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Ardea Resources has secured more than $1 billion in backing from Sumitomo Metal Mining and Mitsubishi Corporation to advance its Goongarrie Hub nickel–cobalt project, part of the Kalgoorlie Nickel Project in Western Australia. The partners are targeting a high-pressure acid leach (HPAL) operation treating laterite ore to produce mixed hydroxide precipitate for battery supply chains, with front-end engineering design and approvals now the key gating steps. For geotechs and process engineers, the scale of HPAL infrastructure on deeply weathered profiles will drive complex foundation design, tailings storage, and water management requirements.

Tungsten prices hitting record highs have prompted Larvotto Resources to fast‑track work at its Hillgrove polymetallic project in New South Wales, targeting historically mined tungsten–antimony–gold lodes within an existing underground mine and processing footprint. The company is reviewing past production data and existing plant configuration to define a restart pathway that can exploit current prices without greenfield capital intensity. For mine planners and metallurgists, the key question is how far the legacy stopes, tailings and circuit can be re‑optimised for higher tungsten recoveries under today’s market conditions.

Perenti Limited has appointed Dr Vanessa Torres as managing director and chief executive officer, succeeding long‑serving CEO Mark Norwell at the ASX‑listed mining services group that operates Barminco and Ausdrill across underground and open‑pit contracts. Torres, a former chief technical officer at South32 and senior executive at BHP and Vale, brings deep experience in large‑scale iron ore, base metals and coal operations, including brownfield expansion and asset optimisation. The leadership change signals continuity for Perenti’s contract mining, drill‑and‑blast and underground development business while positioning it to pursue more technically complex projects and decarbonisation initiatives.

Rio Tinto has committed $1.8 million to Lifeline WA to fund crisis support volunteers answering calls across Western Australia, with a focus on remote mining communities in the Pilbara. The three-year funding package will support recruitment, training and retention of telephone crisis supporters, who handle calls from FIFO workers, contractors and families affected by isolation, shift work and mental health pressures. For mine operators, the move signals continued expectation for structured psychosocial risk management alongside traditional safety systems on large iron ore operations.

South Australia’s electricity demand is forecast by transmission operator ElectraNet to double over the next 15 years, driven largely by new and expanded mines and mineral processing, including copper, rare earths and hydrogen projects. The company points to a sharp rise in large industrial connections across the Upper Spencer Gulf and Eyre Peninsula, requiring major 275 kV and 132 kV network augmentations and new renewable generation hubs. For miners and project developers, grid access, connection timing and firm capacity are becoming critical design and investment constraints.

Sandvik has secured an order from Codelco for 13 Toro® LH515i load–haul–dump loaders for the Chuquicamata Underground copper operation in Chile, with deliveries starting in March 2026 and running through to November 2027. The 15 t capacity LH515i units, designed for 4.5 m x 4.5 m headings, will support production ramp-up and fleet expansion for a new mining panel as Chuquicamata continues its transition from open pit to large-scale block caving. For mine planners and maintenance teams, the staged delivery allows progressive integration of the new LHD fleet into existing development and production schedules.

NCC has secured a SEK 650 million (US$68.6 million) order from LKAB for initial concreting and groundworks on the new iron ore sorting plant at Vitåfors in Gällivare, northern Sweden. The package covers major foundation pours and site preparation for the primary sorting facilities under an existing partnering agreement between the two companies. Early geotechnical and civil decisions on bearing capacity, frost protection and heavy plant load paths will strongly influence future crusher, conveyor and stockpile layouts at this key LKAB operation.

Santana Minerals has locked in build slots with Komatsu New Zealand for the Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project mining fleet, securing delivery of key mobile units ahead of a Fast-Track Approval decision due on 29 October 2026. The procurement followed a comparative assessment of conventional, electric and hybrid equipment options, with Komatsu units selected to meet the project’s construction and early production schedule. Early fleet commitment reduces lead-time risk for primary loading and haulage assets, giving mine planners firmer dates for pre-strip, waste movement and initial ore production.

Johnson Matthey’s DPFi electrically regenerating diesel particulate filter has secured Canadian Standards Association (CSA) certification for underground mining and tunnelling, adding to existing approvals from Canmet Materials and a third independent body. The system uses active electrical regeneration rather than exhaust heat to burn off soot, enabling tighter control of backpressure and emissions on diesel equipment operating in confined headings. CSA certification gives mine operators a recognised safety benchmark for retrofitting diesel fleets to meet stringent underground particulate limits in Canada.

