PERTH, Australia, Aug. 26, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ – Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY) (Company) advises that the following announcement has been made to the Australian Securities Exchange which appears on the Company's platform (ASX):

• Merger of Galaxy and Orocobre Implemented

The announcement can be viewed at:

https://www2.asx.com.au/markets/trade-our-cash-market/announcements.gxy

SOURCE Galaxy Resources Limited

View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2021/26/c8739.html

By Ivana Sekularac and Aleksandar Vasovic

KORENITA, Serbia, Aug 26 (Reuters) – Four years from now, fields in the Jadar river valley in western Serbia where Djorjde Kapetanovic grows corn and soy to feed his cattle will be turned into a waste dump for Europe's biggest lithium mine.

Rio Tinto in July committed $2.4 billion to its Jadar project as global miners push into metals needed for the green energy transition, including lithium, which is used to make electric vehicle batteries. The Jadar project, once completed, would help make Rio a top 10 lithium producer, just as demand for EVs booms.

Opposition to the project is growing, however, because of concerns about possible environmental damage and protest rallies have become more frequent. In April, thousands gathered in Belgrade to protest against widespread pollution in the Balkan country and against the lithium mine near Loznica, 142 km (88 miles) southwest of the capital.

Once it reaches full capacity, the mine is expected to produce 58,000 tonnes of refined battery-grade lithium carbonate per year. That would make it Europe's biggest lithium mine in terms of production, Rio said.

In the village of Korenita, dairy farmer Kapetanovic said the mine, if opened, could leave him without income. Part of his land where he grows crop to feed his animals will be turned into a dump for mining waste, known as tailings, with compensation from the company.

Other areas of his land, his house and a cattle shed will be outside the mine, leaving Kapetanovic worried about exposure to possible pollution.

"Who would want to buy products made on the outskirts of the mine?" said Kapetanovic, who produces 10 tonnes (22,000 lb) of meat and 90,000 litres (23,775 gallons) of milk per year, making him one of the bigger producers in the Loznica area.

Rio Tinto Serbia CEO Vesna Prodanovic said the Anglo-Australian miner would meet all European Union and Serbian environmental regulations, including on the treatment of wastewater.

"There's simply no way for the construction to start without securing licences (and) if all those (EU standards) are not adhered to," she said in an interview.

"We take into account precipitation levels, prescribed dust levels. We take into consideration everything there is in the field. We are making all studies and tests to get clear data about what is the current situation in the area."

One study, commissioned by Rio on the mine’s environmental impact, concluded the mine should not be built as it will cause "irredeemable damage to the biosphere", an abstract obtained by Reuters found.

"The implementation of the planned activities, especially the disposal of industrial waste, will significantly impair biodiversity in the entire area of the planned works," the study by Belgrade University’s Faculty of Biology said.

"In … primary zones of (the mine's) influence, there will be complete and direct destruction of habitats with the disappearance of all organisms that inhabit them."

Rio said the biodiversity study was part of a wider feasibility study and it would conduct further research to "support the most advanced and most expensive solutions in nature protection, which would minimise the impact".

ECONOMIC BOOST

Lithium is central to the European Union's plans to secure an entire supply chain of battery minerals and materials as the use of electric vehicles increases.

Serbia, which sits on the world's 11th largest lithium reserves, is working its way through the accession process to join the EU.

For its own economy, the Jadar project is one of Serbia’s biggest foreign investments to date and could help to tackle rising unemployment in the Balkan country.

Rio said the project would create about 2,100 construction jobs and inject approximately 200 million euros ($235.32 million) per year into the domestic supply chain.

Energy minister Zorana Mihajlovic told Reuters that Serbia aimed, like the EU, to secure the entire production chain, including a potential battery plant and an electric vehicle plant.

Rio's Serbia CEO said the company's studies estimated the project would add 1 percentage point to Serbia's $51.4 billion annual GDP. It would also boost Loznica’s municipal budget by 60-70% annually, she said.

In June, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who is under fire for supporting the project, said a referendum would be held to allow people to decide whether it should go ahead.

The absence of further details on the referendum has worried opponents. In July, Loznica municipal assembly, which is dominated by Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party and its allies, formally gave a green light for mine construction by approving a new municipal plan for land allocation.

Contacted by Reuters, the president's office had no immediate comment.

Rio has bought nearly half of the land required for the mine, which will be spread over roughly 387 hectares.

Some $100 million of Rio's investment has been earmarked for environmental protection, but activists say that is insufficient to compensate for potential damage.

One major concern for environmentalists is Rio's plan to put

waste dumps in the Korenita and Jadar rivers valley, an area prone to flash flooding.

In 2014, Korenita river flooding caused a closed mine's tailings dam to overflow, spilling toxic waste onto agricultural land.

Rio Tinto said it planned to convert the liquid waste into "dry cakes" to make it easier and safer to store and is planning for once-in-a-millennium floods in its construction.

($1 = 0.8499 euros) (Editing by Amran Abocar and Barbara Lewis)

After taking a beating over the past few weeks, oil prices have been surging on rising demand optimism, a major production outage in Mexico, and the first full U.S. regulatory approval of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

October crude and Brent were up 3% to $67.47/bbl and $70.83/bbl, respectively, a day after a 5% surge by both benchmarks snapped a seven-day losing streak after China claimed to have brought its coronavirus cases down to zero and opened up the Ningbo port, one of the busiest in the world, after a two-week shutdown.

About two weeks ago, China—once the epicenter of the virus—took an uncompromising approach by imposing widespread travel restrictions and new lockdowns. Authorities in Beijing curtailed public transport and taxi services in 144 of the worst-hit areas nationwide, including train service and subway usage in Beijing.

That seemed like overkill, with less than 1,000 cases of the delta virus reported nationwide and a good 61% of the population already fully vaccinated. However, Beijing opted to employ its tried-and-tested method of targeted lockdown that has been successful in stopping no less than 30 Covid-19 flare-ups in the past. The capital city of Beijing implemented a two-week quarantine for visitors from high-risk areas, halted the use of community spaces for entertainment, and also limited the number of visitors allowed at parks and scenic areas.

Chinese authorities also urged people to cancel vacations and business trips, especially those from high-risk areas, and also advised college students to delay their return to school for the new semester.

Well, it appears that Beijing has come out on top, once again.

"The developments out of China are reigniting expectations that oil demand would start to rise again," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group Inc. has told Bloomberg.

Meanwhile, a major fire on a Mexican oil platform has wiped out more than 400,000 barrels a day of the nation's output, a development that has calmed nerves with OPEC+ expected to add a similar amount to the market beginning September.

Bullish for commodities

The latest oil price rally also comes with further signals that demand is strengthening.

Over the past two days, the difference between the nearest two December Brent futures contracts jumped by $1 a barrel, while the global benchmark increased its premium to WTI to the widest since April. 

Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute (API) has reported a 1.622 million decline in U.S. crude stockpiles, accompanied by a nearly 1 million drop in gasoline stocks. API has also reported a 245,000 barrel dip in distillate stocks last week, which unfortunately marks the smallest drop since January.  

The turnaround in demand sentiment has also helped boost other commodities, with iron ore prices jumping 10%.

Shares of iron miners Vale (NYSE:VALE), Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), and BHP (NYSE:BHP) are all trading higher as iron ore prices bounce off a spectacular collapse that saw prices crash ~25% over the past 30 days.

Iron ore futures in Singapore have rebounded as much as 10% to $149.65/metric, thanks in large part to the improved sentiment across all asset classes stemming from China's improved situation as well as a potential boost to the U.S. vaccination drive.

China's central bank has said it will try and stabilize the supply of credit and increase the amount of money supporting smaller businesses. There are expectations for further stimulus targeting the infrastructure sector, manufacturing, and real estate after the July slowdown left the economic situation looking bleak.

All eyes will now turn to the Jackson Hole symposium—being held virtually from Thursday—which is expected to offer important insights into how the Federal Reserve plans to scale back stimulus.

The dollar has lately hit a nine-month high, weighing heavily on dollar-priced commodities, including oil, due to a surge in safe-haven demand. The dollar's multi-faceted strengths have been on display once again following the release of weak U.S. retail sales data that underwhelmed against consensus estimates; Yet, the greenback has been gaining ground against its international peers due to expectations of the Fed to begin its taper program in September.

However, Jeff Gundlach (aka the bond king) says not to worry too much about the taper because the Fed intends to keep rates near zero for years to come.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:

• Europe Faces LNG Supply Crunch
  

• Brent Climbs Back Above $70 On Major Production Outage
  

• ‘Skimming Stones’ Pattern Shows Wall Street Is Wrong About Oil

Read this article on OilPrice.com

Two rare diamonds have been sold by Petra Diamonds (PDL.L) for a total of $13.5m (£9.8m). 

A 342.92 carat white diamond (previously announced on 28 July 2021) and an 18.30 carat blue diamond, both recovered at the Cullinan Diamond Mine in South Africa, have been sold into a partnership with Stargems. 

Petra said in a release that it will receive an upfront payment of $10m for the 342.92 carat stone and US$3.5m for the 18.30 carat stone, as well as retaining a 50% interest in the profit uplift of the polished proceeds of both diamonds, after costs.

“These two diamonds are wonderful examples of the very high quality and rare white and blue diamonds that are so well known from the Cullinan Diamond Mine," said Richard Duffy, CEO of Petra. 

"We are delighted that both stones will be manufactured in South Africa and it is fitting that we will be working with Stargems, who specialise in the sourcing and supply of the finest diamonds to customers across the world.”

Read more: FTSE edges up as pound falls in quiet day for markets

The Cullinan mine earned its place in history with the discovery of the Cullinan diamond in 1905, the largest rough gem diamond ever found at 3,106 carats.

This stone was cut into the two most important diamonds which form part of the Crown Jewels in the Tower of London.

These included the First Star of Africa, which is mounted at the top of the Sovereign’s Sceptre and which at 530 carats is the largest flawless cut diamond in the world, and the Second Star of Africa, a 317 carat polished diamond which forms the centrepiece of the Imperial State Crown.

Watch: Should I book a holiday in 2021?

MELBOURNE, Australia, August 24, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto and Sumitomo Corporation today announced a partnership to study the construction of a hydrogen pilot plant at Rio Tinto’s Yarwun alumina refinery in Gladstone and explore the potential use of hydrogen at the refinery.

The two global companies have signed a letter of intent that focuses on Yarwun as the location for a Gladstone hydrogen plant that Sumitomo has been studying. If the project proceeds, the pilot plant would produce hydrogen for the recently announced Gladstone Hydrogen Ecosystem.

The study supports the efforts of Australian, Queensland and local governments to establish Gladstone as a clean hydrogen hub of the future.

Rio Tinto Australia Chief Executive Kellie Parker said "Rio Tinto has a long relationship with Sumitomo and we are delighted to partner with them to explore the possibilities of hydrogen, not only for our own refinery, but for Sumitomo to supply industry more broadly in Gladstone.

"Reducing the carbon intensity of our alumina production will be key to meeting our 2030 and 2050 climate targets. There is clearly more work to be done, but partnerships and projects like this are an important part of helping us get there."

