BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company, may say fiscal second-half profit jumped to a record because of rising copper and iron ore prices.
Net income probably increased to $6.34 billion for the six months ended June 30 from $3.45 billion a year earlier, according to the median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg [...]

Far East Energy Corporation announced that it has signed a contract to begin drilling its fourth horizontal well in the Shouyang Block of its Shanxi project in early September 2006. This next well, the FCC HZ04, will be drilled horizontally with a total target length in the No. 15 coal seam of approximately 800 meters. [...]

Environmentalists backing tighter and possible costlier controls on toxic mercury emissions from the Portland General Electric coal-fired power plant near Boardman oppose credits for limiting mercury output that PGE could sell to other power plants.
Conservation groups contend that selling the credits would let PGE make money from controlling pollution that it should be cutting back [...]

Analysts at UBS maintain their “neutral” rating on Excel Coal Limited (ticker: EXL). The target price is set to $8.60.
In a research note published yesterday, the analysts mention that the company has posted its NPAT for FY06 at $98.1 million, representing a 56% y/y increase. Excel Coal’s bottom-line performance was, however, in-line with its guidance, [...]

China National Coal Group Corp is buying a major coal-to- petrochemicals plant in Harbin, Northeast China, where it plans to turn out 600,000 tons of olefin products annually using home-grown technology.
The Beijing-based State-owned company, China’s second-biggest coal firm, has reached an initial agreement with the Harbin municipal government on the takeover of Harbin Coal [...]

The Shanghai Petroleum Exchange resumed business on Friday after a 12-year hiatus, a step toward the eventual lifting of domestic controls on gas and oil prices.
The limited reopening of spot trading in oil products is intended to help China’s state-run petroleum companies familiarize themselves with the international market, state media reported.
Trading began with gasoline, with [...]

Nickel closed within $200 of its recent record high on Monday, supported by demand from stainless steel makers who may have underestimated their needs for 2006.
Nickel for delivery in three months closed at $27,100 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange (LME) falling back after hitting $27,250, only $50 away from last week’s record high.
On [...]

Woodside Petroleum Ltd., Australia’s second-largest oil and gas producer, may report higher first-half profit tomorrow after crude oil prices jumped.
Profit before one-time items likely rose 15 percent to A$515 million ($395 million) in the six months ended June 30, from A$448.5 million a year earlier, according to the median estimate of six analysts surveyed by [...]

It all started with Canadian mining company Inco Ltd. saying that it wanted to acquire nickel miner Falconbridge Ltd.
Then Teck Cominco stepped in to make a play for Inco and was soon followed by Swiss-based Xstrata with a bid for Falconbridge.
Making the scenario more interesting, USbased Phelps Dodge proposed a three-way with Inco and Falconbridge [...]

Ukraine’s Poltava GOK mining company has signed a three-year contract to supply iron ore to China’s Fujian San Steel, Ferrexpo AG, the Swiss company that owns Poltava GOK, said in a
press release.
China accounted for 1% of Ferrexpo’s sales in 2004, rising to 12% [...]