A new pedestrian overpass at Ballarat Station in Victoria has opened with stair and lift access to each platform, completing the multi-stage Ballarat Station Upgrade. The fully grade-separated crossing removes the need for passengers to traverse live tracks, improving DDA-compliant access for people with disability, prams and luggage. For designers and asset managers, the project signals continued prioritisation of vertical transport and segregated pedestrian rail crossings in regional station upgrades.

Donaldson Filtration Solutions has launched the SSG+ Donaclone air cleaner, a high‑capacity pre-cleaner and filter unit designed for heavy-duty mining engines operating in extreme dust loads. The system combines axial seal primary elements with Donaclone pre-cleaner tubes to eject a large proportion of coarse dust before it reaches the filter media, extending service intervals on haul trucks, loaders and drills. For mine maintenance teams, the unit targets reduced unplanned downtime, more stable engine performance and lower filter consumption in high‑particulate pit and haul road environments.

Australia’s Federal Parliament has passed legislation to create a national strategic reserve for critical minerals and fuels, formalising government powers to stockpile commodities such as lithium, rare earths and diesel. The laws enable the Commonwealth to acquire, store and release these materials to manage supply disruptions, with storage expected across multiple secure facilities rather than a single central depot. For miners and processors, the framework signals stronger federal backing for domestic offtake, long-term contracts and potential co‑investment in downstream refining capacity.

Geoscience Australia has completed nationwide coverage of its AUSTopo 1:250,000 digital topographic map series, delivering free, regularly updated mapping for the entire continent. The vector-based datasets include elevation, transport, hydrography and infrastructure layers suitable for GIS workflows, replacing legacy paper and raster products. For mine planners, exploration geologists and infrastructure designers, the uniform scale and national consistency simplify regional targeting, haul road and access corridor planning, and early-stage terrain and drainage assessments.

Australian-listed Vulcan Energy is developing Europe’s first integrated, low‑carbon lithium supply chain in Germany’s Upper Rhine Valley, with geothermal brines, direct lithium extraction and chemical conversion all controlled within a 100km radius of its Lionheart project. The company plans to co‑produce baseload renewable geothermal power and heat while extracting lithium hydroxide for European battery plants, targeting short, intra‑EU logistics instead of importing spodumene or brine products. For geotechnical and process engineers, the project couples deep geothermal wellfields with closed‑loop brine handling and on‑site refining, tightening interfaces between subsurface, plant design and offtake.

Cobalt Blue has signed a consortium agreement with US-based Glomar Minerals to deploy its Australian-developed cobalt processing technology in the United States, targeting domestic production of battery-grade cobalt sulphate. The partnership centres on applying Cobalt Blue’s proprietary sulphide-to-sulphate flowsheet, originally engineered for Broken Hill-style deposits, to US feedstocks to reduce reliance on imported intermediates. For process and project engineers, the move signals potential demand for new hydrometallurgical plants, tailings handling systems and permitting work around cobalt-bearing ore bodies in the US.

Rolls-Royce has begun construction of an 86MWh, 43MW MTU EnergyPack battery storage facility at the Bankside project in Falkirk under an EPC contract for Voltario Helios Energy Storage, using CATL Tener battery products and backed by a 15-year full-wrap service agreement. The grid-connected system, due online in 2027 after connection later this year, is sized to support roughly 10,000 homes or a large industrial load by shifting surplus renewable generation to peak demand periods. The project feeds into the UK’s 27GW-by-2030 battery storage target and is leveraging the Scottish supply chain.

Willowbrook Plant has expanded its Hyundai heavy line dealership for machines over 10‑tonnes operating weight to cover Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, adding to its existing territory across Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. The Corby-based dealer, established in 2008 and selling Hyundai since 2011, will scale up sales, service, parts and field support across this enlarged region. It is among the first in Europe to supply Hyundai Next Generation crawler excavators, alongside dozers, wheeled loaders and articulated dump trucks, giving contractors broader access to newer earthmoving fleets.

