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Altron expects double-digit earnings increases from continuing operations

Published: 17 May 24

JSE-listed Altron expects to deliver higher earnings from continuing operations for the year ended February 28, 2024. In a revised trading statement on Friday, Altron said that its headline earnings per share (HEPS) for continuing operations are expected to be 35% to 38% higher, at between 115c and 117c in 2024, from the reported 85c in 2023.

The cleared site of a building collapse in George

George building collapse rescue, recovery operations wrapped up

Published: 17 May 24

Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning Anton Bredell has confirmed that the rescue and recovery operation at the site of a building collapse, in George, has been concluded. More than 1 000 rescue, support and volunteer workers carried out the 260-hour operation, which saw more than 6 000 t of rubble carefully removed to enable rescue workers to search for survivors.

China’s top copper miner to ramp up output as supply risks mount

Published: 17 May 24

China’s leading copper miner raised its output guidance at a time when prices have been rallying toward a record on expected deficits. Zijin Mining Group aims to boost mined copper production to 1.22-million tons in 2025, up 4% from a previous target, according to a filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange late Thursday. Output for 2028 would surge to between 1.5-and 1.6-million tons, it said, which would be up about 50% from 2023.

NCOP votes to pass Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill

Published: 17 May 24

Engineering News editor Terence Creamer discusses the significance of the National Council of Provinces' (NCOP's) vote to pass the Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill; if the Bill is likely to face any opposition; and what further actions can be expected once the Bill becomes law.

Wits School of Mining Engineering Professor Fred Cawood

Greater man/machine collaboration needed as AI, automation evolve – Cawood

Published: 17 May 24

In the new world of digitised and automated mining that is headed towards increased dependence on AI to solve problems and facilitate complex processes, University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) School of Mining Engineering Professor Fred Cawood has warned against an overreliance on such technologies without human checks and balances in place. “If you find yourself in a space where you can't perform a certain activity, you will have to get the experts to help you because we can get it seriously wrong with automation if we do not understand the risks involved. So, thou shalt not automate that which thou cannot do thyself,” he said at the Mind Shift conference hosted by Mine Equipment Manufacturers of South Africa, in Sandton, on May 16.

Green Energy, Manganese Metal Co, Anglo American make headlines

Published: 17 May 24

Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer unpacks Nedbank's belief that Green Energy is a reindustrialisation opportunity for South Africa; Manganese Metal Co's first-mover advance to enter the manganese battery metal market; and Anglo American’s proposed demerging of Anglo Platinum and De Beers, which could mean value elevation for the miner.

Trafigura says aluminium rally is ‘over done’ as supply returns

Published: 17 May 24

Aluminum prices should decline by at least 6% over the next six months as supply returns to the market and high interest rates continue to crimp manufacturing demand, according to an analyst from Trafigura Group, one of the biggest traders of the metal. “We’re looking at a very grim demand picture right now,” metals analyst Henry Van said at the CRU World Aluminum Conference in London on Wednesday. “It’s a fundamentally overdone rally.”

Hot commodity silver sets pace as demand and deficit drive rally

Published: 17 May 24

Gold’s record-setting rally may have captured the headlines this year, but it’s silver that’s running harder and faster as the less glamorous metal benefits from robust financial and industrial demand. Silver has soared by almost a quarter in 2024, outpacing gold and making it one of the year’s best-performing major commodities. Yet in relative terms, silver is still cheap. It currently takes about 80 ounces of silver to buy 1 ounce of gold, compared with the 20-year average of 68.

Investment in certain minerals, notably copper and lithium, is falling short of what was required for transition to net-zero energy system

Today’s well-supplied market for critical minerals ‘may not be a good guide for future’

Published: 17 May 24

A new International Energy Agency (IEA) report describes the sharp decline in critical mineral prices over the past year as a double-edged sword, cautioning that, while it has been a boon for clean energy deployment and affordability, it is a bane for critical mineral investment and diversification. The ‘Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2024’ highlights that, following two years of dramatic increases, the prices of critical minerals fell steeply in 2023, returning to levels last seen before the pandemic.

Share sales rebound 98% in Toronto as copper, gold prices surge

Published: 17 May 24

After a miserable year for share sales, Canada’s largest exchange is seeing a rebound thanks to mining firms raising capital as copper and gold prices have spiked. The volume of total financings on the Toronto Stock Exchange jumped 98% in the first four months of the year to C$4.9-billion from C$2.5-billion, according to data from exchange operator TMX Group, representing a sharp increase after an historically bleak year for equity market financing activity on Canada’s largest exchange.