3 November
The CEO of the Bank of Montreal stated that despite several miners considering takeovers in the current scenario, the probability of these deals materialising is unlikely until the global economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic. Mining companies worldwide have announced acquisitions worth $52bn in 2020, which is less than 50% of value of agreements witnessed during the mid-2000s and after the 2008 global recession.
Canadian miner Plateau Energy Metals has raised $600m for development of the Falchani lithium project in Peru, which was delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The lithium project is now expected to commence in 2023. Plateau Energy raised $597m through European mutual funds for the project, the remaining $844m will be provided by the company itself.
Drilling contractor Boart Longyear reported a 10% y-o-y decline in revenues to $172m during the third quarter, as drilling services were impacted due to the pandemic. The Q3 revenues were still higher than the previous quarter, when the company registered a 30% fall from corresponding period last year.
China is continuing to import iron ore through sea, having imported roughly 101.6Mt in October. China’s steel production is expected to hit the 1Bt mark this year, thanks to huge demand from infrastructure and construction industries. The iron ore supply has also reached normal levels after production was disrupted in Brazil due to the coronavirus pandemic.
