VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – July 30, 2007) – Dynasty Metals & Mining Inc. (TSX VENTURE:DMM) (the “Company”) reports that Dr. Jose Serrano has been appointed the new Undersecretary of Mines of Ecuador.
Dr. Serrano has broad experience in both the private and public sectors. During his distinguished career he has held positions in previous governments that include Minister of Labour. As a former Undersecretary of Mines, he is very familiar with the developing Ecuadorian mining industry.
Company President and CEO, Robert Washer, commented: “Like the recent appointment of Dr. Galo Chiriboga as the new Minister of Mines and Petroleum, we view the appointment of Dr. Serrano as further indication of the commitment of the government to the development of modern, responsible mining industry in Ecuador.” Read more
QUITO, July 27 (Reuters) – Ecuador’s new oil and mines minister, Galo Chiriboga, on Friday will name a moderate as the new deputy mining chief, only a day after an environmentalist holding the job resigned, a ministry spokesman said.
Chiriboga will name Jose Serrano, a lawyer who acted as economy minister in the past administration, later on Friday to head the post that defines mining policy and grants concessions.
His predecessor, Jorge Jurado, was an environmentalist who was at odds with miners over his push to enforce tighter control over the country’s nascent mining sector and overhaul the mining law.
“The financial community is not that interested anymore in changes inside the ministry, but in the upcoming popular assembly,” said Mark Turner, a Peru-based analyst with Hallgarten & Company. Read more
By CHARLIE LAGASCA
The Philippine Star
BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya – A British-owned mining company was forced to temporarily stop its ongoing exploration in the mountainous town of Quezon.
Besides displacing at least 94 workers, the shutdown of MTL Philippines in the remote village of Runruno also affects some 20 day care and grade school teachers which the company is financially supporting.
The firm’s move also makes uncertain the fate of a number of students whom it had granted scholarships for technical courses in a memorandum of agreement with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, other government agencies and non-governmental groups.
MTL Philippines earlier had filed for an extension of its exploration permit two months before it lapsed last July 25. Read more
By Michael Bristow
BBC News, Lhasa
Lhalu wetland reserve on the outskirts of Lhasa Chinese officials have said they will not approve mining operations in Tibet that could damage the environment.
They also said mining firms established in the region would have to pay for the environmental damage they cause.
“When there is a conflict between protecting the environment and economic development, protection will come first,” said official Zhang Tianhua.
But with mining already described as a “pillar industry”, it is unclear how a protection policy would work.
Tibet has abundant mineral deposits, including copper, iron, lead and zinc. Read more
(AP) Babbitt, Minn. A mineral company is drilling test holes about 2,000 feet beneath northeastern Minnesota’s Birch Lake and on nearby land, exploring what’s long believed to be a vast deposit of copper, nickel and other precious metals.
Low metal prices historically made the deposits unattractive to developers, but an increase in demand, new processing technologies and stronger metal prices has upped the financial incentive in recent years for mining the ore.
It could mean hundreds of workers toiling in metal mines in this part of the state in the coming years.
Estimates are that about 4 billion tons of mineable copper, nickel and precious metals like gold, palladium and platinum exist in the region, according to MiningMinnesota, a trade group that represents copper, nickel and metals producers. Read more
Equinox Minerals Limited (EQN) has recorded a consolidated net loss for the three months ended 30 June 2007 of $5.06 million, compared to a net loss of $8 million for the previous three months. The company advised that its Lumwana copper project in Zambia remains on schedule and budget with commissioning scheduled for the second quarter of 2008.
The miner said that large scale mining operations commenced at Lumwana during April.
The company reported that plant construction is also well progressed and all major items of equipment for the Lumwana Plant are now on site awaiting installation.
Equinox advised that a final mine production rate of 120 million tonnes per annum, equating to 20 millions tonnes per annum of ore, is expected to be reached by 2nd quarter 2008 following a period of progressive mobilization of the mining fleet. Read more
“Real†gold companies are being dragged down by gold-copper “hybridsâ€, says Randgold Resources CEO Mark Bristow.
He says that “hybrids†are the many companies that have begun mining base metals along with gold.
By offsetting their copper, zinc, base metal and other credits against gold costs, the “hybrids†arrive at a negative number for their gold-mining costs and attract investment away from the “real†thing.
While this makes them cheap gold producers, Bristow contends that, in order to be so, they have to become very expensive base metal miners.
This, he says, is confusing investors, who are turning to exchange-traded funds (ETFs), even though ETF access to physical gold is at a far higher price. Read more