Copper prices jump to 26-month high
With the strong economic recovery of China, the world's largest metal consumer, copper prices once again broke through the $3 per pound mark on Monday. The price of copper futures for December delivery on the New York Comex market reached US$3.065 per pound (US$6,757 per ton), which jumped to a 26-month high. CRU Group analysts said: “Copper prices still have room to rise, but they will fluctuate in the short term.” He expects copper prices to rise as early as mid-September, because this is the beginning of the peak copper demand season.
The average carbon dioxide emissions per ounce of gold produced in 2019 is 0.8 tons
The S&P Global Market Financial Intelligence report shows that the carbon dioxide equivalent of every ounce of gold produced in 2019 is 0.8 tons. The soaring gold price has allowed more gold mines to expand production, which has also caused people to worry about the environment. Standard & Poor's said that underground gold mines are of higher grade and generally have lower greenhouse gas emissions than large open-pit mines. Wood Mackenzie's latest research report found that to achieve the decarbonization goal of the Paris Agreement, the carbon dioxide emissions of metal production need to be reduced by half in the next 20 years.
Caofeidian will be a billion-ton international ore trading center
The Caofeidian International Ore Trading Center project is one of the key projects promoted by China Minmetals Corporation. It is understood that the trading center covers comprehensive functions such as bonded, warehousing, ore distribution, value preservation, financing, spot, and futures delivery warehouses. The overall plan covers an area of nearly 2,000 acres and is jointly invested by China Minmetals Group, Caofeidian Port Group and Hegang Group. Nearly 10 billion yuan of construction. At present, the first phase of the project has been completed. It can produce 4 million tons of fine-mixed ore products throughout the year, and the iron ore trading scale will reach 16 million tons. After all, the annual ore spot trading volume will exceed 100 million tons.
Jiangxi Copper's half-year revenue increased by 39.93%
On August 31, Jiangxi Copper released its 2020 interim results announcement. The announcement showed that Jiangxi Copper’s operating income in the first half of the year was 146.985 billion yuan, an increase of 41.942 billion yuan or 39.93% year-on-year. The increase in operating income was mainly due to Hengbang’s consolidation and sales changes. The net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies was 745 million yuan, a decrease of 555 million yuan or 42.68% over the same period of the previous year, mainly due to the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic and the severe economic situation. The weak terminal demand and the comprehensive impact of factors such as the provision of asset impairment in Dongtong Mining.
Oyu Tolgoi mineral project technical report released
Recently, Turquoise Hill Resources Co., Ltd. (Turquoise Hill Resources) released the 2020 Oyu Tolgoi mineral project technical report. Calculated from January 1, 2021, the mine’s service life is expected to be 31 years. Within the term, the raw ore output target is 1.2 billion tons (copper grade is 0.82%, gold is 0.30%, silver is 1.89%), and the average annual ore processing capacity is 40,000 tons, the total output target of copper concentrate is 85 million tons (grade 28%), gold is 8,000 ounces (grade 28%), and silver is 46,500 ounces (grade 52g/t). The target for the output of copper concentrate in 2021 is 180 tons (24% grade), 550 ounces of gold (22g/t grade), and 1000 ounces of silver (44g/t grade). It is estimated that the annual output of copper concentrate will reach The peak value is 580 tons (35% grade). The average annual output target of copper concentrate during the mine’s service life is 270 tons.
Freeport Indonesia Grasberg copper and gold mine workers' protest has ended
It is reported that workers at the Grasberg copper-gold mine in Freeport Indonesia reached an agreement with Freeport-McMoran Inc last Friday and ended the protest. According to a worker representative named Yompis Tabuni, the workers' requests have been met and a written agreement was signed with the company, thus ending the protest. In addition, he also shared a video showing workers removing the stones that were previously used to block roads. Freeport also confirmed that the local government has allowed the relaxation of blockade restrictions. Workers can now leave the mine area through rapid testing instead of the previous PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing.
Russia's gold mines will continue to grow
Fitch Solutions said that Russia's gold production is expected to increase this year and next year, mainly due to the impact of US sanctions on Russia. The agency pointed out that because of sanctions, Russia's state-owned banks cannot handle US dollar-denominated assets, which makes the Russian Central Bank continue to increase its gold reserves. The agency said that in the long run, Russia has many well-stored gold mines, and by 2029 it will surpass China and Australia to become the world's largest gold producer. It is estimated that Russia’s gold production this year will increase to 11.3 million ounces, and it will increase to 15.5 million ounces by 2029, an average annual growth of 3.7%.
Australia's exploration investment rose sharply in the second quarter
The latest data from the Australian Federal Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed that the country's mineral exploration investment increased substantially in the second quarter. The Australian Association of Exploration and Development Companies (AMEC) said on Monday that this figure shows the confidence of the mining industry that the resource industry is to discover new mines to increase employment, create royalties and benefit local communities. In the second quarter, Australia's mineral exploration investment increased by 72.7 million Australian dollars, an increase of 11.91%. Among them, brownfield exploration investment increased by A$67.5 million, an increase of 17.45%, to A$454.3 million; investment in greenfield exploration increased by A$5.3 million, an increase of 2.37%, to A$229 million.
Nimba iron ore project may receive financial support from the World Bank
According to reports, the World Bank is considering a US$135 million investment in the proposed Nimba iron ore project in southeastern Guinea, which is owned by the Canadian High Energy Exploration Company (HPX). According to a 2015 report by the US Geological Survey, Nimba Iron Mine has approximately 1 billion tons of high-grade iron ore. The Canadian High Energy Exploration Company is currently conducting research and hopes to achieve an annual output of 20 million tons.
U.S. steel imports nearly doubled in July
According to the preliminary census data of the US Department of Commerce, US monthly steel imports in July 2020 increased by 92.5% from June to 2.44 million tons. Compared with the same period last year, it was down by 8.8%. In terms of value estimates, the total US steel imports in July were 1.71 billion US dollars, 1.19 billion US dollars in June, and 2.39 billion US dollars in July 2019. The main sources of US steel imports in July include: Brazil, Canada, Mexico, South Korea and Germany tons. According to data from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AS1), the U.S. steel import market share is estimated to be 20% by July 2020, compared to 21% in June and 19% year-to-date.