Sumitomo Corporation’s Energy Innovation Initiative Director Hajime Mori said "We are excited about working together with Rio Tinto as our long-term partner to develop this hydrogen project in Gladstone and working toward our company’s vision of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

"We believe the pilot plant will play a significant role in establishing the Gladstone Hydrogen Ecosystem.

"Sumitomo has commenced the Design Study and Preliminary Master Planning to build the Gladstone hydrogen ecosystem and we will continue to work towards future hydrogen exports from Gladstone.

Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development Steven Miles said Gladstone is an industrial powerhouse and this partnership presents a great opportunity for the region and for Queensland.

"This is only the beginning of a wave of international collaborations that will lead to new industries and new jobs underpinned by the supply of renewable energy," Mr Miles said.

"With the Palaszczuk Government’s strong commitment to creating more jobs in emerging industries, we will work to keep Queensland at the forefront of renewable hydrogen and the opportunities that come with it."

Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Mick de Brenni said the Palaszczuk Government was developing Queensland’s Energy Plan to reinforce our platform for international partnerships focused on new technology and a stronger Australia.

"This is a plan to create a renewable energy ecosystem that will power our low-carbon ambitions to transform industry, create thousands of jobs for Queenslanders, and decarbonise not only Queensland but the nation."

Minister for Regional Development and Manufacturing and Minister for Water Glenn Butcher said the partnership would provide important economic opportunities for the entire Central Queensland region.

"Gladstone’s world-class deep water port, water security through Awoonga Dam, and industry attraction via the local State Development Area have set Gladstone up to become the hydrogen capital of Australia, providing massive employment and supply chain opportunities both locally and in the Central Queensland region."

The Sumitomo partnership complements a recently announced feasibility study into using hydrogen to replace natural gas in the alumina refining process at Yarwun and provides the potential for larger-scale implementation if the studies are successful.

About Rio Tinto:

Rio Tinto produces high-quality iron ore, copper, aluminium, and minerals that have an essential role in enabling the low-carbon transition. We have publicly acknowledged the reality of climate change for over two decades and have reduced our emissions footprint by over 30 percent in the decade to 2020. We have set 2030 targets to reduce our absolute emissions by 15% and our emissions intensity by 30% relative to our 2018 baseline. These targets are consistent with a 45% reduction in absolute emissions, relative to 2010 levels, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) pathways to 1.5°C. They are supported by our commitment to spend approximately $1 billion on emissions reduction initiatives over the first five years of the ten-year target period. In 2020, we set new Scope 3 emissions reduction goals to guide our partnership approach across our value chain. Read more about our approach to climate change: www.riotinto.com/invest/reports/climate-change-report

About Sumitomo Corporation:

Sumitomo Corporation ("SC") is a leading Fortune 500 global trading and business investment company with 135 locations (Japan: 22, Overseas: 113) in 66 countries and regions. The entire SC Group consists of more than 900 companies. SC conducts commodity transactions in all industries utilising worldwide networks, provides customers with financing, serves as an organiser and a coordinator for various projects, and invests in companies to promote greater growth potential. SC’s core business areas include six business units: Metal Products; Transportation & Construction Systems; Infrastructure; Media & Digital; Living Related & Real Estate; and Mineral Resources, Energy, Chemical & Electronics, and one initiative: Energy Innovation.

Sumitomo Corporation established a new business organisation entitled the Energy Innovation Initiative (EII) in April 2021 which will carry this Gladstone project. In order to greatly contribute to the achievement of our long-term goals toward climate change mitigation, "Carbon neutralisation in 2050" and "Realisation of a sustainable energy cycle", we will accelerate our efforts for the materialisation of a hydrogen society by promoting hydrogen related businesses.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210823005690/en/

Contacts

Media Relations, United Kingdom
Illtud Harri
M +44 7920 503 600

David Outhwaite
T +44 20 7781 1623
M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations, Americas
Matthew Klar
T +1 514 608 4429

Media Relations, Australia
Jonathan Rose
T +61 3 9283 3088
M +61 447 028 913

Matt Chambers
T +61 3 9283 3087
M +61 433 525 739s

Jesse Riseborough
T +61 8 6211 6013
M +61 436 653 412

Investor Relations, United Kingdom
Menno Sanderse
T: +44 20 7781 1517
M: +44 7825 195 178

David Ovington
T +44 20 7781 2051
M +44 7920 010 978

Clare Peever
M: +44 7788 967 877

Investor Relations, Australia
Natalie Worley
T +61 3 9283 3063
M +61 409 210 462

Amar Jambaa
T +61 3 9283 3627
M +61 4 7286 5948

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom
T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 7, 360 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia
T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

media.enquiries@riotinto.com
riotinto.com

Follow @RioTinto on Twitter

Category: General

LONDON, August 24, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto has today commenced the process of restarting operations at Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) in South Africa. This follows a stabilisation of the security situation around the mine, supported by the national and provincial government, as well as substantive engagement with host communities and their traditional authorities.

Rio Tinto chief executive Minerals Sinead Kaufman said "The safety and security of our people has been our priority throughout and we recognise the collaboration and constructive dialogue we have had with all stakeholders to get us into a position where we can restart operations and resume contributing to the host communities, KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa. I also acknowledge the resilience and dedication shown by all our people at RBM over the past weeks."

Operations will be ramping up to capacity as soon as possible. The overall impact of the suspension of operations, including the shutdown of furnace number 4 as announced on 21 July 2021, is still to be assessed. At this time, the force majeure declared on customer contracts remains in place.

This announcement is authorised for release to the market by Steve Allen, Rio Tinto’s Group Company Secretary.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210824005423/en/

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to media.enquiries@riotinto.com

Media Relations, UK
Illtud Harri
M +44 7920 503 600

David Outhwaite
M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations, Americas
Matthew Klar
T +1 514 608 4429

Investor Relations, UK
Menno Sanderse
M: +44 7825 195 178

David Ovington
M +44 7920 010 978

Clare Peever
M +44 7788 967 877

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom

T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Media Relations, Australia
Jonathan Rose
M +61 447 028 913

Matt Chambers
M +61 433 525 739

Jesse Riseborough
M +61 436 653 412

Investor Relations, Australia
Natalie Worley
M +61 409 210 462

Amar Jambaa
M +61 472 865 948

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 7, 360 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia

T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: RBM

SUDBURY, ON / ACCESSWIRE / August 24, 2021 / Northern Superior Resources ("NorthernSuperior" or the "Company") (TSXV:SUP)(OCTQB:NSUPF) is pleased to announce that the Company has initiated it's 2,530 m, 220 hole reverse circulation (RC) drilling program on it's large (30km by 15km, 12,545 hectare), 100% owned Croteau Est gold property, Quebec. The purpose of this program, as previously announced (see Northern Superior press release July 20, 2021) is to define the northern and eastern extension of the gold "footprint" associated with the NI 43-101 compliant (640,000 ounce at 1.7 g/t gold inferred) CBSZ gold deposit.

To test the economic viability of this larger footprint, the RC program is designed to address three primary areas:

1. Accurately determine the distribution and lithogeochemistry of the three primary lithological units (Croteau-Bouchard Shear Zone and gold deposit [CBSZ], Croteau North Shear Zone [CNSZ] and intervening tuffaceous sediments);

2. Determining if the package of primary lithological units should be considered as an economic target in addition to just the CBSZ; and

3. Determining the extension of these three units past the Croteau Fault and how both the Croteau Fault and Croteau Deformation Zone may play a role in gold mineralization within this system.

To address these, the RC program will cover two rectangular areas with RC holes in each spaced 50x 100 apart (Figure 1). The first and most easterly rectangle consists of approximately 184 RC holes and covers an area of approximately 600m by 1km. The second rectangle, directly west of the first, consists of 36 holes and covers an area of approximately 450m x 400m. Each RC hole will penetrate into the bedrock surface 1.5m. The lower basal till (overburden material lying directly over bedrock) and bedrock chips will be collected. The basal till will be processed for gold grains and geochemical analysis. The lithology and geochemistry of the bedrock chips will be determined.

The area to be drilled includes both the CBSZ and CNSZ and the intervening area of tuffaceous sediments. Also captured is the projected northeast extension of quartz porphyry dykes thought critical to high grade gold mineralization associated with the CBSZ mineral resource. In addition, sections of the Croteau Fault and Croteau Deformation Zone occur within the eastern side of the RC test area (Figure 1).

Within the areas to be drilled are anomalous gold grain-in-till, (Figure 2), mobile metal ion (Figure 3) and soil gas hydrocarbon signatures (Figure 4). The size and intensity of these anomalous values will be tested from the results of this program, important in defining specific target areas within the system.

Dr. T.F. Morris, President and CEO states: "We are excited to have this program underway and have observed excellent progress to date. This RC program is a cost effective and efficient method of testing the potential viability of a broader gold target north and east of the CBSZ."

"It is important to note that the Croteau Est property is a large 30km by 15km land package and already has a 640,000 oz 1.7g/t gold inferred resource on a very small portion of its land package with, the remainder of this property under explored. With success from this RC program we see potential to step out further onto our numerous regional targets on the property (see Figure 5)."

"We look forward to reporting on the results of this program as they become available."

CBSZ

The CBSZ is a gold deposit consisting of high-grade gold material, existing within a large alteration system The potential extension of the high-grade shoots at depth remains a compelling target with a supportive geological model as witnessed by our 96 percent success rate with our Phase II 2017 drill program.

The CBSZ gold deposit is currently defined from only 64 drill holes, 350m maximum depth over a 550m strike length, open at depth and open along strike both to the east and west. Within the CBSZ, gold is hosted in a 75-120m wide, east-west trending sericite-carbonate alteration zone and associated stockwork quartz veins. The system remains open along strike, east and west and also at depth.

Evidence for high grade gold material associated with the CBSZ comes from various sources (Table 1): bedrock grab samples (see Northern Superior press releases July 20, 2011, November 12, 2013), channel samples (see Northern Superior press releases, October 12, 2011, July 5, 2017) and core drilling (see Northern Superior press release November 13, 2017, January 10, 2018).

Table 1. Examples of various materials with high grade gold assays

Gold within the CBSZ is associated with at least 9 high grade gold shoots. All 9 high grade gold shoots are of mineable width and grade, dip to the east and are contiguous, as evidenced by the 96% hit rate experienced in the Company's 2017 core drill program (see Northern Superior Corporate Presentation, www.nsuperior.com). The mineralization was proven to extend directly to surface by projecting the shoots to surface and exposing it. This shoot consisted of two zones of >10g/t Au, 2.5m (long) x 2.0 m (wide) and 2.0m (long) x 0.5m (wide), enclosed by a halo of >5g/t Au, 7.0m (long) x 2.5m (wide) in turn enclosed by a halo of gold mineralization of >3g/t Au over an area of 8.0m (long) x 3.0m (wide)(see Northern Superior press release, November 3, 2014).

