The Mining Insider

Episoder

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  Lithium Slides on EU Hybrid Curbs, Centinela Talks Resume, and Anglo Backs South Africa 12.10.2026 11min

  Lithium carbonate fell about 5.7% in China as EU hybrid import curbs dented demand hopes. Centinela and its unions resume talks Tuesday while copper holds near US$14,500. Gold reached its highest since October 2 ahead of US inflation data. Anglo American's CEO backed South Africa with an 11.2 billion rand Sishen project. Atalaya's Touro copper project won EU strategic status.
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  Quake Spares Cobre Panama, Chile's Copper Output Hits a Multi-Year Low, and Fortescue Cash Falls 37% 11.10.2026 9min

  A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Panama and First Quantum said Cobre Panama remained stable while restart talks loom. Chile's August copper output fell 12.7% to its lowest in Cochilco's tables since at least 2023. Fortescue's cash fell 37% as its China Mineral Resources Group standoff continued. Kenmare faces an Abu Dhabi approach with a November 17 deadline.
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  Copper Posts a Weekly Gain, Gold Rebounds From a Two-Month Low, and Glencore Readies Its ASX Debut 10.10.2026 12min

  Copper gained about 2% on the week as the Yangshan premium hit a four-year high. Gold rebounded to US$4,199 an ounce after a two-month low. Ivanhoe's Kamoa-Kakula copper output rose 19% in the third quarter but guidance stays at the low end. Glencore's CEO pitched investors ahead of the October 14 ASX listing. The European Commission named 46 strategic raw materials projects across 16 countries.
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  Centinela Output Could Halve in November, Indonesia Weighs a Nickel Smelter Moratorium, and Kazatomprom Picks China 09.10.2026 11min

  Unions say Centinela's copper output could fall by half in November as the Yangshan premium hits its highest since 2022. Indonesia is weighing a moratorium on new semi-finished nickel smelters as nickel sits near a year-to-date low. MMG defended its US$500 million bid for Anglo American's Brazilian nickel business before EU regulators. LG Energy Solution signed a 240,000-tonne spodumene offtake with Elevra. Kazatomprom shareholders approved a uranium sale to China and withheld on a Russian deal.
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  Centinela Strike Begins, Gold Hits a Nine-Week Low, and Arafura Breaks Ground on Nolans 08.10.2026 12min

  A legal strike of 709 workers began at Antofagasta's Centinela copper mine as BHP's Escondida mediation runs. Gold fell to a nine-week low after Fed minutes showed all 19 officials backed September's hike. Arafura began construction of the A$1.6 billion Nolans rare earths project. BHP agreed to sell the Kambalda nickel concentrator to Gold Fields. Laos plans to ban all raw mineral exports by 2030.
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  Abu Dhabi's IRH Approaches Kenmare, Perseus Says Few Gold Deals Close, and Belarusian Potash Heads for New Orleans 07.10.2026 12min

  Kenmare Resources confirmed a non-binding cash approach from Abu Dhabi's International Resources Holdings, with a November 17 deadline. Perseus Mining's chief executive says gold dealmaking is busy but few deals close. UBS expects higher BHP and Rio Tinto iron ore shipments as prices sit near US$91 a tonne. The first Belarusian potash cargo in four years is due in New Orleans October 14. Gold slipped about 1% ahead of the Federal Reserve minutes.
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  BHP Pauses Escondida Strike With Mediation, Top 50 Miners Lose US$264 Billion, and Greenland Approves Tanbreez Plan 06.10.2026 12min

  BHP asked Chile's labour inspectorate to mediate at Escondida, suspending a strike the supervisors' union said could start October 6, with Centinela also in mediation. The world's top 50 miners lost US$264 billion in September as gold slid 6.4%. A court cleared a partial restart of Vale's Fabrica iron ore mine. Greenland approved the Tanbreez mining plan through 2050, though construction is not yet cleared. Lithium fell 19.1%, cobalt sulphate 14.7% and nickel 7.2% in September.
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  Brazil Heads to a Runoff and Vale Jumps, Chile Copper Strike Clock Starts, and Vedanta Plans US$2.3 Billion Push 05.10.2026 11min

