Xstrata Copper Canada is pleased to announce it has reached a tentative agreement with the Union Executives of CAW-Local 599 for the renewal of the collective agreement at the Kidd Metallurgical site.
Kidd Metallurgical employees are expected to vote on the agreement on November 6, 2008. The collective agreement expired on September 30, 2008 at midnight [...]

Happy Creek Minerals Ltd. wishes to provide a general update on the Company’s status. Happy Creek Minerals was designed from the beginning to minimize investment risk and maximize return potential.
The Company currently has $1.90 million of cash in the bank, and is taking steps to minimize overhead expenditures while continuing to perform low-cost exploration on [...]

Xstrata Copper announces investment of C$121 million to deepen and extend the life of the underground Kidd Mine located in the Timmins area of Northern Ontario, Canada.
Already the world’s deepest copper and zinc mine, the latest project will extend the mining zone at Mine D from 9,100 feet to 9,500 feet, improving the production profile [...]

Xstrata, the world’s largest thermal coal exporter, has settled thermal coal contracts with Japan’s Chubu Electric for the business year starting this month at $125 a tonne, up 125 percent, a source close to the deal said on Monday.
The settlement price compares with last year’s $55.65, based on Xstrata Plc’s final settlement price with a [...]

Global mining giant BHP Billiton(BHP.AX)(BLT.L) said it plans to invest $975 million to upgrade and expand its thermal coal mines in South Africa to sustain coal exports amid soaring coal prices.
BHP approved an investment plan to develop new coal reserves across its Douglas and Middleburg collieries in South Africa and build a coal processing [...]

Singapore-listed Noble Group increased its stake in Australian coal miner Gloucester Coal Ltd. to 10.4 percent, the Australian company said Wednesday.
Noble Group announced late Tuesday in an announcement to the Singapore Exchange it had purchased a further 4.3 million shares of the Sydney-based company to raise its holding. Noble Group said it now holds 8.2 [...]

BP Plc and Rio Tinto Plc formed a joint venture, Hydrogen Energy, to develop technology for producing power from coal, oil and natural gas without emitting the gases blamed for global warming.
Rio will pay $32 million to BP to form the equally owned venture, which includes two planned BP hydrogen-fuel projects in Scotland and California [...]

Xstrata Plc said on Wednesday a government bill being introduced in Australia would validate its proposed redevelopment of the McArthur River zinc mine.
An Australian court on Monday ruled against a A$110 million ($92 million) redevelopment of the mine over a glitch in the approval process after a challenge by local landowners.
Swiss-based Xstrata said it had [...]

Australia’s Newcastle port, the world’s largest coal export terminal, has cut allocations for all producers for 2007 in a bid to ease severe ship congestion, potentially driving coal prices higher in a tight Asian market.
Port Waratah Coal Services (PWCS), operator of Newcastle port, said in a statement on Wednesday that with the reinstatement of the [...]

M45 Mining Resources Inc., formerly known as Quantitative Methods, Corp., today begin trading under the new symbol (OTC BB:MRES.OB ).
Management stated, “Trading under this new symbol represents the last step of our Company’s complete transformation into a mining organization that is focused on a concerted and united effort to build comprehensive value for our shareholders.”
The [...]