* Reference for Northern Superior's 640,000 ounce Inferred Gold Resource: "Drabble, Mark (B. App. Sci. (Geology), MAIG, MAusIMM); Glacken, Ian (BSc Hons (Geology), FAusIMM (CP), MIMMM, CEng; Kahan, Cervoj (B. App. Sci., MAIG, MAusIMM); Morgan, Rebecca (BSc Hons (Geology), GDip (Mining), MAIG, MAusIMM). October 12, 2015. Technical Report on the Croteau Est Gold Project, Québec September 2015, Mineral Resource Estimate."

Qualified Person

T.F. Morris (PhD, P.Geo., FGAC, ICD.D) is a Qualified Person ("QP") within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. Dr. Morris has reviewed, and approved information disclosed in this press release.

About Northern Superior Resources Inc.

The Croteau Est gold property is one of three key mineral properties 100% owned by Northern Superior. The Company's two other properties (TPK and Lac Surprise) also represent regional scale exploration opportunities (see Northern Superior Corporate Presentation, www.nsuperior.com).

Northern Superior is a reporting issuer in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Québec, and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol SUP, and the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol NSUPF.

For Further Information

Please refer to Northern Superior news available on the Company's website (www.nsuperior.com) and on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) or contact:

Thomas F. Morris PhD., P.Geo., FGAC , ICD.D
President and CEO
Tel: (705) 525 ‐0992 Fax: (705) 525 ‐7701
e‐mail: info@nsuperior.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Press Release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. When used in this document, the words "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to such risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from the statements made, including those factors discussed in filings made by us with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties, such actual results of current exploration programs, the general risks associated with the mining industry, the price of gold and other metals, currency and interest rate fluctuations, increased competition and general economic and market factors, occur or should assumptions underlying the forward looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, or expected. We do not intend and do not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Shareholders are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Figure 1. Location of the RC grids. The drill areas capture several key lithological and structural units including the CBSZ and CNSZ and intervening tuffaceous units plus quartz-feldspar porphyry dykes (QFP), the Croteau Fault and Deformation Zone. See text for details.

Figure 2. Gold grain-in-till anomalies derived from surface overburden sampling and basal tills sampled from RC programs. A basal till sample collected immediately down-ice from an exposed high grade shoot yielded 877 gold grains, 844 of which were pristine grains (96%) indicating very close proximity to source. The RC basal till associated with RC hole CRO15-186 yielded 244 gold grains, 172 of which were pristine (70%). This on its own is a very compelling target as the background value for gold grains in this area is close to 1.

Figure 3. Mobile metal ion gold signature (MMI: areas of red). Note the strong MMI anomaly associated with the CBSZ where the QFP dykes occur. This makes the large red MMI anomaly in the northwest part of the RC grid particularly compelling.

Figure 4. Soil gas hydrocarbon gold anomalies (SGH: areas of dark red). Interestingly, the CBSZ does not have a significantly large SGH signature. However, the RC grid contains several very large and strong SGH signatures.

Figure 5. The CBSZ 43-101 compliant resource occurs at the intersection of the east to west oriented Croteau Bouchard Shear Zone and the northeast to southwest oriented Croteau Fault. There are at least 11 other such opportunities that occur on the Croteau Est property where east-west oriented shear zones are cross-cut by northeast to southwest faults. Gold showings at several of these intersections including Trench 101, Area # 5 and Croteau South emphasize this opportunity.

SOURCE: Northern Superior Resources Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:
https://www.accesswire.com/660923/Northern-Superior-Initiates-Reverse-Circulation-Drill-Program-Testing-Expansion-CBSZ-NI-43-101-Compliant-640000-Ounces-Gold-17gt-Gold-Resource-Croteau-Est-Property-Chapais-Chibougamau-Gold-Camp

(Adds details on Rio Tinto, Fortescue, union submissions)

MELBOURNE, Aug 20 (Reuters) – Sexual harassment is rife at mining camps in Western Australia, with firms across the industry reporting multiple complaints that have led to 48 staff being fired by the world's biggest, BHP, since 2019, submissions to a government inquiry showed.

The inquiry was initiated after high-profile cases of sexual assault by miners in the mineral-rich state emerged this year, and as the sector struggles with a dire skills shortage and a low proportion of female staff.

Submissions to the investigation were made public this week, including a survey by The Western Mine Workers' Alliance, a union representing hundreds of workers in Pilbara, a region rich in the iron ore that is Australia's most valuable export.

The survey of 425 workers showed two-thirds of female respondents had experienced verbal sexual harassment while working in the FIFO mining industry, and 36% of women and 10% of men some form of harassment in the last 12 months.

"We have heard detailed reports from members about supervisors and managers pressuring female workers into sexual activity in order to access training and job opportunities and there is a widespread perception that such activity takes place," said the union, which is calling for an independent body to investigate complaints.

"I have seen a man watch porn on bus and plane. I have found a porn magazine in a truck. I have had underwear stolen. I have had a male try get into my room… I reported harassment on numerous occasions and nothing was done," the union quoted an unnamed woman who works at Rio Tinto as saying.

A Rio spokesperson pointed Reuters to its submissions for examples of steps it is taking as part of an industry-wide response that includes improving safety and reporting procedures and mining camp infrastructure and tightening policies around alcohol.

In more detailed accounts to the panel, which will make recommendations to West Australia's parliament in April 2022, BHP said it had fired 48 workers in two years for incidents related to sexual harassment.

It said it received four rape allegations, one of attempted rape, other reports of unwanted sexual touching, and 73 substantiated reports of sexual harassment from June 2019 to June 2021.

It said it was spending $300 million to increase camp security, improving workforce training, vetting practices and making reporting of incidents easier.

Rio said that since January 2020 it had received one reported case of sexual assault and 29 of sexual harassment that were substantiated, and another report of sexual assault and 14 of sexual harassment that could not be.

Fortescue, Woodside Petroleum and Chevron Corp, also made submissions.

Fortescue said it had 20 harassment matters reported this year, added to 11 last year, across a total workforce of more than 15,000.

(Reporting by Melanie Burton. Editing by Gerry Doyle and John Stonestreet)

MELBOURNE, Australia, August 19, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto is partnering with the Western Australian Government to launch a COVID-19 vaccination blitz targeting communities in the Pilbara and the fly-in fly-out workforce.

Following positive discussions between Rio Tinto and the WA Department of Health, vaccination hubs will be established in the Pilbara and at a trial clinic at Perth Airport to make vaccinations more accessible.

Starting with Tom Price, planning is underway for hubs at several locations in the Pilbara, with vaccines available to members of the local community, Indigenous communities, Rio Tinto employees, contractors and their families.

Rio Tinto is working with the Department of Health and the Shire of Ashburton and is close to finalising a location for the proposed Tom Price hub. The facility could potentially offer vaccines to the entire adult population of Tom Price and surrounding communities.

Rio Tinto’s COVID-19 screening facilities at Perth Airport (T2 and T3) will also be modified to include ‘pop-up’ vaccination hubs to target workers returning to Perth. The hubs will initially be available to Rio Tinto’s FIFO workforce, who regularly travel to and from the Pilbara, with the option to expand the vaccination service to the wider FIFO community.

The initial vaccination blitz is expected to commence in September, subject to availability of vaccines. Rio Tinto will work with the WA Government to finalise details in the coming weeks.

Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive Simon Trott said the company stood ready to support the WA Government’s vaccination rollout in any way it can.

"We are pleased to work in partnership with the WA Government on this industry-first vaccination blitz, which we expect will help boost vaccination rates in the Pilbara.

"This is an important development in our state’s effort to combat COVID-19. We know vaccinations are our best way out of this pandemic and we are very happy to convert our existing screening facilities, which have helped keep COVID-19 out of our operations and vulnerable communities for almost 18 months, to include vaccination hubs.

"Given Rio Tinto’s large operational footprint in the Pilbara, we are well positioned to support the WA Government’s vaccination rollout in the region, ensuring the vaccine is more accessible to remote and vulnerable communities.

"Plans are being developed to establish additional hubs in places like Paraburdoo, Pannawonica and Dampier, following the Tom Price vaccine blitz.

"While the initial vaccine blitz at Perth Airport will target Rio Tinto’s FIFO workforce, we will work with the WA Government to make our facilities available to others in the industry and community.

"Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the resources sector has worked hard to continue to operate in a COVID-safe way. The next step in is to play our part in making the vaccine accessible to as many Western Australians as possible."

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210818005863/en/

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to
Media.enquiries@riotinto.com

Media Relations, Australia
Jonathan Rose
M +61 447 028 913

Matt Chambers
M +61 433 525 739

Jesse Riseborough
M +61 436 653 412

Jamie Macdonald
M +61 467 725 517

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom

T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 7, 360 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia

T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: General

Sample Crew at Pit E

North Arrow sampling crew at Pit E of the 2021, Q1-4 kmberlite, 2000 tonne sampling program. From left to right: Dennis Quanaq, Eddy Sivanertok, Jeremy Itqiliq, Keith Feltham (excavator operator) and Dan Gainer.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 19, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — North Arrow Minerals Inc. (TSXV-NAR) (“North Arrow”) reports that field collection of a 2,000 tonne bulk sample at its Naujaat Diamond Project, Nunavut is complete.

Ken Armstrong, President and CEO of North Arrow commented, “Bulk sample collection from the Q1-4 kimberlite is now complete, with field crews having delivered 2,500 bulk sample bags of kimberlite to our laydown near the community of Naujaat. At approximately 2,000 tonnes, the 2,500 bags represent the high end of our anticipated tonnage range for the program and we look forward to loading the sample onto the annual Naujaat sealift in September for shipment to the processing laboratory.”

Mr. Armstrong continued, “We estimate the cost to collect and transport the sample from Q1-4 to the Naujaat laydown at approximately $2.3M. This efficient program highlights the cost effectiveness of evaluating the Q1-4 kimberlite by taking advantage of its location on tidewater with excellent opportunities for local employment and accommodations. It was a pleasure working with the field crew for part of the program and seeing first-hand the tremendous effort that went into safe collection of the sample.”

Sample processing and diamond recovery are expected to start in the fourth quarter of calendar 2021. Diamonds recovered from the sample are intended to confirm the size distribution and character of an important population of potentially high-value, fancy yellow to orange yellow diamonds found in the Q1-4 deposit.

The $5.6M bulk sample program is funded by partner Burgundy Diamond Mines (ASX-BDM), as part of a June 1, 2020 option agreement under which Burgundy may earn a 40% interest in the Naujaat Project by funding the current bulk sample program.

About the Naujaat Project

The Naujaat Project is located near the community of Naujaat, Nunavut. A total of eight kimberlite pipes have been identified within the Project as well as several laterally extensive kimberlite dyke systems. The Q1-4 kimberlite, located just 7 km from the Company’s laydown near the community, is the largest and most diamondiferous of the kimberlites discovered to date and hosts an important, potentially high-value, population of Type IaA – Ib fancy coloured, yellow to orange yellow, diamonds. At 12.5 ha in surface area, Q1-4 hosts an estimated inferred mineral resource of 26.1 million carats total diamond content in 48.8 million tonnes of kimberlite with average +1 DTC total diamond content of 53.6 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht) extending from surface to a depth of 205m. Delineation drilling of Q1-4 suggests significant potential to expand the resource at depth with the deepest drill hole terminating in kimberlite at a depth of 376m. The reader is cautioned that mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. Details on data verification and resource estimation procedures can be found in the May 2013 technical report filed on www.sedar.com as well as posted on North Arrow’s website along with details on subsequent exploration efforts on the Project [here].