  Brazil's presidential race goes to an October 25 runoff after Flavio Bolsonaro edged Lula 47.03% to 45.16%, lifting Vale about 8% in premarket trading. Escondida and Centinela copper unions are inside Chile's mandatory mediation window as Chinese buyers return October 8. Vedanta plans US$2.3 billion to lift copper output past 1 million tonnes by 2030 and is seeking a Tuticorin smelter restart. Rare earths were left off the US-China tariff lists, and Gold Fields is expected to sweeten its Northern Star approach after a late-October road show.
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  Freeport's Grasberg Hits 67%, Brazil Votes With Mining Licences in Court, and De Beers Takes Gahcho Kué 04.10.2026 12min

  Freeport says the Grasberg mill averaged 140,000 tonnes of ore a day in the third quarter, about 67% of pre-mudslide rates, with 80% of capacity targeted for mid-2027. Brazil votes today while its mine licensing overhaul awaits Supreme Court hearings. Mountain Province hands its 49% of Gahcho Kué to De Beers in a restructuring. European aluminium premiums hit US$574 a tonne on Canadian tariff talk, and Troilus secures US$850 million in credit-approved debt commitments.
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  China Eyes Anglo Teck Copper Guarantees, Glencore Wins Argentina Approval, and Ghana Targets Gold Terms 03.10.2026 12min

  China's antitrust regulator is reportedly seeking copper concentrate supply commitments from Anglo American before approving its US$54 billion merger with Teck. Glencore won RIGI approval for its US$4 billion MARA copper project in Argentina and pulled the Alumbrera restart forward to the second half of 2027. Ghana's draft Minerals and Mining Bill would add a free special state share and cut maximum lease terms to 15 years. Copper fell on the week and iron ore hit a one-year low at US$92.10 while China was on holiday, and gold lost 3% on the week despite payrolls of just 29,000.
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  Lynas Buys Brazil Rare Earths, Chile Copper Hits a 15-Year Low, and Sigma Lithium Goes Dark 02.10.2026 11min

  Lynas Rare Earths agreed an all-share A$968 million (US$672 million) takeover of Meteoric Resources and its Caldeira ionic clay project in Brazil, a 68% premium. Chile mined 369,500 tonnes of copper in August, down 12.8% and the lowest since February 2011, while Escondida supervisors voted 95% to authorise a strike and Centinela remains in mediation. Sigma Lithium halted its only mine, Grota do Cirilo, with a restart tied to a federal appeals ruling. Yancoal completed its US$1.85 billion purchase of 80% of the Kestrel met coal mine. Gold is on track for a second weekly loss near US$4,155 ahead of September payrolls.
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  Gold Fades on Surging Yields, Russia's Mining Windfall Tax, and Mitsubishi's Nickel Exit 01.10.2026 11min

  Gold touched $4,219 on soft PCE data before closing down 0.70% at $4,155.93 as the 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 5.29% — a 22-year high — and the 30-year to 5.63%; gold shed 6.7% for September. Russia submitted a draft mining windfall tax law to the State Duma setting a 30% rate on copper, nickel, and most metals and 20% on gold, effective 2027-2029, expected to raise 200 billion rubles annually. Mitsubishi Corporation exercised its Put Right to exit the Turnagain nickel JV in British Columbia, selling its ~15% stake back to Giga Metals for nominal consideration. And Chile's Centinela copper mine is in mandatory five-day government mediation after a 98.73% union strike vote.
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  Gold's Partial Rebound, Chile's Centinela Strike Threat, Burkina Faso's Gold Refinery, and Atico's Ecuadorian Copper Deal 30.09.2026 11min

  Gold rebounded 1.42% to $4,172 on Tuesday as soft U.S. JOLTS data and a consumer confidence slump trimmed October rate-hike odds from 70.9% to 51.5%; NY Fed's Williams urged no urgency. Antofagasta Minerals' Centinela mine — 240,400 tonnes in 2025 — enters mandatory five-day mediation after 98.73% of workers voted to strike, compounding Chile's declining copper output. Burkina Faso opened its first gold refinery, Raffinor BF SA, a $19 million state facility with 164 tonnes/year initial capacity. And Atico Mining secured US$111.4 million from Trafigura for its La Plata copper project in Ecuador.
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  Gold's 5% Two-Day Crash, Uranium Energy's Record Quarter, and Japan Backs Western Graphite 29.09.2026 8min

