Peabody operations and project update

Since the beginning of 2012, Peabody has continued to progress its key operations initiatives and mine projects. The company advanced improvement activities and increased equipment utilization at the Coppabella and Moorvale mines, which were acquired in October 2011. Employees at the high quality hard coking coal mine, North Goonyella, overwhelmingly accepted a new employee bargaining agreement; Peabody favorably resolved a dispute regarding the MDL 162 project in Queensland, and now retains a 90% equity ownership position in the development...

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New Age Exploration commence La Miel Phase 1 drilling

New Age Exploration Limited announced that it has commenced its Phase1 Drilling Program at theLa Miel thermal coal project locatedintheCesar Basin, northern Colombia.Highlights1. Drilling contract recently signed with local Colombian drilling contractor LTGeoperforacionesYMineríaLtda for 3 open holeboreholesalongwithwirelinegeophysicallogging.2. Drilling rig and support equipment being mobilized to LaMiel.Estimated schedule for drilling completion is:1st borehole(LM2) Mid June2012* 2nd borehole(LM3) End July 2012* 3rd borehole(LM1) EarlySeptember2012*Based...

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CoalWatch study questions benefits of Raven coal mine

CoalWatch Comox Valley is releasing a report entitled Does the Comox Valley need the Raven Underground Coal Mine? Prepared by Dr Joan Kuyek, the document is a socio-economic review of the costs and benefits to communities near the proposed project.CoalWatch president Mr John Snyder said that “The proponents of the Raven project have only jobs and local economic impacts to offer as benefits to the Comox Valley for this proposed coal mine.” He said that “Dr Kuyek’s report calls both of those into serious question.”Some of the issues discussed...

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Xstrata Coal seeks partner for Donkin Coal

Xstrata Coal Donkin Management Limited and Erdene Resource Development Corp announced that Xstrata Coal is seeking an operating coal company to assume its interest in the Donkin Coal project.Xstrata Coal holds a 75% interest and Erdene holds a 25% interest in the Donkin Coal project joint venture, a proposed multi continuous miner underground operation at the site of the existing Donkin Mine located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada.Mr Peter Freyberg CEO of Xstrata Coal said that "Over the past decade, Xstrata Coal has evolved, as has...

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10 mining deaths in first quarter of 2012 - MSHA

The Mine Safety and Health Administration recorded 10 mining deaths, six in coal mines, in the first quarter of 2012.Coal mine deaths occurred in the following categories: exploding vessels under pressure, drowning, handling materials, rib fall, machinery and electrical. MSHA noted an "uncharacteristic trend" of five of the fatalities occurring in five consecutive weekends. Three involved mine supervisors.MSHA issued an accident prevention alert to the mining industry after the fourth consecutive death, but the fifth occurred after the...

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Kitzhaber calls for EIS of coal exports

Gov John Kitzhaber shared his “grave concerns” about coal export projects on the West Coast at the Future Energy Conference in Portland Wednesday. And he asked the federal government to conduct a full environmental impact study of the coal mined on public land in the Powder River     http://bit.ly/JVDfFl...

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Jupiter Energy trial production begins in Kazakhstan

Jupiter Energy said that it is about to sign sales agreements with at least two local partners as trial production begins from its first wells in Kazakhstan.Total daily output from wells J-50 and J-52 is expected to be around 600 barrels of oil a day, which will be transported by tanker to a nearby storage facility.Licence applications for J-51 and J-53 are “progressing" and will be submitted to the Ministry of Oil & Gas for approval “soon”.Jupiter added that “The approval process is expected to be completed by the end of this year...

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Australian Pacific IPO closes

Australian Pacific Coal Limited advises that its joint venture partner in the East Wandoan project, Cuesta Coal Limited has announced that their Initial Public Offering has now closed.East Wandoan ProjectLocated in south-east Queensland's coal province, Australian Pacific Coal has a joint venture with Cuesta Coal Limited through 100% owned subsidiary Blackwood Resources Pty Ltd. The joint venture agreement covers four quality exploration permits prospective for shallow thermal coal.Under the joint venture agreement, AQC has a 10% free carried...

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Germany plans to revamp 84 power plants - BDEW

Energy and water industry association BDEW said that German utilities and private investors have plans to construct or modernize some 84 power stations.The planned projects were equivalent to an installed power generation capacity of 42,000 MWs, the Berlin based group said in a statement issued on the first day of the Hanover industrial fair. It estimated that the projects, taken together, involved investments of more than EUR 60 billion (USD 79.25 billion).BDEW also said that of the total 84, some 69 units (counting those above 20 MW)...

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VSTEP Delives Crane Simulator in Rotterdam

VSTEP delivers crane simulator for EMO, the largest transshipment terminal for coal and iron ore in Western Europe.For EMO, the largest transshipment terminal for coal and iron ore in Western Europe, VSTEP created a crane simulator for preparation and training of their future and current EMO dry bulk crane operators, increasing their effectiveness and precision.EMO is one of the leading companies in the dry bulk market. Modern and multifunctional, the EMO terminal is strategically located at the Maasvlakte in Rotterdam. EMO has some 400...

