JOURNALLondon,July 28, 2000Volume 335No. 8593

Established 1835ISSN 0026-5225 http://www.mining-journal.com

Anglo American plc has taken on fellowLondon-based mining giant Rio Tintoplc in a direct takeover battle forMelbourne-based North Ltd. The assetat the heart of the battle is North’s53% interest in the Robe River iron-oreoperations in Western Australia. LastFriday, Anglo announced a friendlytakeover offer of A$4.20/share in cash,valuing the whole of North at A$3.1billion. Anglo has also agreed thatNorth would pay a A$0.05/share divi-dend to its shareholders prior to theclosing of the offer. Thus Anglo wouldeffectively be paying A$4.25/share forNorth as it stands now, compared withthe A$3.80 offered by the Rio Tintogroup at the end of last month. Rio,which received approval for its bid fromthe Australian Foreign InvestmentReview Board this week, has respondedno further than acknowledging Anglo’soffer.

The directors of North have agreedunanimously to recommend Anglo’soffer to shareholders provided no high-er offer is received. The most likelysource of a higher bid is Rio Tinto,which based the rationale for its initialbid on the cost savings achievable if theRobe River iron ore operations aremerged with its own; particularly ifRobe River’s West Angelas deposit isdeveloped using Rio Tinto’s existing,nearby railway (MJ, June 30, p.497).Should Rio Tinto decide that the sav-ings possible do not justify a higher bid,then it will not retire empty handed:the group bought a 14.5% interest inNorth at A$3.80/share just before itsbid was announced, which would

return a profit of just under A$50 mil-lion if tendered to Anglo’s offer.

Apart from the acceptance ofNorth’s board, Anglo notes the “strongsupport” for its offer from North’sJapanese joint-venture partners inRobe River Iron Ore Associates(RRIA), Mitsui & Co. Ltd (33%),Nippon Steel Corp. (10.5%) andSumitomo Metal Industries Ltd(3.5%). The head of Anglo’s base met-als division, James Campbell, said lastFriday that the Japanese partners inRRIA have agreed to take a “signifi-cant” additional interest in the railwaythat RRIA will need to build to developWest Angelas, over and above theirinterests held through RRIA. Thisadditional funding support for the rail-link is understood to cover about half ofits A$540 million estimated cost, withRRIA funding the balance.

When North announced its decisionearlier this year to develop WestAngelas, the group detailed plans for a340 km railway to link the project tothe existing railway from RRIA’s cur-rent operations at Pannawonica to itsport facilities at Cape Lambert (MJ,March 31, p.241). The total capital costof the project, including the railway,was put then at A$1 billion. The plan-ning envisaged West Angelas commenc-ing production in 2002 at about 7 Mt/yof mainly high-grade lump ore, buildinggradually up to 18 Mt/y by 2007 and 20Mt/y by 2010.

Anglo states that the Japanese part-ners have also “agreed in principle astrategic partnership to accelerate andexpand development” of West Angelas.

Anglo tops Rio’sNorth bid

Inside• Asbestos decision (p.60)• Australian resilience (p.62)• Murrin Murrin moves

(p.67)• PGM head for new highs

(p.70)• Billiton flirts with CVRD

(p.71)

The West Angelas iron-ore deposit.(Photograph courtesy of Robe River IronOre Associates.)

Mr Campbell said that the schedulenow envisaged would take the projectto 20 Mt/y by 2007 and 30 Mt/y by2010. The port facilities currently havea nominal capacity of 30 Mt/y, match-ing the 31.4 Mt (mostly fines, 14%lump ore) shipped from the currentRRIA operations at Pannawonica inthe year to June 30, 2000 (MJ, July 7,p.3). Mr Campbell said that the portfacilities could readily be doubled tohandle the West Angelas ore.

The original decision to developWest Angelas was also founded in parton ‘letters of intent’ signed by theJapanese partners to buy a major pro-portion of the output, including a mini-mum of 7 Mt/y from the first year.Anglo’s bid includes “strong supportfrom Nippon and Sumitomo for addi-tional off-take contracts from theJapanese steel industry” for both WestAngelas and Pannawonica.

Mr Campbell said that the acquisi-tion of North would also give the groupthe opportunity to develop a “globaliron ore alliance”. Details are some-what sketchy, but it appears that somesort of asset pooling with Mitsui isenvisaged. Mitsui has a 40% interest inCaemi Mineraçâo e Metalurgia SA ofBrazil, which in turn holds 85% of the25 Mt/y Brazilian iron ore producerMineraçôes Brasileiras Reunidas SAand 50% of Quebec Cartier Mining Co.of Canada, an 18 Mt/y iron-ore produc-er (8.5 Mt/y as pellets). The latter mayoffer potential synergies with North’s56.1%-owned Iron Ore Co. of Canada,also a pellet producer. Shares in Caemirose 22% this week in reaction. Mitsuialso holds a 51% interest in a listedIndian iron ore producer, Sesa Goa. MrCampbell said that Anglo and Mitsuiwould form a global alliance withAnglo as manager. The asset pooling/exchange would require some cash tochange hands, but he gave no details.

Continued on p.60

Personal copy; not for onward transmission

COMMENT

WORLD GOLDPaul Burton ACSM, M.Sc., MBA

Helen Payne M.Sc., DIC

MINING MAGAZINEJohn Chadwick B.Sc.

Des Clifford B.Sc.

SUPPLEMENTS/REPORTSAustin Wheeler B.Eng.

MINING ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENTTracey Khanna M.Sc., MCSM

CONSTRUCTION PUBLICATIONSIan Clarke B.Sc.

Alan Kennedy B.Sc.Mike Smith HND (Min.)

RESEARCH SERVICESIris Moncrieff

Editorial Consultant & ChairmanMichael West B.Sc., F.Eng.

Managing Director & PublisherLawrence Williams B.Sc., C.Eng.

THE MINING JOURNAL LTD60 Worship StreetLondon EC2A 2HD

Tel: (+44 20) 7216 6060Fax: (+44 20) 7216 6050

E-mail: editorial@mining-journal.com

Subscription Dept: PO Box 10Edenbridge, Kent TN8 5NE, UK

Tel: (+44 1732) 864333Fax: (+44 1732) 865747

E-mail: subscriptions@mining-journal.com

Web Home Page: www.mining-journal.com

Turning JapaneseEditor

Roger Ellis B.Sc., C.Eng.

Deputy and Finance EditorRichard Morgan M.Sc., DIC, C.Eng.

Assistant Editor: Mineral MarketsAndrew Thomas M.Sc., DIC

Assistant Editor: Industry in ActionDominic Mercer M.Sc., DIC, FGS

ProductionSusan RobertsEileen Smith

AdvertisingMichael Bellenger

Frank GordonShelley Hannan

MarketingGareth Bowers

Carole Hoy

Executive DirectorChris Hinde Ph.D., C.Eng.

Mining Journal, published weekly, is available only as part of asubscription with Mining Magazine and Mining Annual Review.

Annual Subscription:£247 (US$440)

© Mining Journal Ltd 2000

Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations

MJ

Anglo’s offer for North (this issue,p.57) represents a bid to establisharguably the most comprehensive

commodity portfolio of any of the top mininggroups. Following Anglo’s agreement tospend US$900 million on Shell Coal earlierthis year, a successful offer for North wouldgive the group major assets in the importantlong-life, less cyclical business of supplyingAustralian coal and iron ore to Asian steelproducers. The North deal is also the largestsingle manifestation to date of Anglo’sstrategy declared four years ago to divestnon-core businesses to expand in mining(MJ, July 5, 1996, p.11), and would raise thegroup’s asset base outside South Africa toroughly half of the total.

Anglo has made no secret of its desire toenter the iron ore business, but opportuni-ties are few and far between. The group wasthwarted in its bid in 1997 for a controllinginterest in CVRD of Brazil, a bigger prizethan North, notably walking away from theBrazilian Government auction rather thanover paying. A grass-roots developmentwould take many years to develop, and tobuild market share.

Anglo describes the North deal as “a keystrategic move to enter the iron ore indus-try”. It was, appropriately, Sir RobertWilson, chairman of Rio Tinto, who oncesaid that when he hears the words ‘strategicdecision’ it usually means the numbers donot work. One task facing the new chiefexecutive of Anglo, Tony Trahar, is to con-vince his shareholders that the numbers dowork. This will not be made any easier by thelack of detailed quantification of theJapanese support for Anglo’s offer.

Mr Trahar said last Friday that Anglo hadevaluated North as worth A$4.00/share ona stand-alone basis (presumably with privi-leged access to data as a friendly bidder),and that the Japanese support is worthA$0.50/share more, without explaining theunderlying calculation. Mr Trahar’s appoint-ment was hoped to be part of a move byAnglo away from the somewhat patronising‘trust us’ approach to investor relations, toa style more suited to the London market.True, it may be the Japanese who are push-

ing to keep the details secret, and theagreements may not yet even have beenquantified and put into contracts. Whatever,shareholders in Anglo are being asked totake rather a lot on trust.

Anglo’s offer certainly surprised the mar-ket. North’s shares were still A$3.82/sharelast Wednesday, around the Rio Tinto offerprice, only rising on Thursday amidstrumours. The market had assumed that anycounter-offer from Anglo must represent anover payment, and would thus be inhibitedby an inability to demonstrate valueenhancement to Anglo’s shareholders. Thislogic was based on the cost savings that areavailable only to Rio Tinto (hence the onuson Anglo to demonstrate the financial wis-dom of its higher offer). However, this think-ing failed to predict the determination of theJapanese to prevent their major source ofiron ore, Australia, falling into just two setsof hands (Rio Tinto and BHP). This determi-nation has not yet been fully tested: MrTrahar said that the Japanese have indicat-ed a willingness to support Anglo in a higheroffer if Rio Tinto raises its bid.

The overriding question then is whether ornot Anglo is offering too much. Anglo’s mar-ket value fell by nearly 7% in reaction at theend of last week, to £32.80/share. Anglo iseffectively arguing that its blank-chequedeal with the Japanese gives it a genuineand unlimited advantage over Rio Tinto, andit may well emerge ahead (along with share-holders in North). The rather longer game ofa possible asset pooling/swap with Mitsuicould also prove highly significant.

The breadth of the Japanese support doesseem mouthwatering, but it has not beenextended as charity. Ultimately, theJapanese are paying to keep their iron-oresupply fragmented in order to strengthentheir hand in the annual price negotiations(rather ironic given their own unitedapproach to price negotiation). The acceler-ated and expanded development of WestAngelas will also boost supply, with the obvi-ous effect on prices. The losers will be theiron ore producers. That is, unless Rio Tintoand BHP can revive their discussions of lastyear to merge their iron ore operations.

58 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

Change High- 52-weekon week Low Max/Min

Share Indices Jul 26 (%) (%)FT 30 3,650 –1.2 23 4,087-3,521US Dow Jones 10,516 –1.7 39 11,551-9,857FTSE Gold Mines 736 –3.1 6 1,232-702Australian All Mining 697 2.9 57 771-597South African Gold 977 –1.4 30 1,358-814Toronto Met/Min 3,329 –1.5 4 4,749-3,266Nikkei Dow 16,503 –2.8 10 20,833-16,044Hang Seng 17,620 –0.5 92 18,096-12,438

Commodity Prices Jul 26Gold (London) $280.05 0.3 37 $324-254Copper (LME) $1,843.00 1.9 87 $1,877.5-1,609Aluminium (U.S. prod.) 64.50c 0.0 25 69-63Brent Blend (dated) $25.83 –8.1 55 $31.16-19.38

LEADING INDICATORSChange High- 52-weekon week Low Max/Min

HSBC Indices Jul 26 (%) (%)(100 on 31/12/88 except*†)

Global Mining 115 –0.6 17 146-109Global Diversified Mining 151 –0.5 20 198-139Smaller Mining Companies 47 0.2 22 59-43Global Base Metal Index 147 0.9 12 204-140North American Base Metal 336 0.0 9 489-322Global Gold Index 50 –2.6 0 78-50Global Gold Ex S Africa 56 –3.1 0 85-56North American Gold 63 –4.8 0 97-63Global Coal Mining† 181 31.2 100 181-124Other Metals/Minerals† 265 –2.8 85 272-219Latin American Mining* 257 3.9 72 286-182Latin American (Ex CVRD)* 147 3.8 37 184-125*100 on 31.12.89 †100 on 31/12/85

KvaernerA global engineering and construction resource.Every project is different. So it’s unlikely that every solution will bethe same. You need a solution built for you from the ground up.That means working with a partner with proven reputation for excellence in technology, engineering, design, construction, project and procurement management. But it also means a partner who thinks and looks outside the box. A partner like Kvaerner.

Kvaerner Kvaerner BowenStockton Toronto Johannesburg Brisbane Salt Lake CityTel +44 1642 602221 Tel +1 416 340 1145 Tel +27 11 884 8710 Tel +61 7 3246 9100 Tel +1 801 263 8940Fax +44 1642 341001 Fax +1 416 343 9300 Fax +27 11 884 5852 Fax +61 7 3246 9130 Fax +1 801 268 9455

San Francisco Santiago Melbourne PhilippinesTel +1 925 866 1166 Tel +562 336 3500 Tel +61 3 9272 3444 Tel +63 2 845 0441Fax +1 925 866 6520 Fax +562 203 6105 Fax +61 3 9272 3333 Fax +63 2 845 2614 www.kvaerner.com

The right solution isn’tnecessarily the obvious one.

TM

Landmark ruling forasbestos claims

More than 3,000 South African miners andtheir families, who are suffering fromasbestos-related diseases, have won theright to sue for damages in the Britishcourts after the House of Lords overturnedan earlier Court of Appeal decision againstthem. The damages will be sought fromCape plc (formerly Cape Industries Ltd), aUK company which had operated asbestosmines in South Africa for almost 90 yearsbefore selling its interests in 1979 toTransvaal Consolidated, part of the thenBarlow Rand group (MJ, May 25, 1979,p.405).

The ruling by the British law lords hascome after a three-year legal battle, and ishighly significant as it is the first time thatthe right has been secured for claims againstthe overseas operations of UK-based com-panies to be held in the UK. Cape hadargued that the claims should be heard inSouth Africa but the law lords said that theclaimants would be denied justice if theywere forced to pursue their actions there. InBritain, they can rely on legal aid. LordBingham of Cornhill, the senior law lord,said there was no convincing evidence thatlegal aid would be available in South Africa,and that lawyers there with expertise in per-sonal injury could not afford to take caseson a ‘no win, no fee’ basis. The claimants,mostly black, would thus have “no means ofobtaining the professional representationand the expert evidence which would beessential”. Also, he noted that South Africahad not yet developed procedures for suchgroup actions.

