Weekly Nugget

Unearthing The Latest In Mining

This week we dig into the world of under-appreciated metals and South and Latin American mining projects!

May 17, 2023

🗨 April Showers Bring May Drilling!
🔥 What's New
📰 In The News
⛏️ New Technical Reports
🎧 On the Rocks
❓ Prospector Poll

🗨 Unearthing The Latest In Mining

Welcome to the latest edition of the Weekly Nugget! We are bringing you an exciting line of updates this week. Our Spanish-speaking friends can look forward to a new, upcoming webinar focused on Latin and South American mining projects, and our latest episode of the On the Rocks Podcast digs into the world of under-appreciated mined materials. Of course, we also have the latest news, technical reports, and the #ProspectorPoll for you as well! With springtime being this busy and exciting, we can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer brings to the industry! Enjoy!

Emily King

Founder

🔥 What's New

Dig into Latin and South America Mining Projects

At Prospector, our goal is to make mining data more accessible to everyone. So, we’re excited to host a Spanish language webinar on May 24th. Join Head of Data, Alessandra Morante, as she uses Prospector to find, analyze, and monitor global mining projects!

📰 In The News

Allkem, Livent to Combine in $10.6 B Deal

Australian lithium company Allkem and US-based Livent have announced they are to merge in an all-stock deal worth $10.6bn, creating the world's third-largest producer of lithium, used in electric vehicle batteries. The companies already operate lithium brine facilities in Argentina and hard rock lithium mines in Quebec, and hope to use the deal to expand production to supply growing demand from automakers including General Motors, Tesla and BMW.

These Crazy Rare Metals Could Put Miners on the Map

Rio Tinto's recent acquisition of an obscure scandium project in NSW has brought specialty metals to the attention of some of the world's largest miners. As a result, ASX explorers are now focusing on finding strange, rare, weird, and wonderful metals such as niobium, rhodium, rhenium, antimony, and boron. The interest in these specialty metals has intensified as they play a crucial role in various high-tech industries such as aerospace, electronics, and renewable energy. The race to secure these metals is on, and the competition among explorers and miners is heating up.

Indonesia Emerges as Cobalt Powerhouse Amid Surge in Demand

Demand for cobalt is expected to double to 388,000 tonnes by 2030, driven by the EV sector, according to a report by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. The EV sector is expected to account for 89% of growth in demand by the end of the decade, up from 40% in 2022, with energy storage and super alloys contributing 3% and 2%, respectively. Global supply, primary and secondary, will exceed 200,000 tonnes this year, reaching 318,000 tonnes by 2030, meaning the market will be in deficit by then, the report warns. The Democratic Republic of Congo is the main producer of the metal, accounting for 73% of supply in 2022. However, Indonesia is expected to emerge as a major producer, contributing 37% of growth in supply from 2022 to 2030.

Major REE Deposit Found at Ramaco Mine

Ramaco Resources and researchers from the US Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory have identified a potentially large unconventional deposit of rare earth elements (REEs) at the Brook mine in Wyoming. The mine has high concentrations of magnetic REEs, including terbium, dysprosium, neodymium and praseodymium, and initial estimates suggest 28% of the deposit's concentration may be in the form of medium-weight REEs.

Newcrest Mining Accepts $19.2B Newmont Takeover Deal

Newcrest Mining Accepts $19.2B Newmont Takeover Deal - Newcrest Mining Ltd. and Newmont Corp. have reached a takeover agreement worth approximately A$28.8 billion ($19.2 billion), creating the world's largest gold producer. Under the deal, Newcrest shareholders will receive 0.4 shares in Newmont for each Newcrest share they own, giving them a 31% stake in the combined entity. The merger will give Newcrest an implied enterprise value of A$28.8 billion, including net debt. Additionally, Newcrest will pay a special pre-completion dividend of up to $1.10 per share.