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Vale’s Strategic Alternatives for Nickel Assets in 2025 – by John Zadeh (Discovery Alert – April 30, 2025)

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Market Challenges and Future Outlook

Brazilian mining giant Vale S.A. faces critical decisions regarding its nickel operations amid a complex global market landscape dominated by oversupply pressures and shifting demand dynamics. The company’s strategic review of its nickel portfolio, initiated in early 2025, reflects both short-term operational challenges and long-term optimism about nickel’s role in the energy transition.

This report synthesizes Vale’s current challenges, strategic options, and the broader market forces shaping its decisions, with a focus on Indonesia’s disruptive production growth and the evolving electric vehicle (EV) sector.

What Challenges Is Vale Facing in the Nickel Market?

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What is deep-sea mining and why is Donald Trump suddenly so interested in it? – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – April 30, 2025)

https://financialpost.com/

Canadian company stands to gain from U.S. president’s thirst for critical minerals

An executive order signed by United States President Donald Trump last week could potentially challenge existing global norms linked to deep-sea mining as he tries to reduce his country’s reliance on China for critical minerals. Trump’s order lists several instructions to speed up the start of seabed mining, such as expediting reviews of mineral exploration licences and commercial permits in areas “beyond national jurisdiction.”

The move was lauded by Vancouver-based Metals Co. Inc. (TMC), which has exploration rights in two areas of the Pacific Ocean and has been evaluating U.S. locations since 2019. On Tuesday, it applied for two additional exploration licences and one commercial recovery permit.

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The Search for Golconda – by Stellene Volandes (Town and Country – December 12, 2012)

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/

A mysterious mine somewhere in India once produced the world’s most magnificent diamonds — the stones Napoleon, English monarchs, and Mughal emperors fought to own. Now they’re causing a new uproar — and setting record prices.

For his first day at Harry Winston, in January 2010, Frédéric de Narp, the company’s contagiously enthusiastic president and CEO, had one request: He wanted to hold the Hope diamond. The 110-carat blue stone, first sold to Louis XIV in 1668, was stolen from the French court jewels during the looting of the Treasury, in 1792.

In 1812 it mysteriously reappeared, in the hands of a London diamond merchant, and in 1946, Winston himself acquired it as part of the jewelry collection of Evalyn Walsh McLean, wife of the owner of the Washington Post. (The couple had bought it in 1911 for a reported $300,000.) Winston donated it to the Smithsonian Institution.

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From Queen’s Park to the core of Ontario mining: An interview with Chris Hodgson – by Tamer Elbokl, PhD and Kesiah Stoker (Canadian Mining Journal – April 28, 2025)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Few figures have shaped Ontario’s mining landscape as profoundly as Chris Hodgson (CH). He has left an indelible mark on Ontario’s mining industry. His career, which spanned both politics and industry leadership, showcases his unwavering dedication to the sector.

Hodgson’s journey from natural resources critic to mining minister, and ultimately to a 20-year tenure as president of the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), reflects a deep commitment to advancing the sector. In this wide-ranging interview, Hodgson speaks with the Canadian Mining Journal about his unexpected entry into mining, the tough decisions that defined his time in office, and the major strides made under his leadership — from groundbreaking safety reforms to reshaping public perceptions of the industry.

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New Turmoil in Regulating Deep Seabed Mining on the High Seas – by Tom LaTourrette and Douglas Ligor(Modern Diplomacy – April 27, 2025)

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The still potential-but-perhaps-soon-to-be-real world of seabed mining took an interesting turn in the past month.

The still potential-but-perhaps-soon-to-be-real world of seabed mining took an interesting turn in the past month. The announcement from The Metals Company that it “has formally initiated a process…to apply for exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits under existing U.S. legislation, the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act of 1980 (DSHMRA)” came just prior to the White House’s issuance of a new executive order authorizing this approach.

These announcements mark major course changes. The Metals Company is essentially giving up on the existing international framework to govern and regulate seabed mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction (the high seas), and the U.S., which to date has been a largely passive observer of efforts to develop seabed mining, may be about to thrust itself into the center of the action.

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Teck, tariffs, and the Red Dog zinc mine – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – April 28, 2025)

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/

Teck Resources Ltd. CEO Johnathan Price says the diversified Canadian miner’s portfolio of American mining operations delivering metals critical to 21st-century energy and technologies are well-positioned to weather a geopolitical storm that threatens to hobble the global economy, fuel inflation, and disrupt supply chains.

“Despite these headwinds, we believe that the fundamentals for our key metals, copper and zinc, are robust over the medium and long term as several macro factors continue to drive demand,” he informed analysts and investors during an April 24 earnings call. “These metals are essential for global manufacturing and development, industrial policy and national security, electrification infrastructure, as well as the growth of the digital economy.”

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Why the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act Was Enacted Swiftly and Silently – by Mariyam Suleman Anees (The Diplomat – April 28, 2025)

https://thediplomat.com/

The controversial law will undermine restive Balochistan’s rights over its mineral reserves.

In the second week of March, while the media was busy covering the deadly train hijacking in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, the provincial assembly quietly and in great haste passed an important and now controversial piece of legislation: the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act, 2025.

