Still here and holding. Got some small bids in actually.
A couple of articles below that might be of interest.
SANTIAGO - The Democratic Republic of Congo is on the verge of finalizing mining contract agreements, including the massive Tenke-Fungurume project owned by Freeport-McMoRan and Lundin Mining, an official with the state-owned mining company said Thursday.
"Tenke will be resolved in a few weeks... It will not be changed drastically," Dieudonne Nduwa Mudikita, research and develoment director at state-owned Gecamines, said in an interview on the sidelines of the CRU/CESCO copper conference in Santiago.
Mudikita said talks with Katanga Mining were also on the verge of being finalized, and the state miner would then aim to finalize the new contract with First Quantum Minerals.
DRC launched the review of 61 mining contracts early in 2007, in order boost revenue from agreements that were mostly inked during the chaos of a 1998-2003 war.
The much-delayed process has weighed on the share prices of companies active in the country, which contains high-grade copper and cobalt deposits.
Freeport holds a 57,75 percent stake in Tenke-Fungurume, considered one of the world's top copper/cobalt deposits, while Lundin holds 24.75 percent. First Quantum is developing the Kolwezi copper and cobalt mine, while Katanga also operates a copper and cobalt mine complex in the country.
The country has become increasingly important for an industry that has made few large discoveries in recent years.
First Quantum bullish on copper, but cautious
Source: Reuters 2nd April 2009
Updated 6 hours ago SANTIAGO - Copper mining project delays caused by tight credit conditions and the economic slowdown may eventually lead to a supply crunch that could drive prices well above last year's levels when industrial demand rebounds, the president of First Quantum Minerals said on Thursday.
The industry slowdown and its effect on stock prices has also produced attractive acquisition opportunities, First Quantum President Clive Newall said in an interview. But he said the company was not planning to pull the trigger on any deals until conditions change for the better.
"In the long run, we're very bullish," Newall said in a telephone interview during the CRU/CESCO copper conference in Santiago.
"(The projects) have all been pushed way out into the future to some indeterminate time as a result of the credit crunch, which is only going to put upward pressure on the copper price when demand returns."
In the short term, however, he professed to being uncertain about copper's direction due to its dependence on global economic growth.
He noted the company, along with other miners, has entered short-term hedging contracts on about half of its output.
"(It) tells you I think there's some nervousness as to the short-term copper price," he said.
Such uncertainty has prompted a cautious tone at this year's CRU/CESCO event, a shift from the extreme optimism of last year's conference when copper prices were near all-time highs.
Newall echoed that caution, saying it was likely putting a chill on potential takeovers that might otherwise be going through, particularly with valuations of junior miners at rock-bottom levels.
He said First Quantum is on the lookout for acquisitions, but that the company would wait until there's some more clarity on copper prices and credit conditions.
"Now is not the time to be rushing out and doing crazy things," he said.
He said a shift in conditions would depend not just on a continuation of recent strength in copper prices -- up 21 percent since the beginning of March -- but also on signs that companies once again have access to debt financing, which has been hard to come by for the past year.
"That's probably the most important thing that the world economy needs, is the credit loosening," he said.
The company has been one of the few base miners to raise funds on capital markets in the past few months
AVM Price at posting:
$1.42 Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
(20min delay)