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OSMRE has awarded nearly $120 million in FY2026 fee‑based Abandoned Mine Land grants (reduced to just over $113 million after a mandatory 5.7% sequestration) to 24 US coal‑producing states and two tribal programmes to tackle legacy coal sites, including an estimated 500,000 abandoned mines. Wyoming receives $21.8 million, Pennsylvania $18.9 million and West Virginia $13.7 million, with the Navajo Nation and Crow Tribe allocated $411,589 and $28,154 respectively. Projects will target open shafts, unstable highwalls, subsidence and polluted mine water threatening homes, roads and other infrastructure.

Metso has acquired Newcastle-based MRA Automation, an engineering and automation specialist focused on mining and bulk materials handling systems in New South Wales. The deal expands Metso’s capability to deliver integrated automation for crushing, screening and conveying circuits, including PLC/SCADA control, machine vision and robotic handling on brownfield and greenfield plants. For site engineers, this signals more OEM-delivered automation packages, potentially simplifying interface risk between mechanical equipment, control systems and remote operations centres.

Pilbara Minerals has executed a new binding spodumene concentrate offtake agreement with Chinese lithium chemicals producer Canmax Technologies, securing long-term sales from its Pilgangoora operation in Western Australia. The deal extends an existing supply relationship centred on Pilgangoora’s large-scale hard-rock lithium mine, which is supported by a six‑megawatt solar farm integrated into the site’s power system. For geotechnical and mining teams, the agreement signals continued high utilisation of Pilgangoora’s open-pit reserves and processing capacity, supporting ongoing pit expansion and infrastructure planning.

Tungsten Mining has raised $53 million via a placement after being listed in the Australian Critical Minerals Prospectus, bolstering funding for its tungsten-focused project pipeline. The capital injection strengthens the company’s balance sheet for advancing drilling, resource definition and feasibility work on Australian tungsten deposits, a metal critical for hardmetals, drill bits and high-temperature alloys. For mining engineers and project developers, the raise signals continued investor appetite for domestic critical minerals projects despite limited public detail on specific mine capacities or development timelines.

Queensland’s 2025 Resources Awards for Women have named 18 finalists spanning roles from engineering superintendent and diesel fitter to dragline operator and chief operating officer across coal, metals and quarrying operations. Nominees include frontline trades, site-based supervisors and corporate leaders from major producers and contractors, with categories covering technical excellence, safety leadership and gender diversity initiatives. For mine operators, the awards signal growing recognition of women in production-critical roles and may influence recruitment, apprenticeship intake and retention strategies on remote sites.

Victory Metals has reported metallurgical test work at its North Stanmore rare earths project near Cue in Western Australia confirming a high-value hafnium by-product alongside its clay-hosted REE mineralisation. The company is advancing flowsheet development to selectively recover hafnium from leach solutions already designed for rare earth extraction, positioning the metal as a potential “game-changer” revenue stream. For process and project engineers, the key issue will be integrating hafnium separation into existing hydrometallurgical circuits without materially increasing reagent consumption or capital intensity.

A £16M contract has been tendered by Nexus to renew the permanent way and overhead line equipment on the Tyne and Wear Metro rail link serving Newcastle Airport. The works will involve full track replacement and new electrification hardware on this dedicated airport branch, aiming to improve reliability on one of the network’s busiest strategic connections. Contractors will need to manage construction within an operational light-rail environment, with tight possession windows and strict constraints on disruption to airport passenger flows.

Britain is being urged to treat deep and shallow geothermal as a mainstream heat source, with a new national roadmap arguing that the country’s substantial but underused subsurface resource could displace a significant share of gas‑fired heating. The plan points to proven concepts such as mine‑water geothermal in former coalfields and district heating from deep sedimentary aquifers, which can be integrated with existing heat networks and large heat pumps. For civil and geotechnical engineers, this signals growing demand for high‑temperature boreholes, well integrity design and long‑term monitoring of thermal–hydraulic behaviour in urban ground.

Riba president Muyiwa Oki has proposed “The Loop”, a £130bn high-speed rail system encircling the UK and Ireland, conceptually inspired by Saudi Arabia’s 170km linear city project The Line. The vision links the North of England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland into a single continuous corridor, implying extensive subsea tunnelling and long-span bridge works across the Irish Sea. For engineers, the scale suggests HS2-level design speeds and alignments replicated over multiple jurisdictions, with major geotechnical, consenting and interoperability challenges.

