Sibanye Gold dives headlong into platinum
In less than a month, South African miner Sibanye Gold (NYSE: SBGL) has announced two acquisitions that will make it a big player in the platinum market, and the fifth-largest PGM producer in the world.
Africa
Tycoon takes 9.9% stake in Teranga Gold
David Mimran — a financier, Hollywood movie producer and CEO of his family’s Mimran Group, whose wealth stems from agri-industry (flour, sugarcane, grain, animal feed) to banking, shipping and real estate — has taken a 9.9%…
Morocco’s OCP aims to dominate phosphate industry
MARRAKESH, MOROCCO — It’s hard not to be struck by the juxtaposition of tradition and progress when sitting in the back of a worn taxi cab winding its way through the maze-like confines of the medina quarter in the high-profile…
Editorial: World’s biggest gold miners reap benefits of renewed discipline
Listening to the CEOs of the world’s largest gold miners at this year’s annual Denver Gold Forum in September, you couldn’t help but notice they all sang off the same songsheet, despite the challenges of their individual…
Randgold, AngloGold to revive Obuasi
In what would become their third partnership in a decade, Randgold Resources (LSE: RRS; NASDAQ: GOLD) and AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE: AU) have signed an investment agreement to consider setting up a joint venture that would redevelop and operate…
Sherritt scraps dividend, moves to protect liquidity
David Pathe, president and CEO of Sherritt International (TSX: S), did not mince words when he said the company needed to take action to protect its balance sheet so that it could withstand lower commodity prices, with “more than 60% of…
Sawiris-backed La Mancha to acquire 30% of Endeavour Mining
La Mancha, a privately held investment company controlled by the family of Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris — who earlier this month tweeted that he wants to buy an island in Europe to provide a home for refugees fleeing war-torn Syria…
Editorial: Burkina Faso rattled by coup
For global gold miners, the emerging gold mining industry in Burkina Faso has been a wonderful success story of discovery and mine development in a land that until recently had little modern industry of any kind, or infrastructure.
Ivanhoe sparks Laurentian-Limpopo partnership
Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN; US-OTC: IVPAF) has partnered with Laurentian University in Sudbury and Limpopo University in South Africa to develop Limpopo’s geology department into a “centre of excellence in geosciences.”
Commentary: African expatriate salaries continue to fall
Expatriate salary benchmarks in Africa are trending downward with a 10% drop in base salaries over the past year, according to research by our firm Globe 24-7, an African-specialist human resources consultancy.
Glencore latest to slash near-term copper production
VANCOUVER — Copper producers have seen margins come under pressure, as spot prices for the red metal hover near six-year lows well below the US$3 per lb. level over the medium-term. London-based Glencore (LSE: GLEN) is the latest miner to…
Editorial: Signs of life in copper market
Glencore’s surprise decision to cut back its copper production coupled with stronger-than-expected Chinese copper import data have had a salutary effect on copper prices, which jumped 5% on Sept. 8 to record their biggest one-day…