GHANA
Burkina Faso joins Africa’s gold refining drive
- Staff Writer
ENERGY
West lags China on sodium battery tech
THE West has fallen behind China in developing sodium-ion batteries, a breakthrough technology using saltwater rather than lithium, industry experts have told the Financial Times. Researchers have found that…
PLATINUM
Does Sibanye-Stillwater need its US mine? Probably not
THE Stillwater palladium mine in Montana has performed many functions under the ownership of Sibanye-Stillwater, the JSE miner. When the group first bought it in 2017 for $2.2bn, it was the showpiece asset of…
MINING
Mali unions threaten strikes at Barrick mine
UNIONS at Barrick Mining’s Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex in Mali have lodged a series of strike notices, threatening to disrupt operations at one of the country’s biggest gold producers from September 28,…
EXPORTS
Transnet is moving but a cash crisis looms
FOR most of the past decade Transnet has had an obvious problem: it wasn’t moving enough freight. Its latest results show good progress on that front, and suggest that the parastatal’s crisis of operations is…
IRON ORE
Glencore suspends executive over Radiant scandal
GLENCORE has suspended Peter Hill, its head of steelmaking raw materials, as the fallout from its dealings with Singapore-based iron ore trader Radiant World deepens, the Financial Times reported. Hill has…
ANGLO AMERICAN
Botswana rules out reckless De Beers spending
BOTSWANA will not compromise its financial stability to increase its stake in De Beers, said Bloomberg News citing the country’s vice president Ndaba Gaolathe. The country, whose diamond partnership with De…
DEBT
US steps back into Niger with $414m uranium deal
THE US government has approved up to $414m in financing for a uranium project in Niger, Reuters reported. The move comes two years after Niger expelled US forces from the country. The US Development Finance…
EXPORTS
Ivory Coast plans gold refinery start in 2027
IVORY COAST plans to start operating a gold refinery in the first half of 2027 as it seeks to expand local processing and become Africa’s largest gold producer by 2035, Bloomberg reported. The Société…
RIO TINTO
Iron ore majors struggle to replace depleted reserves
THE world’s biggest iron ore producers are depleting reserves faster than they can replace them, Bloomberg reported, citing research by Wood Mackenzie. The trend is pushing up the cost of maintaining…
DEBT
Fresh capital, old problems for Zimbabwe mining
ARE investors still too wary of Zimbabwe’s mining sector? Two international miners – Caledonia Mining and Tharisa – think so, and both are committing significant capital to projects in the country. But their…
MINING
Expensive yes, but $300m bond takes Tharisa to next step
UNTIL Northam Platinum unveiled plans last month to grow production by 50%, its smaller counterpart, Tharisa, was something of a rarity in the platinum group metals (PGM) industry. Tharisa’s Karo Platinum…
OIL
Caledonia closes in on funding for $600m Bilboes project
CALEDONIA Mining said it was close to securing further funding for its Bilboes gold project in Zimbabwe, with a $150m interim bank facility due to close as early as October. The company plans to spend just…
BARBERTON MINES
Pan African plans R500m buy-back after declaring record dividend
PAN African Resources announced plans to buy back up to R500m of its own shares after a surge in cash flow helped it declare a record final dividend for its 2026 financial year. Cobus Loots, CEO of Pan…
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Glencore faces $2bn lawsuit as it alleges Radiant World fraud
TRADING firm Radiant World has alleged Glencore deliberately kept the “true nature” of their partnership out of its own audited books, according to the Financial Times citing a lawsuit seeking more than $2bn…
WATERBERG
Why Implats has changed its tune on Waterberg
IMPALA Platinum (Implats) earlier this month declared R13.1bn in final dividends, a sum that outshone its rivals. It also revised its payout policy in such a way that the door is open to similar largesse.…