Copper – Page 73 – Republic of Mining

The World Needs Copper. Does It Need This Controversial Mine? – by Julia Rosen (National Geographic – November 15, 2017)

November 15, 2017

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/

The fight over the proposed Pebble mine in southern Alaska is a harbinger: Global copper demand is expected to grow dramatically.

On a Thursday in October, dozens of Alaskans piled into a cavernous airplane hangar in the remote village of Iliamna to discuss — yet again — the fate of the proposed Pebble Mine. Seventeen miles to the northwest, underneath snaking rivers and spongy bogs, lies one of the largest undeveloped deposits of copper and gold in North America.

Mining companies have been exploring it for decades. But many fear that an open pit mine here, at the headwaters of two of the last great salmon rivers on Earth, will harm fish — and the people who depend on them.

In 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency moved to impose restrictions that would have blocked plans for a large mine, citing the impacts on fish-bearing streams, lakes, ponds, and wetlands. But the mine’s backers sued, putting the restrictions on hold.

Copper Traders Are Making High-Flying Bets About the Future of the Metal – by Mark Burton (Bloomberg News – November 8, 2017)

November 9, 2017

https://www.bloomberg.com/

The frenzy in the copper market is luring traders to take high-flying bets that prices are headed back toward a record.

Call options wagering on copper climbing above $10,000 a metric ton by December 2018 have started trading during the past two weeks, London Metal Exchange data show. In total, traders have spent about $4.5 million on the contracts.

Copper hasn’t traded at those levels since 2011, the peak of a commodities boom mainly fueled by a roaring economy in China, the biggest user.

Armed separatists occupy villages near Freeport’s Indonesia mine – by Fergus Jensen, Agustinus Beo Da Costa and Sam Wanda (Reuters U.S. – November 9, 2017)

November 9, 2017

http://www.reuters.com/

JAKARTA/TIMIKA, Indonesia (Reuters) – Armed separatists have occupied five villages in Indonesia’s Papua province, threatening to disrupt Freeport-McMoRan Inc’s giant Grasberg copper mine, which has already been hit this year by labor unrest and a dispute over operating rights.

A state of emergency has been declared and around 300 additional security forces have been deployed to the mining area of the eastern province after a string of shootings since Aug. 17 that killed one police officer and wounded six.

“They want to disrupt Freeport’s operations,” said Suryadi Diaz, a spokesman for the Papua police. “(Freeport) is rich but they are poor, so they just want justice,” Diaz said, adding that the militants were a splinter group of the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM).

Congo mining output rises, central bank warns of inflation risk – by Aaron Ross (Reuters U.S. – November 6, 2017)

November 6, 2017

https://www.reuters.com/

DAKAR (Reuters) – Copper production in Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa’s top producer of the metal, rose by 9.3 percent in the first nine months of this year, but soaring inflation remains a risk to the economy, the central bank warned on Monday.

Rising mining production should help ease some of the economic problems in Congo where inflation is expected to hit 48 percent this year and the Congolese franc has fallen by 22 percent against the dollar, largely due to lingering effects from two years of low commodity prices.

Copper production in the first nine months of the year stood at 831,000 tonnes, the central bank said in a monthly report, while cobalt production increased by 18 percent to 59,000 tonnes and gold production rose 5.7 percent to 23,000 kg.

BHP to step up copper exploration, expansions to meet electric vehicles sector’s rising demand – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – November 1, 2017)

November 3, 2017

http://www.mining.com/

World’s biggest miner getting ready to provide enough copper for the booming electric cars industry.

World number one mining company BHP (ASX, NYSE: BHP) (LON:BLT) plans to step up copper exploration and expansions as it wants to be ready to meet electric vehicles sector’s rising demand for copper.

“We want more copper resources in our portfolio. And we believe the most valuable pathway to achieving this is through exploration, the drill bit,” Danny Malchuk, president of operations at BHP’s Minerals Americas, said at Bloomberg’s LME Week forum on Wednesday.

Unlike most miners, which slashed exploration budgets during the downturn that ended last year, BHP has kept its copper exploration budget steady at an average of $60 million annually over the last four-to-five years out of its overall budget for exploration of around $1 billion, Reuters reports.

