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Huge rare earth industrial park coming to Inner Mongolia

Source: www.chinamining.org         Citation: China Daily        Date: Aug.29, 2017

The largest rare earth new material industrial park in China is expected to be built in Baotou, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, promoted by technological innovation and the "Made in China 2025" strategy.

"The national-level new material park is planned with a total area of 470 square kilometers, supported by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the autonomous region," said He Weihua, deputy mayor of Baotou, at the Ninth China Baotou Rare Earth Industry Forum on Monday.

Aimed at promoting global cooperation and exchanges in related trade, manufacturing, research and applications, the forum is a high-end meeting of leaders in the rare earth industry; This year`s topic is scientific and technological innovation.

"China`s rare earth mining, selection, metallurgy and the research of some materials are at the leading position globally," Li Chunlong, chairman of China Rare Earth Association, said at the forum, stressing that the fundamental ways to develop the sector lie in application.

The rare earth park will concentrate on the application of six kinds of new materials, including nanometers, high-polymer, new types of fiber, new graphite and highly purified rare earth metal materials, He said.

The city has laid out a program of highly purified rare earth metal materials covering an area of 0.45 square kilometers, with annual output of 30,000 metric tons, which is expected to be the largest highly purified rare earth materials area in the world.

Rare earth metal materials are widely used in sectors including aerospace, defense, robotics and medical instruments.

Several projects have made significant achievements at the park: Shenhua Group`s coal-to-olefin projects with investment of 34 billion yuan ($5.07 billion) have realized revenue of 13 billion yuan.

A stainless steel project invested in by Mintal Group, a metallurgical joint venture held by China Minmetals and Goldman Sachs, is expected to achieve a revenue of 22 billion yuan, after being put into operation.

Until now, the area with infrastructure facilities including communication, natural gas and industrial water, has reached 25 square kilometers, with a strong ability to increase capacity and attract investment.

In 2016, the park`s accumulated industrial output reached 37.15 billion yuan, rising 27.8 percent year-on-year, and the revenue has reached 55 billion yuan, surging 40.9 percent compared with that in 2015.

The rare earth industrial reserve in Baotou has been demonstrated to be about 43.5 million tons, accounting for 83.7 percent of the total reserve in China and 38 percent in the world.

The rare earth new material industry developed fast in Baotou in recent years, with 71 transformation and upgrading projects conducted in 2015-16, supported by special funds from the central government.

President Xi Jinping has repeatedly given instructions to accelerate the development of the new material industry, said a senior official at the forum.

Last December, the State Council set up a national new material development leading group, showing that the government attaches great importance to the development of the industry.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China one step closer to use of new gas energy

Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: China Daily           Date: Aug.29, 2017

China has pledged to push further ahead with the exploration and production of gas hydrate in the Shenhu area of the South China Sea, following its success in mining gas hydrate in the region.

The Ministry of Land and Resources, Guangdong province and China National Petroleum Corp, the nation`s largest oil producer and supplier, reached a cooperation agreement in Beijing last week to set up a pilot site exploring gas hydrate in the Shenhu area, the ministry said on Saturday.

Promoting the industrialization of gas hydrate will not only upgrade the country`s energy security but also reshape its energy mix, said Minister of Land and Resources Jiang Daming.

China needs to speed up drawing up regulations on exploitation, management and industrial policy so that gas hydrate, as combustible ice or flammable ice, can soon be applied to the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the country`s economic development.

China completed its first test exploration of natural gas hydrates, commonly known as combustible ice, in the South China Sea on July 9, which lasted 60 days, with total production capacity and daily production capacity exceeding 300,000 cubic meters and 5,000 cu m, respectively.

Starting from May 10, the mining operation in waters 320 kilometers southeast of the Pearl River estuary achieved better-than-expected results, according to the China Geological Survey Bureau.

The exploration collected 6.47 million sets of experimental data and set world records in both the time of the experiment and the total amount of the gas extracted, said the bureau.

CNPC Chairman Wang Yilin said China`s successful mining of combustible ice in May was seen as a breakthrough toward a global energy revolution and the company will continue to take advantage of its technologies in natural gas exploration and deep-sea hydrate test production in setting up the pilot site.

