All systems go for Essakane gold project

Ottawa-based Orezone Resources now has all the necessary approvals in place for its Essakane gold project, in Burkina Faso, after the country's Minister of Mines and Energy signed a 20-year mining convention for the operation. The signing of the...

Harmony workers down tools after fatal accidents

JSE-listed Harmony Gold said that 6 500 employees had halted work at its Virginia operations on Tuesday, after two workers died at local mines, in the past five days. Spokesperson Amelia Soares said that the action was not legal, and that...

Agnico-Eagle expands Nunavut footprint

Toronto-based Agnico-Eagle Mines has agreed to buy a 14,5% stake in Comaplex Minerals, which has interests in two gold projects in Canada's Nunavut Territory. Agnico-Eagle, which plans to start up its Meadowbank mine in Nunavut in January 2010,...

Human rights group 'deeply concerned' about DRC mine contract negotiations

US nongovernmental organisation the Carter Centre on Monday urged the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) not to rush ahead with the process of renegotiating key mining contracts until clear guidelines have been established and people with the...

Cleveland-Cliffs plans $290m capacity expansion, buys out JV partner

US iron-ore producer Cleveland-Cliffs has approved a project to increase iron-ore output at two of its mines, the company announced in a statement. Work on the project will get under way this year, although most of the capital expenditure will...

Riverside Resources agrees to buy Mexican gold prospect

TSX Venture Exchange-listed Riverside Resources has signed an option agreement to acquire a privately-owned gold property in western Sonora, Mexico, for $400 000, the company said on Monday. The 485-ha Destierro property abuts the company's...

AngloGold Ashanti trims hedgebook by 39%

South African gold major AngloGold Ashanti has reduced its gold hedge position by 39%, or 4,4-million ounces in the first half of this year, and achieved better-than-expected production and cash costs in the second quarter, the company said on...

Mmamabula power plant will be carbon capture ready, CIC assures

Although carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is still some way from commercial implementation on a large scale, Toronto- and Botswana-listed CIC Energy, which plans to build a coal mine and power station at its Mmamabula project in...

Barrick moves on oil, natural gas firm in bid to hedge energy costs

The world's biggest gold-miner, Barrick Gold, has made an unsolicited acquisition proposal to Calgary-based Cadence Energy, in a move to put a lid on the effects of rising energy costs on the group's bottom line. Barrick plans to offer C$6,00 a...

Gold Fields grows international assets as it targets 5Moz

Africa’s second-biggest gold producer, Gold Fields, had plans to produce five-million ounces of the yellow metal in the next three to four years, from the current four-million ounces. Senior vice president: North American investor relations,...

Confident Western Prospector waives shareholder rights plan to 'force an end' to hostile bid

TSX Venture Exchange-listed Western Prospector has opted to waive its investor rights plan, after enough shareholders indicated they would not accept an unsolicited offer from rival Khan Resources. “By waiving the shareholders rights plan in...

Uracan secures option to buy stake in Saskatchewan uranium prospect

Canadian uranium hopeful Uracan Resources has signed an agreement giving it an option to buy 75% of a project in northern Saskatchewan, from Bonaventure Enterprises, the firm announced on Friday. The prospect surrounds Uracan's Portage Zone...