The Naujaat Diamond Project exploration program is being conducted under the direction of Kenneth Armstrong, P.Geo. (NWT/NU and ON), President and CEO of North Arrow and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101. Mr. Armstrong has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this press release.

About North Arrow Minerals

North Arrow is a Canadian based exploration company focused on the identification and evaluation of diamond exploration opportunities in Canada. North Arrow’s management, board of directors and advisors have significant successful experience in the global diamond industry. North Arrow’s most advanced diamond project is the Q1-4 diamond deposit at the Naujaat Project (NU), where a $5.6M 2,000 tonne bulk sample is underway. The Company has also discovered and is evaluating diamond bearing kimberlites at the Mel (NU), Pikoo (SK), Loki (NWT) and LDG JV Projects (NWT). The Company also maintains a 100% interest in the Hope Bay Oro Gold Project (NU), located approximately 3 km north of Agnico Eagle’s Doris Gold Mine.

North Arrow Minerals Inc.

/s/ “Kenneth A. Armstrong”
Kenneth Armstrong
President and CEO

For further information, please contact:
Ken Armstrong
Tel: 604-668-8355 or 604-668-8354
Website: www.northarrowminerals.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" including but not limited to statements with respect to North Arrow’s plans, the estimation of a mineral resource and the success of exploration activities. Forward-looking statements, while based on management's best estimates and assumptions, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related to the successful integration of acquisitions; risks related to general economic and market conditions; closing of financing; the timing and content of upcoming work programs; actual results of proposed exploration activities; possible variations in mineral resources or grade; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry; changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, tax rules and regulations. Although North Arrow has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. North Arrow undertakes no obligation or responsibility to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0fc90391-c635-451b-bcf0-c05cf7e4e393

TORONTO, Aug. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Waseco Resources Inc. (“Waseco” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce, subject to approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, that James O’Neill (C.P.A., C.A. and Acc Dir.) has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer of the Company.

Mr. O’Neill brings over 35 years of Financial and Accounting experience in a wide range of industries, primarily in the junior mining and exploration sector. He also brings strong leadership and team building skills to the position. As part of the compensation package, Mr. O’Neill has been granted 400,000 options to acquire shares at $0.05 per share for a 3 year period ending August 18, 2024.

Waseco is an exploration company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (“WRI”) and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (“WSE”). There are currently 41,681,390 shares issued and outstanding.

For further information on the Company, please visit the Waseco web site at www.wasecoresources.com or contact Richard Williams at (416) 364-3123- e-mail: rickw@wasecoresources.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Richard Williams

President & C.E.O.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulatory service providers as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange accepts responsibility of the accuracy or adequacy of this release.

The new week started with stocks solidly in the red on Monday morning, but then the S&P and Dow staged another comeback that kept their record-setting pace alive. Meanwhile, we’re getting ready for a week full of retail earnings and data that should give us a read on the consumer and, therefore, the economic recovery.

“Equities saw pressure in the morning, then grinded their way higher all day. Sound familiar?”, said Jeremy Mullin in Counterstrike. “Things continue to be quite confusing, but the model to follow has been selling in the morning and buying in the afternoon.”

The Dow was down by nearly 300 points at its worst of the session, but finished higher by 110 points. It was up 0.31% to 35,625.40. The S&P rose 0.26% to 4479.71. These indices have now put together five consecutive sessions of record closes.

The NASDAQ, however, slipped 0.20% (or about 29 points) to 14,793.76. The tech-heavy index is under much more pressure than its counterparts these days. It was down by nearly 13 points last week, while the Dow and S&P were up 0.9% and 0.7%, respectively.

Softer-than-expected retail sales in China were one of the reasons why stocks had such a sluggish morning. And it just so happens that U.S. retail sales will be released tomorrow. You may remember that last month’s print was a pleasant surprise, climbing 0.6% in June to beat expectations calling for a slight loss. It was also a noteworthy improvement from the 1.7% plunge in May.  

And that report is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to retail news this week. Earnings season may be winding down, but we always finish up on an exciting note when some of the biggest retailers in the world take the stage.

Tomorrow we get releases from Walmart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD) before the bell, which were up 0.82% and 1.13% today, respectively. And on Wednesday this week we get the Fed minutes for the July meeting. The release is always a big deal, but it may take on even more importance as many investors feel that a taper announcement is drawing near.

Today's Portfolio Highlights:

Blockchain Technology: You might not think this portfolio needs a mining company, but Rio Tinto (RIO) is proving that this innovative technology can be used anywhere. The company launched a blockchain-based program called START earlier this year, which is the first sustainable label for aluminum using blockchain technology. It’ll be similar to a nutrition label on food, except it will offer information on things like carbon footprint, regulatory compliance and much more. Earnings estimates for RIO are going “through the roof”, which explains why the stock is a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Read the full write-up for a lot more on this new addition and be ready for another buy later this week.

Surprise Trader: Earnings season may be slowing down, but it’s not over. In fact, the tail end is when the retailers come out to report, which is where Dave went for his first of four additions this week. He picked up Tapestry (TPR), a designer and marketer of fine accessories and gifts (formerly known as Coach). This Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) has beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate for four straight quarters with a positive surprise of 70% last time. And now it has a positive Earnings ESP of 6.06% heading into its next release on Thursday after the bell. The editor added TPR on Monday with a 12.5% allocation, while also getting out of the “meandering” Middleby Corp. (MIDD) position. Read the complete commentary for more.

Black Box Trader: The portfolio replaced four names in this week's adjustment. The stock that were sold on Monday included:

• Target (TGT, +5.1%)
• Interpublic Group of Cos. (IPG, +5%)
• Mattel (MAT)
• Skechers U.S.A. (SKX)

The new buys that filled these spots are:

• Avis Budget Group (CAR)
• DICK'S Sporting Goods (DKS)
• Nucor (NUE)
• Urban Outfitters (URBN)

Read the Black Box Trader’s Guide to learn more about this computer-driven service. By the way, this portfolio had a top performer on Monday with AutoNation (AN) advancing 5.7%.

Options Trader: "Stocks closed mostly higher today with the Dow and S&P both hitting new all-time highs in the process.

"The markets were weaker in the morning and for a portion of the afternoon. But after hitting their worst levels early on, they spent the rest of the day making their way back and then some.

"A stellar Q2 earnings season has really lifted stocks. And even though it's winding down, the robust outlooks for Q3 and beyond suggests there's a lot more upside to go.

"Same goes for the economic reports. Although, while some reports have beaten expectations, like the recent employment report which showed 943,000 new jobs were created last month, some have slowed down a bit. But we continue to see strong economic activity from a rebounding economy eager to open back up." — Kevin Matras

All the Best,
Jim Giaquinto

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In this article, we will be looking at 10 Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks to buy. To skip our detailed analysis of the basic materials sector, you can go directly to see the 5 Russell 2000 Basic Materials Dividend Stocks to Buy.

The basic materials sector is one that is typically considered to be less exciting or gripping than others, like say the technology sector. However, it is a sector that can be considered among the winners of the market in 2021. There are a couple of reasons for this, most notably the fact that President Biden's administration and its focus on a greener and more environmentally friendly America would lead to a greater focus on the production of green technology, and electric vehicles (EVs) in particular. How this may affect the basic materials sector is the next, and most natural question, and is easily answered when one considers that metals produced and refined by this sector, such as copper, lithium, and others, are among the few most vital elements required in the production of EVs and green electricity.

However, this is not the only reason why the materials sector can be expected to become a not-so-boring sector this year. Rather there are a number of factors contributing to the rising popularity of basic materials stocks like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP).

Before considering other factors, let's look at the one mentioned above first. According to a Fidelity report on outlook for the basic materials sector in 2021, particularly in relation to the rising sales and production of EVs in the US and the growing demand for green electricity, we can see that there are positive prospects for the sector in the US. EV sales in the country are expected to rise by almost 12% between 2010 and 2050, to almost 2 million such vehicles being sold in the US alone. According to this report, as the EV market is reliant on batteries that in turn are dependent on lithium, cobalt, and nickel, it can be expected that companies involved in the production and handling of these metals within the materials sector are set to profit in the coming 2 decades. In fact, the Fidelity report has estimated that the rising demand for lithium and similar commodities has already risen so much that by the mid-2020s we may already be facing a supply crunch for these materials. On the same note, the report has estimated that by 2030, over 80% of the total demand for lithium is expected to come from the EV sector, with the metal seeing an eye-popping double-digit annual growth in its demand.

Apart from the above, a Stansberry Investor report from this July has also mentioned that the basic materials sector has, quite surprisingly for some, been able to jump by about 25% from January to May 2021. The gain has easily overtaken the return of the S&P 500 as well, being almost double the benchmark's index's return over the same timeframe. It has also been estimated that this sector in particular has managed to yield stable and positive returns at least since as far back as 2000, with a 7% annual return being quoted since then. This demonstrates not only a positive performance on part of this sector, to the joy of investors, but also a consistently positive performance, for the most part. Adding on to this is the fact that it has been reportedly stated by Bloomberg that the S&P 500 Materials Index has been able to perform well enough to earn it the title of the best sector on the market, just after the energy sector, as of this March. With shares soaring during the first few months of 2021 and commodity prices rising during the pandemic, the index went up by about 98%. In any case, the sector's performance is increasingly becoming hard to doubt.

While the basic materials sector soars, the entire hedge fund industry is still feeling the reverberations of the changing financial landscape. Its reputation has been tarnished in the last decade, during which its hedged returns couldn’t keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. On the other hand, Insider Monkey’s research was able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the S&P 500 ETFs by more than 124 percentage points since March 2017. Between March 2017 and July 2021, our monthly newsletter’s stock picks returned 186.1%, vs. 100.1% for the SPY. Our stock picks outperformed the market by more than 124 percentage points (see the details here). That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to. You can subscribe to our free newsletter on our homepage to receive our stories in your inbox.

Let's now look at the 10 Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks.

Our Methodology

We have used Insider Monkey's data of about 866 hedge funds alongside the Russell 2000 index to select small-cap basic materials dividend stocks that are more popular among hedge funds this year. The stocks also have mostly positive analysts' ratings and robust fundamentals, demonstrating their financial strength. Finally, we have mentioned the dividend yields and the number of hedge fund holders for each stock as well, ranking them from the lowest to the highest dividend yield.

Russell 2000 Basic Materials Dividend Stocks

10. FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 9 Dividend Yield: 2.4%

FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF) is a manufacturer and seller of diversified chemical, bio-based fuel, and bio-based specialty chemical products in the US. The company ranks 10th on our list of Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks and operates through its Chemicals and Biofuels segments.

