Following Caledonia Mining’s offer to buy the Zimbabwe-based gold project Bilboes for US$53mln, equities analysts at Liberum have reiterated their buy-side sentiment for the AIM-listed corporation.
“The Bilboes acquisition could, in a single stroke, potentially see Caledonia realising its ambition of becoming a >200koz/year multi-asset producer,” said Liberum.
Shanta Gold is “firmly back on track” after a second-quarter which saw a 54% lift in gold production, beating estimates by 21%.
The AIM-listed mining company, which predominantly operates in Tanzania, reiterated its year-end production guidance of 68-76koz, though analysts at Liberum have lifted their expectations to the upper end of that range.
Panther Metals has been granted exploration permits for three drill prospects at the Obonga project in northern Ontario.
The application covers diamond core drilling of up to 10 holes and associated down-hole electromagnetic geophysics surveys spread across three named prospects: Silver Rim; Ottertooth; and Survey.
Base Resources revenues hit another quarterly record as prices of all three of its mineral sands metals jumped sharply over the year.
“Markets for all products remained strong with further price gains achieved for zircon and rutile while net ilmenite prices were steady,” said the Aussie-based miner, though China’s COVID-19 management policies will likely mean prices there are steady in the current quarter.
Greatland Gold PLC (AIM:GGP, OTC:GRLGF) said partner Newcrest will have to pay US$60mln to acquire an additional 5% stake in the Havieron gold project in Western Australia after a ruling by an independent arbitrator.
A failure of the two parties to agree on a price meant an adjudicator was appointed as stipulated when Newcrest initially bought into the prospect in 2019.
Tirupati Graphite PLC (LSE:TGR, OTCQX:TGRHF) said it on track to increase its primary flake graphite production capacity in Madagascar to 30,000 tonnes a year by September 2022.
The company previously announced that it had faced challenges achieving production targets in the first half as adverse weather conditions caused difficulties in transporting mined ore to the processing plant.
Shanta Gold Limited (AIM:SHG, OTC:SAAGF) reported a 54% jump in gold production in the three months to end-June versus the first quarter and reiterated its full-year output guidance of 68,000 to 76,000 ounces.
It produced 17,527 ounces of gold from its New Luika mine in Tanzania, up from 11,408 ounces in the first quarter and 23% higher than in the second quarter of 2021. Production was 15% higher than planned for the quarter, it noted.
PYX Resources Ltd (LSE:PYX, NSX:PYX) said it has increased production volumes and started producing rutile and ilmenite by-products at its Mandiri mine in Indonesia.
Prices for the company’s premium zircon have further increased to US$2,749 per tonne over the first half of 2022, a 92% increase on the previous year.
Oriole Resources said it sent two batches of samples from its Central Licence Package and Bibemi gold projects in Cameroon for testing with results due this quarter.
"The first half of 2022 has been a busy time for the team, completing the outstanding soil grids and continued mapping in the easternmost CLP licences, and wrapping up the Phase 4 drilling programme at Bibemi ahead of the start of the rainy season," Tim Livesey, chief executive, said.
AfriTin Mining Ltd (AIM:ATM, OTC:AFTTF) said Robert Sewell has stepped down as chief financial officer to pursue other opportunities and appointed Hiten Ooka as his replacement.
Ooka, a qualified chartered accountant, joins from Bushveld Minerals, where he was group head of finance. He previously held senior management roles over the past 12 years at Rand Uranium, Trafigura and Eurasian Resource Group. It is a non-board appointment.
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd said it plans to list its ordinary shares on the Canadian TSX Venture Exchange.
The North America-focused lithium development company said the move will expand its shareholder base and lead to more trading in its shares and greater liquidity.
Caledonia Mining Corp PLC agreed to buy the Bilboes gold project in Zimbabwe in a 'transformational deal' that it said could lead to a four-fold increase in overall production.
Caledonia will pay Bilboes Gold Ltd, owner of the project, about US$53.3mln (£44.4mln) in shares and a 1% net smelter royalty (NSR) on the project's revenues.
Antipa Minerals Ltd (ASX:AZY) has underscored the prospectivity of the Minyari Dome Project in Western Australia with high-grade gold results from greenfield drilling at the Minyari North and GP01 targets.