  Gold fell 3.5% Monday to $4,109 — a seven-week low — as the 10-year Treasury yield hit 5.23%, the highest since 2007, while oil surged above $105 on the escalating Strait of Hormuz standoff. Silver dropped approximately 5% to near $60.75, approaching key support. Uranium Energy Corp posted Q4 production up 157% sequentially at cost of $36.54/lb, with $753M in liquid assets and no debt. And NextSource Materials secured US$30M from Japan's Hanwa and JOGMEC for its UAE graphite anode plant, building Western battery supply chain capacity.
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  Barrick's Mali Strike Averted, Northern Star Rejects A$38.7B Gold Fields Bid, and Gold Sinks on Oil Surge 28.09.2026 7min

  Barrick Mining signed a new collective bargaining agreement with all three union groups at its Loulo-Gounkoto complex in Mali on Sunday, averting the September 28 strike and resolving 15 demands. Northern Star Resources rejected Gold Fields' A$38.7 billion unsolicited takeover bid as highly opportunistic and below fundamental value, sending Northern Star shares up 9% on Monday. And gold fell 2.1% to $4,198 — its worst daily drop in nearly a month — as oil surged on renewed Middle East tensions and reinforced Fed rate hike expectations.
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  Morowali's Nickel Drought, Kinross Cuts Guidance, and Barrick's Mali Strike Arrives 27.09.2026 8min

  Indonesia's Morowali Industrial Park cut nickel pig iron output by 60-70% as an El Niño-driven drought restricted water supply, putting up to 70,000 tonnes of NPI at risk over two weeks. Kinross Gold cut its 2026-27 production guidance to 1.84-1.86 million ounces after weather and metallurgical setbacks at La Coipa and operational headwinds at Round Mountain, with shares falling 13% Thursday. And the Barrick Loulo-Gounkoto strike in Mali begins today — September 28 — with no resolution announced.
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  Italy Goes Nuclear, Gold's Rough Week, and Washington Powers Up the Lobito Corridor 26.09.2026 8min

  Italy's Senate voted 81-51 to approve the country's return to nuclear power after a nearly 40-year ban, signalling new uranium demand as the government targets at least 11% of Italy's energy from nuclear by 2050. Precious metals had a rough week — gold fell 2.2% and silver 3.1% on hawkish Fed signals and rising yields, though both bounced partially on Friday. The US Trade and Development Agency funded a feasibility study for power infrastructure along Africa's Lobito Corridor to support copper and cobalt mines in the DRC and Zambia. And the Barrick Loulo-Gounkoto strike deadline in Mali arrives tomorrow.
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  Bannerman's Billion-Dollar Uranium FID, Zambia's Acid Crunch, and the UAE's Australian Lithium Bet 25.09.2026 9min

  Bannerman Energy completed its US$457 million financing with CNNC Overseas for the Etango uranium project in Namibia, putting a Final Investment Decision within reach. In Zambia, Konkola Copper Mines signed a US$498 million contract to build Africa's largest copper tailings leach plant — while a domestic sulphuric acid shortage pushed acid costs up 200% for smaller operators and pulled small-scale copper production down 35.2% year on year. UAE-backed Titan Australia Mining locked in a binding A$333 million takeover of Global Lithium Resources. And Barrick's Loulo-Gounkoto strike deadline in Mali is now three days away.
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  Marathon Gets Its Billion, Gold Stumbles on Fed Hawks, and Rare Earths Without New Mining 24.09.2026 10min

  Generation Mining completed a C$1.3 billion construction financing package for the Marathon Copper-Palladium Project in Ontario, with early works construction beginning Q4 2026. Gold fell 1.7% to $4,282 per ounce as hawkish Fed commentary pushed the dollar to a two-month high and markets priced in a 95% December rate hike. Neo Performance Materials and Rainbow Rare Earths signed a Phalaborwa MOU covering NdPr oxide and dysprosium-terbium offtake from South African phosphogypsum stockpiles — no new mining required. And the Barrick Loulo-Gounkoto strike deadline in Mali is four days away.
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  Ivanhoe Electric's $3.5 Billion Copper PFS, Artemis Gold Buys Mt Todd, and Copper Hits New Highs 23.09.2026 9min

  Ivanhoe Electric released its 2026 Preliminary Feasibility Study for the Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona, showing a $3.5 billion after-tax NPV and 30% IRR at current copper prices of $6.79/lb, with $1.43 billion initial capital and a Robbins Tunnel Boring Machine. Artemis Gold agreed to acquire Vista Gold and its 9.1-million-ounce Mt Todd project in Australia's Northern Territory for $427 million all-share. Copper reached $6.91/lb on COMEX, up 47% year-on-year, as the mine supply crunch deepens. And the Barrick Loulo-Gounkoto strike deadline in Mali is five days away.