All posts tagged: mining

MASSIVE 600 ton excavator converted from diesel to electric

MASSIVE 600 ton excavator converted from diesel to electric

Published by skeptic

In a move the company is calling breakthrough initiative, Lloyds Metals and Energy have successfully converted one of their massive, 650-ton class Liebherr R 996 excavators from diesel power to fully electric for the first time – and it won’t be the last! Long time readers might remember that Liebherr began offering diesel-to-electric conversion options for its ultra massive excavators back in 2024, when the company debuted a converted R 9400 mining excavator at Frotescue’s Christmas Creek mining operation in Western Australia. But, while that program was led by Liebherr itself, this conversion has been executed entirely by Lloyds in-house engineering and technology teams, and involved a complete redesign of the big excavator’s power architecture, control, and safety systems. The company believes that large-scale equipment electrification projects like this will help it to both eliminate of thousands of tons of harmful carbon emissions annually, while also delivering substantial operational cost savings and reduced dependency on diesel. “This landmark achievement, is not just about electrifying a machine,” explains B. Prabhakaran, Managing Director, Lloyds Metals and Energy. …

Gulf Shock May Spark Shortage Of World’s Most Critical Industrial Chemical, Used Heavily In Mining 

Gulf Shock May Spark Shortage Of World’s Most Critical Industrial Chemical, Used Heavily In Mining 

Published by Jenni Sidey

Goldman analysts Kyle Shaffer and Amanda Ross provided clients with a broad overview of industrials and natural resources amid energy disruptions in the Gulf area. In the note, they stated that the well-known Gulf energy shock is set to disrupt LNG production in Qatar for years to come. However, they also highlighted another emerging supply crunch that has received far less attention: sulfuric acid. “Some long-lasting consequences have also started to emerge, including a 3-5 years production loss for LNG facility in Qatar, a 6-12 month re-starting time for some aluminum facilities in the Gulf, and shortage of sulfuric acid which can potentially impact future production for copper and lithium” Shaffer and Ross said. About a third of the world’s sulfur comes from the Gulf region, where it is produced as part of oil and gas refining. Much of the sulfur is exported, primarily to fertilizer and industrial-processing hubs in Asia, North Africa, and, in Qatar’s case, some trading hubs across Asia and Europe. Goldman analyst James McGeoch noted on Wednesday that Shandong sulfuric acid …

Senate overturns Boundary Waters protections, a boon for Chilean mining company

Senate overturns Boundary Waters protections, a boon for Chilean mining company

Published by Sam Flores

Outdoor enthusiasts travel by canoe through several of the hundreds of fresh water lakes that make up the Boundary Waters in the northern woods of Minnesota. Andrew Lichtenstein | Corbis News | Getty Images The Senate on Thursday overturned a mining moratorium in Minnesota’s Superior National Forest, a boon for a Chilean mining company subsidiary and a stinging loss for environmentalists trying to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The chamber voted 50-49 to overturn a protection imposed by President Joe Biden in 2023 that he set for 20 years. It clears the way for a long-stalled mine project proposed by Twin Metals Minnesota to restart plans to access the immense stores of copper and other minerals in the Superior National Forest near the Boundary Waters. It’s the latest step in a long battle over mining in the area, which has seesawed for years between Democratic and Republican administrations as environmental groups warn the project could pollute the country’s most visited wilderness area. The mine sought by Twin Metals, a subsidiary of Chilean mining …

Indonesia’s Prabowo Calls for Criminal Charges Against Firms Resisting Forest Crackdown

Indonesia’s Prabowo Calls for Criminal Charges Against Firms Resisting Forest Crackdown

Published by Sam Flores

JAKARTA, April 10 (Reuters) – Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto ordered prosecutors ⁠on ⁠Friday to file criminal charges against ⁠companies that refuse to cooperate with a task force he launched to ​crack down on illegal activities in the country’s forests. The task force, made up of military personnel, prosecutors and ‌environmental regulators, has since early 2025 ‌been seizing areas controlled by companies and individuals, ordering them to pay fines for what they ⁠describe as ⁠illegal business operations in designated forest areas. A total of 5.88 million hectares (14.5 million ​acres) of oil palm plantations and 10,257 hectares of mining concessions have been taken over so far, according to the deputy head of the task force, Attorney General Sanitiar Burhanuddin – nearly twice the size of Belgium. Speaking at ​a ceremony marking the task force’s efforts, Burhanuddin handed 7.23 trillion rupiah ($423.18 million) of fines paid ⁠by ⁠implicated companies over to the ⁠finance ministry. Prabowo ​praised the task force’s work and warned that anyone who refused to cooperate would be seen ​as going against the president ⁠himself. …

More than 40 trapped underground after strike on coal mine in Russian-controlled Luhansk region

More than 40 trapped underground after strike on coal mine in Russian-controlled Luhansk region

