Further investigation by Red Pine Exploration (TSXV: RPX) into the reporting inconsistencies on its Wawa gold project assays has led to the belief that its former CEO was the culprit of an “unauthorized manipulation” of certain results. The conclusion was drawn after reviewing the chain of custody of assay results that were sent from Activation Laboratories of Ontario and those later used for public disclosure, which had shown inconsistencies. During the investigation, the Canadian gold explorer found that while the correct drill core assays were sent via email by Actlabs from the spring ..read more

Management changes announced this week: Aero Energy named Martin Bajic its CFO. Avanti Gold appointed Ian MacLean its new CEO. CO2 Lock named Scott Larson CEO. Founders Metals welcomed Katie MacKenzie as VP corporate development. The new CFO at Homerun Resources is Nancy Zhao. IberAmerican Lithium engaged Hannah Badenach as senior commodities strategist. Nickel 28 Capital terminated Anthony Milewski (CEO), Justin Cochrane (president), and Conor Kearns (CFO) on May 3 amid allegations of serious misconduct. Omai Gold Mines named Marcel Cameron country manager for Guyana. Scorpio Gold named Chris ..read more

UK students aged 16 to 18 are taking part in a challenge aimed at developing a small robot capable of transporting a mock nuclear waste barrel. The challenge has been organized by the Robotics and AI Collaboration (RAICo) – a joint effort between the UK Atomic Energy Authority, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Sellafield Ltd and the University of Manchester – and the Industrial Solutions Hub (iSH), which delivers programmes that build on West Cumbria’s nuclear heritage, expanding its technical capability and developing a regional industrial cluster. The students belong to the West Lakes ..read more

Lucara Diamond (TSX: LUC) announced a successful start to 2024 as it sold about 12% more diamonds from its Karowe mine in Botswana than in the first quarter of 2023 and operating cost decreased by 2%. The Canadian miner’s revenue in the period was slightly lower in first the tree months of the year than in the same quarter last year — down to $41.1 million from $42.8 million.  Chief executive William Lamb qualified the results as positive, given the current market conditions that have dragged rough diamond prices down. He attributed the outcome to a combination of the timing of produ ..read more

Nokia has been chosen by Sigma Lithium, a global lithium producer, to deploy the first private LTE wireless campus network in the Americas that supports lithium mining. Nokia will work with partner Alcon to roll out the private wireless network, which will support 200 Sigma employees and add innovative mining applications that boost productivity and operational efficiency. As the world converts to more energy-efficient vehicles to combat climate change, lithium exploration globally is expected to increase more than 10 times by 2035. Sigma produced record amounts of Triple Zero Green Lithium at ..read more

Shares of NexGen Energy (TSX: NXE) (NYSE: NXE) (ASX: NXG) rose on Thursday as the uranium developer inked an agreement with MMCap International for the procurement of 2.7 million pounds of uranium concentrate. The deal is valued at $250 million, based on the five-day average spot price. NexGen traded 4.6% higher at C$11.00 at 12 pm EDT. The company has a market capitalization of C$5.9 billion ($4.3bn). In a binding term sheet, NexGen commits to issuing $250 million in secured convertible debentures to MMCap in exchange for the uranium concentrate. These debentures will be convertible into abou ..read more

E3 Lithium (TSXV: ETL) is expanding its Calgary-based lab to incorporate equipment used for polishing and production of battery products such as lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide. The development facility, located at the University of Calgary, has been operational since early 2021. Its focus has been on the development and verification of direct lithium extraction (DLE) processing technologies. According to E3, DLE technologies can extract brine from Alberta’s oilfields efficiently and effectively to produce a lithium-rich concentrate stream. The process to convert the lithium-rich solut ..read more

Africa-focused Montage Gold (TSXV: MAU) announced Thursday it has received a ministerial order granting all environmental approvals for the development of its Koné project in Côte d’Ivoire. “The receipt of the environmental permit marks a significant milestone in our permitting process and reflects the strong support received from numerous government agencies and local communities,” commented Martino De Ciccio, CEO of Montage, in a news release. During 2023, Montage began preparations for the Koné environmental and social impact assessment based upon the project design as outlined in the ..read more

Mining giant BHP (ASX, LON, NYSE: BHP) and Ivanhoe Electric (NYSE American, TSX: IE) have partnered to explore for copper and other critical minerals in selected areas in the United States, where they would potentially set 50:50 joint ventures. “BHP and Ivanhoe Electric have a common goal to find new sources of the critical minerals necessary to meet growing demand associated with the energy transition and the electrification revolution,” Ivanhoe Electric executive chairperson Robert Friedland said in the statement. “We see today’s announcement as the first step in what we expect to ..read more

The release of particles as a result of deep-sea mining operations could have severe detrimental effects on deep-sea fauna, new research has found. In a study published in Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers, scientists at Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands and the University of Bergen in Norway simulated the effects of mining plumes by exposing the common deep-sea sponge Geodia barretti and its associated brittle star species from the genus Ophiura to a field-relevant concentration of suspended particles made from crushed seafloor massive sulphide (SMS ..read more