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Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer says Anglo American still sees huge opportunity in South Africa; he discusses Mineral Resources and Petroleum Minister Gwede Matashe wanting South Africans to rally to confront the high fuel price; and he unpacks the decrease of mining producti

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. JSE-listed Copper 360 advises that the incline at the Rietberg underground mine, in the Northern Cape, has intersected copper sulphide mineralisation about 16 m before reaching the planned 300 Level (300L) elevation. This is earlier than expected from the company's geological model and could represent a new mineralised body, it highlights. Assays from bulk sampling of the intersection have returned representative grades ranging between 0.48% and 1.50% total copper. The intersection was made on October 6, and management immediately followed up with geological mapping and sampling. The mineralisation is hosted in the mafic rocks of the Koperberg Suite, with visible bornite and chalcopyrite. The planned 400 to 300 Level incline has progressed through this intersection, exposing about 6 m of mineralised mafic rocks. To obtain representative samples, two composite samples were collected from the stockpile of the mineralised material. The samples were crushed to –10 mm, homogenised by coning and quartering and subsequently submitted for assay. Samples were assayed at QLS Laboratory (unaccredited) in Springbok for total sulphide copper. No acid-soluble analysis was done since no oxide copper minerals were observed and the intersection is far below the known oxide and transition zones, Copper 360 points out. Quality control samples were included, and all returned results fell within acceptable industry limits. The company explains that the earlier-than-expected intersection may indicate that the mineralisation extends beyond its currently modelled limits, or that a potential "offshoot" was intersected. Some legacy borehole intersections (data) are available in proximity. The company says it will test this through further mapping and face sampling and will update its geological model accordingly. The intersection does not change the company's mine plan. Copper 360 will continue to establish the 300L according to its original layout. "Reaching ore earlier than expected is significant. It tells us the ore zone possibly extends further than our model showed or that another potential mineralised body is present," CEO Gordon Thompson says. "We will continue the investigation and stockpiling this fringe ore while we continue towards the expected higher-grade zone. Our incline development remains on schedule, so this is a positive development. "The bornite and chalcopyrite showing in the sidewalls, now confirmed by the assays, is exactly what we have been working towards," he adds.

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. World Bank President Ajay Banga on Friday said the development lender has set a goal of quintupling its critical minerals business in five years, and has identified 20 countries that it can partner with on critical minerals development projects. Banga revealed the new goal in prepared remarks to a plenary session at the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok. "In critical minerals, we plan to quintuple our business in five years," Banga said. "This week, we launched our first country compacts with MDB partners—to build local industries and keep more jobs and value at home." The World Bank's new Metals and Minerals implementation plan is targeting $19-billion in critical minerals financing over the fiscal 2026-2030 period, compared with $3.6-billion in the fiscal 2021-2025 period. Critical minerals development is an area where the United States, the World Bank's largest shareholder, has called for the bank to devote more financing resources. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier this week that he wanted the bank to play a bigger role in enabling critical minerals mining and processing capacity through project de-risking and finance and investment in enabling infrastructure. He said this includes deep-sea mining projects. Banga did not mention deep-sea mining, but the bank's metals plan calls for a "precautionary approach" to the nascent sector, adding that any engagement and investments must be consistent with applicable bank policies. Banga reviewed the World Bank's overall increases in financing during the 2026 fiscal year that ended on June 30, including mobilizing $112-billion in private capital, a more than threefold increase from the 2022 fiscal year, before he assumed his role. Alongside lending from the World Bank's own balance sheet, this brought the group's total financing to $230-billion for fiscal 2026, he said.

