Construction

‘Elevated basket price unlikely to hold for platinum group metals’

The team continue to see downside risk to the PGM basket price which is still trading above cost support. (Image source: U.S. Geological Survey/Flickr)

While the nationwide lockdown in South Africa presented a supply response through forced capacity closures, the deteriorating demand fundamentals could tip the platinum group metals (PGMs) into surplus territory with a near-term recovery unlikely, according to Renaissance Capital

TOMRA’s laser sorting technology set to produce high-purity quartz

Erimsa raw material being fed into the sorting process. (Image source: TOMRA)

As the quartz market is set to witness a CAGR of more than 4.5 per cent in next five years, TOMRA’s multi-channel laser sorting technology has unlocked the potential to produce high-purity quartz

South Africa monitoring lockdown regulations in mining sector

The department has received information from employees at some mining houses, bringing attention to incidents of non-adherence at their respective operations. (Image source: Stefan Korbion/Pixabay)

South Africa is working with major stakeholders in the minerals and energy portfolio to monitor and ensure compliance with the lockdown regulations, said mineral resources and energy minister Gwede Mantashe

Miners diverts copper shipments to Tanzania port

Exports of copper cathodes and copper concentrate through Dar have increased. (Image source: David Stanley/Flickr)

Due to the strict COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa, miners in Congo and Zambia divert copper shipments to Dar es Salaam

Olympus launches XRD for onboard quantitative mineralogy and phase analysis

Olympus’ TERRA II XRD instrument features a battery life up to six hours and a rugged, weatherproof case. (Image source: Olympus)

The Olympus next-generation TERRA II and BTX III mobile X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysers offer faster quantitative mineralogy results in the field and lab