The Boa Vista mine produced 4,400 metric tons of niobium last year, up 13% from a year earlier, but is expected to see production decline in 2013 due to lower-quality ore, Anglo American said this month in its fourth-quarter earnings release. Niobium, a relatively small business within Anglo American, generated operating profit of $81 million last year, up 56% from 2011.
China’s state-owned asset regulator named Xu Siwei as vice president of Sinosteel Corp., replacing Zhang Hanguang. Xu, who was also appointed to the position of the Communist Party’s top representative in the company, was previously vice president of China MinmetalsCorp.
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Creating the world’s best mining company is the aim of Mark Cutifani, who takes over the reins of Anglo American as CEO from April 3.
BRAZILIAN giant Vale is set to pay Aquila Resources $150 million for a 24.5 per cent stake in the Belvedere coal project after an independent valuer put a price on the interest to end a long-running dispute.
(Reuters) – French companies must go on the offensive and fight the growing influence of rival China for a stake in Africa’s increasingly competitive markets, France’s Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici said on Saturday.
Wholesale prices to buy gold bullion hovered above $1,690 an ounce Tuesday morning in London, in line with where they started the week, while stocks and commodities were broadly flat and US Treasuries fell, as markets looked ahead to this week’s European Central Bank policy meeting.
http://www.resourceinvestor.com/2012/09/04/gold-silver-continuing-their-upswing-in-global-tr?ref=hp
While China has curbed its rare earth exports, reports emerged that the US, India, Malaysia and Australia have all planned new projects to increase their output of the minerals. It seems that China’s monopoly in the rare earth production may come to an end soon, which will be beneficial for the country as it promotes the healthy development of the industry.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/729902.shtml
Based on Inco process research at Toronto and Port Colborne involving more than 200 technical personnel over the last two and a half years, a comprehensive plan has been drawn up to produce an annual 100 million pounds of refined nickel from previously unexploited lateritic ores in New Caledonia.
http://www.sudburymuseums.ca/triangle/data/INCOTriangle-19700701.pdf
Citigroup and Merrill Lynch analysts have also predicted prices rises along with an upswing in Chinese growth, with the latter raising its long-term nickel price from $7.27/lb to $9.5/lb.
Transition Metals such as Titanium, Zirconium, Niobium can be ultra purifided using Iodide Process.
CVMR Iodide Process
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