In the second quarter of 2021, FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF) had an EPS of $0.08. The company's revenue of $ 74.12 million was up 56.3% year over year and beat the previous quarter's revenue of $41.52 million.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 9 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF) worth roughly $60.7 million. This is compared to 10 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $54.4 million.

Like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF) is a good stock to invest in.

9. Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23 Dividend Yield: 2.6%

Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) is a specialty chemicals and performance materials company. It ranks 9th on our list of Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks and operates through its Reinforcement Materials, Performance Chemicals, and Purification Solutions segments.

This July, JPMorgan's Jeffrey Zekauskas upgraded shares of Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) from Neutral to Overweight. The analyst also has a $62 price target on the stock.

In the fiscal third quarter of 2021, Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) had an EPS of $1.35, beating estimates by $0.17. The company's revenue of $917 million was up 77.03% year over year and beat estimates by $112.30 million. Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) has gained 10.69% in the past 6 months and 24.50% year to date.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 23 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) worth roughly $111 million. This is compared to 20 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $106 million.

Like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), Cabot Corporation (NYSE: CBT) is a good stock to invest in.

8. Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 4 Dividend Yield: 2.9%

Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) is a developer of sorbent products in the US and globally. The company operates through its Retail and Wholesale Products Group and Business to Business Products Group segments. It ranks 8th on our list of Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks.

In the fiscal third quarter of 2021, Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) had an EPS of $0.30. The company's revenue of $76.26 million was up 8.86% year over year and beat the previous quarter's revenue of $74.50 million. Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) has gained 3.44% year to date and 0.92% in the past year.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 4 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) worth roughly $29.5 million. This is compared to 4 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $30.6 million.

Like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) is a good stock to invest in.

7. SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 22 Dividend Yield: 3.2%

SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) is an independent producer of coke in the US and Brazil. The company ranks 7th on our list of Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks and operates through three segments, namely the Domestic Coke, Brazil Coke, and Logistics segments. It provides metallurgical and thermal coal alongside handling and mixing services to its steel, coke, electric utility, coal producing, and other related customers.

Lucas Pipes, an analyst at B. Riley, this July raised his price target on shares of SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) from $9 to $10. The analyst also reiterated a Buy rating on the shares.

In the second quarter of 2021, SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) had an EPS of -$0.11, missing estimates by $0.20. The company's revenue of $364.30 million was up 7.78% year over year and beat estimates by $44.85 million. SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) has gained 18.21% in the past 6 months and 59.48% in the past year.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 22 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) worth roughly $87 million. This is compared to 19 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $66 million.

Like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), SunCoke Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SXC) is a good stock to invest in.

6. Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 8 Dividend Yield: 3.4%

Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) is a manufacturer of engineered materials for sale across the globe. The company has two segments, Composite Fibers, and Airlaid Materials. It ranks 6th on our list of Russell 2000 basic materials dividend stocks.

BMO Capital just this July upgraded shares of Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) from Market Perform to Outperform. Analyst Mark Wilde, who pushed the upgrade, also holds an unchanged $17 price target on Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) shares.

In the second quarter of 2021, Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) had an EPS of $0.18, beating estimates by $0.04. The company's revenue of $244.91 million was up 13.29% year over year and beat estimates by $2.91 million.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 8 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) worth roughly $30.7 million. This is compared to 7 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $21.6 million.

Like Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RIO), Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE: FCX), LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB), and International Paper Company (NYSE: IP), Glatfelter Corporation (NYSE: GLT) is a good stock to invest in.

Click to continue reading and see the 5 Russell 2000 Basic Materials Dividend Stocks to Buy.

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• 30 Most Dangerous Cities in the US

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• 11 Best Materials Stocks for 2021

Disclosure: None. 10 Russell 2000 Basic Materials Dividend Stocks to Buy is originally published on Insider Monkey.

Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers.

Of these, perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing, which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.

Luckily, Zacks has developed its own Style Scores system in an effort to find stocks with specific traits. Value investors will be interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with both "A" grades in the Value category and high Zacks Ranks are among the strongest value stocks on the market right now.

One stock to keep an eye on is Rio Tinto (RIO). RIO is currently holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) and a Value grade of A. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 5.23, while its industry has an average P/E of 7.32. Over the past year, RIO's Forward P/E has been as high as 10.05 and as low as 5.02, with a median of 7.62.

Investors should also recognize that RIO has a P/B ratio of 1.70. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. RIO's current P/B looks attractive when compared to its industry's average P/B of 4. Within the past 52 weeks, RIO's P/B has been as high as 2.28 and as low as 1.58, with a median of 1.89.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Rio Tinto is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, RIO sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Rio Tinto PLC (RIO): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 11, 2021 /CNW/ – Trading resumes in:

Company: Sego Resources Inc.

TSX-Venture Symbol: SGZ

All Issues: Yes

Resumption (ET): 12:15 PM

IIROC can make a decision to impose a temporary suspension (halt) of trading in a security of a publicly-listed company. Trading halts are implemented to ensure a fair and orderly market. IIROC is the national self-regulatory organization which oversees all investment dealers and trading activity on debt and equity marketplaces in Canada.

SOURCE Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) – Halts/Resumptions
“Cision”
Cision

View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2021/11/c2876.html

President Biden's $1 trillion infrastructure bill did a lot to counter fears of Covid sweeping through China, with oil prices beginning to bounce back.

Chart of the Week

– July fuel demand in India rebounded to its highest since April as New Delhi cleared restrictions and lockdowns, netting a 3% month-on-month increase to a total of 16.83 million tons.

– The rebound might have been even more pronounced, were it not for fuel prices rising to all-time highs, triggered by a chaotic taxation regime.

– In India, petroleum products are not included in the goods and services tax regime, meaning every state can set its own fuel tax levies and they have been on the rise throughout 2021, up 20% year-on-year already.

– Analysts anticipate India surpassing its pre-pandemic consumption readings in Q4-2021, with fuel pricing remaining the primary factor in the extent of demand recovery.

– Crude imports in June-July dropped to average 2014-2015 levels of 3.5 mbpd, but August loadings have surged to a healthy 4.2 mbpd on the back of demand recovery.

Market Movers

– Saudi Aramco (TADAWUL:2222) saw its Q2 results surge as higher oil prices brought its net profit to $25.5 billion, quadrupling year-on-year. Aramco’s capex infrastructure has been increasing q-o-q as the Saudi NOC seeks to ramp up offshore spare production capacity.

– Australian miner BHP (NYSE:BHP) managed to stave off a union strike at the Escondida copper mine in Chile, the world’s largest, though negotiations are still yet to yield results. With copper prices almost 25% up on the year, the strike would see copper skyrocket.

– US electric vehicle producer Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) saw its July sales in China plunge by almost 70% month-on-month, despite having dropped the starting price for Model 3 sedans, sapping confidence in future prospects.

Tuesday, August 10, 2021

Oil prices rebounded from last week’s losses as the market seemed to shrug off fears of Chinese lockdowns, with demand strength across the Atlantic overshadowing COVID-related concerns. It is assumed President Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill will boost oil product demand and lift US economic performance in the short-to-mid term, providing much-needed support for prices.

IPCC Report Targets Methane. The landmark report by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change calls on the global community to make “strong, rapid and sustained reductions” in methane emissions alongside CO2-related initiatives. Having 80 times the warming power of CO2 per unit of mass, methane nevertheless has a much shorter atmospheric lifetime of some 20 years.

Iran Cuts Electricity Supply to Iraq. Facing unprecedentedly high domestic power demand, Iran has cut electricity exports to Iraq, despite there being a US waiver allowing it. Iran routinely exports some 2GW to its neighbors, but this August its exports dropped more than tenfold, to 150MW.

US Refiner Seeks EV Battery Move. The US’ fourth-largest refiner, Philips 66 (NYSE:PSX), is mulling a larger move towards electric vehicle batteries and EV storage systems as it seeks to leverage its graphite know-how and existing non-fossil retailing solutions.

Cargill Reports Largest-Ever Profit. The largest privately-held US company, the agriculture giant Cargill, recorded the highest-ever net income in its 156-year history with its 2021 fiscal year results, amounting to $4.93 billion. Following a brief one-year pause in COVID-stricken 2020, Cargill resumed making its results public.

China cutting runs as Delta variant hits refining. China’s state-owned oil refiner Sinopec (NYSE:SHI) is cutting run rates by 5-10% across China as strict government-mandated mobility curtailments and restrictive measures slacken its demand nationwide.

Petrobras Wants to Emulate Guyana. The Brazilian state oil company Petrobras (NYSE:PBR) plans to drill two wildcats in the Foz do Amazonas offshore basin, seeking to replicate the drilling success of Guyana and Suriname. Petrobras controls all six blocks in the basin after BP and Total bailed out of the project.

Related: Do Lithium Batteries Pose A Major Fire Hazard?

Rio Tinto Mismanages Supergiant Mongolian Mine. The WSJ reports that an expert group found that the main reason why Rio Tinto’s (NYSE:RIO) largest copper project, the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia, has seen its initial $5.3 billion budget expand by another $1.5 billion, lies in the mismanagement of the asset. Rio Tinto shares dropped 3% over the week.

ExxonMobil Suspended from US Climate Group. US oil major ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) was unseated from the Climate Leadership Council, a group promoting a US federal carbon price, following a leaked recording of a company lobbyist stating the firm is watering down climate measures with the White House.

Billionaire-Backed Startup to Search Greenland for EV Metals. KoBold Metals, a mineral exploration company backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, signed an agreement with Bluejay Mining (LON:JAY) to join the search for nickel, copper, cobalt and other metals in Greenland’s Disko-Nuussuaq acreage, Reuters reports.

Canada Eyes Asia Pacific Exports. Canada’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, with a throughput capacity of 590kbpd, shall be ready by December 2022, allowing Canadian oil producers to export crude to East Asian markets. CNR (TSE:CNR), Suncor (NYSE:SU), Imperial Oil (TSE:IMO), and others have already claimed their stake in the pipeline’s offtake.

Mozambique Retakes Key LNG Port with Rwandan Help. The strategically located Mocimboa da Praia port town was retaken by joint Mozambique-Rwandan forces, presumably taking the first step in restarting the halted 13 mtpa Mozambique LNG project operated by TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE).

Russia Raises Metals Taxation. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that his government would increase the mineral extraction tax on metals in 2022, the third time since the start of this year that the Kremlin hikes taxes on metals as it seeks to fill its deficit budget.

Japan Ends 300 Years of Trading Rice Futures. The first commodity exchange in the world, the Japanese Dojima Exchange trading rice futures, will end trading in June 2022 as Japan’s agriculture ministry refused to reissue its license, arguing the traded volumes were too small to maintain trades.

