Anglo American confirmed 3 July that De Beers Group and the government of the Republic of Botswana have reached an agreement in principle on a new 10-year sales agreement for Debswana’s rough diamond production through to 2033, as well as a 25-year extension of the Debswana mining licenses through to 2054.
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Authorities reportedly revealed late last week that 31 illegal miners at a shuttered South African gold operation perished in a methane explosion – an incident that occurred nearly a month ago, brought to light only when family members reported them missing. According to an Associated Press report, all of the workers – believed to be from the county of Lesotho…
Read MoreAustralian-based, African-focused developer Sovereign Metals has commenced a bulk sample program at its Kasiya graphite site in Malawi. The program will take an initial four tonnes of flake graphite pre-concentrate produced at the company’s laboratory ready for dispatch to the SGS Lakefield, where laboratory upgrades are now under way to enable continuous production of bulk sample going forward. “Initial characterisation…
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UK-headquartered Hummingbird Resources announced the first gold pour from its Kouroussa gold operation in Guinea occurred on 8 June. The achievement, made on time and on budget, comes after the start of commissioning in early May. The mine will now ramp up to commercial production levels during the second half of this year. Kouroussa – which currently has a ROM…
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Sibanye-Stillwater has concluded its first power purchase agreement (PPA) and achieved financial close for an 89-megawatt wind energy project. The clean energy will be generated by the Castle Wind Farm, located near De Aar, South Africa, and will supply the miner’s South African operations via a wheeling agreement with Eskom. Under the terms of the 15-year PPA, the Castle Wind…
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Canadian precious metals miner Fortuna Silver has confirmed the pouring of first gold at its Séguéla operation in Côte d’Ivoire. The milestone was celebrated 24 May, and the operation is now transitioning from commissioning to its ramp-up phase – and has the distinction of being Fortuna’s fifth operating mine. CEO Jorge Ganoza said the mine’s team, which “performed phenomenally” was…
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Sandfire Resources said that its new Motheo mine in Botswana’s Kalahari Copper Belt has produced first copper concentrate with the introduction of ore to the SAG mill.
Read MoreAfrica-focused mining operator Marula Mining has formed a wholly owned operating subsidiary company in Kenya, Muchai Mining Kenya, that will examine near-term and advanced copper and graphite mining opportunities in the country. The company said its decision to establish Muchai came after extensive due diligence of several opportunities for copper and graphite, which it said should be concluded “in due…
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After dry and wet runs of the wash plant at the site as well as the integration of the screen with the broader processing facilities, UK development company Contango Holdings confirmed production of washed coking coal beginning 23 May at its flagship Lubu project in Zimbabwe. Officials said coking coal stockpiles have already been established by the Wirtgen surface miner,…
Read MorePerenti Limited and its UMA joint venture African Underground Mining Services (AUMS) has been awarded a new five-year, A$630 million deal for work at the Newmont Subika underground gold mine in Ghana. Under the terms of the contract, which is effective from 1 January 2023, Perenti will perform all underground development and production activities, diamond drilling and associated support services…
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