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Lexington Energy update on Chilean coal project option

Lexington Energy Services Inc reports that as per the agreement signed on April 19th 2012 with Maria Ines Moraga Latapiat of Santiago, Chile, it has an exclusive option to acquire 100% interest in a Minor Maritime Concession, issued by the Republic of Chile, Ministry of National Defense, located in a sector of the seabed in the area known as Bahia de Lota, Municipality of Lota, Province of Concepcion, 8th Region of Bio-Bio, Chile. Under the terms of the option the Company will make payments totaling USD 408,000 over a three year period,...

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SouthGobi announces extension date of sale of Tsagaan Tolgoi Deposit

SouthGobi Resources Lid announced that the expected closing date of the sale of the Tsagaan Tolgoi Deposit to Modun Resources Limited is extended to be on or before December 31st 2012. On April 16th 2012 SouthGobi announced the Mineral Resource Authority of Mongolia requested suspension of certain of the Company's mining and exploration licenses The extension of the expected closing date with Modun allows additional time to resolve any issues. All other material terms of the deal remain unchanged. Source Fr...

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Mozambique energy potential attracts large international groups

Mozambique’s energy potential, shown by the recent discoveries of larges natural gas and coal reserves, are leading large international groups to consider investing in the country, according to information from the Africa Monitor newsletter. The newsletter said that the size of recent discoveries of natural gas in the sea off northern Mozambique was one of the focuses of international interest, particularly amongst groups that have gas as one of their current businesses, including Italy’s ENI, which is part of the consortium responsible...

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Teck Resources announces dividend

Teck Resources Limited announced that it will pay an eligible dividend of USD 0.40 per share on its outstanding Class A common shares and Class B subordinate voting shares on July 3rd 2012, to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 15th 2012. Read Mor...

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Baltic sea index rises on high panamax activity

Reuters reported that the Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, used to track rates for ships carrying dry commodities, climbed to its highest level since January, due to high panamax activity.The main index, which factors in the average daily earnings of capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize dry bulk transport vessels, rose 14 points or 1.44% to 989 points.Mr Wells Fargo senior analyst Michael Webber said in a note said that "While we continue to expect dry bulk rate volatility, we continue to expect the oversupply of tonnage to...

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Tiaro Coal partners with Hancock Prospecting for Queensland coal tenements

Tiaro Coal has entered a partnership with Hancock Prospecting for the company’s EPC 1262 exploration permit which has the potential to host a Blair Athol-style deposit.EPC 1262 is located about 30 kilometres from the Blair Athol Mine, operated by Rio Tinto subsidiary Queensland Coal, to the west of the Bowen Basin.Exploration at EPC 1262 is aimed at discovering a deposit similar to that present at Blair Athol, with two areas of interest already identified in the 654 square kilometre block. The tenement remains largely unexplored.Importantly,...

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Royal Nickel confirms to produce iron ore from Dumont nickel project

Royal Nickel Corporation announced the completion of additional metallurgical testwork on production of by-product iron ore (magnetite) concentrate from the Dumont Nickel Project ("Dumont") and an initial assessment of the marketability of the concentrate completed by CRU Strategies. This additional work confirms the potential to produce an iron ore by-product from the existing magnetic tailings stream in the Dumont pre-feasibility nickel recovery flowsheet. Results of these studies will be incorporated into a revised pre-feasibility study...

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Plan underway to allow private companies to mine coal

ET reported that under pressure from the PMO to increase coal production, Coal Secretary Alok Perti has convened a meeting between private coal mining companies and government-owned Coal India Ltd to identify projects that could be outsourced to private coal miners.Law ministry officials have also been invited to attend this meeting which will be held this week. The meeting will deliberate on the legal framework under which private mining companies can enter the sector though the competitive bidding route. Mining is limited to government...

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Centaurus Metals update on Jambreiro project

Centaurus Metals has intersected 106 metres at 30.7% iron in the latest drilling at the Jambreiro Iron Ore Project in Brazil, where the company is targeting a resource upgrade next month.In fill reverse circulation drilling has been completed at the Tigre and Cruzeiro deposits, which will form the basis of initial development at Jambreiro.Highlight assays from the drilling programs include:1. 106 metres at 30.7% iron, 3.6% alumina and 0.03% phosphorous from 27 metres;2. 87 metres at 32.3% iron, 4.3% alumina and 0.04% phosphorus from 23...

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Xstrata Coal opens Australian mine training facility

The Baal Bone mine in the Western Coalfields, about 130 kilometres from Sydney and about 26km north west of Lithgow in New South Wales will be used by Xstrata as its regional training centre, where new recruits will spend 12 weeks learning mining skills.According to Xstrata, "what's different from more traditional courses is that the trainees not only attend classroom tutorials, they complete familiarisation and operations with the equipment on the surface and then proceed underground to operate the equipment in a 'real world' environment...

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