The final 6,440 metres of assays from a 2021 drilling program at these targets returned notable gold results with additional copper, cobalt and silver, including:
Kenorland Minerals Ltd (TSX-V:KLD) said it has signed an earn-in agreement with Antofagasta Minerals SA on the Tanacross copper-gold project located in eastern Alaska in the US.
The agreement grants Antofagasta an option to acquire a 70% interest in the project by spending US$30 million on exploration over eight years and delivering a NI 43-101 compliant preliminary economic assessment report.
Hochschild Mining PLC (LSE:HOC, OTCQX:HCHDF) reported lower attributable gold and silver production in the second quarter but said it remains on track to meet its 2022 output target.
Attributable gold production fell 8% year-on-year to 49,133 ounces, while its share of silver production fell 15% to 2.6mln ounces due to lower grades at its Inmaculada and Pallancata operations in Peru.
AfriTin Mining Ltd (AIM:ATM, OTC:AFTTF) released further positive results from a lithium and tantalum drilling programme at its flagship Uis mine in Namibia.
The best pegmatite intersections from the second batch of results, covering five drill holes, included: 22 metres at 0.153% tin, 104 parts per million (ppm) tantalum and 1.18% lithium oxide from a depth of 23m; 69m at 0.178% tin, 98 ppm tantalum and 0.45% lithium oxide; and 52m at 0.173% tin, 86 ppm tantalum and 0.58% lithium oxide.
Landore Resources said an ongoing strategic review should be complete by the end of September with mining companies currently being solicited to provide expressions of interest and participate in the initial due diligence period.
Any remaining participants will be invited to advance to the next stage of the process, a statement from the exploration company said.
Galileo Resources said copper assays from drilling at the Shinganda project in Zambia have come in better than historical data from the site with the programme now extended to six holes from three.
Best of the assays were 50.3m at a grade of 1.53% copper from a depth of 21m.
Centamin PLC (LSE:CEY, TSX:CEE, OTC:CELTF) reported an 11% increase in gold production for the second quarter, helped by higher gold grades and said it remains on track to meet its full-year guidance.
Revenue for the second quarter jumped 17% year-on-year to US$207.2mln, generated from gold sales of 111,027 ounces at an average realised gold price of US$1,863 an ounce.
UK inflation figures and updates from Royal Mail and earnings from Tesla are the big themes for Wednesday.
A month ago the consumer price index rose to another record high of 9.1%, although core prices, which exclude fuel and food, slipped back to 5.9%.
Power Metal Resources said 83% owned subsidiary Golden Metal Resources expects to be in a position shortly where it can move towards the launch of its IPO financing and, subject to regulatory approvals, complete its listing process.
Paul Johnson, Power Metal’s chief executive, added "Since our last report earlier this year Golden Metal has made extensive progress and is now in the final stages of preparation for its planned listing.
BHP, has warned it will look carefully at its coal investments n Queensland after the recent rise in royalty charges in the Australian state.
In what was a generally downbeat fourth quarter update, Mike Henry. the Aussie-listed mining giant’s chief executive, said: “BHP is assessing the impacts on BMA economic reserves and mine lives as a result of the increase in coal royalties by the Queensland government.
Petra Diamonds Limited said it expects the strong market fundamentals that underpinned its 2022 performance to continue as it posted a 44% increase in annual revenues to US$585.2mln.
The group, which has four operating mines – three in South Africa and one in Tanzania – benefited from a 41.5% increase in diamond prices during the 12 months ended June 30.
Horizonte Minerals PLC (AIM:HZM, TSX:HZM, OTC:HZMMF) said it will help provide a programme to train the local community in core skills to enable them to work on the construction and operation of its Araguaia nickel project in Brazil.
Horizonte signed an agreement with Brazil's leading national industrial training provider, Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Industrial (SENAI), to host the community skills training programme.
Kodal Minerals PLC (AIM:KOD) closed out the financial year to March 2022 with just over £1mln in the bank.
The company booked a loss £903,000 for the year, after spending over £2.5mln on exploration and evaluation work at its gold and lithium projects in West Africa.
Atlantic Lithium Limited (AIM:ALL, OTCQX:ALLIF) said it intersected high grades in the latest results from its flagship Ewoyaa lithium project in Ghana, West Africa.
