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Proactive mining highlights: African Potash, Eurasia Mining, Lucara Diamonds, Red Rock and more...

Published: 10:30 14 May 2016 BST

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One of the rub-offs Rio Tinto’s (LON:RIO) planned expansion of the giant Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia  was a short run on the shares of Kincora Copper Ltd (CVE:KCC).

Kincora holds large tracts of land not far away from where Rio’s operations are now moving  up a gear.

Jubilee Platinum PLC’s (LON:JLP) shares climbed 15% on a bullish update on operations at its chrome/platinum tailings project at the Dilokong mine in South Africa.

The chrome plant feed rate capacity is now 65 tons per hour (tph) Jubilee said, exceeding design capacity by 30% while trials have indicated a production rate of double design capacity.

An anti-corruption campaign group urged tighter regulation of London’s junior AIM market as it claimed a mining firm formerly headed by ex-England cricketer Phil Edmonds used “bribes” to win business in Africa.

Sable Mining Africa Ltd (LON:SBLM) allegedly paid incentives to some of Liberia’s most senior government officials to change the country’s procurement law to win a big iron ore mining concession, Global Witness claimed in a report.

An excellent performance from its Costerfield mine in Australia helped Mandalay Resources Corp (TSE:MND) post strong underlying earnings and revenue in its latest quarter despite lowermetals  prices, the group told investors.

Continued efforts to maintain low average cash production per ounce of saleable old equivalent of US$751, meant the metals miner generated 34% EBITDA (underlying earnings) margins for the three months to end March.

Tight cost control helped Caledonia Mining Corporation PLC (LON:CMCL) to a better than expected result in its first quarter.

The Zimbabwe-based miner is undertaking a major expansion of the Blanket  gold mine and disruption and costs associated with this meant net profits declined to US$543,000 (US$1.26mln).

Xtract Resources PLC (LON:XTR) is going great guns to meet its aim of being a mid-tier gold  producer by the end of 2017 and today's resource upgrade from the Manica project underscored progress.

The work saw the total resource at the mine - the Fair Bride deposit to be precise -  lifted by 36% to 1.257mln gold ounces compared to a previous estimate.

Vast Resources PLC (LON:VAST) shares rose as much as 8.5% this morning after legal proceedings at its Romanian mine come to an end.

The group’s majority owned Baita Plai Polymetallic Mine in Romania is closer to obtaining the relevant permissions to start development . All the legal work to facilitate the relevant mergers has been completed, Vast said in its first quarter results.

Berkeley Energia Limited (LON:BKY) has pulled in US$10mln of new financing at a premium to the current share price – money that will allow it to maintain the current rate of progress at the Salamanca uranium project in Spain.

The Resource Capital Fund (RCF) is ploughing in half the cash by investing in shares 15% more than the 30-day average price.

Rambler Metals and Mining PLC (CVE:RAB LON:RMM) and Maritime Resources (CVE:MAE) are to assess whether the Hammerdown gold mine in Newfoundland  is worth re-opening.

An independent consultant will carry out a pre-feasibility study and evaluate the mineral reserves available.

“On the vanadium side I’m very comfortable”, Fortune Mojapelo, Bushveld Minerals’ (LON:BMN) chief executive told Proactive Investors a year ago.

So comfortable in fact that he has just agreed to spend the best part of £12mln on the Vametco vanadium mine next door to the company’s own deposit at Brits in South Africa.

Lucara Diamond Corp (TSE:LUC) made history after its 813 carat diamond  made US$63mln (£44mln), the highest price ever for the sale of a rough diamond.

The gem, named “The Constellation” was recovered last November from Lucara’s Karowe mine in Botswana.

Regency Mines Plc (LON:RGM) has revealed plans  to expand its oil and gas business, via a partnership with a privately owned American oil firm.

The AIM-quoted natural resources group said it wants to acquire a 75% non-operated working interest in an oil well in Wyoming, via an auction process under a Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding.

Bushveld Minerals Limited (LON:BMN) has finalised terms for the acquisition of the Vametco vanadium mine in South Africa announced three weeks ago.

The miner will pay vendor Evraz US$17.2mln in two tranches for a 78.8% stake in Strategic Minerals, the owner of the mine and the processing plant.

Arian Silver Corporation PLC (LON:AGQ) has begun detailed metallurgical test work at the Noche Buena tailings project in northern Mexico.

At the beginning of the month, the firm paid US$25,000 for the exclusive right to evaluate the project owned by Tierra Nueva Mining (TNM).

Aureus Mining (LON:AUE TSX:AUE) said it is working with consultant SRK to remedy the problems that caused processing at the New Liberty mine to be suspended last week.

Production at the recently commissioned mine in Liberia was suspended after too high concentrations of cyanide were found in waste from the process plant.

Balkans-based marble group Fox Marble (LON:FOX) has raised £2mln to cover the cost of kitting out a new factory in Kosovo and training the staff.

Shares have been allocated at 10p to new and existing investors, though the funding needs to approved by shareholders.

Landore Resources Ltd (LON:LND) is planning an updated resource for the B4-7 Nickel-Copper part of its Junior Lake project in Canada, it told investors, posting final results.

The firm has been developing Junior Lake for some years and aims to grow the resource to over 100,000 tons of nickel equivalent (NiEq) and to sell the project to a third party or enter into a joint venture partnership to develop it.