By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:

• Cheap Natural Gas Is A Thing Of The Past
  

• Trouble Is Brewing At The World’s Largest Copper Mine
  

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Read this article on OilPrice.com

London stocks kept a foothold in the green Monday, helped by a positive start for August across global equities and gains for the heavily weighted mining sector, following a bullish ratings upgrade by JPMorgan. The bank’s global equity strategy team lifted miners to overweight from neutral, commenting that after a stretch of weakness — 16% off first-quarter highs — “the valuation gap emerging relative to spot prices/earnings provides an opportunity for outperformance.” From the bank’s European mining, metals and steel team, lead analyst Luke Nelson, said earnings to date have confirmed “diversified miners’ capital returns credentials.”

(Reuters) -Turquoise Hill Resources said an independent review of$1.4 billion in cost overruns at the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia suggested that the project's troubles were not caused by the geology issues that mine operator Rio Tinto blamed https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rio-tinto-output-idUKKCN1UA2HH in 2019.

The review "raises certain questions in relation to the project management process" around the cost blowout and delay, Turquoise Hill said.

"Rio Tinto will engage with the OT (Oyu Tolgoi) Board as soon as we have had the opportunity to review the report in detail," Australia's Rio Tinto said in an emailed statement.

Rio owns 51% of Turquoise Hill, which owns 66% of the Oyu Tolgoi mine. The rest of the mine is owned by the government of Mongolia.

Costs to expand the Oyu Tolgoi mine, Rio's biggest copper growth project, have ballooned up to $6.75 billion from its original budget of $5.3 billion in 2016, raising friction over funding with Turquoise Hill.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report the news https://www.wsj.com/articles/rio-tinto-mismanagement-caused-mongolia-copper-mines-woes-report-says-11628503201.

(Reporting by Priyanshi Mandhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Subhranshu Sahu)

KELOWNA, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 9, 2021 / Diamcor Mining Inc. (TSX-V:DMI)(OTCQB:DMIFF), ("Diamcor" or, the "Company") announced today it achieved very encouraging results in its tender and sale of rough diamonds recovered from the processing of quarry material at the Company's Krone Endora at Venetia Project (the "Project"). In July 2021, the first month of its current fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2021, the Company tendered and sold a total of 2,989.54 carats. The results confirm the potential for increased average dollar per carat values from the operational and processing refinements made by the Company, and from the recovery of larger gem quality rough diamonds in the special category (+10.8 carats).

Highlights of the Company's sales of rough diamonds offered for tender in July 2021 are as follows:

• The total combined rough diamonds offered for tender and sold in July 2021 was 2,989.54 carats, generating initial gross revenues for the quarter to date of USD $744,085.44, resulting in a combined average price of USD $248.90 per carat.

• The initial sale of 1,560.39 carats of rough diamonds recovered from the processing of quarry material were tendered and sold in early July 2021, generating gross revenues of USD $271,509.02, and an average price of USD $174.00 per carat.

• The second sale in late July of 1,429.15 additional carats of rough diamonds recovered from the processing of quarry material, generated additional gross revenues of USD $472,576.28, resulting in an average price of USD $330.67 per carat.

• The tender and sales again included several rough diamonds in the specials (+10.8 carats) category.

• The Company plans to offer additional rough diamonds during the quarter for tender and sale in August and September of 2021.

• Overall demand and pricing in a majority of the rough diamond assortments tendered and sold by the Company continue to meet or exceed expectations.

The size and quantity of special rough diamonds in the sales and tenders held in July 2021 are not seen as uncommon for the Project, which continues to demonstrate its ability to generate significant dollar per carat results and revenues when processing quarry material.

"We are once again pleased with these results, which continue to provide confirmation of our ability to achieve strong dollar per carat and gross revenue numbers while operating on lower volumes due to the COVID-19 Pandemic", stated Mr. Dean Taylor, Diamcor CEO. "Given these continued results, we are now focused on the previously announced objective of completing the first phase of upgrades. These upgrades are aimed at providing us with the potential to increase our current processing volumes by up to 100% prior to September 30, 2021, and all efforts in this regard are either progressing as planned or ahead of schedule."

About Diamcor Mining Inc.
Diamcor Mining Inc. is a fully reporting publicly traded junior diamond mining company which is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol V.DMI, and on the OTC QB International under the symbol DMIFF. The Company has a well-established operational and production history in South Africa and extensive prior experience supplying rough diamonds to the world market.

About the Tiffany & Co. Alliance
The Company has established a long-term strategic alliance and first right of refusal with Tiffany & Co. Canada, a subsidiary of world famous New York based Tiffany & Co., to purchase up to 100% of the future production of rough diamonds from the Krone-Endora at Venetia Project at then current prices to be determined by the parties on an ongoing basis. In conjunction with this first right of refusal, Tiffany & Co. Canada also provided the Company with financing to advance the Project. Tiffany & Co. is a publicly traded company which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TIF. For additional information on Tiffany & Co., please visit their website at www.tiffany.com.

About Krone-Endora at Venetia
In February 2011, Diamcor acquired the Krone-Endora at Venetia Project from De Beers Consolidated Mines Limited, consisting of the prospecting rights over the farms Krone 104 and Endora 66, which represent a combined surface area of approximately 5,888 hectares directly adjacent to De Beers' flagship Venetia Diamond Mine in South Africa. On September 11, 2014, the Company announced that the South African Department of Mineral Resources had granted a Mining Right for the Krone-Endora at Venetia Project encompassing 657.71 hectares of the Project's total area of 5,888 hectares. The Company has also submitted an application for a mining right over the remaining areas of the Project. The deposits which occur on the properties of Krone and Endora have been identified as a higher-grade "Alluvial" basal deposit which is covered by a lower-grade upper "Eluvial" deposit. The deposits are proposed to be the result of the direct-shift (in respect to the "Eluvial" deposit) and erosion (in respect to the "Alluvial" deposit) of material from the higher grounds of the adjacent Venetia Kimberlite areas. The deposits on Krone-Endora occur in two layers with a maximum total depth of approximately 15.0 metres from surface to bedrock, allowing for a very low-cost mining operation to be employed with the potential for near-term diamond production from a known high-quality source. Krone-Endora also benefits from the significant development of infrastructure and services already in place due to its location directly adjacent to the Venetia Mine.

Qualified Person Statement:

Mr. James P. Hawkins (B.Sc., P.Geo.), is Manager of Exploration & Special Projects for Diamcor Mining Inc., and the Qualified Person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 responsible for overseeing the execution of Diamcor's exploration programmes and a Member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta ("APEGA"). Mr. Hawkins has reviewed this press release and approved of its contents.

On behalf of the Board of Directors
Mr. Dean H. Taylor
President & CEO
Diamcor Mining Inc.
www.diamcormining.com

For further information contact:
Mr. Dean H. Taylor
Diamcor Mining Inc
DeanT@Diamcor.com
+1 250 862-3212

Mr. Rich Matthews
Integrous Communications
rmatthews@integcom.us
+1 (604) 355-7179

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. While these forward-looking statements represent our best current judgement, they are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that are beyond the Company's ability to control or predict and which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. Further, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward looking statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

WE SEEK SAFE HARBOUR

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Diamcor Mining Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:
https://www.accesswire.com/658882/Diamcor-Announces-Results-in-Initial-Tender-and-Sales-of-Current-Quarter

A dramatic recovery in dividends has gathered pace across the London stock market as profits rebound. Experts have forecast payouts to continue to climb as British stocks shake off the effects of the pandemic.

Dividends surged by 51pc between April and June and the companies that led the rebound have set the stock market on course for the next leg of its recovery.

Miners and banks, the biggest contributors to that forecast-beating jump, have announced a series of increases in their dividends over the past fortnight. These payments will be made in September, so DIY investors who buy now can still benefit.

James Lowen, co-manager of the JOHCM UK Equity Income fund, said British firms were “coming out of Covid very strongly” after a 43pc crash in dividend payments last year.

“The results from UK companies are off the charts. Every day we are hearing very good updates,” he said.

Rio Tinto, the miner, has led the way, unveiling a huge $5.61 per share dividend to be paid in September. That payout, which equates to 404p for British shareholders, is more than double last year’s payment. Analysts have forecast a final dividend of $5.70, to be paid in April. If accurate, it would mean the shares yield about 13pc relative to today’s share price.

Yields, or dividend payments as a percentage of share prices, have surged among mining companies. Anglo American announced a $1.71 per share interim dividend last week, six times higher than last year’s equivalent, plus an additional 80 cent special payout. The shares are expected to yield 9pc over the next year, based on the current share price.

Mr Lowen said miners were offloading a “tsunami” of cash to investors as profits surged thanks to booming commodity prices. “The money has nowhere to go other than to shareholders,” he said.

Yields on bank shares are lower, but dividends are forecast to rise sharply after the Bank of England lifted the last of its restrictions on payouts last month. Banks were barred from returning money to shareholders in 2020 and still faced curbs earlier this year, but have now announced their first unrestricted payouts.

Their shares are expected to yield between 3.3pc for NatWest and 5.6pc for HSBC over the next 12 months and dividends are forecast to rise sharply over the following two years. NatWest’s are tipped to increase by 43pc, Barclays’ by 29pc and Lloyds’ by 10pc. HSBC’s dividend for its 2023 financial year is expected to be 46pc higher than this year’s.

Richard Buxton, manager of the Jupiter UK Alpha fund, said: “All that cash the banks are generating – an awful lot of it is going to come back to the shareholders quite dramatically over the next three years.”

Those rising payouts should lead to a rally in bank shares, said Kevin Murphy, manager of the Schroder Income fund. “The payouts are not just attractive today but over five years. When people recognise this, investors will be rewarded not just with that income but also with share price growth,” he said.

Dividends from miners are expected to dip from this year’s elevated levels but remain high. Analysts at JPMorgan Cazenove, the broker, have forecast Rio Tinto to pay out a third of its market value in dividends over the next three years.

Investors expect a fall in iron ore prices to lead to lower dividends, but Mr Buxton said Rio Tinto was still worth backing. “I fully expect profits to fall and the dividend to fall with them, but it will still be extremely attractive,” he said. “The level of yield on offer remains incredibly high.”

Across the London market, dividends are forecast to rise by 64pc from last year’s low by 2024. A £1,000 investment in a fund that tracks the FTSE All-Share, such as iShares UK Equity Index, is forecast to pay £136 in income over that period.

Sanjeev Gupta’s under-pressure business empire has settled two disputes with major international companies, months after a major lender collapsed.

GFG Alliance said it has reached an agreement with India’s Tata Steel which will end proceedings that Tata launched against three GFG companies, including Liberty Speciality Steels, earlier this year.

According to reports from April, Tata took action against Liberty Steel due to unpaid debts linked to Liberty’s £100 million takeover of the Indian company’s speciality steel business in 2017.

GFG, which is a loose alliance of companies centred around Mr Gupta’s family’s business interests, did not provide further details on the settlement.

It has also settled a dispute with mining giant Rio Tinto linked to the company’s 2018 purchase of Rio’s Dunkirk aluminium smelter.

GFG again provided no further information on the deal.

Much remains to be done, but we believe that we are now making rapid progress in building faith with our creditors and other stakeholders through our restructuring plan

Sanjiv Gupta, GFG Alliance

Mr Gupta’s business empire has been under pressure since March when major lender Greensill Capital collapsed.