Lord Bingham said that the centralthrust of the claim against Cape is that thecompany knew that asbestos was gravelyinjurious to health but failed to ensure thatproper working practices and safety precau-tions were observed. The former workersand residents at the Cape operations werereportedly exposed to levels of asbestosdust up to 35 times the UK legal limit.

Ben Jackson, director of Action forSouthern Africa, which has campaignedvigorously for the miners, has described theruling as a landmark judgement, and LeighDay & Co., the solicitors for the claimants,has said that the firm also has hundreds ofcases which it can now pursue againstTurner & Newall concerning that compa-ny’s operations in Swaziland, Zimbabweand India.

Meanwhile, Cape, which contends thatthe fairest and most efficient approachwould be to hear the cases in South Africa,says it would be “oppressive” for them to beheard in the UK. Its lawyers, Davies ArnoldCooper, argues that Cape is not responsiblefor the actions of its former South Africansubsidiaries, and points out that Cape plcwas a 100% shareholder in a holding com-pany for the South African mines.

Cape Industries’ first asbestos mine atKoegas, in northeastern Cape Province,began production in the 1890s and closed in1978 after replacement capacity was com-missioned at Pomfret. Koegas had pro-duced the blue asbestos, crocidolite. Thegroup’s amosite asbestos operations atPenge in the northeastern Transvaal com-menced in 1923. The total combined capaci-ty was about 160,000 t/y. At the time of itswithdrawal from South African asbestos in1979, the controlling interest in CapeIndustries Ltd was held by another UK-based company, Charter Consolidated. ■■

Anglo tops Rio’sNorth bid

Anglo is also “negotiating additional sup-ply contracts with Japanese counterpartiesin other commodities”. Although thesenegotiations are described as separate, theyare clearly part of the general support thatthe Japanese parties are putting behindAnglo’s offer.

Anglo’s offer is subject to the usual regu-latory and other conditions, including aminimum acceptance level of 50.1%. Anglonotes that North’s other assets, in forestry,base metals and gold, are “a natural fit”with its own portfolio, but indicated thatperhaps the uranium interests (68.4%-owned Energy Resources of Australia)“might find another home”.

The A$3.1 billion (US$1.8 billion) cashrequirement would be funded by debt,increasing Anglo’s net debt to US$7.2 bil-lion and increasing its debt gearing to 27-

28%, which the chief executive, TonyTrahar, said last Friday would bring thegroup within its target range of 25-30%.Confusingly, earlier this year, Anglo saidthat it did not expect gearing to exceed 20%in future (MJ, March 24, p.233). Perhapsthe change reflects the uniqueness of theopportunity (Comment, p.58). ■■

Mt Weldrestructuring . . .

This week, Lynas Corp. Ltd announcedthat its agreement with Ashton Mining Ltdin respect of the Mt Weld Rare EarthsProject (MJ, May 5, p.351) has beenrevised such that Lynas will acquire a 51%interest through payment of A$3.2 million(additional to the A$3.2 million paymentfor completing the feasibility study). Also,on December 1, this year, Lynas mayacquire Ashton’s remaining 49% interest bypaying A$7.5 million and issuing sharesequivalent to 15% of Lynas’ issued capital(subject to shareholder approval).Alternatively, Lynas may acquire (on thesame date) an additional 9%, taking itsinterest to 60%, by paying Ashton A$2.2million in cash and shares.

Under the restructuring agreement,Lynas will secure respective interests in theMt Weld Rare Earths and TantalumProjects by acquiring shares in threeAshton subsidiaries – Mt Weld Rare EarthsPty Ltd, Mt Weld Mining Pty Ltd and MtWeld Tantalum Pty Ltd.

The Mt Weld carbonatite is a circularvolcanic plug about 3 km in diameter buriedbeneath alluvium and Tertiary lake sedi-ments. It was first identified during thecourse of an aeromagnetic survey in 1968,and since then it has been the subject of var-ious feasibility studies as a potential sourceof phosphate, rare earths, tantalum andniobium. The rare earths occur mainly insecondary monazite and there is a measuredand indicated resource of 1.99 Mt at anaverage grade of 19.7% rare earth oxides(based on a 14% cut-off). The tantalumand niobium occur in the form of highlyweathered pyrochlore. This may prove diffi-cult to separate and concentrate but theresource is sufficient to provide a substan-tial source of supply for at least 30 years.The tantalum resource has been estimatedto contain some 107 Mlb Ta2O5 and theinferred niobium resource at 273 Mt averag-ing 0.9% Nb2O5.

. . . Anaconda onstandby

Separately, and conditional upon Lynasacquiring all of the issued capital and/orcontrol of Ashton’s three Mt Weld sub-sidiaries, the Australian nickel producerAnaconda Nickel Ltd has reached an agree-

MINING WEEK

60 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

Continued from p.57)

SUPPLEMENTSForthcoming supplements to

Mining Journal include:

• Johannesburg(September 1st)

• Emerging Markets(September 22nd)

• Vancouver(November 24th)

For advertising information, please contactmike.bellenger@mining-journal.com

For editorial information, please contactchris.hinde@mining-journal.com

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7216 6060Fax: +44 (0) 20 7216 6050

ment with Lynas whereby it can acquire 80-100% of all metals at Mt Weld. The agree-ment covers all the mining tenements overthe Mt Weld carbonatite and complementsthe Rare Earths Project, and the fertiliserjoint venture between Anaconda andWesfarmers. (The major shareholders inAnaconda include Anglo American plc,Glencore International AG and SherrittInternational Inc.)

Anaconda may earn participating inter-ests in all tantalum within the Mt WeldMining Tenements by completing: drilling,metallurgical testwork and a scoping studyto the value of A$500,000 to earn a 49%interest; a prefeasibility study to the valueof a further A$1.0 million to earn a furtherparticipating interest of 31%; and a defini-tive feasibility study for mining and pro-cessing minerals for the extraction and pro-cessing of tantalum to earn a further 10%interest. Lynas has the right to retain a con-tributing participating interest of 20% inthe Tantalum JV by reimbursing Anacondafor 20% of the costs of the definitive feasi-bility study. (Niobium will be included inthe jv where niobium is contained in tanta-lum minerals and if the extraction and pro-duction of both metals is technically andcommercially feasible.)

Upon execution of the Mt Weld ProjectsAgreement (following Lynas’ acquisition of

the Mt Weld companies from Ashton)Anaconda will have, in addition to theTantalum JV, the sole right to mine andextract all other metals within the Mt WeldMining Tenements.

Anaconda will provide financial supportfor Lynas in its acquisition of the Mt Weldcompanies, and has agreed to underwritethe first A$2.0 million worth of shareoptions in Lynas – the latter is seeking toraise A$9.2 million in additional equityfunding on or before November 15 this yearby issuing 46 million options atA$0.20/share. If Anaconda exercises itsright to the options it underwrites, it willsecure 8.5% of the issued capital of Lynas.

Anaconda will also help to arrangefinancing for the Rare Earths Project andwill provide technical assistance. The pro-ject, as presently envisaged, would produce5,500 t/y of contained rare earth oxides,with capital costs of the order of US$50-60million, including US$10-15 million for themine and concentrator, and US$40-45 mil-lion for the secondary processing facility. ■■

Energy reviewThe 49th edition of ‘Statistical Review ofWorld Energy’ was released by BP Amocoearlier this month. The review notes that

world energy consumption effectively stag-nated for a second consecutive year in 1999,growing by just 0.2% compared with anaverage rate of 0.9% over the past ten years.The weakness in consumption, however,was concentrated in the developingeconomies. In the OECD area, which repre-sents almost 60% of world energy demand,consumption grew by 1.4%.

The Asian economic crisis took its toll:energy consumption fell by 2.3% in theAsia Pacific region “led by a dramatic10.7% fall in China”. Nevertheless, China’sshare of world consumption was still animpressive 8.8% (1998: 9.9%), and SouthKorea posted the biggest increase of anycountry with a 9.3% rise. Romania saw thelargest decline, of 12.4%, and seven othercountries also showed decreases of morethan 5%.

There were strong contrasts in the perfor-mances of the different fuels in 1999; con-sumption of oil, natural gas and nuclearenergy all grew by more than their ten-yeartrends, whereas coal and hydroelectricitywere below trend.

Although world oil consumption last yearrose by 1.6% to 3,462 Mt, productiondipped by 2.3% to 3,452 Mt. The USaccounted for 10% of production and 25%of consumption. OPEC, which accountedfor 41% of world production, reduced out

MINING WEEK

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 61

The world’s only global one stop consultancyCall your local head office now for details.

There is only one name in the explorationmining industry that you will need to

remember for independent reporting

Africa+27 11 441 1111

Australasia+61 8 9322 2993

Canada+1 604 681 4196

Europe+44 1222 23 5566

South America+56 2 269 0353

USA+1 303 985 1333

Photo reproduced with kind permission from NASA

Every so often something impacts on our industrycausing both extinction and opportunity

TAKE OVER? MERGER? ACQUISITION?

SRKCONSULTING

Last year, as the annual Diggers &Dealers forum convened inKalgoorlie, Western Australia, the

gold price was US$255.30/oz and theAustralian Stock Exchange gold indexstood at 815.90. When the 2000 forumbegan in Kalgoorlie this week, the ASXindex was more than 10% lower, at 729.30,and the gold price was marginally higher atUS$279.30/oz. However, despite the pooreconomic environment, the forumattracted record numbers of registrationswith 850 miners and financiers descendingon the small Western Australian city. Inaddition, exhibitor numbers rose, with 75mining and service companies populatingthe massive marquee beside the conferencecentre.

Over the past eight years, the conferencehas evolved to reflect the needs of the min-ing investment community at any one time,and the programme mix has diversifiedfrom pure gold to feature, in particular,companies involved in nickel, anothermajor mineral of interest in WesternAustralia. This year, in addition, presenta-tions were made by a number of companiesengaged in the winning of copper, tin, ironore and rare earth minerals.

Diggers & Dealers has also become amore international gathering, and this yearthe South Africans featured prominently,both as interested parties and, in the case ofAngloGold, now as a major Australian pro-ducer. Other South African companies mak-ing presentations included Gold Fields,Harmony and Impala Platinum.

Exploration imperativeThis year’s conference exhorted delegates

to “explore as never before” –- a worthy butperhaps optimistic banner given the state ofthe market. According to David Reed, ses-sion chairman from CIBC Eyres Reed,exploration expenditure in WesternAustralia has fallen this year to its lowestlevel since 1987. However, there were a num-ber of companies in Kalgoorlie who canboast recent exploration success.

WMC’s exploration programme inWestern Australia led to two important dis-coveries within the June quarter. At St Ivesa “low- to medium-grade” gold deposit hasbeen discovered at Belleisle that could allowthe expansion plans for St Ives that weremothballed three years ago to be resurrect-ed (MJ, July 7, p.9). According to WMC’sexecutive general manager for gold, TonyO’Neill, drilling results at Belleisle suggestthat the deposit has the potential to bedeveloped into a large open pit.

Also in WA, WMC recently announcedthe discovery of a large polymetallic depositat its West Musgrave project. In addition tothe published nickel and copper potential ofNebo and Babel, Mr O’Neill confirmed thepresence of two other anomalies.

62 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

-put by 5.4%, and the cutback by its mem-bers was a feature of 1999, contributing tothe 39% jump in the average price of Brentcrude in 1999 to US$18.25/bbl (one barrel =0.136 tonnes). Non-OPEC output also fell,the exception being the UK where produc-tion rose by 3.4%. At 137 Mt, the UK con-tributed some 4% of world output but itsproven oil reserves are less than for any oth-er significant producing country and at cur-rent production rates they could beexhausted within five years.

World consumption of natural gas con-tinues to grow, with a 2.4% rise last year to2,064 million tonnes of oil equivalent.Production kept slightly ahead, with a2.5% increase to 2,097 Mtoe. Two coun-tries, the US and Russia, accounted forsome 47% of total output but, whereas theUS accounted for some 27% of consump-tion and was a significant importer (fromCanada), Russia’s share of world consump-tion was about 16% and it was a majorexporter of natural gas to Europe. Betweenthem, Russia (32.9%) and the countries ofthe Middle East (33.8%) possess two-thirds of the world’s proven reserves of nat-ural gas. The Middle East, however, con-tributed only 8% of 1999 production.

In the coal sector, BP Amoco reports anintensification of the consumption declineof recent years, driven by a dramatic fall in

China where there was a drop of more than16%. World consumption declined by 5.1%to 2,130 Mtoe, and production was down by6.1% to 2,103 Mtoe. Although Chinese con-sumption fell by some 97 Mtoe to 511 Mtoe,production also fell sharply, by 18%, orsome 85 Mtoe.

At 580 Mtoe, the US was the world’slargest coal producer in 1999 accounting for28% of total supply. It consumed 543 Mtoe,about 25% of the total. The other majorproducers, apart from the US and China(512 Mtoe), were Australia (150 Mtoe),India (144 Mtoe), South Africa (116.7Mtoe) and Russia (112.6 Mtoe).

European coal consumption fell again, by5% to 348 Mtoe, and production was downby 4.4% to 254.4 Mtoe. As well as the EUmembers – Germany (59.6 Mtoe), the UK(22.8 Mtoe), Spain (11.6 Mtoe) and Greece(8.4 Mtoe) – Europe as a region alsoincludes significant producers such asPoland (73 Mtoe), Turkey (24.4 Mtoe) andthe Czech Republic (21.3 Mtoe).

Of the other fuels covered in the review,consumption of nuclear power is estimatedto have risen by 3.8% in 1999 led by a sharprise in Russia and a “rebound in the US”.Europe’s share continued to declinealthough the Asia Pacific region hasincreased its share over the past ten yearsfrom 14% to almost 20%. The total con-sumption of nuclear energy last yearamounted to 650 Mtoe, with the US thebiggest consumer (198 Mtoe) followed byFrance (101 Mtoe) and Japan (82 Mtoe).

Hydroelectric generation last yearincreased by just 0.9% to 227 Mtoe.

One of the more revealing parts of thereview is the statistical information on percapita energy consumption, and thereserves to production ratios for fossil fuels.It is evident that in 1999 per capita energyconsumption in North America equated tosome 6.3 tonnes of oil equivalent. This isalmost double the per capita average inEurope and the former Soviet Union (bothless than 3.2 toe) and compares with aworld average of under 1.5 toe.Furthermore, if the countries of NorthAmerica, Europe and the FSU are excluded,the average world per capita consumptionof energy last year was nearer 0.7 toe – ninetimes less than in North America.

