MINEX Forum

Tag: copper mining

  • Blue Moon Metals Diversifies with Copper Assets in Norway

    Blue Moon Metals Diversifies with Copper Assets in Norway

    Blue Moon Metals is expanding its portfolio with the acquisition of two former copper-producing properties in Norway to diversify beyond its U.S.-based zinc project and focus on near-term production opportunities. The company, headquartered in Vancouver, announced two deals to acquire the Nussir and NSG properties for $55.3 million and $12 million, respectively, funded through the issuance of common shares priced at C$0.30 each.

    Shares of Blue Moon traded at C$0.355 on Thursday, giving the company a market capitalization of C$18.9 million. The acquisitions are part of a broader plan to raise C$30 million to C$50 million in equity, with the majority allocated to advancing the Nussir project.

    Newly appointed CEO Christian Kargl-Simard described the move as an opportunity to establish a copper-zinc development company in Tier 1 jurisdictions. The Nussir property, with existing infrastructure like roads, power, and port access, hosted mining operations until 1979. The project is supported by an updated feasibility study from SRK Consulting, estimating an initial capital cost of $101 million.

    The NSG property, located in northern Norway, is notable as it could become the first new copper mine in the country in over 50 years. This site, rich in historic copper deposits, holds a historical estimate of 29.4 million tonnes at 0.9% copper and 0.17% zinc. Blue Moon plans to expand on the project’s resource base with regional exploration.

    Meanwhile, the company continues to advance its Blue Moon polymetallic project in California, which has a resource estimate of 3.5 million indicated tonnes at a zinc-equivalent grade of 11.07%. A preliminary economic assessment is expected in early 2025.

    These initiatives aim to balance the company’s historic copper assets in Norway with its zinc-silver resource in the U.S., marking a new phase in its growth trajectory.

  • Arras Minerals to Launch Copper and Gold Drilling in Kazakhstan by 2025

    Arras Minerals to Launch Copper and Gold Drilling in Kazakhstan by 2025

    Arras Minerals, a Canadian mining company, has announced plans to commence active drilling for copper and golddeposits in Kazakhstan’s Pavlodar region in the first half of 2025. This decision follows an extensive geological exploration campaign conducted in 2024, covering a 1,700-square-kilometer area near its Beskauga, Elemes, and Tay projects close to Ekibastuz.

    During its exploration efforts, the company drilled 435 holes and collected 35,000 soil samples, identifying promising sites for further drilling. The first phase of drilling will target high-priority copper deposits under shallow cover, previously unexplored. Tim Barry, CEO of Arras Minerals, expressed excitement about the progress, stating: “We anticipate commencing drill-testing of several high-priority copper targets, currently undrilled and under shallow cover, in the first half of 2025.”

    The exploration focuses on two main sites: a 1,300-square-kilometer area located 56 kilometers northwest of Ekibastuz near the Bozshakol mine, owned by Kaz Minerals, and another site 90 kilometers southeast of Ekibastuz, which includes the Akkuduk and Norgubek projects. Both areas are believed to hold substantial copper and gold reserves.

    Arras Minerals is positioned as a major player in Kazakhstan, holding the third-largest license package for copper and gold exploration, behind only Rio Tinto and Fortescue. In December 2023, the company secured a partnership with Teck Resources Limited (TRL), under which Teck will invest $5 million in geological exploration between 2024 and 2025. Teck Resources also holds a 10% stake in the Beskauga project.

    In a September 2024 interview, Darren Klinck, President of Arras Minerals, praised Kazakhstan’s mining industry reforms, highlighting the nation’s adoption of practices from regions like Western Australia and Canada. Klinck described Kazakhstan as one of the most business-friendly mining jurisdictions, noting the country’s significant progress in attracting international investment.

    With these advancements, Arras Minerals is well-positioned to contribute to and benefit from Kazakhstan’s growing mining sector, which continues to attract global attention.

  • Megado Minerals Secures Major Stake in Spain’s Iberian Copper Project

    Megado Minerals Secures Major Stake in Spain’s Iberian Copper Project

    Megado Minerals, an Australian mining company, has unveiled plans for a significant acquisition in northern Spain, aiming to acquire an 80% stake in the Iberian Copper Project. Covering 956 square kilometers, this expansive project includes 12 permits and houses at least 12 historic copper mines.

    The acquisition will proceed through a share swap agreement with Iberian Copper (ICPL) shareholders. In return for their stake, Megado will issue 175 million shares, 175 million Class A performance rights, and 175 million Class B performance rights. These performance rights are convertible into shares on a one-to-one basis, pending the achievement of key project-related milestones.

    Megado directors Anthony Hall and Aaron Bertolatti are non-controlling shareholders of ICPL, which may raise potential conflicts of interest; however, both directors are expected to recuse themselves from decisions directly affecting the acquisition.

