Rio Tinto builds out metals trading arm
RIO Tinto plans to expand its metals trading operations, including buying and selling material from third parties and trading derivatives, Bloomberg reported. The move is part of…
Glencore in talks with Guinea on alumina, energy
GUINEA is in talks with Glencore over possible investments in alumina refining and energy after the two sides struck a bauxite deal last week, Reuters reported. State-owned Nimba…
Rio Tinto to buy Glencore bauxite project
RIO Tinto has agreed to buy the Aurukun bauxite project in Queensland from Glencore and Mitsubishi Development for an undisclosed sum, Bloomberg reported. The project is close to…
South32 profits surge as reshaped portfolio delivers
South32 cracked it in the year to end-June more than doubling operating profit from continuing operations and declaring a 5.4 US cents final dividend which boosted the total…
Glencore wins Guinea bauxite offtake deal
GUINEA has selected Glencore Plc as the offtaker for bauxite produced by state-owned Nimba Mining, Bloomberg reports. The appointment followed an international tender, Mines and…
South32’s long road from ‘crapco’ to copper
MATT Daley, the Australian-born CEO of South32, takes over a company far simpler in structure than the demerged assets bequeathed to his compatriot, Graham Kerr. When Kerr made…
South32-Alcoa deal exposes beneficiation myth
THERE are few words in South African economic policy more seductive than “beneficiation”. It has everything: moral uplift, industrial ambition, a pleasingly muscular rhythm and…
South32 waiting for IDC to play hand in Mozal sale
SOUTH32 is waiting for firm proposals from minority shareholders in Mozal Aluminium before progressing recently hatched plans to sell the 370,000 ton a year Mozambique smelter.…
South32 to sell aluminium assets to Alcoa for $4.1bn
SOUTH32 is to sell its aluminium assets, including South Africa’s Hillside facilities but excluding the shuttered Mozal Aluminium in Mozambique, to Canada’s Alcoa for $4.1bn in…
Iran war tightens industrial metals supply outlook
A MAJOR squeeze is emerging across industrial metals markets as the ongoing US-Israeli war against Iran compounds structural supply shortfalls, said the Financial Times on…
Guinea unveils plan to curb bauxite exports after surge
GUINEA is to announce reforms next month aimed at restricting exports of bauxite, Bloomberg News reported on Monday. This comes after a surge in shipments from Guinea – which is…
Chalco plans $1bn Guinea alumina plant
CHINA’S largest state-owned aluminium producer is to invest $1bn in an alumina processing plant in Guinea, marking its first foray into overseas refining as Chinese companies…
South32 pumps aluminium output to seize high prices
SOUTH32, the global metals producer, is pulling out all stops to take advantage of aluminium prices at four-year highs, even as the Middle East conflict pushes up input costs. As…
South32 too risky for predators, says outgoing CEO
AN estimated $34bn in deals has gripped the mining sector since 2024, according to Canadian law firm Dentons. Efforts to consolidate ownership and strip back complicated…
South32 to incur $60m cost as Mozal mothballed
SOUTH32 said on Monday it had put its 63.7%-owned, 320,000 ton a year Mozal aluminium smelter in Mozambique on care and maintenance, effective March 15. Costs associated with the…
Aluminium surges on Middle East conflict supply fears
ALUMINIUM prices jumped as conflict in the Middle East raised fears over disruption to a critical shipping route used by producers responsible for nearly a tenth of global…
South32 confirms Mozal closure with loss of 4,000 jobs
SOUTH32 confirmed its Mozambique aluminium smelter Mozal will be put on care and maintenance next month amid last minute efforts by local authorities to deliver a price for…
Pressure on Eskom as South32’s Mozal edges towards closure
PRESSURE on Eskom, South Africa’s main electricity supplier, to come up with more affordable power tariffs for more of its industrial customers has intensified after South32 said…
SA iron ore exports could face margin squeeze
A PILLAR of Kumba Iron Ore’s business case is that about two-thirds of its 35 to 37 million tons in annual production is sold as lumpy iron ore. Steelmakers pay a premium for…
Guinea seizes bauxite mine from Emirates Global Aluminium
GUINEA’S military government has transferred a bauxite mining lease from Emirates Global Aluminium’s local subsidiary to a newly established state-owned entity, escalating…