With little to no discussion or opposition to the bill, it silently slipped through the Balochistan provincial assembly and became an act on March 14, receiving barely any media coverage. Only after a similar bill in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province sparked controversy did the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act come into the limelight.

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BC First Nation files ‘urgent’ injunction to halt tailings dam construction at Mount Polley mine – by Amanda Stutt (Mining.com – April 28, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

A British Columbia First Nation filed on Friday an injunction application on an “urgent basis” in Supreme Court to halt construction to raise the dam at the former Mount Polley gold mine. Xatśūll First Nation government is part of the larger Secwepemc (Shuswap) nation, located in the Cariboo region of the Canadian province.

The Xatśūll First Nation first filed a judicial review on April 15 with the Supreme Court of BC against the province’s minister of mining and critical minerals, the minister of environment and parks, the provincial deputy permitting officer, major mines offices and the Mount Polley Mining Corporation to overturn two provincial decisions authorizing Mount Polley Mining (MPMC) to raise the height of the dam at its tailings storage facility (TSF).

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US-Europe fault lines widen over critical raw materials at IEA energy security summit – by Julienne Raboca (Fastmarkets – April 28, 2025)

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US advocates for continued fossil fuel development

At a panel on integrating energy security within a broader security network, acting US Assistant Secretary for Energy – Tommy Joyce delivered a blunt assessment of clean energy technology vulnerabilities, directly challenging the European push for rapid decarbonization.

“For true energy security, we must leverage all resources that are affordable, that are available, and that are secure,” Joyce said. “It’s about energy addition, not subtraction. And there’s no world in which the demand for energy is going to decrease.”

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New Osisko study for Cariboo project lifts NPV, costs – by Frederic Tomesco (Northern Miner – April 28, 2025)

Global mining news

An updated feasibility study for Osisko Development’s (TSXV, NYSE: ODV) Cariboo gold project in British Columbia increases net present value (NPV) by 88% even as estimated capital expenditures climb by more than one-third.

Cariboo’s after-tax NPV now stands at $943 million, up from a 2023 estimate of $502 million, Osisko said Monday in a statement. Projected capital expenditures are pegged at $1.41 billion compared with $1.02 billion previously.

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Burkina Faso to Nationalise More Industrial Mines in Strategic Shift – by John Zadeh (Discovery Alert – April 29, 2025)

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Burkina Faso’s Mining Nationalization: Strategic Resource Control in West Africa

In a major policy shift reshaping West Africa’s mining landscape, Burkina Faso has embarked on an ambitious nationalization program targeting its lucrative gold mining sector. The military-led government is systematically expanding state control over foreign-owned mines, positioning this resource nationalism as essential for economic sovereignty.

Prime Minister Jean Emmanuel Ouédraogo recently confirmed in a televised address that Burkina Faso to nationalise more industrial mines following initial acquisitions from Western mining companies. “The Société de Participation Minière du Burkina has already recovered two industrial mines from private operators, and this process will continue,” he stated, signaling more takeovers on the horizon.

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Critical Minerals Are a US Headache, Not an Emergency – by Javier Blas (Bloomberg News – April 29, 2025)

https://www.advisorperspectives.com/

In the 1950s, the US was worried about the supply of mercury, because the liquid metal was key to power walkie-talkies during the Korean War. In the 1980s, analysts warned that mineral shortages to rival the OPEC oil shock could undermine the Cold War arsenal.

Today, the concern is about China cornering the market for lithium and cobalt, which are needed for high-capacity batteries. The panic over the years has inevitably influenced policy even if heeding cooler heads would offer reassurance. Which brings us to the current US administration.

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Unlocking investment in critical minerals in Kazakhstan – by Caroline Peachey (Mining Technology – April 29, 2025)

https://www.mining-technology.com/

Kazakhstan is looking to position itself as a key player in the global critical minerals supply chain, starting with battery materials.

Kazakhstan hosts substantial reserves of critical minerals including rare earth elements (REEs), copper, lithium, tungsten, tantalum as well as other materials essential for modern technologies and the energy transition.

Recognising the strategic importance of these resources, the Kazakh Government has introduced efforts to attract foreign investment and technological expertise to develop its critical minerals sector.

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Billionaire investor John Paulson sees gold near $5,000 by 2028 – by Ernest Scheyder (Reuters – April 29, 2025)

https://www.reuters.com/

Central bank gold buying and global trade tensions are likely to push bullion prices to near $5,000 an ounce by 2028, billionaire investor John Paulson said in an interview during which he reinforced his commitment to US mining projects

The price forecast is one of the most bullish yet as banks and others move to increase their own estimates after gold hit a record high just above $3,500 last week. Deutsche Bank, for one, expects bullion to hit $3,700 an ounce by next year.

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Canadian gold miner Mandalay agrees to US$358-million takeover by smaller Australian competitor – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – April 29, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Australia’s Alkane Resources Ltd. is buying Canada’s Mandalay Resources Corp. in a US$358-million transaction driven by the contention that bigger is better in the gold industry. Perth-based Alkane and Toronto-based Mandalay hope that, by combining operations, investors will reward the combined company with a “rerate” – a higher stock-market multiple.

Despite record-high bullion prices, many gold miners continue to have difficulty attracting investors. That’s partly owing to the industry’s poor track record, but also the ease at which investors can gain exposure to gold through exchange-traded funds.

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