack Farchy (Bloomberg News – June 19, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Spot copper prices are again trading at a steep premium to later-dated futures in New York, putting fresh pressure on holders of short positions after a historic squeeze last month.

The July-delivery Comex copper traded at a 7.4 cent-per-pound premium to the September contract, in a condition known as backwardation that typically signals a supply shortage. The spread traded in an unprecedented 29.25-cent backwardation last month, putting huge pressure on commodity traders and investors with short positions in the July contract.

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Sprott explains the new copper supercycle – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – June 13, 2024)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

The following is an abridged version of the copper supercycle as explained by Sprott in its current monthly report.

A new copper supercycle is emerging, built on several rising geopolitical and market trends, including electrification, national security concerns, environmental policy, supply constraints and deglobalization. In combination, these are a powerful catalyst for copper demand.

The prior commodities supercycle that started two decades ago was driven by China rejoining the global economy, leading to mass industrialization and the urbanization of hundreds of millions of people. The current copper supercycle is far more global in reach, has many more demand sectors, and is entwined with the national security of many countries.

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Nevada Copper shareholders face loss of investment as Elliott Investment circles to provide emergency bankruptcy funding – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – June 12, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Nevada Copper Corp. shareholders are poised to lose their entire investment, with the struggling Canadian miner seeking bankruptcy protection, and hoping to secure emergency financing from U.S. hedge fund Elliott Investment Management.

The Vancouver-based company has struggled for years to ramp up production at its Pumpkin Hollow copper mine in Nevada. Earlier this year, the company told investors it was a going-concern risk and was running a dangerously high debt load against a dwindling cash position. As of the end of March, Nevada Copper held only US$300,000 in cash, had a working-capital deficit of US$115.4-million, and total debt of approximately US$262-million.

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