    To finance the acquisition, Megado will initiate a non-renounceable rights issue, offering one share for every two shares held at A$0.012 per share. This rights issue could potentially raise A$1.53 million to support the acquisition and future developments.

    The deal marks a significant expansion for Megado in the copper sector, presenting strong growth potential if project milestones are met and as global copper demand continues to rise.

  • Lundin Mining’s European Assets Attract Interest from Multiple Buyers

    Lundin Mining’s European Assets Attract Interest from Multiple Buyers

    Canadian metals producer Lundin Mining is exploring the sale of its European assets, with several potential buyersexpressing interest. CEO Jack Lundin confirmed in a Tuesday interview in Vancouver that the company’s oldest operations in Sweden and Portugal—the Zinkgruvan and Neves-Corvo mines—are now considered non-core. “We have a lot of interested parties looking at our European assets,” Lundin said, adding that the company is evaluating whether selling these mines will unlock greater value.
    The mines, which contributed 19% of Lundin’s revenue last year, were put on the market earlier this year as Lundin shifts its focus to Latin America. The company has already moved forward on projects in South America, including a joint venture with BHP Group to acquire Filo in July, a key step in developing large copper mines in Argentina.
    Lundin aims to complete the sale of the European mines within the next year, noting the need for a swift process to avoid unnecessary distractions. “We don’t want this to drag on for more than six to 12 months longer,” he emphasized.

  • Tarutinskoye Company to Begin Copper Ore Mining in Kostanay Region by 2028

    Tarutinskoye Company to Begin Copper Ore Mining in Kostanay Region by 2028

    The Tarutinskoye Company is planning to start mining copper ore in the Karabalyk District of Kazakhstan’s Kostanay Region. The company has been conducting exploration since 2013, as detailed in the mining plan available on Kazakhstan’s Unified Environmental Portal.

    The East Tarutinskoye deposit was added to the state balance of mineral resources in early 2021, with confirmed reserves of 2.226 million tons of ore, containing 22.1 thousand tons of copper (average content of 1.09%), 5.6 tons of silver (average content of 2.76 g/t), and 88.5 kg of gold (average content of 0.39 g/t).

    In addition, off-balance reserves amount to 10 million tons of ore, containing 69.7 thousand tons of copper (0.7%), 27.4 tons of silver (2.81 g/t), and 297.5 kg of gold (1.19 g/t).

    The company plans to extract the ore through open-pit mining across three quarries: South, North 1, and North 2. The estimated period for industrial exploitation is five years, with a maximum annual production capacity of 500 thousand tons of ore.

    Currently, there is no infrastructure, including transportation, in place to support the mining operations. Therefore, extraction at the East Tarutinskoye deposit is not expected to begin until 2028. The company still needs to finalize construction projects for an evaporation pond, an access road, and a rail spur at the Buskul station.

    While the company has not disclosed which factories will process the ore, it has indicated that the most efficient enrichment method has already been selected.

  • President of Uzbekistan Reviews Copper Mining and Processing Project in Collaboration with China

    President of Uzbekistan Reviews Copper Mining and Processing Project in Collaboration with China

    President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan visited the site of a copper mining and processing project in cooperation with China, located in the Chust district of the Namangan region, on March 25. Geologic exploration is expected to commence as early as April. A representative of the company, Li Fang Yuan, stated that China Mining Energy Group, established in 2003 with assets totaling $32 billion and a workforce of 40,000 across 17 countries, engages in gold, copper, and aluminum mining.

  • Fierce community opposition to copper, lithium projects threatens energy transition

    Fierce community opposition to copper, lithium projects threatens energy transition

    While nothing new, resource nationalism has ignited high-profile disputes in recent weeks, with First Quantum’s struggles in Panama and lithium miners’ in Portugal the two most radical examples.

    Panama’s ratification of a deal with the Canadian miner allowing it to operate its flagship Cobre Panama copper mine for the next 20 years, triggered violent protests that brought Panama’s capital city almost to a halt. It also scared away investors, forced authorities into a chaotic retreat, wiped out about $6.5 billion of value for shareholders of the company, and led to a nationwide ban on new mines.

    Throughout the controversy, and as the market waits to see if the Supreme Court will kill the agreement, the mine has continued to operate.

    Portuguese anti-mining groups are asking the government to halt and reassess all lithium projects, following allegations of corruption that led Prime Minister Antonio Costa to resign on Tuesday.

    Costa handed in his notice just hours after prosecutors detained his chief of staff in a probe into alleged corruption in his administration’s handling of lithium mine concessions near Portugal’s northern border with Spain. The investigation is also looking into permits granted for a green hydrogen plant and data centre in the town of Sines, about 100km south of Lisbon.

