Panama President Laurentino Cortizo declared a total ban on all new mining projects, effective October 27, reported Reuters. Cortizo said the new restriction will apply to both future mining projects as well as those currently seeking permits. The abrupt halt comes as the government defends a controversial extension of First Quantum’s Cobre Panama contract. The deal guarantees the country an…
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Freeport-McMoRan’s Bagdad operation in Arizona will become the first copper mine in the United States to implement a fully autonomous haulage system (AHS). The miner will convert its fleet of 33 Cat 793 haul trucks using Cat MineStar Command for hauling. Full story.
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Trigon Metals said it achieved commercial production as of October 11 at its Kombat copper mine in Namibia. The milestone marks a major step forward in Trigon’s journey toward becoming a leading mid-tier copper producer. The miner said commercial production status was achieved swiftly in accordance with its targets. The mill started producing concentrate on August 3 then Triggon proceeded…
Read MoreExtending an already long-standing relationship with its customer, FLSmith said it recently delivered a trio of its Top Service Design (TSUV) gyratory crushers to a South American copper mine. The new order allows FLSmidth to overhaul existing equipment with newer crusher technologies to boost efficiency for the leading copper miner, the name of which the supplier did not disclose. The…
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First Quantum Minerals’ Minera Panama and the workers union Utramipa reached an agreement to avoid a planned strike at its Cobre Panama copper mine, reported Reuters. The news agency said Utramipa had threatened to stop work alleging an impasse in negotiation with the directors of Minera Panama over profit sharing and wage increases. Minera Panama confirmed in a September 9…
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Global engineering, procurement and construction giant Bechtel has chosen Latin American equipment remarketing expert Elebbre to manage a major auction of its equipment from a Chile mine expansion and desalination plant construction, all underpinned by the latest auction technology from Krank. The task of managing the sale of equipment such as dump trucks, boom trucks and cranes for one of…
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Caterpillar and Utah dealer wheeler Machinery have completed the installation of a Cat MineStar fleet management system at Rio Tinto’s Kennecott Bingham Canyon copper mine outside Salt Lake City. Full story.
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A group of researchers at West Virginia University have been awarded US$3 million from the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to increase the supply of rare earth elements and critical minerals extracted from acid mine drainage across the country. Full story.
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A Chilean environmental court has issued a temporary work stoppage order that will prevent Canadian miner Lundin from reopening its Alcaparrosa copper mine, reported Reuters. The mine closed in July 2022 after a gaping sinkhole opened in nearby Tierra Amarilla village. The order was requested by government agency CDE, which has filed a lawsuit accusing the miner and its subsidiary…
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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