It received assay results for an additional 4,000 metres (m) of drilling at the Ewoyaa Main and Grasscutter North targets.
Castillo Copper Ltd (LSE:CCZ, ASX:CCZ) has released results of metallurgical testwork on the Big One copper project in Australia.
Samples extracted from drill-hole BO_318RC produced a concentrate with confirmed upgrades ranging from five-times to ten-times for copper metal.
Blencowe Resources PLC (LSE:BRES) has completed a pre-feasibility study for its Orom-Cross graphite project in Uganda.
The study shows Orom-Cross to have a net present value of US$482mln, a 52% boost on the number previously ascribed to it in an earlier preliminary economic assessment.
Anglesey Mining PLC (AIM:AYM) has released the results of a pre-feasibility update for its Grängesberg iron ore project in Sweden.
Anglesey holds an almost 20% interest in the Grängesberg project, together with management rights and a right of first refusal to increase its interest to 70%.
Tungsten West PLC (AIM:TUN) said capital expenditure requirements for restarting the Hemerdon tungsten and tin mine in Devon will be lower under a new development plan that will also see much lower diesel and power consumption.
The group also announced chief executive and co-founder Max Denning will step down with immediate effect and executive vice-chairman and co-founder Mark Thompson will assume the role.
Perseus Mining Ltd (ASX:PRU, TSX:PRU, OTC:PMNXF) expects to increase the life of the Edikan gold operations in Ghana by 18 to 24 months after completing a feasibility study on the nearby Nkosuo Project and adding considerable mineral resources and ore reserves.
The study has outlined indicated resources of 14.5 million tonnes at 0.91 g/t gold for 422,000 ounces and inferred resources of 950,000 tonnes at 0.9 g/t for 27,000 ounces.
Sunstone Metals Ltd (ASX:STM) has delivered wide intersections of up to 1 g/t gold equivalent, paving the way for a maiden mineral resource estimate (MRE) at Brama-Alba discovery within the Bramaderos Gold-Copper Project in Southern Ecuador.
Standout assays include:
Castillo Copper Ltd (LSE:CCZ, ASX:CCZ) has further de-risked the Big One deposit of the NWQ Copper Project in Queensland with proof-of-concept metallurgical test work producing a copper concentrate up to 10 times purer than the original grade.
A head-grade copper sample of 0.72% was converted to 7.2% post-test work, with more metallurgical testing underway to determine optimal processing methods and support the signing of a processing agreement.
Euro Sun Mining Inc (TSX:ESM, OTC:CPNFF) has closed the funding amount of C$1.5mln pursuant to its previously announced convertible security funding agreement with Lind Global Fund II, LP, an investment entity managed by The Lind Partners, a New York based institutional fund manager.
Euro Sun intends to use the funding for development expenditures at its Rovina Valley gold and copper project in Romania and for general and corporate working capital purposes.
Caracal Gold PLC (LSE:GCAT), an East African gold producer, has appointed Riaan Lombard to the board as an executive director and chief operating officer, effective immediately.
Lombard has been general manager of Caracal's fully owned subsidiary Kilimapesa Gold (Pty) Ltd, which operates the company's flagship Kenyan mine, since February 2022.
Power Metal Resources PLC (AIM:POW) announced positive initial findings from its newly granted prospecting licence PL049/2022, part of the company’s Tati project in Botswana.
The Tati project covers three individual prospecting licences for gold and nickel mineralisation: PL126/2019, PL127/2019 and PL049/2022.
Great Western Corporation PLC has completed a 10-hole drilling programme at the OMCO Mine area of the Olympic Gold project in Mineral County, Nevada.
Following a three-hole drill project at the nearby Trafalgar Hill prospect, reverse circulation drilling began in the area of the former OMCO Mine, which produced gold at grades of between 25 and 30 grams per tonne and silver at 30 grams per tonne until the 1940s.
Bradda Head Lithium Limited (AIM:BHL, OTCQB:BHLIF) said a drill rig has been mobilised to its San Domingo lithium pegmatite project in Arizona, US and that drilling will start this week.
The 30-hole drilling programme will help determine whether San Domingo has a similar structure to other well-known zoned pegmatites, such as Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) Limited’s Kathleen Valley project in Australia.