In terms of proved reserves, the worldpossesses six times more coal than oil andfour times more gas than oil. At currentrates of production, there are sufficient coalreserves in the world to last well over 200years (almost 600 years in the FSU). Oil issufficient for less than 50 years worldwideand less than 15 years in the OECD coun-tries. The picture is similar for natural gas.Of the global total for 1999 primary energyconsumption of 8,534 Mtoe, oil accountedfor 40%, coal for 25% and natural gas for24%. (Nuclear and hydroelectricityaccounted for around 8% and 3% respec-tively.) ■■

REPRINTSREPRINTSREPRINTSREPRINTS

All of the feature articles appearingin Mining Journal and

MINING Magazine are available asreprints, at competitive rates.Representing, as they do, the

impartial opinion of high calibreindependent technical writers, such

reprints can be a most telling testimonial.

◆

Companies and organisationsworldwide are finding that reprints

from Mining Journal/Magazinelend authority to their promotional

activities — and are more effective than expensively produced

brochures.

◆

For samples and quotes, contactDes Clifford

Mining Journal Ltd.60 Worship Street, London EC2A 2HD

Tel: +44 (0)20 7216 6060Fax: +44 (0)20 7216 6050

E-mail: des.clifford@mining-journal.com

MINING WEEK

Furthermore, WMC has identified titani-um-vanadium-iron mineralisation withinseveral prominent ilmenite-magnetite hori-zons extending up to 35 km along strike.

At the Olympic Dam mine in SouthAustralia, a feasibility study is in progressfor a A$30 million expansion that couldresult in annual copper production rising by20% to 240,000 t, with a further increase to350,000 t/y a possibility at a later stage. Atits Kambalda nickel operations in WA,WMC is to concentrate on profitability andis seeking to sell four mines that are consid-ered uneconomic.

Goldfields, in which the South Africancompany, Harmony, holds a 19.96% inter-est, has had recent exploration success, andthis has served to dispel the popular notionthat the company has a portfolio of relative-ly short-life mines. At Kundana, close toKalgoorlie, the high grade Raleigh deposithas a declared reserve of 111,000 oz butmanagement is confident of proving up aresource of more than 500,000 oz. Followingthe acquisition of Gilt-Edge Mining,Goldfields will pursue the deposit at depthinto the 51% held joint-venture lease area.

Despite the perilous state of the explo-ration sector in Australia, success is not lim-ited to the large organisations, and at theforum junior companies such as JubileeMines, Red Back Mining, MurchisonUnited and Sedimentary Holdings all pre-sented encouraging results.

South Africans arriveThe many bars and ‘watering holes’ of

Kalgoorlie’s famous Hannan Street provideripe breeding grounds for rumours and thebiggest as the conference commenced con-cerned the world’s largest gold producer,AngloGold, and its further intentions inAustralia. Early this year, the SouthAfrican company made a successful andfriendly bid for Acacia Resources, and therewas much speculation that it would beannouncing a takeover bid for Australia’slargest producer Normandy Mining. Thespeculation was that it had already pur-chased a 4.9% interest in the Adelaide-based company. Normandy is a major play-er in WA, with a 50% interest in KalgoorlieConsolidated Superpit and the Yandal oper-ations once owned by Great Central Mines.

AngloGold Australasia executive NigelUnwin was literally besieged by local jour-nalists after his Monday morning presenta-tion, all wanting to gain a better under-standing of the company’s acquisitionplans. Mr Unwin was, of course, unable tocomment on any specific plans but hedenied that his company had taken a stakein Normandy. This was later confirmed byNormandy’s chairman, Robert deCrespigny. Mr Unwin did acknowledge,however, the fact that AngloGold sees itsfuture as a US$10 billion company and thatacquisitions will play a large part in itsgrowth strategy. All this was against thebackdrop of the recent bid by AngloGold’s50.4% owner, Anglo American, for thediversified Australian minerals producer,North Ltd (this issue, p.57), in direct com-petition to Rio Tinto’s hostile bid for Northa few weeks ago.

Normandy, itself, has had recent explo-ration success at its 85%-owned Tanamioperations in the Northern Territory and,in his presentation at the Diggers andDealers forum, Mr de Crespigny highlight-ed the Groundrush find 100 km fromTanami where resources amount to 450,000oz of contained gold. Despite Normandy’scommitment to gold, the Golden Grove zincmine in WA continues to offer further poten-tial and deep drilling has found two new ore-bodies at the Amity deposit.

Although there is a perceptible trend inAustralia away from near-surface opera-tions to underground mining, one of the pro-jects with the highest profile is AngloGold’sexpansion of the Sunrise mine in theLaverton region of WA. The expansion willproduce a mega pit that will eclipseKalgoorlie’s famous Superpit. The A$96million project is expected to produce 2.3Moz of gold over a period of seven yearswith average cash costs of around A$300/oz.The floor of the mega pit will eventuallyreach a depth of 460 m below surface andthe pit will measure some 1,000 m by 700 m.The expansion will entail a substantial cut-back of the existing pit outline and A$51million has been allowed for this in the pro-jected capital cost.

The open-pit resource at Sunrise standsat 27.8 Mt at a grade of 4.3 g/t Au, repre-senting 3.80 Moz of contained gold. Thegrade of the Cleo shear zones increases withdepth, opening up the possibility of under-ground working by 2004 at the latestalthough it is likely that this ore would beused as a sweetener.

Perth-based Sons of Gwalia is currentlyinvestigating the potential to exploit the 1.2Moz Gwalia Deeps resource by under-ground methods. The resource is locatedbeneath the existing Sons of Gwalia openpit. Managing director Mark Cutifani saidthat a decision on the sinking of a shaft willbe made in June next year and that this willbe dependent on the results of the ongoingfeasibility study.

Technology the keyRobert de Crespigny identified technolo-

gy as one of the keys to the future of themining industry in Australia, and there arenumerous examples of new technologybeing applied in the sector. Titan Resourcesannounced at the forum that testwork on itsBioHeap process at its Mt Sholl nickel pro-ject in the first two months had resulted innickel recoveries of around 32%. Althoughstill a long way from its target of 70% recov-eries within nine months, the result is wellahead of forecasts. The proprietaryBioHeap process utilises a strain of bacteriato treat base metal sulphide ores, in particu-lar chalcopyrite. Mt Sholl, in WA’s westernPilbara, is located about 10 km from Titan’sRadio Hill nickel mine.

Another high-profile use of new technolo-gy was featured in Andrew Forrest’s presen-tation on Anaconda Nickel’s MurrinMurrin project. The problems in designingand constructing the A$1 billion plus plantare well documented but Anaconda’s chiefexecutive now believes that ramp-up to fullcapacity is on schedule for the second half of2001. Mechanical completion was attainedin December 1999, and Mr Forrest revealedthat Anaconda has received an InsuranceArbitration Settlement of A$113 millionagainst the 15-month delay in the projectcompletion experienced by project managerFluor Daniel (this issue, p.67).

In other developments, Anaconda is setto enter the tantalum market with theannouncement that it can acquire 80-100%of the tantalum and niobium content of theMt Weld carbonatite, under an agreementwith Lynas Corp. Ltd. The deposit is one ofthe largest in the world (this issue, p.60).The managing director of Lynas, LesEmery, says that the investment byAnaconda will enable Lynas to continue todevelop the Mt Weld Rare Earths Projectinto the one of the largest in the world.

Joining an increasing band of gold pro-ducers who are actively promoting theirproduct, Delta Gold launched its own 2 ozgold bar on the first day of the Kalgoorlieconference.

The Diggers & Dealers 2000 Forumshowed how resilient the industry is particu-larly in Western Australia. There areadvanced plans to erect an AustralianProspectors’ and Miners’ ‘Hall of Fame’ inKalgoorlie to celebrate the achievements ofthose people who have made major contri-butions to the growth of the mining indus-try. The A$21 million project is being sup-ported by the federal and state governmentsassisted by a number of prominent miningcompanies, with Normandy andHomestake contributing a combined A$6million. Hall of Fame chairman, RonManners, is keen to enlist the support ofother companies to fund a A$7.5 millionshortfall in project financing. ■■

FOCUS

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 63

‘Diggers &Dealers’:

bloodied butunbowed

TECHNOLOGY TODAY

According to Bateman and itspartner Brown & Root, apart frommine development only one majorhurdle remains in the George Fisherproject in Australia – the upgrade ofthe Mt Isa lead smelter. MIM isconstructing a new mine some 22 kmnorth of its Mt Isa operations, andBateman and Brown & Root areupgrading the existing lead-zincconcentrator and rebuilding the leadsmelter at Mt Isa. The upgrade ofthe concentrator has beencompleted. Capacity has beenexpanded to 2.5 Mt/y and theconcentrator’s regrinding, cleaningand thickening processes have beenupgraded. This has included theinstallation of MIM’s ISAMILLfine-grinding technology and thecompany’s froth-pumpingtechnology. In addition, theconcentrator building has beenupgraded. The concentrator isperforming as expected andachieving recoveries of 78.8% and73.4% for lead and zinc respectively.

The final part of the programmeis the upgrade of Mt Isa’s leadsmelter. This will include structuralrefurbishment, storage upgrades,coke and sinter integration,modernisation of its process controlsystems, electrical upgrades, spillageprevention and process plantoverhauls.

According to MIM, limitedproduction from the George Fishermine will start before the end of thisyear, six months ahead of schedule.When the mine is fullycommissioned it will produce 170,000t/y of zinc in concentrate and 100,000t of crude lead containing 5 Moz ofsilver.

New miningshovel fromKomatsuKomatsu has launched its newmining shovel, the PC 4000. Thehydraulic unit weighs 360 t andcarries a 21 m3 face shovel. It is alsoavailable with a 22 m3 backhoe. Theunit is powered by a Cummins QSK60, 16-cylinder twin turbo-chargedaftercooled diesel engine derated to1,400 kW running at 1,800 rev/min.The engine complies with USEnvironmental Protection AgencyTier 1 and 2 emission standards.

The driver’s cab is heavilyinsulated and has an internal noiselevel of around 68 dB(A), and featureselectronic joysticks and Komatsu’sVehicle Health Monitoring System(VHMS). VHMS provides theoperator, via a colour touch screen

display, with comprehensiveperformance and serviceinformation. According to Komatsu,the ability of the shovel to providemine control programmes with real-time, snap-shot or trend dataautomatically can improvemechanical utilisation and reducecosts. In addition, thecomprehensive diagnostic data willimprove trouble shooting and predictand/or reduce downtime.

Komatsu says that the unit’shydraulic system provides forcrowding forces of 1,330 kN and abreakout force of 1,250 kN. The21 m3 face-shovel bucket is matchedfor loading 150-240 t haul-trucks.

Komatsu Mining Systems, Postf.18 03 61, 40599, Dusseldorf 13,Germany. Tel: (+49 211) 71090. Fax:715822

RAMCAR®debutLong-Airdox’s RAMCAR® wasoriginally developed for thedemanding conditions of a potashmine in New Mexico. The companyhas now secured an order for 12 of thelow-profile haul trucks for use inanother potash mine, the Carlsbadoperation, also in New Mexico. Thepotash horizon is 1.5-1.65 m thickand occurs in highly abrasivelangbeinite ore. The Long-Airdox/Jeffrey Model 4113RAMCAR® is a two-wheel drivearticulated unit powered by a127 kW Deutz turbocharged dieselengine with integrated transmissioncooling. The unit can carry a 16,300kg payload at speeds of almost 20km/h.

Long-Airdox, Virginia TechCorporate Research Centre, 1750Kraft Drive, Blacksburg, VA 24060,US. Tel: (+1 540) 552 5555. Fax: 5525525.

New pump fromGenfloGenflo has developed a new pumpfor water containing abrasive solids.The Genflo AUS-16 can be used forthe separation and transfer ofmineral tailings from dams, ponds,thickeners and hutches. In addition,it can be used for the rapid removalof grit, gravel and other solids thathave accidentally entered water-circulation systems. As the Aus-16 isa jet pump, it relies on any fluidsupply to provide motive power andhas no moving parts. Users cansimply drop the unit into a water

channel, sump or pond and its robustconstruction enables it to pass solidsto a separator tank without risk ofdamage or clogging.

The pump is available withoptional disintegration nozzles.These are recessed within the inlet ofthe pump and break up or fluidiseminerals to allow them free accessinto the suction duct of the pump.The unit can pass solids up to 44 mmin diameter at rates of up to 20 t/h,and fluids may be transferred overhorizontal distances of 200 m orthrough vertical lifts of 20 m. Thepump can be left unattended at anyangle, is unaffected by larger solidsand will not be damaged if it runs outof water.

Genflo, Wakefield House, LittleCasterton Road, Stamford, PE91BE, UK. Tel: (+44 1780) 75 7307.

Grasberg startsoverburdensystemFreeport-McMoRan Copper andGold has recently started using anoverburden handling systemsupplied by Krupp FördertechnikGmbH at its Grasberg mine inIndonesia. According to Krupp thesystem includes one of the largestgyratory crushers and crawlers in theworld. The 63-114 crusher is at thecore of a semi-mobile crushing plantwhich also features three belt-conveyors, a semi-mobilestacker/spreader and a T1250crawler unit. The crusher reducesoverburden to a size suitable for theconveyors at a rate of 10,000 t/h.

The 160 m long stacker dumps theoverburden to a depth of 400 m. Theability to dump from this heightenables the stacker to be operatedfor a relatively long time in the sameposition without having to be slewedor relocated. This was a factor in theselection of a semi-mobile ratherthan a mobile system with its owntravel and slewing system. Kruppsays that, because the system mustbe light enough to be moved by the1,250 t capacity crawler, it has

provided Freeport with considerablecosts savings. The stacker boomsupport structure has beenmanufactured from lightweighttubes braced with horizontal andvertical ropes and, as a result, theunit is 50% lighter than conventionaldesigns and costs less to build andservice.

Thyssen Krupp AG, August-Thyssen-Strasse 1, 40211 Dusseldorf,Germany. Tel: (+49 211) 8243 6012.Fax: 8243 6035. Website:www.thyssenkrupp.com

Coal gas powerMethane from the former Shirebrookcoal mine in Derbyshire in the UK isnow being used to provide electricalpower for 10,000 households. At theShirebrook Green Energy Park,Coalgas (UK) Ltd and IndependentEnergy (UK) Ltd have invested £5million in the installation of a 9 MWpower plant. The plant uses fiveJenbacher 616GS-S/L gas enginegenerators supplied by thecompany’s UK distributor ClarkeEnergy.