African Potash (LON:AFPO) has renewed its  exploration licence for the Lac Dinga potash project in the Republic of Congo for two years, with the right to extend for an further two years after that.  

The fertiliser specialist added it had relinquished a portion of the concession area which overlapped the basin margin and doing that had its reduced its acreage to 555 sq km.

Francis Johnstone, who retired as a non-executive director of Sunrise Resources Plc (LON:SRES) this week, is to take Sunrise shares in lieu of fees outstanding.

In all, Johnstone will receive 1.84mln shares in lieu of director fees for 2016. The shares were issued at an effective price of 0.14p, and take Johnstone's stake in the company up to 1.34% of the enlarged issued share capital.

Eurasia Mining (LON:EUA) has raised £500,000 at 0.55p to pay off a short term loan from financier Sanderson.

The Russia-focused platinum explorer arranged the £250,000 loan in February and it fell due yesterday.

As it prepares to build a world class underground mine Sirius Minerals PLC (LON:SXX) has hired Louise Hardy – a specialist in major construction projects  – as a new director of the company.

Hardy has extensive, more than 25 years, experience in civil engineering and currently holds a part time executive role at Skanska, as well as non-executive roles at government backed Ebbsfleet Development Corporation and the Defence Infrastructure Organisation.

Alecto Minerals PLC (LON:ALO) has agreed a farm–out of its Karan gold prospect to Cora Gold, which owns tenements adjacent to the project in Mali.

Cora Gold, a subsidiary of Kola Gold, will pay all of the exploration and development  costs.

Zincox Resources (LON:ZOX) is aiming for a fresh start in 2016 after a year that ended with ownership of its zinc  recycling plant transferred to its Korean partner.

Rod Beddows, chairman said: "2015 was an extremely challenging and frustrating year for the Company.

Horizonte Minerals Plc (LON:HZM) is putting together a new resource statement for its Araguaia nickel project in Brazil to reflect four new concessions and Glencore’s  adjacent GAP project.

The Araguaia project contains 72mln tonnes of ore in the indicated category, grading 1.33% nickel, while Glencore’s neighbouring project that Horizonte acquired last year has 105mln tonnes.

Red Rock Resources Plc (LON:RRR) is poised for a royalty boost after Para Resources, to which it sold the El Limon mine in Colombia, has bought  further concessions in the South American country.

It has bought three small operating mines - part of 17,000 hectares - for US$1mln in the Segovia gold belt in north-east Colombia, which are set to provide additional feed material  to the El Limon plant, allowing it to exceed the 200 tonnes per day plant capacity.

Anglo Pacific Group plc (LON:APF, TSX:APY) has seen a four-fold increase in the value one of its investments, based on the latest deal flow.

It has a 1% net smelter return (NSR) on production from Berkeley Energia’s (LON:BKY) Spanish and Portuguese assets, which it bought for US$3mln (A$4.1mln) in 2009.

Galileo Resources PLC (LON:GLR), the exploration and development mining company, has identified another exploration area of interest, Homeep East, at its Concordia project.

The company has been trawling through the recently acquired extensive database of information on the project, in South Africa, and likes the look of Homeep East.

Broker Cantor has lifted its price target on South America-focused gold miner Orosur Mining Inc(LON:OMI, TSE:OMI), due in part to rising precious metal  prices.

The positive impact of cost cutting and a focus on operating profitability was plain to see in recent third quarter results, added analyst Asa Bridle.

Harvest Minerals Limited (LON:HMI) has begun work on a trial licence application  as it completed initial drilling on its Maximus prospect -  part of its Arapua fertilizer project in Brazil.

The results of 25 air core holes were in line with the potash firm's estimates for tonnage and grade, it said.

Sunrise Resources Plc (LON:SRES), the diversified mineral exploration and development company, said non-executive director Francis Johnstone is to retire.

His position on the board  has been taken by Roger Murphy, currently the managing director of investment banking at Dundee Securities Europe.

Rare Earth Minerals’ (LON:REM) associate Macarthur Minerals has identified pegamite minerals indicative of rare element Lithium-Caesium-Tantalum in an airborne survey over its Pilbara acreage in Australia.

Geochemical analysis will now be undertaken to confirm the indication.

Rambler Metals and Mining PLC (LON:RMM CVE:RAB) has delivered approximately 5,500 wet metric tonnes (wmt) of copper and gold concentrate from its storage facility in Goodyear's Cove.

It is the thirteenth shipment since operations got underway at its Ming mine in Newfoundland .

Amur Minerals PLC (LON:AMC) has upgraded the resource at Kubuk, a fourth deposit at its Kun-Manie nickel prospect in Far East Russia.

The group will now move on to the metallurgy part of the definitive feasibility study for the whole project, said Robin Young chief executive.

Michelmersh Brick Holdings Plc (LON:MBH) expects full-year results to be in line with market expectations after a solid start to the year.

The specialist brick , land development and landfill company released a short trading update ahead of its annual general meeting, to be held at 10.30am on Tuesday, May 10.

Natural resources  investment company Metal Tiger PLC (LON:MTR) said a new copper target area has been identified in Prachinburi province, Thailand.

Metal Tiger said its 90%-owned subsidiary, Southeast Asia Exploration and Mining (SEAM), made the discovery as part of its exploration programme in the area.

 

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