    Portuguese Environment agency APA earlier this year gave environmental approvals for local company Lusorecursos to extract battery-grade lithium and for Savannah Resources to develop four open-pit mines. Both projects are in northern Portugal.

    Savanna, which has hired investment bank Barclays and financial consultancy Barrenjoey to find partners for its Barroso lithium project, said it was cooperating with the authorities. It noted, however, that neither the company nor anyone one of its staff is a target of the investigation.

    Lusorecursos, which plans to start construction in the northern Montalegre in early 2025 and kick off lithium production in late 2027, did not reply to a request for comment.

    The challenges faced by miners in Panama and Portugal, two relatively investor-friendly nations, provide a cautionary tale for foreign investors on the vulnerability of mining projects to public hostility and resource nationalism.

    The developments come only five months after Chile announced a new public-private model for its lithium industry, which will see the state having a majority interest in all new contracts.

    They also cast doubt on plans to invest billions of dollars in the decades to extract copper, lithium and other critical minerals needed for the world to transition away from fossil fuels.

  • The British Anglo Asian Mining has received permission to resume activities in Gedabek

    The British Anglo Asian Mining has received permission to resume activities in Gedabek

    British company Anglo Asian Mining, which is involved in the extraction of precious metals in Azerbaijan, has been granted permission to resume its operations in the “Gedabek” contract area.

    Following the announcement of the immediate resumption of mining, Anglo Asian Mining’s shares experienced a significant increase of 42%, reaching 70.93 pence per share.

    The gold, copper, and silver producer has signed a protocol with the government of Azerbaijan, outlining a plan of action to enhance its operations and procedures based on recommendations from a recent environmental audit conducted by Micon International Ltd.

    “Most of the proposed measures will be implemented by the end of next year, and they will not require substantial costs,” stated the company.

    Anglo Asian Mining highlighted that the prompt resumption of mining activities will result in the production of gold ore and copper concentrate returning to previous levels. The company has maintained its annual production forecast at 30-34 thousand ounces of gold equivalent.

    “The remaining restart operations will be carried out gradually. The flotation plant is expected to resume operations in approximately 90 days, after raising the wall of the existing tailings dam,” the company explained.

    It is worth noting that in late July, Micon representatives visited the Gedabek gold mine to conduct a comprehensive inspection at the request of the Azerbaijani government, focusing on environmental protection and safety measures.

    In September, Anglo Asian Mining reported that radiation levels in the operational area were consistent with natural background conditions, with no issues regarding air quality, and no detection of cyanide exceeding the analytical limits in any soil sample.

    During the audit, the need for modernization to enhance the handling and storage of reagents and other chemicals, as well as the implementation of emergency plans for incidents such as spills or cyanide-related incidents, was identified. Additionally, a technical-economic justification for alternative tailings storage facilities will be prepared.

    The company also expressed its commitment to accelerating the development of the Gilar mine and “actively cooperating” with the government of the Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan to ensure the successful implementation of work to further raise the existing tailings dam at the flotation plant.

    Anglo Asian Mining currently operates in the “Gedabek” and “Gosha” contract areas. Gold extraction began in 2009 at the Gedabek deposit, and in September 2013, the company commenced development in the “Gosha” contract area. This year, mining is planned to commence at the Vejnali and Gilar deposits.

    The PSA-type contract, signed on August 21, 1997, provided for the development of six deposits, with Azerbaijan holding a 51% share in the contract and Anglo Asian Mining PLC holding the remaining 49%. Currently, the company holds the rights to develop eight contract areas in Azerbaijan.

    In 2022, Anglo Asian Mining mined 43,114 thousand ounces of gold in Azerbaijan (an 11.4% decrease compared to 2021), 182,046 thousand ounces of silver (a 17.8% increase), and 2,516 thousand tons of copper (a 5% decrease). In global markets, 34,918 thousand ounces of gold ingots were sold in 2022 (an 11.7% decrease) at an average price of $1,783 per ounce.

  • Anglo Asian Mining may secure a loan to fulfill its obligations

    Anglo Asian Mining may secure a loan to fulfill its obligations

    Anglo Asian Mining, a renowned player in the gold, silver, and copper mining sector in Azerbaijan, is considering the possibility of securing a loan to meet the recommendations put forth by the international monitoring company Micon. These recommendations are based on the findings of waste monitoring conducted in the village of Seyudlyu, located in the Gedabey district.

    In response to a question posed by a correspondent from Report dispatched to Seyudlyu, Reza Vaziri, the General Director of Anglo-Asian Mining PLC, acknowledged that despite the company’s consistent profitability, recent events have resulted in approximately $19 million in damages. Vaziri emphasized the importance of fulfilling these obligations and mentioned the potential approach to banks for assistance. He expressed confidence in the trust banks place in the company’s creditworthiness when it comes to loan arrangements.