LME WEEK-BHP aims for more copper, oil; steers away from EV minerals – by Barbara Lewis (Reuters U.K. – November 2, 2017)

November 2, 2017

https://uk.reuters.com/

LONDON, Nov 2 (Reuters) – The world’s biggest miner BHP’s response to the electric vehicle debate is to hunt for new reserves of copper and oil, while seeking a buyer for its assets to produce battery-grade nickel and steering clear of lithium and cobalt.

Arnoud Balhuizen, chief commercial officer at BHP, has said 2017 marks a “tipping point” for electric vehicles in that they have entered the mainstream of metals demand forecasting. In terms of sales, however, the mass move is further off as hybrids and conventional cars stay on the roads for a transition period.

Balhuizen estimates that shift would be around 2030, which is also when BHP expects demand for oil from light vehicles to peak. Other forms of oil demand, including from industry and heavy goods transport, are likely to be more sustained.

Global copper balance widens to 160 000 t deficit as refined output stalls – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – October 31, 2017)

October 31, 2017

http://www.miningweekly.com/

VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – The world’s refined copper balance has increased to 160 000 t for the first seven months of 2017, as refined copper supply has stagnated, according to the International Copper Study Group (ICSG).

The Lisbon-based think tank said the July deficit was in fact the lowest recorded so far this year, at 35 000 t, despite a 0.5% decline in refined copper use to 13 690 t, as scrap supplies improved and constrained use growth globally. This was significantly more than the six-month copper balance that showed a deficit of 75 000 t.

In the first seven months of 2017, the world refined copper balance, adjusted for changes in Chinese bonded stocks, indicated a deficit of about 90 000 t, up from a deficit of about 5 000 t reported last month.

Archaeologists Startled to Find Remains of Pregnant Woman Buried in ‘King Solomon’s Mines’ – by Ariel David (Haaretz.com – October 31, 2017)

October 31, 2017

https://www.haaretz.com/

Archaeologists digging at the ancient copper mines in Timna, a valley in Israel’s southern desert, were surprised to discover the 3,200-year-old remains of an Egyptian woman, where no women had been thought to have tread.

The woman was in the early stages of pregnancy when she died. She was buried near an ancient Egyptian temple in the heart of what archaeologists once nicknamed “King Solomon’s Mines” because they believed that the site was controlled by the biblical king, an idea that remains hotly contested.

“It is very rare to find human remains in Timna, and it is the first time we find a woman,” says archaeologist Erez Ben Yosef, who leads the Tel Aviv University team that has been excavating the site since 2012.

LMEWEEK-Codelco’s lithium a magnet for more than 10 firms – chairman – by Pratima Desai (Reuters U.S. – October 31, 2017)

October 31, 2017

https://www.reuters.com/

LONDON, Oct 31 (Reuters) – More than 10 companies have expressed interest in partnering with Codelco, one of the world’s largest copper producers, to exploit its lithium assets in Chile, the firm’s chairman told Reuters.

The chairman, Oscar Landerretche, was speaking during LME Week, a gathering of the metal industry in London. Lithium is a key component in rechargeable batteries that fuel electric vehicles, a segment of the auto industry expected to grow exponentially in coming years.

Companies with lithium assets are attracting huge investor interest, as can be seen in an exchange-traded fund comprised of lithium firms, up nearly 60 percent so far this year. Lithium in Chile is found in brine deposits, which can take seven years or more to develop.

KGHM chief sees high copper prices boosting earnings this year (Reuters/MiningWeekly.com – October 25, 2017)

October 25, 2017

http://www.miningweekly.com/

WARSAW – Poland’s KGHM, one of the world’s biggest copper and silver producers, will likely improve core earnings this year as high copper prices and output from its mines offset smelter troubles, CEO Radoslaw Domagalski-Labedzki said.

Speaking ahead of quarterly earnings due on November 14, the CEO told Reuters: “I think that the third-quarter results will confirm that the full-year EBITDA will be higher than last year.