Greensill said at the time that it had billions of pounds worth of exposure to GFG Alliance.

Since then bosses at GFG have been scrambling to ensure that their companies can survive the shock of Greensill’s collapse.

On Thursday, GFG revealed that Liberty Steel’s mill in Newport, South Wales, had its best financial performance ever in the first quarter of the financial year, and that the outlook is even brighter for the second quarter.

Mr Gupta said: “The update of the RTC (Restructuring and Transformation Committee) shows that, despite the challenges, our core businesses continue to perform very well, and we are taking advantage of the excellent market conditions we face.

“Much remains to be done, but we believe that we are now making rapid progress in building faith with our creditors and other stakeholders through our restructuring plan.

“We are moving with significant momentum towards a profitable, restructured and focused business.”

For those looking to find strong Basic Materials stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Rio Tinto (RIO) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Basic Materials peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Rio Tinto is one of 251 companies in the Basic Materials group. The Basic Materials group currently sits at #8 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. RIO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RIO's full-year earnings has moved 18.87% higher within the past quarter. This shows that analyst sentiment has improved and the company's earnings outlook is stronger.

Our latest available data shows that RIO has returned about 16.06% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Basic Materials sector has returned an average of 14.92% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Rio Tinto is outperforming the sector as a whole this year.

Looking more specifically, RIO belongs to the Mining – Miscellaneous industry, which includes 47 individual stocks and currently sits at #197 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 18.49% so far this year, so RIO is slightly underperforming its industry this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Investors in the Basic Materials sector will want to keep a close eye on RIO as it attempts to continue its solid performance.

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TOKYO, August 02, 2021–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rio Tinto and Komatsu are partnering to fast-track the development and implementation of zero-emission mining haulage solutions, including haul trucks.

Rio Tinto will conduct a pre-production trial of the new equipment at a Rio Tinto site and has the option to purchase some of the first trucks from Komatsu once they are commercially viable.

Alf Barrios, Rio Tinto’s Chief Commercial Officer said: "Rio Tinto and Komatsu have a shared history of partnership on innovation going back to when we built the world’s largest Komatsu autonomous haulage fleet in 2008."

"Our support of a trial, and the option to buy some of the first trucks from Komatsu, underscores our shared commitment to actively collaborate on product planning, development, testing and deployment of the next generation of zero-emission mining equipment and infrastructure as we look to decarbonise our business."

Rio Tinto is also one of the first companies to join Komatsu’s newly launched Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Alliance which has an initial target of advancing Komatsu’s power agnostic truck concept for a haulage vehicle that can run on a variety of power sources including battery and hydrogen.

Max Moriyama, President, Mining Business Division of Komatsu Ltd said Komatsu was honoured to continue to partner with Rio Tinto.

"Rio Tinto and Komatsu both recognise the critical role zero-emission haul trucks play in meeting the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission reduction goals for the mining industry and the need to focus on developing practical haulage solutions.

"We are looking forward to advanced collaboration with them," said Max.

Rio Tinto is also a founding patron of the Charge On Innovation Challenge, which is focused on solving the power distribution infrastructure needed to support zero-emission haul trucks.

"We know that addressing climate change effectively requires businesses, governments and society to work together. Our collaboration with Komatsu recognises the role zero-emission haul trucks will play in meeting the emission reduction goals of not only Rio Tinto, but the entire mining industry," said Alf.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto produces high-quality iron ore, copper, aluminium, and minerals that have an essential role in enabling the low-carbon transition.

We have publicly acknowledged the reality of climate change for over two decades and have reduced our emissions footprint by over 30 percent in the decade to 2020.

We have set 2030 targets to reduce our absolute emissions by 15% and our emissions intensity by 30% relative to our 2018 baseline. These targets are consistent with a 45% reduction in absolute emissions, relative to 2010 levels, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) pathways to 1.5°C. They are supported by our commitment to spend approximately $1 billion on emissions reduction initiatives over the first five years of the ten-year target period. In 2020, we set new Scope 3 emissions reduction goals to guide our partnership approach across our value chain.

Read more about our approach to climate change: www.riotinto.com/invest/reports/climate-change-report

About Komatsu

Komatsu develops and supplies technologies, equipment and services for the construction, mining, forklift, industrial and forestry markets. For a century, the company has been creating value for its customers through manufacturing and technology innovation, partnering with others to empower a sustainable future where people, business and the planet thrive together. Frontline industries worldwide use Komatsu solutions to develop modern infrastructure, extract fundamental minerals, maintain forests and create consumer products. The company's global service and distributor networks support customer operations to enhance safety and productivity while optimizing performance.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210802005282/en/

Contacts

Please direct all enquiries to
media.enquiries@riotinto.com

Media Relations, UK
Illtud Harri
M +44 7920 503 600

David Outhwaite
M +44 7787 597 493

Media Relations, Americas
Matthew Klar
T +1 514 608 4429

Investor Relations, UK
Menno Sanderse
M: +44 7825 195 178

David Ovington
M +44 7920 010 978

Clare Peever
M +44 7788 967 877

Media Relations, Australia
Jonathan Rose
M +61 447 028 913

Matt Chambers
M +61 433 525 739

Jesse Riseborough
M +61 436 653 412

Investor Relations, Australia
Natalie Worley
M +61 409 210 462

Amar Jambaa
M +61 472 865 948

Rio Tinto plc
6 St James’s Square
London SW1Y 4AD
United Kingdom

T +44 20 7781 2000
Registered in England
No. 719885

Rio Tinto Limited
Level 7, 360 Collins Street
Melbourne 3000
Australia

T +61 3 9283 3333
Registered in Australia
ABN 96 004 458 404

riotinto.com

Category: General

Rio Tinto (RIO) appears an attractive pick, as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). This upgrade primarily reflects an upward trend in earnings estimates, which is one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices.

A company's changing earnings picture is at the core of the Zacks rating. The system tracks the Zacks Consensus Estimate — the consensus measure of EPS estimates from the sell-side analysts covering the stock — for the current and following years.

Individual investors often find it hard to make decisions based on rating upgrades by Wall Street analysts, since these are mostly driven by subjective factors that are hard to see and measure in real time. In these situations, the Zacks rating system comes in handy because of the power of a changing earnings picture in determining near-term stock price movements.

Therefore, the Zacks rating upgrade for Rio Tinto basically reflects positivity about its earnings outlook that could translate into buying pressure and an increase in its stock price.

Most Powerful Force Impacting Stock Prices

The change in a company's future earnings potential, as reflected in earnings estimate revisions, has proven to be strongly correlated with the near-term price movement of its stock. The influence of institutional investors has a partial contribution to this relationship, as these big professionals use earnings and earnings estimates to calculate the fair value of a company's shares. An increase or decrease in earnings estimates in their valuation models simply results in higher or lower fair value for a stock, and institutional investors typically buy or sell it. Their transaction of large amounts of shares then leads to price movement for the stock.

For Rio Tinto, rising earnings estimates and the consequent rating upgrade fundamentally mean an improvement in the company's underlying business. And investors' appreciation of this improving business trend should push the stock higher.

Harnessing the Power of Earnings Estimate Revisions

As empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock movements, tracking such revisions for making an investment decision could be truly rewarding. Here is where the tried-and-tested Zacks Rank stock-rating system plays an important role, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions.

The Zacks Rank stock-rating system, which uses four factors related to earnings estimates to classify stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive externally-audited track record, with Zacks Rank #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>.

Earnings Estimate Revisions for Rio Tinto

For the fiscal year ending December 2021, this miner is expected to earn $16.24 per share, which is a change of 110.9% from the year-ago reported number.

Analysts have been steadily raising their estimates for Rio Tinto. Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company has increased 20%.

Bottom Line

Unlike the overly optimistic Wall Street analysts whose rating systems tend to be weighted toward favorable recommendations, the Zacks rating system maintains an equal proportion of 'buy' and 'sell' ratings for its entire universe of more than 4000 stocks at any point in time. Irrespective of market conditions, only the top 5% of the Zacks-covered stocks get a 'Strong Buy' rating and the next 15% get a 'Buy' rating. So, the placement of a stock in the top 20% of the Zacks-covered stocks indicates its superior earnings estimate revision feature, making it a solid candidate for producing market-beating returns in the near term.

You can learn more about the Zacks Rank here >>>

The upgrade of Rio Tinto to a Zacks Rank #1 positions it in the top 5% of the Zacks-covered stocks in terms of estimate revisions, implying that the stock might move higher in the near term.

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(Bloomberg) — Just over five years ago Anglo American Plc was in deep trouble. The natural resources giant, beset by a collapse in commodity prices, scrapped its dividend and announced plans to close mines and cut thousands of workers. Amid talk of an emergency capital raise, its market value fell to less than $3 billion.

This week, the trials of 2016 probably seemed like a parallel universe to its Chief Executive Officer Mark Cutifani. Fueled by a rally in iron ore and other commodity prices, he announced record first-half earnings and billions in dividends. Anyone who took a punt on Anglo’s shares when they reached their nadir, would have seen a 14-fold increase as the market capititalization soared to $55 billion.

“High commodity prices have been very important to us,” Cutifani told investors earlier this week. “We don’t think this is as good as it gets.”

Anglo American is one of many: with raw materials prices surging, the whole natural resources sector is showering shareholders with special dividends and buybacks as miners, oil drillers, trading houses, steelmakers and farmers reap billions in windfall profits. The sector, marked down by investors because of its contribution to climate change and a reputation of squandering money on mega-projects, is again a great cash-machine.

The economic rebound from last year’s Covid slump has powered an explosive rally in commodity prices as consumers forgo vacations and dining out and spend their money loading up on physical goods instead: everything from patio heaters to start-of-the art TVs. Politicians are helping, too, lavishing hundreds of billions on resource-heavy infrastructure projects.

The Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index, a basket of nearly two dozen raw materials, surged to a 10-year high this week and is rapidly closing in on the record set in 2011. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, has again surged above $75 a barrel, copper is headed back toward $10,000 a ton, European natural gas is at its highest ever for the summer season, and steel is changing hands at unprecedented levels. Agricultural commodities such as corn, soybeans and wheat are also expensive.

“Demand continues to improve with increasing global vaccinations,” Joe Gorder, the chief executive of Valero Energy Corp., one of the world’s largest oil refiners, said earlier this week.

Even commodities long left for dead, like thermal coal, are enjoying a new life in 2021. Coal, burned in power stations to produce electricity, together with huge volumes of carbon emissions, is trading at a 10-year high.

While commodities prices are the main reason behind the turnaround, there are structural factors at play as well. Miners and oil companies have cut spending in new projects savagely, creating a supply shortfall. The miners were first, as they curbed investment from 2015-16 as investors demanded more discipline; oil companies followed up last year and some major energy companies this week announced further cuts in spending for 2021. The result is that while demand is surging, supply isn’t — at least for now. The oil majors are benefiting too from the work of the OPEC+ alliance of oil producers, which is still holding back a large share of output.