A £12.6M Environment Agency upgrade to flood defences along Fowlea Brook in Stoke-on-Trent, designed by Arup, has been completed to reduce flood risk to homes, businesses and key transport links. The scheme focuses on improving channel capacity and formalising embankments and walls along critical sections of the brook, which has a history of rapid response to intense rainfall. For geotechnical and civil teams, the works signal ongoing demand for integrated fluvial modelling, foundation design for flood walls, and coordination with existing urban infrastructure.

Thames Water has launched procurement for a multi‑lot framework worth up to £177M (excluding VAT) to deliver site investigation surveys across its asset base. The framework will cover intrusive and non‑intrusive ground investigations, including boreholes, trial pits, in‑situ testing and laboratory analysis to support major water and wastewater infrastructure works. Geotechnical and environmental consultants and drilling contractors can expect long‑term programmes tied to pipeline renewals, treatment works upgrades and resilience schemes across the Thames Water region.

PMET Resources is raising up to C$130 million, split between a C$65 million public share offering at C$5.66 and a C$65 million flow-through placement at C$9.30, to advance its Shaakichiuwaanaan lithium project in Quebec’s James Bay. Funds will support an updated feasibility study on the CV5 deposit, including tantalum co-products and potential underground bulk sampling, plus a preliminary economic assessment for the CV13 lithium–caesium–tantalum deposit. The project’s October study outlined a C$1.5 billion, 20-year mine producing about 800,000 tonnes per year, with an after-tax NPV of C$1.6 billion and 4.7-year payback.

Kidnappers who abducted Vizsla Silver workers on 23 January in Sinaloa, Mexico, have killed at least some of the victims, whose bodies were recovered from a clandestine grave near El Verde, about 15 km from the company’s Panuco silver-gold project in Concordia. Vizsla has suspended certain activities at the high‑grade Panuco project, which hosts 12.8 million proven and probable tonnes grading 2.01 g/t gold and 249 g/t silver and is planned to produce 17.4 million silver‑equivalent oz. per year over 9.4 years. The security crisis has driven Vizsla’s Toronto‑listed shares down 42% since 28 January, raising serious questions over project execution and workforce protection in the region.

TechMet plans to raise up to $200 million in new funding on top of last year’s $300 million round, which included $180 million from the Qatar Investment Authority, to expand its critical minerals portfolio beyond existing stakes in Brazilian Nickel, US Vanadium and Rainbow Rare Earths. CEO Brian Menell, speaking at Mining Indaba 2026, flagged Zambia, Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo as priority jurisdictions, alongside the Dobra lithium deposit in Ukraine targeted via a joint US investment fund. The US International Development Finance Corp remains a major backer, with TechMet reportedly valued above $1 billion.

Critical Metals’ 2025 drilling at the Tanbreez project in southern Greenland has extended rare earth mineralisation over a 1,750-metre corridor at Area B, with TREO grades typically 0.35%–0.61% and heavy rare earths comprising up to 27% of the total. Final holes at the Fjord deposit returned consistent >0.4% TREO plus gallium, hafnium, cerium and yttrium, supporting further extension and infill drilling in 2026 to refine pit designs and resource models. Tanbreez currently hosts at least 45 million tonnes within a 4.7‑billion‑tonne intrusive body, underpinning a PEA NPV of about $3 billion and a phased ramp-up from 85,000 to 425,000 t/y REO.

Elevra Lithium has signed a non-binding MoU to supply Mangrove Lithium with up to 144,000 tonnes per year of NAL spodumene concentrate from 2028, ramping to that level by 2030 and covering about 46% of projected sales volumes, on market-linked pricing with floor and ceiling protection. Mangrove plans a 20,000 t/y lithium hydroxide or carbonate plant in Eastern Canada, potentially on-site at NAL, following a final investment decision by June 2027. The project builds on Mangrove’s 1,000 t/y electrochemical refining plant and an $85 million funding round led by Canada Growth Fund.