To overcome local environmentalconcerns the individual engine cellshave been housed in a purpose-builtacoustic building which reduces noiseattenuation levels to 50 dB(A) at40 m.

Coal production ceased at the coalmine seven years ago and the newpithead extraction plant is forecastto capture sufficient methane fromthe network of abandoned workingsand unworked coal seams to operatethe power plant for ten years,meeting the electrical needs ofaround 10,000 homes and preventingthe emission of the equivalent of280,000 t/y of carbon dioxide.

Clark Energy Ltd, Power House,Senator Point, South BoundaryRoad, Knowsley Industrial Park,Liverpool L33 7RR, UK. Tel: (+44151) 546 4446. Fax: 546 4447.E-mail: info@clark-energy.com

George Fisherupdate

64 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

Krupp Fördertechnik’s stacker atGrasberg dumps overburden to a depthof 400 m.

INDUSTRY IN ACTION

Exploration

De Beers considersMauritanian venture A heads of agreement has been signedbetween Rex Diamond Mining Corp.and the De Beers group, preparatoryto entering into a joint venture for theexploration of the Akchar permit inMauritania. The Akchar permit areacurrently covers 10,000 km2, as 3,426km2 of the original 13,426 km2 permitarea was relinquished by Rex inaccordance with the revisedMauritanian mining code. Therelinquished area has been appliedfor by De Beers, which would makeit available for the joint ventureshould it be successful. Therefore thejoint venture area would cover 13,426km2.

De Beers may earn a 60% interestin Akchar by spending US$24 millionor by producing a bankable feasibilitystudy over a five-year period. Thecompanies envisage that, should adiamond mine be established inAkchar, De Beers would market allproduction through its London-basedDiamond Trading Co. It will alsofinance Rex Diamond’s full share ofthe investment. Rex retains fullownership of its nine other diamondexploration permits in Mauritania,covering over 90,000 km2 of theReguibat craton (MJ, January 7,p.6), and reports that De Beers isinterested in extending thepartnership at Akchar to includeother properties.

Omani explorationdeals The Government of Oman is to signexploration agreements with theNational Mining Co. (NMC) of

Oman and BHP of Australia, reportsReuters. NMC’s acting generalmanager, Tony Howarth, says thatthe deal with his company should becompleted within two weeks, andwould involve exploration for copper,gold and silver in a 374 km2 area nearSohar.

The Sultanate of Oman signed asimilar agreement with the MetalMining Agency of Japan earlier thismonth (MJ, July 7, p.8), continuing arelationship established some timeago (MJ, October 13, 1995, p.272).

Light shed on Yilgarn Three detailed geological mapsreleased by Western Australia’sDepartment of Minerals and Energyprovide new information on a poorly-understood region of the Yilgarncraton. The Department reports thatthe 1:100,000 scale maps are the firstdetailed geological maps to bepublished on the area, and cover threeareas known as Johnstone Range,Jackson and Lake Giles, located 150km north of Southern Cross. Dr TimGriffin, acting director of theDepartment’s Geological Survey, saysthat the maps will help in improvingan understanding of the rocks, andassist in evaluating mineral depositpotential.

The maps cost A$20, and areavailable from the Department’scustomer counter at Mineral House,100 Plain St, East Perth, WesternAustralia, or through the on-linebookshop at www.dmc.wa.gov.au

Baotong jointventure Vega-Atlantic Corp. has agreed withNo. 4 Geological Brigade of theYunnan Bureau of GeologicalExploration and Development toexplore two separate zinc and leadproperties in Yunnan Province,

southwest China. The No.4Geological Brigade has identified anumber of mineralised occurrences onthe Luziyuan and Jinchangheprospects, located in Zhenkangcounty and close to Baoshan cityrespectively. Luziyuan has beenexplored by No. 4 Brigade since 1958,and Jinchanghe since 1986.

Vega-Atlantic, subject to duediligence, has committed to spendUS$1 million on exploration drillingand tunnelling over two years to earna 70% interest in the Baotong jvcompany. In addition, Vega-Atlanticcan earn a further 15% by providingfurther capital if its partner elects toretain a 15% carried interest. Allforeign investment can be recoupedfrom profits in the event of a minebeing developed.

Anarraaq drillingcontinues Cominco Ltd has resumed a drillingprogramme investigating theAnarraaq zinc-lead-silver depositclose to its Red Dog mine in Alaska.Anarraaq was discovered last year,about 10 km from Red Dog, at adepth of about 650 m. Preliminarywork indicated mineralisation of 12Mt at a grade of 18% Zn, 5% Pb and90 g/t Ag. Drilling in 1999 wasstopped owing to the onset of winter,and two uncompleted holes werefinished recently, but did not intersectany significant mineralisation. Betterresults from the recent drilling are asfollows:

Hole Interval Zn Pb Ag(m) (%) (%) (g/t)

923 673.4-733.5 20 6 137.1924 761.0-773.2 18 4 17.1929 653.9-673.7 18 6 Pending

The drilling programme isdesigned to complete the outline ofAnarraaq, as well as to search formore deposits in the newly-identifiedcentre of mineralisation. The easternand southwestern margins of theAnarraaq deposit seem to have beendefined but it remains open in otherdirections. A regional explorationprogramme last year identifiedseveral other drilling targets.

Cachoeira resultsVancouver-based BrazilianInternational Goldfields Ltd reports

that a continuing drilling programmeat the Cachoeira joint-venture goldproperty in Brazil has intersectedfurther gold mineralisation (MJ,May 19, p.396). Better results are asfollows:

Hole Interval Au(m) (g/t)

CSD 15 79.2-101.4 2.33incl. 79.2-92.9 3.59

CSD 20 101.0-117.9 2.03CSD 22 0-70.5 2.07

incl. 37.4-49.3 5.37

Over 4,300 m of drilling has beencompleted, and preliminarycyanidation tests on composite drill-core samples, conducted by LakefieldResearch, yielded gold recoveriesranging from 67.4% to 94.5%, withNaCN consumption of less than 1kg/t.

Gold Fields Ltd of South Africa isearning up to a 75% interest inCachoeira by completing a bankablefeasibility study and providing aproject finance guarantee. GoldFields currently owns about 15% ofoutstanding Brazilian InternationalGoldfields shares.

Mt WandoointersectionsVancouver-based Barramundi GoldLtd reports that it has received assayresults from a third phase of drillingcompleted by Kidston Gold Mines,its partner at the Mt Wandoo goldproperty in northern Queensland(MJ, November 26, 1999, p.430).Previous drilling by Kidston outlineda gold-mineralised corridor about 400m x 50 m within altered andbrecciated granodiorite. The recentdrilling programme was designed totest continuity of mineralisation, andintersected the following betterresults:

Hole Interval Au Ag(m) (g/t) (g/t)

MWRC-10 16-18 5.10 –MWRD-14 74-80 2.28 –MWRC-15 10-14 19.91 141.5

Barramundi reports that Kidstonis reviewing the results from therecent drilling, and has suspendedwork at Mt Wandoo until theoutcome of the review. The drilling isregarded as having extended themineralised corridor by about 100 m,

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 65

New Matagamimineralised zoneNoranda Inc. has outlined asignificant zinc and copper depositclose to its Matagami operation. Thecompany has been exploring theSouth Flank stratigraphy of theMatagami mining camp for sometime, and has defined mineralisationcomprising three distinct zones –Perseverance (MJ, April 21, p.305),Perseverance West and Equinox.The three zones are located within500 m of each other, according tothe company, and five diamond drillrigs are operating on the zones, withbetter recent results shown below.

Noranda’s preliminary estimationof the Equinox zone puts inferredresources at 2.6 Mt at a grade of

16.6% Zn, 1.1% Cu, 34 g/t Ag and0.36 g/t Au, using data from 20diamond-drill holes. AtPerseverance, an inferred resource ofabout 947,000 t at 19.12% Zn,1.37% Cu, 32 g/t Ag and 0.4 g/t Auhas been estimated. A feasibilitystudy is scheduled for completion bythe end of the March quarter of 2001.The property is subject to a joint-venture agreement betweenNoranda and Société deDéveloppement de la Baie James(SDBJ). Under the terms of theagreement, Noranda holds a 90%interest, and SDBJ has the right toparticipate at 10%, after thecompletion of a positive feasibilitystudy, or to convert to a 2% netsmelter royalty, with Norandaholding a 100% interest.

Hole Interval Zn Cu Ag Au(m) (%) (%) (g/t) (g/t)

PER-00-32 161.35-204.15 22.18 1.89 60.44 0.59PER-00-34 149.92-176.00 17.52 1.84 21.64 0.44PER-00-35 160.30-188.30 22.45 0.84 20.63 0.50EQ-00-12 119.77-207.00 23.96 1.17 21.87 0.29EQ-00-16 114.50-162.40 25.17 1.08 31.09 0.24

Afton assay results DRC Resources Corp. (DRC) isconducting a 5,000 m drillingprogramme at the Afton Minespolymetallic property, near Kamloopsin British Columbia. The companyhas an option to purchase a 100%interest in the former-producingproperty, which covers 6 km2,including the Afton and Pothook

mineral zones. DRC has completedsix holes to date, and reports that allhave intersected significantmineralisation, but has releasedresults from one hole, as below.

DRC believes that theintersections indicate that themineralised zone trends northeast-southwest, and dips to the southeast,rather than to the west as previouslyreported.

Hole Interval Cu Au Pd Ag(m) (%) (g/t) (g/t) (g/t)

DDH2K-4 115.9-173.8 2.14 0.82 0.14 7.47and 179.9-366.0 2.31 0.72 0.07 7.37

I enclose a cheque* for £/US$ ......................................

made payable to Mining Journal Books Ltd.

Please charge my AMEX/Visa/Mastercard the amount

of £/US$** ...................................................................

Signature ...........................................................................

Card expiry date ...............................................................

Please print name .............................................................

Company name .................................................................

Card billing or invoicing address......................................

...........................................................................................

...........................................................................................

...........................................................................................

Country .............................................................................

Postal/Zip code..................................................................

Fax ....................................................................................

Telephone .........................................................................

E-mail ...............................................................................

Please advise if delivery address is different from above

...........................................................................................

...........................................................................................

*payment in sterling or US dollars only.

YES, I would like to order ____ copy(ies) of the 1998-99 MINERALS HANDBOOK at a price of£95.00 (US$170.00), including packing and postage. Please complete the form below and send to:The Mining Journal Ltd, Subscription Department,

P.O. Box 10, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 5NE, UK.

Fax: (+44 1732) 865747

Card No.

NOW PUBLISHED BY MINING JOURNAL BOOKS LTD

Statistics & Analyses of theWorld’s Minerals Industry

Phillip Crowson

MINERALSHANDBOOK

1998-99

Phillip Crowson graduated from Cambridge in 1961 with afirst class honours degree in Economics. After ten yearsworking as an economist in various companies in the UKchemical industry he joined the Economics Department ofwhat was then Rio Tinto Zinc Corp. He became head of thedepartment, and the company’s chief economist in May1981, a position he held until his retirement at the end of1996. He was a director of several subsidiary companies,lectured frequently, and took an active role in many organ-isations in the mining and metals industries. PhillipCrowson has continued to add to his many publishedpapers and articles, and is an invited director of the LondonMetal Exchange.

For each of 52 minerals the followinginformation is provided:

— World reserves and reserve base— World production— Productive capacity— Secondary production— The adequacy of reserves— Consumption— End-use patterns— Value of contained metal— Substitutes and technical possibilities—Annual average prices—Marketing arrangements—Supply and demand by market area

MH Book 178x254ad 19/7/00 5:23 pm Page 1

INDUSTRY IN ACTION

but Barramundi believes that itindicates that the gold mineralisationwithin the corridor is not continuous.

DevelopmentMurrin Murrininsurancesettlement . . . Anaconda Nickel and GlencoreInternational AG, 60% and 40%owners respectively of the MurrinMurrin lateritic nickel-cobaltdevelopment project in WesternAustralia, report that they havereached a settlement agreement withinsurers of the project over delays toits completion (MJ, October 29,1999, p.340). The settlement totalsA$113 million, and will be paid byAugust 17. It resolves all claims underthe policies pertaining to MurrinMurrin, and also the “lengthyarbitration proceedings in London”,according to an Anaconda Nickelstatement.

. . . Anaconda raisesFluor claim stakes Andrew Forrest, chief executive ofAnaconda Nickel, says that thecompany has now filed a A$1 billionclaim against the main contractor at

Murrin Murrin, Fluor Daniel.Anaconda had previously madeclaims totalling A$300 million againstFluor after autoclave flash-vesselcomponents had to be replaced,delaying commissioning of theproject.

Fluor states that it has met itscontractual obligations to Anaconda,and that Anaconda’s problems “are ofits own causes”.

Russia-UK diamondconference UK Prime Minister Tony Blair andRussia’s President, Vladimir Putin,have agreed to co-host a top-levelconference on the sale of conflictdiamonds. The two leaders wereattending the G8 global summit inOkinawa. Mr Blair said that a systemshould be put in place to preventpeople exploiting conflict situationsto make money from diamonds. ThePrime Minister’s spokesman, AlastairCampbell, says that the conferencecould take place before October thisyear.

Russian platinumproducers worriedThe BBC’s short-wave monitoringservice, quoting Interfax, reports thatRussian platinum producers haveappealed to Valery Rudakov, chief ofGokhran (the Russian State

Repository) to help them sell theirproduct. Mr Rudakov is also theDeputy Finance Minister. Theproducers, represented by ValeryBraiko, chairman of the Union ofGold Mining Companies, say thatGokhran and the Central Bankstopped buying platinum on thedomestic market earlier this year.Licences to sell platinum wholesaleare required before the producers cansell to Norilsk, the only company inRussia to have an export licence.Unfortunately, the Taxes and LeviesMinistry, responsible for suchlicences, has not established aprocedure for obtaining them, saysMr Braiko.

Texas progress Macmin NL, developing the Texassilver project in southern Queensland,reports that a detailed review,including production timetable,reserve estimates, and operating andcapital costs, should soon becompleted. In the meantime, thecompany has discovered further high-grade silver mineralisation adjacentto known mineralisation, intersecting38 m at 113 g/t Ag from surface, and60 m at 149 g/t Ag from surface. Inaddition, drilling has defined high-grade zones within the proposed openpit outline.

