The emerging mineral deals between the United States and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are posing direct challenges to China’s mineral domination in Africa, some Chinese media warned, urging stakeholders to rapidly look for alternative solutions such as diversifying from its heavy reliance on a single country or bringing foreign capitals into their investment. Xiao Wenhao, an analyst at Shanghai Metals Market (SMM), warned in a recent WeChat post that the U.S. and Congo DR’s deals could have an immediate effect on China’s mineral supply chains, especially cobalt, potentially resulting in what he characterized as a “structural deficiency”. Therefore, he said,…
Author: TJ Markle
Appointed only last year to lead the body responsible for regulating mineral resources and environmental protection in international waters, Leticia Reis de Carvalho has faced strong headwinds. Negotiations on an international mining code – a rulebook to ensure the safe exploitation of seabed minerals – have been dragging on since 2019. Divisions among the roughly 170 members of the autonomous organisation set up under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) are blocking the adoption of the mining code’s third pillar, meant to regulate the extraction of critical minerals in international waters. Now, with the United States deciding…
Africa holds 30% of the world’s critical reserves and is disrupting the global market, creating many lessons for procurement leaders to learn The long-term security of critical mineral feedstock is one of the leading focuses for procurement leaders, overtaking “just-in-time” sourcing. Africa, currently holding 30% of the world’s critical mineral reserves, has become a primary test-bed for this realignment. With global demand projected to quadruple by 2050, the continent is moving from a peripheral supplier to a central pillar of the industrial supply chain. African Mining Week (AMW) 2026, which is being staged by Energy Capital & Power in October…
New Cat 6015 design offers increased uptime, higher annual output and streamlined service WITH a versatile, flexible design offering efficient operation for a range of tasks, the new Cat 6015 hydraulic mining shovel boasts significant design enhancements that are said to increase machine uptime, operating efficiency, and improve durability and serviceability, resulting in higher annual shovel output and delivering low cost-per-tonne operation. ‘We’ve given the new 6015 class-leading tool carrying capacity and heavy-duty undercarriage protection to deliver reliable and productive operation in the most demanding conditions,’ explained Ryan Mitchell, hydraulic mining shovel product value stream manager for Caterpillar. ‘With its…
US President Donald Trump isn’t letting his diplomatic tiff with South Africa get in the way of business. Fresh off last week’s inaugural critical minerals ministerial in Washington, US energy officials and private-sector executives are headed straight to Cape Town for the Mining Indaba. Today through Thursday, Africa’s largest mining conference will host more than 10,000 attendees from across the world, including almost 3,000 government officials and mining executives. Expected attendees include US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) Acting Director Thomas Hardy; US International Development Corporation (DFC) Acting Vice President for Infrastructure and Critical Minerals Danielle Montgomery and Acting VP for Foreign Policy Bethany Aquilina Brez; US…
We think Barrick Mining stock is significantly overvalued. Barrick’s fourth-quarter adjusted net profit after tax more than doubled year on year, to $1.8 billion ($1.04 per share)—the booming gold price more than offset rising unit cash costs. With lower sales volumes, this drove 2025 adjusted NPAT up 87%, to $4.1 billion ($2.42 per share). Why it matters: Full-year results exceeded our estimate, the biggest driver being higher-than-expected gold sales volumes in the fourth quarter. Near-term volume guidance is moderately lower than we expected, but this is broadly offset by lower unit cash cost guidance. It won’t repurchase additional shares in…
Chinese equipment brand Boonray has developed an autonomous, battery-swapping electric mining truck that it hopes will revolutionize the global mining industry – and global EV leader BYD just gave it a multimillion dollar vote of confidence. Led by a team of scientists from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and built with L4-level autonomous driving technology at its core, Boonray has been working to develop key technologies for futuristic mines like AI algorithms and vehicle-by-wire systems – and the company’s tech so far is convincing enough that BYD has chosen to invest RMB 100 million (~14.5 million USD) to help push it along even further. According to Boonray,…
Mali will create a state-owned company to manage holdings in mining companies, according to a statement released by the council of ministers. Other resource-producing countries in West Africa such as Niger and Guinea have been managing their assets through similar state-owned mechanisms. The company, Sopamim, whose capital is fully owned by the state, will acquire and manage Mali’s holdings, according to the statement released late on Friday. In 2022, Mali created another state-owned company called Sorem with the aim to explore and develop mineral resources. Mali’s military rulers introduced a new mining code in 2023, expanding state and local ownership…
As nations posture over access to rare earth deposits, scientists say these coveted materials are hiding in plain sight – and can be harvested without any conventional mining at all. In a lab in Austria, two scientists are watching a fungus grow. Developing fungi form sprawling microscopic networks called mycelia, inserting themselves into nooks and crannies all around. Searching, spreading, feeding. It’s through the mycelium’s millions of tiny, root-like strands that the fungus draws up nutrients. But some fungi soak up other things, too. Things that humans want. The lab fungus, at the University of Vienna, is growing in a…
Bodies of 3 men who worked for Vancouver-based Vizsla Silver Corp. have been identified Jaime Castañeda said he identified the body of his 43-year-old geologist brother on Sunday by viewing photographs presented to him by officials at the federal attorney general’s local headquarters in the coastal Mexican city of Mazatlán, in the northwestern state of Sinaloa. José Manuel Castañeda Hernández was working for Vancouver-based mining company Vizsla Silver Corp. when he was kidnapped on Jan. 23, along with nine other employees, from Concordia, a municipality that sits about 50 kilometres east of Mazatlán. “In truth, this has been very painful…