Mining News

“Catamarca: la producción minera superó los $ 6.300 millones en 2010” published in “Inversor Energético & Minero – Newsletter Diario” (City of Buenos Aires) on 02/02/2011
Catamarca still holds a leading position, both in production and gross value in the argentine mining production. Projects Bajo de La Alumbrera and Fénix de Minera del Altiplano’s combined production returned over AR$6,300,000, representing over 23% of the local mining production. Moreover, projects such as Farallón Negro and Minas Capillitas, uxelite production at the puna zone of the province as well as gypsum and sand enterprises have contributed to achieve such amount. Another statistical report indicates that Catamarca produces nearly 10% of Argentine cement production, with a total estimate value of AR$600 million.

“En un año, mineras con operaciones en la Argentina hasta duplicaron su valor”, published in “El Inversor Energético & Minero – (February issue)” (City of Buenos Aires)
Foreign mining companies with projects in Argentina closed 2010 with excellent results at the Toronto Sock Exchange Market, the largest funding source to Canadian, Australian and US companies. Although this stock rising scenario is part of a global tendency sustained by the rising price of metals, not limited to the local market, the numbers show that Argentine geology is highly considered by investors. Statistics show that the stock value of most of the 10 leading mining companies in Argentina has risen considerably. Some companies have doubled their value between January and December 2010.

“La minería es la industria nacional con más expectativas de empleo para 2011”, Publisher in “El Inversor Energético & Minero – (February issue)” (City of Buenos Aires)
According to the last edition of the Employment Expectations Survey by Manpower Argentina, employers forecast a favourable hiring season for the country during the first trimester of 2011. While 24% of them assure that their staff will increase, 4% forsee a reduction and 71% do not expect significant changes. Mining and construction (27%) and finance, insurance and real estate (26%) are the sectors with the highest perspectives. These are followed by manufactures (20%), commerce (20%), services (19%) and agriculture and fishing (9%).

“El tesoro de la Puna”, published in “Diario La Nación” (City of Buenos Aires) on 02/06/2011
Argentina is on its way to becoming the world’s second largest producer of the basic input for cellphone and automobile batteries (lithium); the mines are located in Jujuy, Salta and Catamarca. The leading companies in this process at the Puna Cordillerana zone (Jujuy, Salta and Catamarca) are Minera del Altiplano (an FMC subsidiary and the leader in the local production), Ady Resources, Ekeko, Exar, Sales de Jujuy (an Orocobre subsidiary), South American Salars, Solitario Argentina, Latin American Salars, Rodinia, Lithium I and Bolera, among others. So far these companies have disembursed a total of US$60 million in the exploration stage (plus other US$90 million which correspond to minor companies), and will inject US$1 billion in the production stage. Argentina produces 25,000 tons, but it is estimated that by 2014, when the most advanced projects start producing, the total production will reach 80,000 tons, almost 50% of the global market purchase estimate by that time.

“Récord productivo minero en el país” published in “Diario Crónica” (Comodoro Rivadavia, Province of Chubut) on 02/06/2011
The Gross Value of the mining production registered a new record in 2010, with a historical value of AR$27,286 million, according to official data provided by the National Mining Direction. This figure implied a bi-annual increase of 63.8% since 2008, year in which the total production reached AR$16,656 million, and a 568.77% accumulated growth since 2003. The evolution of this activity has a positive effect in the social and economical activity of the Andean Argentine provinces, especially in the economies of the provinces of Santa Cruz, San Juan, Jujuy and Salta.

“El número”, published in “Diario Página 12” (City of Buenos Aires) on 02/13/2011
The mining exportation has increased by 43.2% during 2010, with a total US$4,521.3 million. The gold and silver exportation increased by 93.9 and 97.9% respectively, and closed the year with US$2,014 million and US$244.2 million, gold being the first mining exportation product and silver the fourth, after copper and unalloyed aluminium. As for the total exported quantities of the principal products, increases were registered in gold (40.7%) and silver (9.2%) in 2010. While 15 years ago the mining sector represented less than 0.3% of the country’s internal gross production (IBP), in 2010 it represented an estimate of 4.5%.

“Santa Cruz: extienden la vida útil de San José Huevos Verdes” published in “El Inversor Energético & Minero – (Revista del Mes de Febrero)” (City of Buenos Aires)
The gold and silver deposit San José Huevos Verdes is once more in the news. Its operator, Minera Santa Cruz (51% of which is owned by the Peruvian company Hochschild Mining and 49% by the Canadian company Minera Andes), has exponentially extended its useful life. While initial estimates were around 6 years, later increasing to 8 years, today the productivity lapse of the project is around 12.5 years. The positive variation is caused by the recent finding of nine new high grade veins and by the larger magnitude registered by two veins which had been previously detected.

“Aumentan las exportaciones de hierro desde Río Negro hacia China”, published on the Internet site “Petrolnews.net” (Province de Neuquén and City of Buenos Aires) on 02/16/2011
The iron mine in Sierra Grande –in the south of the Province of Río Negro-, which was reactivated by Chinese capital investment, will deliver 110,000 tons of concentrated iron to iron and steel industries in the Chinese Popular Republic. It is a concentrated iron production and commerce record for the formerly state-owned mining company Hipasam, reactivated in 2006.