The Queensland-based companyhas submitted environmental,

management, overview and strategystudies to the Department of Minesand Energy, and initial discussionshave been held with potential lendersfor funding the project.

Final Carles approval The final approval for thecommencement of mining operationsat the Carles gold deposit in Spainhas been received by owner RioNarcea Gold Mines Ltd (MJ,February 18, p.125). Carles is locatedabout 10 km from the company’s ElValle gold mine, its principal asset.Open-pit production is expected tobegin later this year, at an annualrate of 20,000 oz, for initial capitalcosts of less that US$2 million. Carlesore is hard, and will be trucked to ElValle for blending.

Rio Narcea estimates that 1.21 Mtof proven and probable reserves existat Carles, with an average grade of4.26 g/t Au, of which 728,000 t, at agrade of 3.89 g/t Au, are mineable byopen-pit methods.

Ardlethan reservesincrease Marlborough Resources NL, based inSydney, reports that completion of an85-hole drilling programme at theArdlethan alluvial tin project in NewSouth Wales has increased theresource estimate for the Yithan Lead

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 67

HINDUSTAN ZINC LIMITED (A Govt. of India Enterprise)

Yashad Bhawan, Udaipur, Rajasthan-313004 (India) Fax No: 0091 (0294) 525763/526443

CORRIGENDUM TO GLOBALTENDER NOTICE PR-C/7/2000-2001

Tenderers can quote either ElectromagneticFrequency Domain System (1No.) orMagnetometers (2Nos.) or both.EMD for EM System shall be Rs.40000.00 /USD1000.00 and for Magnetometers shall beRs.20000.00 / USD500.00 respectively.Last date of issue of tender and the last date of submission & opening of tender are herebyextended to 10.08.2000 and 21.08.2000respectively.All other terms will remain unchanged.

DY. GENERAL MANAGER (M&C)PR-C/11/2000-2001

www.mining-journal.com/bookswww.mining-journal.com/bookswww.mining-journal.com/bookswww.mining-journal.com/books

Mining Journal Books Ltd

MJ

www.mining-journal.com

/books

A wide selection of mining, metals and minerals titles

Prices range from US$32 to US$595

deposit (MJ, February 25, p.144).The programme upgraded a“significant portion” of previously-defined resources to reserves, bringingproven reserves to 1.8 million bankcubic metres (Mbcm), at a grade of1.95 kg/bcm, and probable reserves to685,630 bcm at 1.23 kg/bcm. Inaddition to the confirmation ofknown mineralisation, the drillingfound additional mineralisationaround the orebody. Inferredresources at Ardlethan outside theYithan orebody are estimated to total4.75 Mbcm, containing 2,700 t of tin.

Marlborough is continuing withprocess test work and evaluation ofequipment. The draft environmentalimpact statement (EIS) was lodgedwith governmental departments inJune, and the final EIS was lodgedwith the shire council earlier thismonth.

Positive tests atPiedras VerdesAzco Mining Inc. reports that PhelpsDodge, its joint-venture partner atthe Piedras Verdes copper property inMexico, has completed ametallurgical test programme onmaterial from the property. PhelpsDodge, 70% owner and operator, hasbeen engaged in a confirmatory workprogramme at Piedras Verdes overthe past 20 months, including miningnear-surface oxide material. The

material was subjected to large-scalecolumn leach testing, which PhelpsDodge reports yielded confirmatoryor improved leach-recovery estimatescompared with previous results.

Redfire to acquireBroken Hill lease Sydney-based Redfire Resources Ltdhas reached an agreement withNormandy Mining Investments PtyLtd to acquire the mining lease (CML7) covering the central 3.8 km of theBroken Hill mining area in NewSouth Wales. Redfire has furtheragreed in principle to acquirePinnacle Mines Pty Ltd, whichincludes the Pinnacle mine, 18 kmsouth of Broken Hill, equipment anda 90,000 t/y processing plant designedto mine and treat Broken Hillmaterial. The two acquisitions willcost Redfire A$2.5 million worth ofRedfire shares, and A$3 million instaged cash payments.

Redfire has also acquired the rightsto treat about 250,000 t of stockpiledBroken Hill ore, and Bob Besley, thecompany’s managing director, saysthat processing could begin shortly.He also believes that considerablepotential exists at Broken Hill,despite 117 years of mining at theCML 7 licence.

The licence includes the originaldiscovery site at Broken Hill, andBHP’s original mining site.

Argosy adds toNaketyArgosy Minerals Inc. has agreed withSociété des Mines de La Tontouta(SMT) for Argosy to have the right toacquire the lateritic nickel miningconcessions at Bogota, in the Canalaarea of New Caledonia. SMT isArgosy’s joint-venture partner in theNakety lateritic nickel-cobalt project,located 3 km from Bogota. Nakety isestimated by Resource ServicesGroup to contain measured andindicated resources of 52.4 Mt (wet)at an average grade of 1.53% Ni and0.11% Co, and inferred resources of73.1 Mt (wet) at an average grade of1.42% Ni and 0.12% Co.

Argosy notes that the Bogotaconcession area, covering 53.9 km2, isconsiderably larger in scale than theexisting Nakety concession area. Sitevisits indicate that the geology andlaterite profile development areidentical to those at the adjacentNakety tenements. A 1995reconnaissance drilling programmeconfirmed the presence of lateritemineralisation beneath iron-richcaprock along the 18 km BogotaPeninsula.

Santa Rosa resourceupgradeAndean American Corp. reports thatits chief geologist, Victor Jaramillo,

has completed a new resourceestimate for the Open Pit zone at itsSanta Rosa gold-silver property inPeru. The Open Pit zone occupiesabout 35% of the Santa Rosa dome,one of four mineralised domescurrently undergoing exploration onthe property, located 550 km south ofLima. The oxide portion of the OpenPit zone contains an estimated618,000 t in indicated and inferredresources, at a grade of 3.94 g/t Auand 84 g/t Ag, with a furtherestimated 382,700 t of tailingscontaining 2.06 g/t Au and 34.66 g/tAg, for a total oxide resource estimateof just over 1 Mt at a grade of 3.22 g/tAu and 65.13 g/t Ag.

Andean American notes that theresource estimate methodology hasbeen verified by Lindsay Bottomer,described as an independent thirdparty. The company plans to proceedwith a planned pilot-plant operation toprocess oxides from the Open Pit zone.

Orinoco on stream bySeptember The Orinoco hot-briquetted iron(HBI) plant in Venezuela, a 50:50joint venture between BHP and IBHof Venezuela, should be fullyoperational by September this year,according to IBH. The 2.2 Mt/ydirect reduction plant beganoperations earlier this year, and BHPhas stressed that the plant is

INDUSTRY IN ACTION

68 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

An examination of the strategies of fiftyinternational coal mining companies.Researched and written by Mark Payne, who is a business writer with almost twodecades of experience in the global resourcessector. The author of over 800 publishedreports, his particular areas of expertise lie incorporate strategy and the regional analysesof business opportunities.

Available at a price of £340 (US$595), fromMining Journal Books Ltd, PO Box 10,

Edenbridge, Kent TN8 5NE, UK. Fax: (+44 1732) 865747

Strategies of International Coal CompaniesBy Mark Payne

significantly different to its troubledPort Hedland HBI plant in Australia(MJ, May 5, p.344).

Production

Lower grades cut RioTinto copper output Rio Tinto plc reports that its minedcopper production for the first half of2000 was 6% lower, at 409,000 t, thanin the same period in 1999. Comparedwith the March quarter this year,mined copper output for the recentJune quarter was 10% lower, at88,000 t, which is 12% less than in theJune 1999 quarter. The drop inproduction is attributed by thecompany to lower grades at someoperations, primarily at 30%-ownedEscondida in Chile, and at Grasberg,in Indonesia, where Rio Tinto holdsan interest.

On a more positive note, RioTinto’s iron ore production in the firsthalf of 2000 reached record levels,18% higher than in the same period in1999, at 28.9 Mt. The company alsoshipped record amounts of iron ore, at32 Mt, a 21% increase over the firsthalf of 1999. Gold production droppedby 14% compared with the first sixmonths of 1999, as a result of lowergrades at Grasberg, productioninterruptions at Kelian in Indonesia,and the cessation of mining atRidgeway in the US.

US copper closuresbite for BHP BHP Ltd produced 30% less copperin the June 2000 quarter, comparedwith the June 1999 quarter, primarilydue to the closure of its US copperoperations in June 1999 (MJ, July 2,1999, p.2). Additionally, lowergrades at the 57.5%-ownedEscondida copper-gold mine in Chilecontributed to the decline in copperproduction.

In other news for BHP, its iron oreoperations produced 21% more thanin the corresponding period of 1999,at 14.45 Mt, and the company’sWestern Australian operationsshipped a record 6.17 Mt (dry) of ironore through the Nelson Point andFinucane Island berths at PortHedland. Coal production fromQueensland fell by 24% comparedwith the June 1999 quarter, primarilydue to the sale of the Moura mine,effective in August last year.

Pasminco output hitsrecord levels Pasminco Ltd reports that itproduced record amounts of lead andzinc in the 12 months to June 31,2000. The company’s mined output ofzinc in concentrates was 183,435 t,and lead in concentrates reached40,747 t; smelter output was 658,586 tof zinc and 277,856 t of lead.Pasminco attributes the achievement

to improved performance of itsoperations, initial production fromthe Century mine in Queensland anda full year’s contribution from theClarksville smelter and associatedmines in the US.

Century was officially opened inApril this year, but has been pumpingconcentrates since late last year (MJ,December 3, 1999, p.441). Clarksvillewas acquired in Pasminco’s takeoverof Savage Resources early last year(MJ, February 12, 1999, p.109). Thetotal zinc and lead output from minesand smelters in the June quarter of443,838 t was a 15% increase over thesame period in 1999. The recordcomes despite a maintenanceshutdown at the Budel smelter in theNetherlands, and lower productionfrom Cockle Creek in New SouthWales. The Century mine is still inramp-up mode, says David Stewart,Pasminco’s chief executive, who notesthat the mine was brought intoproduction ahead of schedule andunder budget.

Delta record despiteproblems Delta Gold Ltd produced a recordamount of gold in the 12 months tothe end of June 2000. Theachievement of 603,429 oz of goldproduced came despite the closure ofits mines at Gold Ridge in theSolomon Islands (MJ, June 9, p.451),and Eureka in Zimbabwe (MJ, July7, p.10). Terry Burgess, Delta’smanaging director, says that thecompany cannot predict when themines will reopen, and he expects tolose 75,000 oz of gold production inthe coming financial year as a result.Additionally, declining productionfrom its Australian mines will reduceDelta’s output by a further 150,000oz/y.

Falconbridge strike“likely” The union representing employees atFalconbridge Ltd’s Sudbury nickeloperations regards the likelihood of astrike as 80%. The Canadian AutoWorkers union and Falconbridgemanagement are in negotiations for anew labour agreement to replace thecurrent deal, which will expire onAugust 1. Falconbridge’s president,Oyvind Hushovd, says that thecompany is looking to make“substantial changes” to theagreement, admitting that this makesit more difficult to bring the talks to aconclusion. Falconbridge isattempting to split its operations intoseparate mining and milling, andsmelting divisions.

SoG goes ahead withexpansions Sons of Gwalia Ltd (SoG) is toproceed with its expansion plans atthe Greenbushes and Wodginatantalum mines in Western Australia(MJ, April 28, p.320). The companyhas secured take or pay contracts

with its two major customers – CabotCorp. in the US and HC Starck, amember of the Bayer Group inGermany – for a minimum of fiveyears. The contracts will increaseSoG’s tantalum sales from 1.1 Mlbcurrently to about 2.3 Mlb.

In order to fulfil the contracts, SoGwill more than double output fromGreenbushes and Wodgina over thenext three years, at an estimated costof A$100 million. About A$65 millionwill be allocated to expanding theGreenbushes mining and processingcapacity from 1.6 Mt/y to 2.75 Mt/y.The expansion will utilise ore fromthe current open-pit mine and a newunderground mine. Wodgina’scapacity will be expanded to 1.8 Mt/yat a cost of A$35 million, doublingproduction capacity to 1 Mlb/y oftantalum.

Iscor’s iron oreproduction risesThe South African metals andminerals producer Iscor Ltd, exported18.75 Mt of iron ore in the 12 monthsto the end of June 2000. The total is arecord for the company, according toMike Kilbride, iron ore generalmanager, just beating the 18.63 Mtexported in the 1994/95 financial year.Iscor’s spokesman, Phaldie Kalam,notes that the industry had expectedpoor results for exports from thecompany, as it has been troubled bytwo train derailments on its exportline to the coast, and floods at theSishen mine (MJ, February 25,p.152).

Job losses atBaie-ComeauThe company operating the Baie-Comeau aluminium smelter inQuebec is to reduce its workforce by22%, or 400 employees, by the end ofthe year. Société Canadienne desMétaux Reynolds was formerlyowned by Reynolds Metal Co., whosemerger with Alcoa Inc. wascompleted earlier this year (MJ, May5, p.341). The 400,000 t/y facilityemploys 1,800 permanent staff, aswell as 350 temporary employees. Atotal of 334 permanent employees willbe offered early retirement. Thebalance of the 400 to go will be helpedto find other work.

Golden start forChinese producers China Daily reports that the head ofthe Gold Administration of theChinese State Economic and TradeCommission, Wang Dexue, says thatthe first half of 2000 was a greatsuccess. Gold output from Chinesemines reached 73.88 t (about 2.4Moz), a new record, and an increase of4% over the same period last year.The record comes as China reformsthe gold sector, closing nearly 20% ofmines across the country, andreducing the total workforce by10,000. In addition, state investmentin the gold sector dropped to less than

US$48.2 million, and is set to decreasefurther with the country’s financialreform.

The gold industry in China isaiming for output of 175 t/y (about5.6 Moz) and profits of more thanUS$120 million this year. Profit forthe first half of the year amounted toUS$56.63 million.

Mt Gordon aims for50,000 t/y Rod Webster, managing director ofWestern Metals Ltd, says that the MtGordon copper mine in Queenslandshould be operating at 50,000 t/ycopper cathode output within a year.Mt Gordon, formerly calledGunpowder, was acquired by WesternMetals in its takeover of AberfoyleLtd last year. Western Metalsinvested A$200 million in upgradingthe facilities at Mt Gordon to adesign capacity of 50,000 t/y. MrWebster says that the operation hasnot yet achieved that output owing tobottlenecking, and that “with sometweaking and fine-tuning” theplanned output can be reached.