Published by Sam Flores

Ukraine struck ​the Bilorichenska coal ​mine in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region, damaging a ​power ‌substation ⁠and leaving 41 ‌mine workers trapped underground, a ⁠Russian-installed official said on Monday. “All the relevant ​services are ‌taking steps to rescue the miners and ‌restore power to ​the mine,” Leonid Pasechnik, the Moscow-appointed head of the ​region, said. Read moreRussian drone strike on Ukrainian market kills five, Moscow intensifies attacks He ​said that ​the contact with the ​miners had already been established, and that they had a ⁠supply of drinking water. (FRANCE 24 with Reuters) Source link

The fight for mineral data in DRC: Belgian museum, US mining firm at odds over archive maps

The fight for mineral data in DRC: Belgian museum, US mining firm at odds over archive maps

Published by Sam Flores

Just a few kilometers from Brussels, the cellars of the Royal Museum for Central Africa hold one of the world’s most valuable mining archives. Colonial-era maps and surveys had previously detailed minerals like cobalt, lithium, coltan, and tungsten, essential for the digital and energy transition. Now, a battle over digitization is unfolding, with these documents literally worth their weight in gold. KoBold Metals, backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, is looking to AI in order to locate new deposits faster. Source link

China’s Detentions of Panama-Flagged Vessels Raise Concerns, Rubio Says

China’s Detentions of Panama-Flagged Vessels Raise Concerns, Rubio Says

Published by Sam Flores

By Katharine Jackson and Michael Martina WASHINGTON, April 2 (Reuters) – ⁠Detentions ⁠of Panama-flagged vessels by China ⁠that followed a Panamanian court ruling raise serious concerns about ​efforts to undermine rule of law in the Latin American country, U.S. Secretary of State ‌Marco Rubio said on Thursday.  The U.S. ‌Federal Maritime Commission said last week that it was closely monitoring a surge ⁠in detentions ⁠of Panama-flagged vessels in China that appears tied to a Panama ​court ruling against Hong Kong-based port operator CK Hutchison. “China’s recent actions against Panama-flagged vessels raise serious concerns about the use of economic tools to undermine the rule of law in Panama, ​a sovereign nation and vital partner for global commerce,” Rubio said in a statement.  Panama’s ⁠Supreme ⁠Court in late January invalidated ⁠the legal ​framework supporting the 1997 concession granting CK Hutchison’s Panama Ports Company the right to ​operate the Balboa and ⁠Cristobal terminals on the Pacific and Atlantic sides of the Panama Canal. The cancellation followed mounting U.S. pressure to curb Chinese influence around the strategic canal, which …

US Senators Unveil ‘Mined In America Act’ To Reshore BTC Mining, Codify Bitcoin Strategic Reserve

US Senators Unveil ‘Mined In America Act’ To Reshore BTC Mining, Codify Bitcoin Strategic Reserve

Published by Jenni Sidey

Authored by Micah Zimmerman via BitcoinMagazine.com, Republican Senators Bill Cassidy and Cynthia Lummis introduced legislation Monday aimed at reshaping the U.S. digital asset mining sector, tightening supply chains, and embedding bitcoin into federal reserve strategy. The proposal, titled the “Mined in America Act,” would establish a federal certification program for domestic crypto mining operations while phasing out reliance on foreign-manufactured hardware. It also seeks to codify Donald Trump’s executive order creating a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, placing the policy on statutory footing, according to a release on the matter. “Digital asset mining is a big part of our economy. We should be doing it here in America,” Cassidy said in a statement, framing the bill as a supply chain and manufacturing initiative. Lummis tied the legislation to a broader push to position the United States as a global hub for digital assets. “The Mined in America Act brings this industry home through forward-thinking initiatives to secure our financial future,” she said. The bill directs the Department of Commerce to create a voluntary “Mined in America” certification for mining facilities and pools that …

Mongolia Names New Prime Minister Following Stalemate in Parliament

Mongolia Names New Prime Minister Following Stalemate in Parliament

Published by Sam Flores

BEIJING, March 31 (Reuters) – Mongolia’s parliament on Monday confirmed ⁠Uchral ⁠Nyam-Osor as the nation’s third ⁠prime minister in nine months, following his predecessor’s resignation last week ​over strife within the ruling Mongolian People’s Party and a legislative stalemate. During a parliamentary session on ‌Monday, 88 out of 107 lawmakers ‌voted to appoint Uchral to the coal-rich country’s No. 2 post, after the 39-year-old ⁠vowed to ⁠trim the bureaucracy and stabilise import prices, the official Montsame news ​agency reported on Tuesday. The outgoing prime minister, Zandanshatar Gombojav, resigned on Friday, a move analysts say was a compromise to resolve a boycott of the parliamentary session by the opposition Democratic Party ​and a faction within the ruling MPP over the past two weeks. Zandanshatar assumed ⁠the ⁠post in June 2025 after ⁠Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene ​was ousted following corruption allegations that erupted into street protests. Despite the leadership change, political ​volatility and the impasse in ⁠parliament are unlikely to be quickly resolved. “There is deep animosity between the ruling party and the opposition, divide among factions within a party, …