Colombia’s push to build a copper industry under the 2024–2035 National Mining Development Plan, including ANM tenders for 14 strategic copper regions and priority status for 17 minerals, is colliding with tighter fiscal, environmental and security conditions. The country currently produces only about 4,200 tonnes of copper a year from Atico’s El Roble mine, against an estimated 9.7 million tonnes of resources and a project pipeline including Quebradona, Alacrán, Mocoa and Guintar-Aleman-Margaritas. Decree 044’s 10‑year reserve powers, a 35% base corporate tax plus surcharges and a 5.4% export self‑withholding tax, and Colombia’s 57th policy‑perception ranking on the Fraser survey all signal elevated execution and permitting risk for large-scale projects.

Rio Tinto and venture builder Founders Factory have picked six startups from over 500 applicants to advance AI, advanced chemistry and spatial-data tools for exploration and processing of copper, lithium, iron ore and other critical minerals. The cohort includes Foresight Spatial Labs’ 4D spatial data platform for engineering and autonomy, Voluna’s airborne neutron technology for real-time geochemical mapping, and Material Difference’s explainable AI for resource delineation, alongside Chemshift, Supra and Watergenics. The wider programme portfolio has already attracted more than US$120 million in follow-on funding, signalling growing commercial appetite for deployable mining tech.

Glencore is pursuing a standalone copper-led growth strategy after ending merger talks with Rio Tinto and selling a 40% stake in its flagship DRC copper-cobalt assets to the US-backed Orion Critical Mineral Consortium, while targeting over 1 Mt of copper annually by 2028 and about 1.6 Mt by 2035. 2025 copper output fell 11% to 851,600 t on lower grades at Collahuasi, Antamina and Mount Isa, but second-half production rose nearly 50% versus H1 as grades improved. For 2026, Glencore guides 810,000–870,000 t of copper and up to 100 Mt of energy coal, with Katanga’s land access deal with Gécamines underpinning a path to roughly 300,000 t/y and extended mine life.

Vale’s base metals unit is targeting a 20% increase in Canadian and Brazilian mineral reserves and resources between 2024 and end‑2027, building on 2024 gains that lifted total copper reserves and resources 6% to 53 million tonnes and nickel 13% to 14 million tonnes, with copper resources now covering more than 65 years at current production rates. Proven and probable reserves stand at 1.25 billion tonnes grading 0.66% Cu (8.2 Mt contained) and 419.3 million tonnes grading 1.42% Ni (5.9 Mt contained), supporting CEO Gustavo Pimenta’s plan to double copper output from 382,000 tonnes to 1 Mt/y over the next decade. Exploration priorities for 2026 include doubling drilling in Brazil’s Carajás to over 120,000 m and intensifying brownfield work at Sudbury and Voisey’s Bay to extend near‑mine, satellite and down‑plunge mineralisation.

CleanTech Lithium’s pre-feasibility study for the Laguna Verde brine project in Chile sets a pre-tax NPV of $1.37 billion on a 25-year operation producing 15,000 t/y of battery-grade lithium carbonate via direct lithium extraction, with a 24.2% pre-tax IRR and roughly four-year payback. Probable reserves total 378,000 t LCE at 186 mg/L, supporting steady-state output at operating costs of $5,768/t and initial capex of $748 million, placing it in the global lower cost quartile. A 40-year CEOL, on-site lithium chloride production with conversion in Copiapó, and proximity to ports reduce permitting and infrastructure risk as CleanTech courts strategic partners.

Perpetua Resources has entered the final approval stage for a proposed US EXIM $2.7 billion financing package, including a $2.2 billion direct loan, to cover the estimated $2.58 billion initial capex for its Stibnite gold‑antimony project in central Idaho, with a board vote expected shortly after a 25‑day Congressional notice. The updated technical summary outlines a 15‑year mine life producing over 4.2 million oz gold and 106.5 million lb antimony, with a base‑case after‑tax NPV5 of $3.5 billion, 23.5% IRR and 2.4‑year payback at $3,250/oz gold.

Cornish Tin has raised over £2.2 million ($3 million), giving it a £29 million pre-money valuation, to accelerate drilling and resource definition at the Great Wheal Vor tin project and the Tregonning South lithium project in Cornwall. Great Wheal Vor consolidates 26 historic producers in the Breage district, where recorded grades averaged 3% Sn and locally exceeded 5.5%, which the company says would rank among the top three tin mines globally if replicated today. At Tregonning, exploration is targeting lithium mineralisation associated with the rare G5 topaz granite, which makes up only about 1.4% of Cornwall’s outcropping granites.