The operation suffered a setbackearlier this year when a cyclonedamaged the transformer in the maincell-house, which took five weeks to berepaired (MJ, June 2, p.435).

Kaltim Primaresumption The on-off strike at Indonesian coalproducer PT Kaltim Prima’sSanggata mine in East Kalimantanwas resolved on July 20, according tothe Jakarta Post. Reuters reports thatIndonesia’s Manpower Minister,Bomer Pasaribu, said that theagreement was reached duringnegotiations between the company,union representatives, andgovernment officials.

PT Kaltim Prima declared forcemajeure on certain commercialcontracts early this month (MJ, July7, p.10). The company estimates thatthe strike cost about 50,000 t/d in lostcoal production. The strikersreturned to work temporarily thismonth, but renewed their action aftera breakdown in talks.

Glencore’s Italianadmission Glencore International AG reportsthat its Kivcet-type lead smelter atthe Porto Vesme zinc-lead complex inSardinia resumed full output on July20, after repairs to a boiler. Thecompany’s spokeswoman, LottiGrenacher, says that the plant’sproduction was partially reducedduring the two-week repair period.The plant’s manager, Pierre Vix, toldReuters that the smelter lost between5,000 and 6,000 t of productionduring the repair of a leaking boiler.

Glencore completed its acquisitionof the complex about a year ago (MJ,June 18, 1999, p.460). Porto Vesmeproduced 120,000 t of lead and173,000 t of zinc in 1999.

INDUSTRY IN ACTION

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 69

MINERAL MARKETS

Copperboosted

After the three-months copper pricereached as high as US$1,860/t early lastweek, a close at US$1,868/t on Friday pro-vided the metal with a firm base from whichto move higher this week. Fund-driven tech-nical buying lifted the price to US$1,885/t,its highest level for around five months. Therally was checked by strong producer hedgeselling and the price moved lower buttraders still believe that the price will testUS$1,900/t.

Lawrence Eagles, a metal analyst withLME broker GNI, says that copper’s fun-damentals are good. He describes demandgrowth in Europe as phenomenal and says itmay strengthen in the coming months. MrEagles also points to the increase in can-celled warrants on the LME which indi-cates that the drawdown of copper stockswill continue. ■■

Good times for PGMThe triumvirate of supply uncertainty, con-sumer demand and speculation have allplayed a role in the rise in PGM prices overthe past week or two. Last week this mix offactors buoyed platinum prices to as high asUS$591/oz, their highest level for 11 years.The palladium price, meanwhile, steppedthrough a series of highs to touchUS$783/oz, its highest level since its recordpeak in February when the price breachedUS$800/oz – a level which most analystsbelieve that palladium will regain shortly.

Earlier this month the prices of platinumand palladium retreated when NorilskNickel ordered its sales agent to concludelong-term sales agreements with itsJapanese customers (MJ, July 7, 2000,p.12). In the wake of the announcement,news emerged that Japanese trading groupsSumitomo Corp. and Mitsui & Co. hadbegun talks with Almazjuvelirexport, theRussian organisation responsible for PGMsales. However, to date no agreements havebeen concluded and it is believed that evenif agreements are concluded shortly it isunlikely that metal will emerge from Russiauntil September. The continued uncertain-ty caused by Russia has contributed tostrong consumer demand for platinum and,importantly, palladium. This, together withvery illiquid markets, suggests that theprices of the metals will remain volatile.

As well as the short term developments,there have been a number of developmentsin the past two weeks that are significant forplatinum and palladium in the longer term.According to the Platinum Guild, the high

price of platinum is starting to dampen con-sumer demand for the metal in China. TheGuild’s manager in China, Ella Gu, saysthat, whilst demand for platinum jewelleryremains good with April and May showing10-15% increases since the end of 1999, theprice has risen by 30% and this, says theGuild, makes it difficult to forecast thegrowth rate through the remainder of 2000.

Elsewhere, precious metal refiner andspeciality chemicals and materials compa-ny Johnson Matthey announced that it hasentered into a joint venture to develop acombined heat and power system for domes-tic use. In conjunction with TXU EuropePower and Energy Partners, the companyplans to develop a unit based around fuelcell technology that will produce heat as aby-product.

The project, partially funded by the UK’sDepartment of Trade and Industry, is aim-ing to design a unit that will generate 3 kWof electricity. After an 18-month evaluationprogramme the partners plan to beginlarge-scale demonstrations of the technolo-gy in Europe and the US and according toEddie Hyams, president of TXU EuropePower, fuel cells will have an important rolein distributed power within the next five toten years.

On a more traditional front, Japan’slargest automobile manufacturer, Toyota,has announced that it has developed a newtechnology to reduce emissions for dieselengines using a platinum catalyst. Toyotadoes not expect to introduce the systemuntil 2003, by which time it will have com-pleted durability and reliability tests. ■■

Nickel uncertaintyVolumes in the nickel market are low andthis has exacerbated price movements. Atthe end of last week, it seemed that negotia-tions at Falconbridge would avoid a strikeand the nickel price fell. However, it rosesubsequently when union officials said thatthere is an 80% chance of strike action (thisissue, p.69). Further uncertainty was addedwhen the LME clarified the warranting ofnickel brand produced by Norilsk Nickel,leading to speculation that nickel that mayhave been held off warrant will be placed inLME warehouses. Recently there have beenrumours that a speculative fund had beencaught with unwarrantable nickel. On thesame day as the LME announcement, thecash to three-months backwardation nar-rowed dramatically to as little US$43/t; inrecent weeks it has been as much asUS$250/t. Speculative long liquidation haspushed the price lower and triggered sell-stops, and the price for three-months nickeldropped by almost 4%, closing onWednesday at US$7,760/t. Dealers expectthe price to move lower but warn that thefall is starting to show signs of being over-done. ■■

Websites leverageskills

Websites established to trade one particularmetal are now using the same knowledgeand experience to move into new metals.Last week, MetalSite, one of the dominantmarket places for on-line steel trading,announced that it will add copper and otherbase metals to its portfolio before the end ofthe year. In March, MetalSite together withMetal Management Inc. and PhilipServices Corp. launched ScrapSite.net, aweb-based market place for scrap metal.

New York-based aluminium.com is alsowidening its horizons. According to thecompany’s chief executive AlanKestenbaum, his goal is to establish a com-prehensive, centralised location for the buy-ing and selling of non-ferrous metals. Thecompany plans to launch the copper-mar-ket.com site around the end of the thirdquarter of this year. It will have similar fea-tures to aluminium.com and will allow usersto customise terms for delivery, piece-weight and chemical composition. The pro-prietary technology allows users to posttransactions online and to view multiplebids and offers, and will provide options forusers to select those that may see their post-ings. Perhaps the most significant develop-ment in the past few weeks was theannouncement by the IntercontinentalExchange, a joint venture between severalleading investment banks and energy com-panies (MJ, March 24, p.232), that it willbegin trading over-the-counter preciousmetals products in August, and energyproducts later in the year.

Although there are numerous websitesdevoted to on-line trading there are fewerthat supply the users of these sites withinformation that can aid them in theirstrategic planning. This week, UK-basedmetals consultancy, Brook Hunt,announced that next month subscribers toits services will be able to access its reportsand data files via its website –www.brookhunt.com. Brook Hunt’s site fol-lows similar initiatives by fellow metal con-sultants CRU International Ltd, TZMinerals International Ltd and AustralianMineral Economics Ltd. ■■

70 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

Patrick ThompsonThe president of the New YorkMercantile Exchange, PatrickThompson, sadly died last week from aheart attack at the age of 51. MrThompson had been president ofNYMEX since 1989, heading one of theworld’s major terminal markets for com-modities.

MINING FINANCE

July must be the month for entering the ironore business. Following just days afterAnglo American’s offer trumping RioTinto’s bid for North Ltd (this issue, p.57),the third of the London-based major mininggroups, Billiton plc, has agreed to acquirean effective 2.1% interest in the world’slargest iron ore producer, Companhia Valedo Rio Doce (CVRD) of Brazil, forUS$327.3 million. Although the dealinvolves only a small effective interest inCVRD, it will give Billiton the importantbenefit of a seat on the board of the Valeparconsortium, which holds a 27% interest inCVRD and a 42% voting interest givingeffective control (see diagram).

Billiton intends to nominate the chair-man of its Brazilian arm Billiton Metaís,Wilson Nélio Brumer, as its representativeon the board of Valepar. The appointmentwill take effect from the start of next year.Mr Brumer is a former head of CVRD, andthus has a thorough knowledge of thegroup’s businesses.

Valepar SA was established in 1997 toparticipate in the privatisation of CVRD bythe Brazilian Government, specifically acontrolling block of 41.7% of the votingshares. Valepar won the auction with a bidequivalent to US$3.15 billion (MJ, May 9,1997, p.369). Billiton’s interest in CVRDgoes back even before the auction. Its prede-cessor company, Gencor, considered partici-pating in the CVRD auction, but withdrewbefore the final stages.

Speaking this Wednesday in London, theexecutive chairman of Billiton, BrianGilbertson, described the Valepar deal as anexploratory entry into the iron ore industry.He noted that opportunities to enter thisimportant industry are rare. Mr Gilbertsonwas fulsome in his praise for CVRD, in its

quality of assets, and its managerial andtechnical skills. He considers the iron oreresources of the Carajas region of Brazil tobe even more attractive than those ofWestern Australia. CVRD sold over 93Mt/y of iron ore and pellets in 1999.

Although control of Valepar/CVRD will“remain firmly in Brazilian hands”, partici-pation in Valepar will give Billiton access toinformation about CVRD, and a privilegedposition with respect to starting any discus-sions. Mr Gilbertson hopes that this mighteventually lead to possible co-operationbetween Billiton and CVRD, although it isfar too early to be specific. He believes thatBilliton has much to offer such co-opera-tion, in its experience of operating interna-tionally, its knowledge of European capitalmarkets and in its greater breadth of com-modity businesses. The two companies haveseveral commodity areas in common, andthey are already partners in two ventures inBrazil: the Valesul aluminium smelter andMineraçao Rio Norte, a bauxite producer.Mr Gilbertson pointed to the positive com-ments made recently by the chief executiveof CVRD, Jorio Dauster, as evidence of theinternational aspirations of the Braziliangroup.

The deal takes the form of an agreementby Billiton to purchase a 66.97% interest inSweet River Investments Ltd from Bank ofAmerica Corp. for US$327.3 million. Thisinterest currently comprises a 39.06% vot-ing interest (Bank of America and BancoLiberal of Brazil will retain 50.1% of thevoting rights). However, the acquisitionagreement provides that, subject to theagreement of the other shareholders, SweetRiver’s voting and non-voting shares will beconsolidated, giving Billiton voting rightsover the full 66.97%. Sweet River (Rio

Billiton buys seat atCVRD’s table

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 71

LME PRICES & STOCKS

Prices (a.m.) July 27 July 20Tonne basis Buyers Sellers Buyers SellersCOPPER Grade ACash....................... $1,834 $1,835 $1,801.5 $1,802Three months ......... $1,863.5 $1,864.5 $1,827 $1,828TINCash....................... $5,270 $5,275 $5,315 $5,320Three months ......... $5,315 $5,320 $5,345 $5,350LEADCash....................... $468.5 $469 $446.5 $447.5Three months ......... $478 $479 $458 $458.5ZINC Special high gradeCash....................... $1,144 $1,145 $1,147 $1,147.5Three months ......... $1,159.5 $1,160 $1,163 $1,163.5ALUMINIUM Higher gradeCash....................... $1,542.5 $1,543 $1,562 $1,562.5Three months ......... $1,563 $1,564 $1,585 $1,585.5AlloyCash....................... $1,203 $1,204 $1,225 $1,226Three months ......... $1,245 $1,246 $1,266 $1,268NICKELCash....................... $7,740 $7,745 $8,250 $8,255Three months ......... $7,700 $7,710 $8,110 $8,115SILVERCash....................... $4.87 $4.92 $4.96 $5.00Three months ......... $4.92 $4.97 $5.01 $5.05

LME warehouse stocks on July 26Stocks Stocks

(t) (July 19)

COPPER Grade A cathodes 500,300 513,275

TIN 11,780 11,475

LEAD 149,225 159,625

ZINC SHG 207,675 214,300

ALUMINIUM HG 470,275 484,125Alloy 95,320 94,260

NICKEL 16,068 15,684SILVER – –

LONDON PRICES

Metals Jul 27Aluminium (US producer) 63.00-66.00 c/lb d/dAntimony $1,600-$1,700/t cifArsenic (Rotterdam 99%) $0.35-$0.45/lbBismuth Bismuth $3.10-$3.30/lb cifCadmium (99.99%) $0.17-$0.22/lb cif

.. (99.95%) $0.15-$0.20/lb cifChrome (UK 99%) $9.00-$10.00/lbCobalt (99.8%) $12.70-$13.90/lb net

.. (99.3%) $12.00-$13.00/lb netGermanium $580-$640/kgGold £184.87($280.20)/oz Indium $100-$120/kgIridium (J Matthey price) $415/ozMagnesium (Norsk Hydro Euro. prod.) �2.33/kg*

.. (US Free mkt, 99.8%) $2,040-$2,100/t*Manganese

metal (99.7%) $950-$1,000/tMercury (99.99%) $140-$150/flaskNickel $3.51-$3.52/lbOsmium $400-$450/ozPalladium (J Matthey price) $770.00/oz

.. (Free market) $755.00-$765.00/ozPlatinum (J Matthey price) $568.00/oz

.. (Free market) $560.00-$570.00/ozRhodium (J Matthey price) $2,450.00/ozRuthenium (J Matthey price) $170/oz cifSelenium $2.90-$3.30/lb cifSilver $4.99/ozTellurium (UK lump & powder

99.95%) $4.00-$6.00/lb netTin (Kuala Lumpur) RM19.98/kg

Ore & Oxides Jul 27Antimony (60%) $8.00-$8.50/t unit, cif nom*Beryl (10% BeO) $75-$80/s ton unit BeO cif*Chrome (Transvaal, Friable 40%) $48-$70/t, fob*

.. (Turkish, concs 48%) $65-$70/t fob*Columbite (min. 65% comb. oxides) $3.10-$3.80/lb cif*Ilmenite (54% TiO2) A$100-A$115/t fobLithium ores (Petalite 4.2% Li2O) $180-$270/t fob*

(Spodumene>7.25% Li2O) $385-$395/t fob*Manganese ore (48-50% Mn,

max. 0.1% P) $1.81-$1.90/t unit fob*Molybdenum

oxide (conc 55-57%) $2.70-$2.80/lbRutile (Aust. 95-97%

TiO2) A$760-A$885/t fob (bulk)Tantalum oxide (60% cif N. Euro port) $42-$52/lbUranium (Nuexco unrestricted/restricted

U3O8) $7.00/$8.10/lbVanadium (98% V2O5) $1.85-$2.00/lb cifWolframite (65%) $40-$45/t unitZircon sand (std 66-67% ZrO2) A$560-A$660/t fob (bulk)

* Source: Metal Bulletin

Eletron(Bradespar)

Litel(Previ)

CSN BNDESPAR& Investvale

SweetRiver

Employees BrazilianPensionFunds

Market Valepar BNDES BNDESPAR Litel(Previ)

CVRD

31% 25% 21% 12% 11%

3% (4%) 34% (4%) 27% (42%) 22% (32%) 3% (5%) 6% (10%) 5% (3%)

Note 1 - Valepar shareholding excludes Previ bringing its 25 million CVRD shares into ValeparNote 2 - Brackets indicate percentage of voting sharesNote 3 - CVRD currently holds 10.3% of CSN Source: Billiton

MINING FINANCE

Doce in English) holds an 11.56% interestin Valepar SA, which works out at an under-lying price of about US$40/share in CVRD.This is a significant premium to the marketprice of shares in CVRD of US$26.73/share(based on the weighted average price of thevoting and non-voting shares thisMonday).