“Reaching the seven-billion zlotys EBITDA target in 2021 is absolutely within reach, but would it be possible to achieve earlier? … Logic says this should be possible,” he added, citing copper prices, foreign exchange rates and cost-cutting.

Mixed fortunes for Anglo’s copper, coal and nickel divisions – by Ilan Solomons (MiningWeekly.com – October 24, 2017)

October 24, 2017

http://www.miningweekly.com/

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Diversified major Anglo American recorded increases in production at its copper units, while coal and nickel production decreased in the third quarter, ended September 30.

The company on Tuesday posted a 6% year-on-year increase in production on a copper-equivalent basis in the third quarter of the year. For the first nine months of the year, copper equivalent production had increased by 8%, while copper production increased by 5% to 147 300 t.

Production from the Los Bronces mine, in Chile, increased by 8% to 78 100 t. Anglo American stated that higher ore grades at the mine had been partially offset by the impact of a ball mill stator failure at the processing plant, which reduced throughput. Repairs are scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter.

Special Report: Grasberg mine talks signal Indonesia’s strengthening resolve – by Alexander Macleod (Global Risk Insights – October 21, 2017)

October 23, 2017

Despite some issues concerning the Indonesian government’s divestment plans for the province of Papua’s Grasberg mine, there are growing signs that Indonesia will get its way. Nevertheless, Indonesia’s ruthless treatment of Freeport will alert future investors.

This year has been unforgiving to Freeport McMoRan Inc, an invaluable player in Indonesia’s mining sector. On August 29, after months of tense negotiations, Freeport agreed to relinquish a 51% share in Grasberg, the world’s second-largest gold and copper mine, to the Indonesian government.

Having acquired Grasberg early in the Suharto era, American corporation Freeport has since transformed it into a ‘super mine’. Grasberg produced 500,000 tonnes of copper and 1.1m ounces of gold in 2016 – over 25% of Freeport’s worldwide output.

Rio Holds Talks With Indonesia About Exit from Giant Mine – by Brett Foley and David Stringer (Bloomberg News – October 20, 2017)

October 20, 2017

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Rio Tinto Group has held talks with Indonesian groups, including state-owned PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium, about a possible exit from its interest in the giant Grasberg copper and gold operation, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Executives at Rio held meetings in recent weeks, including in Indonesia, on a potential sale of its income stream asset that’s part of the joint venture agreement with Grasberg’s operator Freeport-McMoRan Inc., said the people, asking not to be identified as details are private.

Rio is studying a range of options that could enable it to sell on its interest, the people said. There’s no guarantee that the talks will advance, or that any deal will eventuate, the people said.

Investors pile into Peru’s $2 billion Michiquillay copper project – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – October 16, 2017)

October 16, 2017

http://www.mining.com/

More than 20 companies are hoping to grab one of Peru’s hottest copper assets, as the country readies to auction off the rights to develop it in December, authorities said Monday.

The $2 billion Michiquillay copper project, located in the country’s northern Cajamarca region, was originally scheduled to be auctioned off next month, but state bidding agency Proinversión decided to push back the date so that interested companies have more time to submit offers, it said in a statement (in Spanish).

Companies have until Nov. 2 to sign up for the auction. A contract for the project, said the agency, will be awarded on Dec. 20.

Grasberg mine’s riches still a distant glitter for Papuan communities – by Hans Nicholas Jong (Mongabay – October 13, 2017)

October 13, 2017

https://news.mongabay.com/

High hopes that the world’s biggest gold mine will finally bring meaningful benefit to the community for which it has for decades been a source of contention have been deflated as negotiations hit a wall.

Freeport McMoRan Inc. (FCX) and the Indonesian government are currently hashing out the details of a long-term agreement for an extension of the company’s contract to operate the giant Grasberg gold and copper mine in Papua province, due to expire in 2021.

Freeport announced in August that it had agreed to divest a 51 percent stake in its Indonesian subsidiary, PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI), in which it currently holds a 90.64 percent stake, following sustained pressure by the government to reform a mining sector long seen as not doing enough to benefit local communities or contribute to the national economy.