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Valterra Platinum is nearing a decision that's likely to take the world's largest platinum mine underground. Mogalakwena — half way along the road from South Africa's capital Pretoria to the Zimbabwe border — is the company's flagship asset, with more than eight decades of reserves remaining. But as ore grades decline in its open pits and mining the material becomes more expensive, Valterra is exploring deep beneath the surface. That underground project, known as Sandsloot, has been under evaluation for years but finally appears on the cusp of becoming a reality. Valterra plans to begin trial mining later this year and to reach a final investment decision in 2027. "We believe that going underground is the most cost-effective option for us," CFO Sayurie Naidoo said in an interview with Bloomberg Television's Chief Future Officer. The green light for an underground mine at Mogalakwena would be the firm's most significant step forward since being spun off from Anglo American in June 2025. It would unlock millions of ounces of high-grade ore at a time when global production of platinum-group metals is expected to dwindle in the years to come. "We have many, many decades of PGMs available just within our portfolio, so the supply is not a concern," CEO Craig Miller said on the same show. Valterra owns three operations in South Africa, which holds nearly 80% of global reserves of the metals, but the evolution of Mogalakwena would be pivotal for the future of the country's biggest PGM miner by value. That's partly because the project comes as the biggest source of demand for PGMs — devices that curb harmful emissions from gasoline and diesel cars — is under pressure from the rise of electric vehicles. Valterra's leadership remains bullish, saying that forecasts on the uptake of battery EVs have consistently proved to be overoptimistic. "We still feel that PGMs will have a role to play in future mobility," Miller said. He points to the staying power of internal combustion engines, the role played by hybrid cars and – in the longer term – the potential for transport powered by hydrogen. In addition, the artificial intelligence build-out, involving massive investments in data centers and advanced chips, "is an area where we see a lot more potential," Naidoo said.

This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. MELBOURNE - Gold Fields' CEO played down speculation that the South African gold producer is going to raise its offer for Northern Star, saying the Australian target first needs to acknowledge that it is open to a merger. Gold Fields has embarked on a long-planned road show in Australia this month, where CEO Mike Fraser is aiming to boost its profile with investors in the country which accounts for about half of its business. It last month lobbed a A$38.7-billion ($27.1-billion) buyout proposal in shares and cash for Perth-based Northern Star, Australia's biggest gold miner, to create the world's second-biggest producer of the yellow metal. But Northern Star, hampered by a run of poor performance, rebuffed that offer, choosing instead its own plans for operational overhaul, pushed by activist investor Elliott Investment Management. Both miners have gold operations in Western Australia, including around the town of Kalgoorlie where Northern Star runs Australia's biggest gold mine, known as the Super Pit. Northern Star said in a statement that its board remained focused on acting in the best interests of shareholders. "This includes engaging with parties on proposals that represent value above what we believe Northern Star can generate as a standalone company. The Gold Fields proposal was not in that category," it said. Fraser said the market expected Gold Fields to make another offer. "But I think before you get into, you know, throwing in new offers, you've got to at least have some reciprocation to say, actually we think there is a pathway (to value) here," Fraser told Reuters. "At the moment, we're not hearing any of that." FRASER SEEKING TO RALLY INVESTORS BEHIND MERGER PLAN Public Investment Corporation — Gold Fields' largest shareholder with a 15% stake — saw the strategic logic of a merger, Fraser said. But he added that the South African State-owned asset manager was concerned about the potential for cost escalation, the delivery of a turnaround plan for Northern Star and the potential for Gold Fields to overpay. PIC had no immediate comment. Meanwhile, Fraser said that, though Australian institutional investors were not overly familiar with Gold Fields' business, after a number of conversations he believed "people buy into the logic of the merger." "What we've heard from investors on both sides is that they see this as being compelling," he said. Gold Fields had also met with Elliott, which has a 6% stake in Northern Star and has previously emphasised its commitment to the gold miner's turnaround. Fraser said Elliott was focused on delivering a short-term outcome, whereas Gold Fields' merger strategy was seeking to "create a story that is actually much more enduring". "They've got an important role, but they're not long-term shareholders," said Fraser. Elliott had no immediate comment. COMBINED COMPANY COULD RERATE, GOLD FIELDS CEO SAYS Gold Fields has said it saw $4-billion to $5-billion in synergies from a tie-up, which come mostly from tax benefits and combining operations in a Western Australian gold hub. Fraser said one overlooked benefit, however, was the prospect that a combined company could rerate. "We absolutely believe that this combined business would be trading at a much higher relative multiple than what we're trading at today," he said. Gold Fields' shares are trading on an enterprise multiple of 3.5 to 4 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, much cheaper than Northern Star's multiple of 7 to 8 times. Larger peer Agnico Eagle is trading around an 8 times multiple. Fraser said he would walk away if there was no alignment on value creation. "But that's a step away from where we are today," he said.