The premium is due to the fact that SweetRiver holds a put option over its Valeparshares against Companhia SiderúrgicaNacional (CSN), giving it the right to sellthe shares to CSN at any time between May2002 and May 2004. The put option wasagreed in 1997 and the price rises at the rateof 1% over the London Inter-Bank OfferedRate (LIBOR), compounded semi-annual-ly. Based on information released by CSN,Billiton values a 66.97% share of the putoption at US$323.9 million as of thisTuesday (July 25), equivalent toUS$39.69/share in CVRD. At currentLIBOR rates, this will be worthUS$45/share in May 2002 and US$53/sharein May 2004. Billiton notes that the rate atwhich the value increases is greater than itsown cost of capital. Mr Gilbertson thuslikened the deal to “a ticket to the table”.He conceded that it is an expensive ticket,but he pointed out that through the putoption “we can always get our money backif we don’t like the meal”.

The rest of the ownership of Valepar iscurrently in a state of flux. Under agree-ments set when Valepar was established,which run until 2017, its shareholders havepre-emptive rights in proportion to theirholdings over each other’s shares in theevent of disposal, or if there is a change ofcontrol of a shareholder in Valepar. Theagreements also provide that the Valeparrepresentatives on CVRD’s board vote in ablock. Agreement has been reached for CSNto dispose of its interest in Valepar, and forCVRD to sell its 10.3% cross-holding inCSN (not shown in the diagram). As part ofthis unwinding, the chairman of CSN,Benjamin Steinbruch, stood down as chair-man of CVRD to be replaced by RogerAgnelli (MJ, June 2, p.425).

CSN is understood to have offered itsshares to the other Valepar shareholders,with Litel and Eletron agreeing to take uptheir rights. BNDESPAR, part of Brazil’snational development bank, is not expectedto participate and, according to Billiton,Sweet River has yet to decide. The price isunderstood to be around US$40/share inCVRD (but without the benefit of any putoption). It is further proposed that SweetRiver’s put option against CSN be trans-ferred to Litel and Eletron, although thiswould require the approval of Sweet River’sshareholders, including Billiton.

This deal between CSN and Litel andElectron has been delayed by a court actionlaunched two weeks ago in Para Stateagainst the funding support for the dealprovided by BNDES, but this is not expect-

ed to present more than a temporary prob-lem. Assuming Sweet River does not partic-ipate, Litel’s holding in Valepar would riseto about 45% and Eletron’s to roughly32%. Litel is controlled by Previ, Brazil’slargest pension fund, and Eletron is owned85% by Bradespar (controlled by theBradesco Foundation) and 15% byOpportunity Anafi. ■■

Aquarius gathersKroondal back in

Bermuda-registered Aquarius PlatinumLtd, listed in Australia and on London’sAlternative Investment Market, plans tomake a takeover offer for its 45%-ownedassociate, Kroondal Platinum Mines Ltd(KPM) of South Africa. The deal wouldtake the form of a share-for-share merger,and Aquarius has received approval fromthe South African Reserve Bank for a sec-ondary listing of its shares on theJohannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) inorder to effect the transaction. The ‘schemeof arrangement’ would also require share-holder approval.

Shares in KPM fell on the JSE followingthe announcement this Monday (July 24),to R17.80/share, after having risen stronglylast Friday and early on Monday to as highas R21/share amidst rumours of a possibletakeover.

KPM owns and operates the Kroondalmine on the southwestern portion of SouthAfrica’s Bushveld Igneous Complex (BIC),producing platinum group metals in con-

centrates which are treated by ImpalaPlatinum Holdings Ltd under an off-takeagreement. KPM was originally wholly-owned by Aquarius, but was floated on theJSE nearly two years ago, at R7.50/share,to raise R146 million towards the cost ofdeveloping the Kroondal mine (MJ, August7, 1998, p.115).

Aquarius, through its South African sub-sidiary Aquarius Platinum (South Africa)Pty Ltd, owns the Marikana project, justeast of Kroondal, which it expects to com-mission at 80,000 oz/y platinum in mid-to-late 2001. Aquarius SA also recentlyacquired the Everest South, ChieftainsPlain and a portion of the Everest Northproperties on the eastern limb of the BICfrom Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd for a25.5% interest in Aquarius SA, as Impalahas sought to outsource the mining elementof its smaller projects. (Impala also holds a17.2% interest in Aquarius Platinum Ltd.)The recent deal with Impala has substan-tially increased Aquarius’ resource base(MJ, July 14, p.27).

Everest South could follow Marikanainto production in mid-to-late 2002, raisingAquarius SA’s output to 300,000 oz/y ofPGM but also increasing its fundingrequirements. The managing director ofAquarius, Keith Liddell, said this Mondaythat acquisition of the balance of Kroondalwould provide substantial benefits, includ-ing “releasing total revenue from theKroondal project to Aquarius”. Mr Liddellalso said that the deal would “increase ourmomentum to become a 500,000 oz/y pro-ducer of PGM”. ■■

72 Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000

Alcan Aluminium (C$) ..... 3 8.5 00.00 485Alcoa ($) .......................... 00.00 0.000.0024,96911Anglo Amer. Plat. (R)....... 00.00 0.7 00.00 00Anglo American (£)..........AngloGold (R) ................. 0.0 00.00 00Anglovaal Mining (R) ...... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Antofagasta Holdings (£)Arch Coal ($) ................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Ashanti Goldfields ($) ......Ashton Mining (A$) ......... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Asturiana de Zinc (�)....... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Barrick Gold (C$) ............ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00BHP (A$) ........................ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Billiton (£) ......................Boliden (C$) .................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Caemi Mineracao .............Cameco (C$).................... 00.00 0.0600 00Cleveland-Cliffs ($) .......... 255 0011 00Cominco (C$) .................. 00.00 0.0 00.00 00CVRD (BR) .................... 00.00 0.008011110 4De Beers (Linked Uts) (£) 0.000.0 0.00 10,244Eramet (Eur)...................Falconbridge (C$)............Freeport-Mc. C&G ($) ..... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Gold Fields Ltd (R).......... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Grupo Mexico (MP)......... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Hindalco (Rs) .................. 00.00 0.0 00.00 00HZL (Rs)......................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Iluka (A$)........................ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00IMC Global ($) ................ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Impala Plat. (R) .............. 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Inco (C$) ......................... 00 0.0 00.00 00Industrias Peñoles (MP) .. 28.90 14.5 440 00Iscor (R) .......................... 14.80 0.0 00.00 00KGHM (Zt) ..................... 32.30 0.0 00 00Lonmin plc (£) ................. 6.65 0.0 00.001 11,MIM Holdings (A$)......... 86 00.00 00Minsur(PS)...................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Mitsui Min. & Smlt. (¥)... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Newmont Mining ($)........ 00.00 0.0 00.00Noranda Mining(C$)........

Norilsk Nickel (Rb).......... 74.66 13 00.00 00Normandy Mining (A$) ... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Norsk Hydro (NK) .......... 00.00 0.0 00600 00North Ltd (A$) ................ 00.00 0..0 00.00 00Outokumpu (�) ..............Pasminco (A$) ................. 0011 0.0 00.00 00Pechiney ‘A’ (�)................ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Phelps Dodge ($).............. 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Placer Dome (C$) ............ 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Potash Corp. of Sask. (C$) 00.00 0.0 00.00PT Tambang Timah (Rp) 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Rio Algom (C$)................ 0.0 00.00 00Rio Tinto plc (£) ............. 00.00 0.0 00.00 00RJB Mining (£) ............... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Stillwater Mining (US$) ...Sumitomo Met. Min. (¥) . 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Teck ‘B’ (C$) ................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00WMC (A$) ...................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00Xstrata (SF) .................... 00.00 0.0 00.00 00

Share prices and exchange rates are intra-day Wednesday.100 in the high/low column indicates that the share is tradingat a high, 0 that it is at a low, based on local prices over thepast 52 weeks.

Currencies July 26Value of £ $(US)$ (US) ................................................... 0.0558 —$ (Australian)........................................ 0.2.512 0.05$ (Canadian) ......................................... 0.00 0.00Ringgit (Malaysian) Fixed official rate ..Franc (Swiss) ........................................ 0.00 0.00Krona (Swedish) ................................... 0.00 0.00Yen ....................................................... 0.00 0.00Rand (SA) ............................................ 0.00 0.00� (Euro) ............................................... 0.00 0.00Markka (Finnish) ................................. 0.00 0.00Franc (French)...................................... 0.00 0.00Deutschmark ........................................ 0.00 0.00Source: Bloomberg

SHARE PRICES AND EXCHANGE RATES

Company July 26 Change Local US$ mill.Local 5-day % % hi-lo Mkt cap.

Company July 26 Change Local US$ mill.Local 5-day % % hi-lo Mkt cap.

48.8031.31

213.0032.60

267.0023.65

3.858.002.401.209.90

23.9019.01

2.591.79

270.0118.7024.3118.5546.9916.0043.8916.65

8.3125.5038.75

800.008.354.57

13.38277.00

21.6017.8615.5030.80

8.201.095.25

819.0017.4415.45

1.83.3

–1.8–7.3–1.1–0.6–0.10.0

45.511.9–0.7–9.31.3

–6.2–6.822.2

1.4–3.0–0.82.2

–9.80.9

–7.5–3.6–2.78.20.5

–0.61.6

–1.40.5

–4.01.9

12.3–1.3–5.017.2

1.00.0

–10.30.3

2425865211544530

99715

95421

3912820

4805318

11

42394011731083

112256686301189

018

7,13727,243

6,62920,193

4,110366

1,153305270228375

6,44619,885

8,407261591720261

1,08210,401

9,7201,0072,0081,3181,6622,6081,327

79603

1,5312,6322,675

759575

1,4312,2051,105

3914,0492,9272,592

582268

10024212010

745103626841963

76993

1,4331,003

10,5771,9541,287

6513,8283,1442,7462,666

144721

17,657136977

2,269669

5,3721,428

1.522.572.235.772.51

13.57165.66

10.551.62

1.001.691.473.801.658.94

109.126.951.06

�1=Mk5.94573�1=FF6.55957�1=DM1.95583

4.20.0

–3.417.5–1.211.4

0.53.2

–10.9–2.7–0.4–0.9–2.37.9

–6.0–6.3–4.71.30.0

211.450.973.524.49

11.000.98

49.9539.9412.3074.502590

17.4510.45

0.6225.38

433.009.108.06

400.00

http://www.mmprocurement.com

h t t p ://you’re invited to join the greatest adventure

in the resource industry since the invention

of the shovel :

Within the next few months you will be able to

buy or sell all your resource industry products or

services from one website.

A ny product. A ny service. A ny w h e re. A ny time.

This revolution in the way our industry will

conduct its procurement is being brought to yo u

by 14 of the world’s most respected mining,

m i n e rals and metals companies.

This virtual market place will be your gateway to

business benefits of such significance, that

they’ll only really be ap p r e c i able when you fully

u n d e rstand the potential of the ap p l i c a t i o n .

This independently managed venture will be

accessible to all industry members and

g u a rantees that all transactions will be

conducted in a highly confidential enviro n m e n t .

Alcan Aluminium Limited, Alcoa Inc., Anglo American plc, Barrick Gold Corp, The Broken Hill Proprietary

Company Limited (BHP), Corporacion Nacional del Cobre de Chile (CODELCO), Companhia Vale do Rio

Doce (CVRD), De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd., Inco Limited, Newmont Mining Corporation, Noranda Inc.,

Phelps Dodge Corporation, Rio Tinto, and WMC Limited.

www.gmexpo .com.auwww.gmexpo . com.

www.gmexpo . com.auThe vision.The vision.

www.gmexpo.com.auwww.gmexpo.com.au

Goldfields Mining ExpoKalgoorlie, Western Australia18, 19, 20 October 2000Phone +61 8 9021, Fax: +61 8 9021 1402

VISION

G M E2000

MINING FINANCE

Falconbridge enjoysfurther price boost

The surge in the spot price of nickel to ashigh as US$10,500/t (US$4.76/lb) in Maygave an extra boost to already favourableprice levels. Although nickel has sinceretraced its gains since the start of the year,average prices realised by nickel producersduring the quarter to June 30, 2000 werehigher than those of the preceding Marchquarter, in contrast with other base metalswhich drifted lower during the period.Falconbridge Ltd of Canada realisedUS$4.55/lb for nickel, compared withUS$4.21/lb in the March quarter (MJ,April 28, p.335) and US$2.44/lb in the Junequarter of 1999. The group received an evenmore impressive price rise in its ferronickeldivision (85.26%-owned FalconbridgeDominicana – Falcondo), which realisedUS$4.58/lb of contained nickel, comparedwith US$3.96/lb and US$2.38/lb respective-ly.

The higher prices were the main factor inraising Falconbridge’s revenue to C$753.6million for the June quarter, 13% more thanthat of the March quarter and 42% morethan in the June quarter of last year. Thisyielded attributable earnings of US$123.4million (after preferred dividends), 16%and 342% more respectively. Cash flowfrom operations was similarly higher, atC$210.5 million (8.2% and 121% higherrespectively), and operating cash flow wasfurther boosted by a C$42.7 million benefi-cial change in working capital. This cashflow more than covered the increased capi-tal expenditure of C$64.6 million for thequarter, plus a C$118.5 million net repay-ment of debt and C$23.3 million distributedin dividends. Cash resources thus increasedover the June quarter, from C$175.1 millionto C$213.6 million.