Gold prices jumped 2.3% on Monday to about $5,070/oz, recovering roughly half of last month’s 12% single-day crash and leaving bullion still 14% higher year-to-date as traders await US January jobs data and clearer signals on Federal Reserve rate cuts. Central bank demand remains strong, with the People’s Bank of China extending purchases for a 15th consecutive month amid broader reserve diversification away from US assets, backed by houses such as Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs. Silver climbed 7% to above $83/oz after a >35% January slump, with retail dip buying driving sizeable ETF inflows and markedly higher price volatility.

Victoria is moving to restore confidence in British Columbia’s mine permitting by adding C$3 million in funding, including C$1 million for extra permitting staff and C$2 million to expand the Mineral Claims Consultation Framework, alongside a landmark approval for Skeena Resources’ Eskay Creek restart. Files that miss new service standards will be escalated to the chief permitting officer for a decision within 14 days, with priority attention on Eskay Creek, Newmont’s Red Chris, Teck’s Highland Valley Copper life-extension and Centerra’s Mount Milligan expansion. Key tests now are clarifying the Declaration Act, progressing the North Coast Transmission Line into the Golden Triangle and addressing a forecast labour shortfall of 5,000–10,000 workers by 2035.

Revival Gold is prioritising a restart of the Mercur heap-leach project in Utah, targeting a prefeasibility study by year-end and sequencing development ahead of its Beartrack-Arnett project in Idaho. The company controls about 6 million oz of gold resources across the two brownfield sites and aims for more than 160,000 oz per year from initial heap-leach phases. Beartrack-Arnett is on a longer, roughly 3.5–4-year timeline due to federal land review requirements, while Mercur sits on private ground about 57 km from Salt Lake City in a Carlin-type district.

British Columbia has appealed a December 2025 ruling that found its Mineral Tenure Act breaches consultation duties by allowing mineral claims staking on Gitxaała and Ehattesaht territories without prior First Nations engagement. The 3 February filing to the Supreme Court of Canada argues the appeals court misapplied B.C.’s 2019 Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) and risks giving UNDRIP “quasi-constitutional status”, creating a “parallel universe of litigation”. Premier David Eby plans DRIPA amendments this spring after talks with First Nations, while leaders including Gitxaała Chief Councillor Linda Innes warn rushed reforms could weaken enforceable rights over exploration permitting.

Bromley Council is trialling Viafix cold lay asphalt for pothole patching as it more than doubles its road resurfacing budget to over £5m for its 547 miles of roads. The highly viscous mix is supplied in sacks, can be laid by a single operative in wet conditions and standing water, and follows a simple cut–clean–glue–pour–roll sequence, with each repair expected to take about 20 minutes and carrying a two‑year guarantee. Similar deployments by East Lothian, Cambridgeshire and Renfrewshire councils suggest wider potential for rapid, small‑crew maintenance workflows.

Persimmon Homes has partnered with Leeds-based Ecofill to process surplus on-site soils and clays into certified aggregate replacement materials using mobile plant and proprietary binder mixes, following successful trials on Persimmon developments. The treated material is being used for adoptable roads, retaining walls, piling mats, embankments and trench backfills, with Ecofill stating compliance with relevant national European standards. For engineers, the approach cuts landfill export and imported aggregate haulage, with potential carbon and safety gains on both site logistics and local road networks.

A Croydon Crown Court judge has jailed 56-year-old sole trader Israel Jackson for 12 months after he illegally installed a gas boiler for a 90-year-old homeowner in May 2022 while falsely claiming to be Gas Safe registered and issuing a fraudulent gas safety certificate. The installation triggered gas smells, loss of hot water and two separate “immediately dangerous” notices from British Gas and BT Heating and Property before the boiler was finally replaced in June 2023. HSE found Jackson had continued unregistered gas fitting work despite a 2015 conviction, and served U-Works Services Ltd with a prohibition notice for failing to verify his Gas Safe status.

Roger Bullivant Limited has added a Hütte HBR 204MP piling rig to its fleet, capable of installing 300–600mm CFA and SFA piles plus temporary/permanent casings and overburden systems using air or water flushing. A segmental mast allows rapid on-site reconfiguration from a 15.5m mast with 10.6m stroke down to 5.7m/3.8m in under half a day, addressing low headroom, restricted access and variable ground conditions without extra plant. Radio remote control and integrated air-flush capability extend its use on complex commercial and infrastructure schemes, with a second unit due later this year.