Anglo American, which announced $4 billion in dividends, is probably the most remarkable turnaround story in the natural resources sector, but its profits were still dwarfed by its bigger rivals. Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA, the world’s two leading iron ore miners, together vowed to hand back more than $17 billion in dividends last week. There’s still more to come for investors, with both BHP Group, the world’s biggest miner, and Glencore Plc, another big miner and commodity trader, yet to report.

And for once, the world’s biggest steelmakers were not only able to absorb the costs, but pass them on. An industry that has spent much of the last decade in crisis is now also able to reward long suffering shareholders. The world’s largest steel maker outside China, ArcelorMittal SA, that was forced to sell shares and scrap its dividend just five years ago, posted its best results since 2008 this week and announced a $2.2 billion share buyback program.

The miners have stolen the spotlight from the energy industry, traditionally the biggest dividend payer in the natural resources industry.

Still, Big Oil recovered from the historic price collapse of 2020, when a vicious Saudi-Russian price war and the Covid-19 pandemic briefly sent the value of West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. oil benchmark, below zero. Supported by rising oil, natural gas, and, above all, the chemicals that go into plastics, Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc, and TotalEnergies SE delivered profits that went to pre-covid levels. BP Plc, the smallest of the top five oil majors, will report results next week.

With cash flow surging, Shell, which last year cut its dividend for the first time since the Second World War, was able to hike it nearly 40%, and announced an additional $2 billion in buybacks.“We wanted to signal to the market the confidence that we have in cash flows,” Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said. Chevron and Total also announced they will buy shares. Exxon, though, is still licking its wounds and focused on paying down debt.

The more opaque world of commodity trading has also cashed in. Glencore said this week that it was expecting bigger trading profits than forecast, with rivals Vitol Group and Trafigura Group, two of the world’s largest oil traders, also benefiting from lucrative opportunities created by rocketing prices.

The agricultural traders have cashed on higher prices and unusually strong demand from China. Bunge Ltd., a trader that’s the world’s largest crusher of soybeans, told investors it expected to deliver its best earnings-per-share since its initial public offer two decades ago. Archer-Daniels-Midland Co., another big American grain trader and processor, also flagged strong earnings. And Cargill Inc., the world’s largest agricultural trader, is heading toward record earnings in its 2021 fiscal year.

Whether the natural resources boom can last is hotly contested. Many investors worry climate change makes the long-term future of the industry hard to read and they also fret about the tendency of executives to approve expensive projects at the peak of the cycle. Mining executives fear Chinese demand will slow down at some point, hitting iron ore in particular. But the current lack of investments may support other commodities, like copper and oil.

But Shell’s Van Beurden summed up the bullish case earlier this week: “Supply is going to be constrained and demand is actually quite strong”.

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Image source: The Motley Fool. Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd (NYSE: TRQ)Q2 2021 Earnings CallJul 30, 2021, 8:00 a.m. ETContents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks: OperatorGood morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Turquoise Hill Second Quarter Financial Results Conference Call.

VANCOUVER, BC, July 30, 2021 /CNW/ – (TSX: LUC) (BSE: LUC) (Nasdaq Stockholm: LUC)

Lucara Diamond Corp. ("Lucara" or the "Company") reports the following in accordance with the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act: Please view PDF version.

As a result of the equity financing announced on July 15, 2021 (link to the news release), as well as a result of the vesting of employee share units, the number of issued and outstanding shares of the Company has increased to 453,034,981 common shares with voting rights as at July 31, 2021.

The total number of voting rights in the Company is therefore 453,034,981. This figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculation by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change in their interest in, the Company under the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act on disclosure of major shareholdings (Transparency Rules).

Eira Thomas
President and Chief Executive Officer

Follow Lucara Diamond on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn

ABOUT LUCARA
Lucara is a leading independent producer of large exceptional quality Type IIa diamonds from its 100% owned Karowe Mine in Botswana. The Company has an experienced board and management team with extensive diamond development and operations expertise. The Company operates transparently and in accordance with international best practices in the areas of sustainability, health and safety, environment and community relations.

The information in this release is accurate at the time of distribution but may be superseded or qualified by subsequent news releases.

This information is information that Lucara is obliged to make public pursuant to the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 6:00 AM Pacific Time on July 30, 2021.

SOURCE Lucara Diamond Corp.

View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/July2021/30/c3401.html

While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.

Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.

Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today.

Rio Tinto (RIO) is a stock many investors are watching right now. RIO is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 5.38, which compares to its industry's average of 7.22. Over the past year, RIO's Forward P/E has been as high as 11.49 and as low as 5.02, with a median of 7.89.

Another valuation metric that we should highlight is RIO's P/B ratio of 1.99. The P/B ratio is used to compare a stock's market value with its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 3.46. Over the past year, RIO's P/B has been as high as 2.28 and as low as 1.58, with a median of 1.94.

Value investors will likely look at more than just these metrics, but the above data helps show that Rio Tinto is likely undervalued currently. And when considering the strength of its earnings outlook, RIO sticks out at as one of the market's strongest value stocks.

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(Compares estimates, adds all-in sustaining costs, background)

July 29 (Reuters) – Canadian miner Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd on Thursday beat estimates for second-quarter profit, bolstered by a strong output from the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia and higher prices of copper and gold.

Prices of the red metal hit a record high in May, boosted by demand from electric-vehicle makers and other clean-energy investments. Bullion prices also rose in the second quarter as a weak dollar and pandemic-related uncertainties lifted its safe-haven appeal.

Turquoise Hill's copper production from Oyu Tolgoi stood at 36,735 tonnes in the quarter, compared with 36,495 ounces last year. Its gold output more than tripled to 113,054 ounces.

Oyu Tolgoi, one of the world's largest copper-gold-silver mines, was at the center of a long-running funding spat between Rio Tinto and Turquoise, before the dispute was put to bed in April.

The Mongolian government holds a 34% stake in the Oyu Tolgoi project with Rio's majority-owned Turquoise owning the rest.

Turquoise Hill's all-in sustaining costs fell 32% to $1.48 per pound of copper produced in the quarter.

Its income attributable to the owners of the company was $96.9 million, or 48 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with $72.6 million, or 36 cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 34 cents per share, according to Refinitiv IBES.

(Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

(Bloomberg) — Sacred sites, endangered sawfish and mythical rainbow serpents are the latest challenges confronting commodities powerhouse Australia as the nation’s top mining companies meet for their biggest annual conference.

Since the destruction last year by Rio Tinto Group of a 46,000-year-old Aboriginal rock shelter at Juukan Gorge, the industry has been scrambling to deal with a backlash over heritage protection and environmental issues. A national enquiry into the incident and new laws being drafted by the Western Australia government could have an impact on some A$18 billion ($13 billion) in projects planned by mining giants operating in the Pilbara, the nation’s iron-ore heartland, as well as other resources projects.

The industry, which gathers on Monday for the three-day Diggers and Dealers conference on the edge of a huge gold mine in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, is already facing the threat of increasing restrictions on emissions, as well as a political spat with China, its biggest buyer. Now, Aboriginal communities are fighting for a stronger role to protect their culture from resources extraction and agriculture.

“The new legislation will put Aboriginal people at the center of decision making,” the Western Australia government said in an emailed statement. “One of the primary objectives of the bill is to ensure that Aboriginal people have custodianship over their heritage.”

The proposed new law will seek to strike a balance between giving indigenous people a stronger voice, without impeding growth in a resources industry estimated to have delivered a record A$310 billion in export revenue in fiscal 2021. Australia ranks among the top producers of metals from gold to lithium and some investors are concerned that if the rules don’t provide traditional landowners with enough safeguards, it could increase the risk of another damaging incident.

“This is a once in a generation opportunity to get a piece of legislation and not just try and fix it at the edges,” said Mary Delahunty, head of impact at pension fund Hesta, which has about A$60 billion in assets. She said the WA government’s draft proposal does not appear to go far enough in giving indigenous groups a stronger voice.

Traditional landowners agree.

“The current draft won’t prevent another Juukan Gorge,” said Wayne Bergmann, interim chief executive officer of the Kimberley Land Council, which represents Aboriginal landowners in the far north of the state. Bergmann is concerned that, under the proposed legislation, the final decision on whether work can be carried out in an area of cultural significance will still be the responsibility of whichever minister is in power at the time, rather than an independent expert body.

“Fundamentally, the investment community needs to be worried because this places risk on projects,” Bergmann said. The government says it was still drafting the bill, and had already made several revisions based on feedback from stakeholders.

Rio, the world’s biggest iron-ore miner, said it is giving cultural heritage and environmental issues a higher priority in the wake of Juukan Gorge and has set up an indigenous advisory committee to improve its engagement with local communities. The London-based company said in April it had reviewed over 1,300 sites in the Pilbara for their potential impact on cultural heritage, with subsequent additional safeguards resulting in 54 million tons of dry ore being removed from its reserves.

Read: A Miner Blew Up Ancient Human History. An Industry May Pay

The fallout from Juukan Gorge is affecting more than the mining industry. The new legislation will also affect agriculture.

One example is the plight of sawfish, which are under threat from the demands of cattle stations that extract water from the Fitzroy River, one of the last remaining nursery habitats of the critically endangered freshwater sawfish, which can grow up to 7 meters long.

The distinctive rays, with their chainsaw-like snouts, are seen in Aboriginal culture as protectors of the river. The global range of the species has declined by more than 60% since the turn of the century, according to a 2019 study by Murdoch University’s Harry Butler Institute.

The WA government has extended a consultation process on water management plans for the Fitzroy River to the end of August.

The task of lawmakers is complicated by the fact that the new rules need to protect not only historical sites and the environment, but also cultural beliefs.

When iron-ore billionaire Andrew Forrest proposed building weirs on one of his cattle stations to hold water from the Ashburton River, the plan was rejected by the state government because of its potential impact on the rainbow serpent, which Aboriginal culture says resides in the river. Forrest’s legal team is appealing the decision, arguing that the weirs will have minimal impact on the river flow, and the serpent will still be able to move freely.

Night Parrot

Forrest, who has a doctorate in marine ecology, has been a vocal supporter of the Aboriginal community — indigenous people make up around 12% of the Australian-based workforce at his Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. The company vowed to protect the endangered night parrot, which had been feared extinct prior to a 2005 sighting near the group’s Cloudbreak mine in the Pilbara.

Hesta’s Delahunty says landowner groups should have the right to veto projects, which would reassure investors that local community concerns were being taken seriously. “It’s important not just from a reconciliation point of view, but also to the financial outcomes of the company.”

The WA government said it won’t include a right of veto, which would be “a disincentive to agreement making.”

Meanwhile, resources companies are aware that their social license to operate is under closer scrutiny than ever. Rio’s former Chief Executive Officer Jean-Sebastien Jacques and other senior executives stepped down in the wake of the Juukan Gorge incident. Since Jacques’ departure, Rio’s shares have gained around 28% in London as iron-ore prices soared, but the FTSE All-Share Industrial Metals and Mining Index has more than doubled in the same time.

“Australia is watching,” Delahunty said. “The investment community is watching this process, because on our watch we will not have another of these incidents.”

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