Other favourable factors in the Junequarter included higher prices for by-prod-uct platinum group metals (PGM).Falconbridge does not report a breakdown,but precious metals revenue for its ‘inte-grated nickel operations’ (INO) at Sudbury(plus Raglan in Quebec) totalled C$55.7million, 22% more than in the March quar-ter and more than double the revenue of ayear ago. The group also enjoyed highercopper and zinc production from its KiddCreek division, at 30,046 t and 36,182 trespectively, 7.2% and 1.4% more than ayear ago; and Falcondo’s output of nickel inferronickel was up by 11% to 7,176 t.Falconbridge’s 44% share of the productionof Collahuasi in Chile rose by 2.4% to46,960 t of copper, and the group has raisedits expectation for the full year by 10,000 tto 181,000 t.

However, the INO produced 11% lessnickel, at 17,166 t, and 5% less copper, at15,701 t. The Fraser mine at Sudbury suf-

fered a rockburst in the Strathcona Deepcopper zone in April. The realised copperprice of US$0.80/lb, although substantiallyhigher than the US$0.70/lb received in theJune quarter of last year, was US$0.02/lblower than in the March quarter, but thezinc price of US$0.55/lb was unchangedcompared with the March period.

Exploration expenditure amounted toC$12.4 million in the June period, aroundhalf as much again as the total spent ineither of the two comparative quarters. Thefocus of exploration has been the Koniamboproject in the North Province of the Frenchterritory of New Caledonia, where the lat-est resource estimate totals 146.5 Mt at agrade of 2.56% Ni (compared with 132.4Mt at 2.46% at the end of 1999).Falconbridge expects to complete a prefea-sibility study by the end of 2001.Subsequent to the end of the reporting peri-od, Falconbridge announced its participa-tion in another lateritic nickel project in thesouthwest Pacific region, on Gag Island inIndonesia (MJ, July 14, p.17).

Meanwhile, Falconbridge’s major share-holder, Toronto-based Noranda Inc., hasconfirmed its satisfaction with the compa-ny’s financial performance by increasing itsshareholding from 49.9% to 50.1%. Apartfrom giving Noranda outright control, thissmall increase is significant in that Norandawill henceforth be required to consolidateFalconbridge’s accounts into its own finan-cial statements. Noranda signalled itsintention of increasing its interest inFalconbridge, eventually to 100%, over ayear ago (MJ, March 5, 1999, p.166). ■■

AngloGold steadied byrand

AngloGold Ltd of South Africa produced1.8 Moz of gold in the three months to June30, 2000, a 2.7% increase over the precedingMarch quarter and maintaining its annu-alised output at well over 7 Moz/y. However,the depressed spot price continued to erodethe company’s average price received, whichslipped to US$300/oz (including all hedginggains) in the June quarter compared withUS$315/oz in the March period. However,that which one market takes another cangive, and the continued depreciation of therand against the US dollar meant that theaverage price received in local terms rose by3.4%, to R66,192/kg.

The extra revenue in local terms yielded a10% rise in operating profit, to R820.9 mil-lion. Net earnings before abnormal itemswere down very marginally, at R457.7 mil-lion. The June quarter result left the operat-ing profit at the half-year stage virtuallyunchanged year-on-year, at R1.57 billion,although attributable profit was downowing to significant abnormal gains (main-ly deferred tax) recorded in the first half oflast year.

AngloGold reports an improved operatingperformance from its core South Africanoperations, with the average area stoped peremployee rising by 11%. The South Africanoperations also recorded their best perfor-mances in terms of lost-time injuries andfatal accidents (quashing the misconceptionthat safety must be sacrificed for productivi-ty). The rise in tonnage was partially offsetby a 2% fall in grade, but production of goldper employee still rose by 4% as a result ofthe higher productivity. AngloGold attrib-utes the operating improvements to a set ofremedial programmes instigated at the endof the March quarter, and thus expects fur-ther benefits over the rest of this year.

A rise in cash operating costs of the SouthAfrican operations of 2%, to R47,574/kg,was in line with local inflation and con-tained a 3% rise in underground develop-ment. The company’s overall cash operatingcosts rose by 2.6%, to R45,745/kg, but thedepreciation in the rand translated this intoa 5.5% fall in US dollar terms, toUS$207/oz. Total costs similarly fell, by4.8%, to US$239/oz. AngloGold acquiredsignificant interests in the Geita project inTanzania and the Morila project in Maliduring the quarter (MJ, April 7, p.275),and the chief executive, Bobby Godsell, nowexpects the rest of Africa to become thecompany’s most important source of earn-ings after South Africa. ■■

Market newsNew York-listed Southern Peru CopperCorp. (SPCC) has issued US$30 million inbonds on the Lima market through aPeruvian operating subsidiary. The bondsbear interest at 8.75% per annum andmature in July 2007. The proceeds of theissue, which forms part of a US$200 millionprogramme, will be used in the funding ofSPCC’s major expansion and modernisa-tion work at its Peruvian operations (MJ,February 4, p.102). SPCC’s main share-holders are Grupo Mexico SA de CV, with54.2%, Cerro Trading Co. (14.2%), andPhelps Dodge Corp. (14.0%).■ Toronto-based metals and mining groupNoranda Inc. has bought additional sharesin Rio Algom Ltd, a Toronto-based copperproducer and distributor, raising its share-holding from 7% to 8.2%. The two compa-nies are partners in the Antamina zinc-cop-per project in Peru, each holding 33.75%.■ The Australian mining and resourcesfund Lion Selection Group Ltd is to investA$5 million in Austminex NL, which holdsan option exercisable for A$0.5 million overthe Benambra copper-zinc mine in north-east Victoria. Benambra was closed fouryears ago by Denehurst Ltd (MJ, June 7,1996, p.443). Lion’s investment will beA$2.5 million in equity and A$2.5 million inconvertible notes issued by Austminex. Thelatter is conducting a study into the feasibil-

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 75

An annual subscription (six issues) costs only £60 ($US107). To subscribe, please complete theform below and mail or fax it to our subscriptions office, or subscribe online via our internet

website - http://www.miningenvironmental.com@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@e?@@h?@@h?@@h?@@h?@@h?@@h?

@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

?@@?@@?@@?@@?@@?@@

?@@@@@@@@?@@@@@@@@

?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@?e@@@@@@@@e?@@@@@@@@

@@g@@g@@g@@g@@g@@g@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

BETTER ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION

MinervaEditorial Leader article, often written byan industry expert, examines environ-mental and social trends in the industry.

EnviromineProjects, environmental legislation, newmethods of environmental managementand advances in research and technology.

Feature ArticlesDetailed examinations of environmentaland social programmes and technicaldevelopments written by industry experts.

TechnologyThe latest in environmental technology,equipment and technical services.

MeetingsCalendar of future mining-relatedEnvironmental Conferences, Seminarsand Exhibitions.

TailingsMiscellaneous environmental issues andinformation. This section also providesa discussion forum through publicationof readers’ comments and letters.

Mining Environmental Management is the world’s premier publication examiningenvironmental and social issues for mining and quarrying worldwide

If you need to keep up with the latestinformation, opinion and debate in the miningrelated environmental and social sectorsglobally, subscribe to Mining EnvironmentalManagement. The magazine is published by theworld’s leading independent provider of miningsector information - The Mining Journal Ltd -with a 165-year history behind it. It is edited by

people with prior experience in, and an excellentunderstanding of, related issues on all aspects ofenvironmental and social matters which affectexisting and developing mining, quarrying andmetallurgical operations worldwide. Thisensures a balanced coverage of a sector whichtakes up an ever-increasing proportion ofmanagement time and effort.

MINING ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SUBSCRIPTION ORDER FORMName: ........................................................................................................ Signature: ..................................................................................................................................

Company: ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Address: .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Country: ................................................................................................... Zip/Post Code: .......................................................................................................................

Phone: ................................................................... Fax: ........................................................................... E-mail: ...............................................................................

I wish to pay by Amex/Mastercard/Visa

Card Number: ............................................................................................................................................... Expiry Date: ..................................................................

Card Address (If different from above) .............................................................................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Payment of £60 (or $US107) enclosed Payments by cheque should be made payable to Mining Journal Ltd. in £UK or $US and drawn on a UK or US bank

Return form to: MEM Subscriptions, PO Box 10, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 5NE, UK.Phone: +44 (0)1732 864333. Fax: +44 (0)1732 865747. e-mail: subscriptions@mining-journal.com

Prices valid until December 31st 2000

MINING FINANCE

ity of reopening the Benambra mine, due forcompletion in February of 2001. Currentplanning envisages reopening the minetowards the end of 2001, for a life of tenyears. The assets include a 300,000 t/y oretreatment plant; the Wilga deposit, withdecline access and underground develop-ment; and the undeveloped Currawongdeposit. Conversion of the notes, subject toshareholder approval, would follow recom-missioning of the Benambra mine. Theboard of Austminex is chaired by JohnRobinson and its non-executive directorsinclude Peter Vanderspuy.■ Vancouver-based Western CopperHoldings Ltd has arranged a private placingof 4.2 million shares, at C$1.47/share, withTeck Corp., subject to the approval of theToronto Stock Exchange. The proceeds areto be used to repay debt owed by WesternCopper to Teck. The deal requires share-holder approval, but as Teck already holds

about 2.3 million shares in Western Copper,it will not be allowed to vote at the specialshareholders’ meeting to be convened forthat purpose. Provided the deal is approved,Teck’s shareholding in Western Copper willbe increased to 29.7%. The debts owed byWestern Copper to Teck are the result offunds advanced by the latter to help fundWestern Copper’s share of exploration costsat its El Salvador project in ZacatecasState, Mexico. Work has established theSan Nicolas deposit as part of the project,where preliminary open-pit modelling hasoutlined a resource totalling 75 Mt, at agrade of 1.4% Cu, 2.1% Zn, 0.5 g/t Au and28.7 g/t Ag to a depth of 420 m. Teck, asproject operator, plans to complete a feasi-bility study of San Nicolas in the first halfof next year. ■■

Mining Journal, London, July 28, 2000 77

Abchurch Chambers, 24 St Peters Road,Bournemouth, BH1 2LN, U.K.

Tel: +44 (0)1202 298322. Fax: +44 (0)1202 298383Email: info@hunterpersonnel.com

Senior Managers required for metallurgical and miningoperations in Europe, Africa and Australia.

Electrical Engineering Manager required for UK miningoperation – to be trained for senior management position.

Mechanical Foreman required for Ireland. Previousexperience of process equipment essential.

Please email c.v.’s to Sandie Fforde or Dick Sanders

Visit www.hunterpersonnel.com FOR THE COMPREHENSIVE LIST OFVACANCIES AND THE FULL RANGE OF SERVICES THAT WE OFFER

Hunter Personnel Contracts Ltd

METALLURGISTSWe are filling a number of metallurgical vacancies from JuniorMetallurgist (2 years plus postgraduate experience) toMetallurgical Manager in a number of locations worldwide, inboth mineral processing and pyrometallurgy. We wouldespecially like to hear from persons with good flotationexperience, especially for base and precious metals. Termsand conditions will vary, depending on location, with someposts available on a long term basis and in most attractivelocations.Please send an up-to-date CV, quoting Ref No 4870, to:Dennis Thomas, Thomas Mining Associates, P.O. Box 2010,Lancing, West Sussex BN15 8HZ, UK. Tel: +44 1903 753511.Fax: +44 1903 753510. E-mail: dennis@thomasmining.prestel.co.uk

TThe most accessed mininghe most accessed mininginfinforormamation site on the intertion site on the internetnet

Daily News

Investor Newsletters

Technology News

Company Database

Property Database

Supplier Database

Careers

InfoMineWhat can it do for you?

www.infomine.com

Your Mining Information Source

InfoMine is a single source ofcomprehensive, integrated news and

information concerning all aspects of worldwidemining and mineral exploration. It is designed

for both information seekers and information providers.

InfoMine - Robertson Info-Data Inc. Tel: +1 (604) 683-2037Suite 640, 580 Hornby St. Fax: +1 (604) 681-4166Vancouver BC, CANADA V6C 3B6 E-mail: infodata@infomine.com

Proof #: _________Bernard Hodes AdvertisingClient: World Bank (IFC)Publication: Mining JournalRun Date(s): 7/28/00Size: 7 x 4-7/8Location: Art Clients S-ZFile Name: IFC/027AE: JennaArtist: Melissa

OK for PDF: _____

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCEYou will have at least a Master’s degree, from a leading university, with an emphasis on mining engineering andmineral processing; and extensive experience in the mining industry combining operations, project developmentand consultancy with emphasis on metals mining (preferably 15 years). An in-depth understanding of theinterface between technology, operations management, technical parameters and financial viability of miningprojects is required. Advanced expertise in the following areas is preferred: ore resources/reserves; miningtechniques/mineral processing; mine planning and development; environmental and social considerations; cost estimation (capital and operating); project engineering and construction; feasibility studies; competitivepositioning and benchmarking; and markets for metals and industrial minerals.Additionally, you will have held industrial management positions; worked in emerging countries; be computerliterate; be an authority on major industry trends; and possess excellent communication skills both written andverbal in English. Fluency in more than one major language a plus.The position is based in Washington, D.C. International travel is involved. The World Bank Group offers a stimulating work environment and internationally competitive conditions. For consideration, please e-mail your resume to: recruitment@ifc.org specify “Senior Mining Engineer/Industry Specialist” in the subject line, by August 28,2000.

Senior Mining Engineer/ Industry Specialist

The World Bank Group Mining Department, a joint service of the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation,

is seeking an outstanding candidate to fill the position of SeniorMining Engineer/Industry Specialist.

As a member of multi-disciplinary teams, the successful candidate willprovide technical/industrial expertise in support of environmentally and socially sustainable investments in Emerging Market mining projects. You will evaluate new mining projects, conduct due diligence, monitorthe existing investment portfolio, and provide advisory services in industry privatization and restructuring.

INTERNATIONAL BANK FO

RWORLD BANK

RE

CO

NSTRU CT IO N A N D D E VELO

PM

EN

T

INT

ER

NA

TI O

N

AL

F I N A N C E

CO

RP

OR

AT

ION

INT

ER

NA

TI O

N

AL

F I N A N C E

CO

RP

OR

AT

ION