According to Lu Hailong, a professor at the Institute of Ocean Research at Peking University and the chief scientist in the first mining trials, successful mining of gas hydrate in China is seen as a breakthrough toward a global energy revolution.

With no country able to produce gas commercially due to the challenging conditions and concerns about potential pollution, China, with ample experience accumulated, has become the frontrunner in gas hydrate mining technology.

Li Jinfa, deputy director of China Geological Survey Bureau, said the test drilling and production conducted by China International Marine Containers Group and China National Petroleum Corp created a solid foundation for commercial use of the resource before 2030.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Outlook bright for China`s oil giants

 Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: China Daily          Date: Aug.28, 2017

Analysts believe the outstanding performance of China`s three major oil companies is expected to continue in the next six months, as oil prices surge and oil companies worldwide gradually recover from the sector`s two-year crash.

China National Petroleum Corp, or PetroChina, the nation`s largest oil producer and supplier, said on Thursday evening that its net profit in the first half more than doubled, citing rising oil prices, cost reductions and efficiency improvement.

Net profit reached 12.68 billion yuan ($1.9 billion), representing a year-on-year increase of 12.1 billion yuan, which exceeded its forecast from late July of a net profit in a range from 9 to 11 billion yuan, compared with 528 million yuan during the same period last year.

Revenue grew 32 percent year-on-year to 975.9 billion yuan, due to higher prices and increased sales volume of crude oil, natural gas and refined products.

PetroChina said it expected competition in the oil-and-gas market to intensify in the second half, with global oil prices fluctuating "at a medium-low level with greater uncertainty" and certain countries that have oil resources facing more geopolitical risks.

Wang Lu, an Asia-Pacific oil and gas analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, said PetroChina is focusing on enhancing total shareholder return as evidenced by a special dividend on top of its 45 percent regular payout in the first half of this year.

"Revenue and profitability of PetroChina may continue to improve in the second half of this year on higher oil prices, though competition in the downstream may erode margins in the second half," she said.

The drastic profit rebound is based on last year`s low base, which is also the company`s worst first-half profit since it was publicly listed in 2000, she said.

Li Li, the energy research director at ICIS China, a consulting company that provides analysis of the energy market, echoed her voice, saying Petro-China benefited largely from a rebound in international oil prices during the first six months.

On the other hand, another State-owned oil giant China National Offshore Oil Corp, the country`s largest offshore oil and natural gas developer, reported 16.3 billion yuan of net profit in the first half, compared with a loss of 7.7 billion yuan in the same period of last year.

CNOOC`s revenue is also expected to continue rising in the second half of this year, yet improvements may be smaller as oil prices are unlikely to rise much from current levels, Wang said.

Wang said revenue and profitability of Sinopec, one of China`s three oil majors together with PetroChina and CNOOC, may have improved in the first half as a modest oil-price recovery helped narrow exploration and production losses.

"Its oil-output decline should have eased in the second quarter from a sharp 9.2 percent drop in the first quarter, while the company`s gas-production growth could have accelerated to realize its targeted 15 percent increase," Wang said.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China coal imports from Australia climb for second month

Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: Reuters   Date: Aug. 24, 2017

Chinese coal imports from key supplier Australia chalked up year-on-year gains for the second straight month in July, customs data showed, as local output of the commodity eased amid a crackdown on illegal mining and pollution.

Cargoes from Australia rose 4.4 percent from July last year to 7.47 million tonnes, according to the data from the General Administration of Customs released on Wednesday.

Imports from neighboring Mongolia jumped over 30 percent in July from the year before to 2.26 million tonnes, the data showed, although that was below record levels struck in June.

Major producers from Mongolia are looking to boost shipments to China in the wake of a ban on coal purchases from North Korea and as China`s largest producer Shenhua Energy closed two large pits near the Mongolian border.

Meanwhile, shipments from Indonesia dropped by nearly 9 percent to 3.03 million tonnes in July. Imports from Russia fell 1.7 percent to 1.64 million tonnes, the data showed.

China imposed a ban on coal shipments at small ports from July 1, along with more random checks on coal cargoes.

Looking forward, a warmer-than-usual winter has been forecast for southern China, potentially crimping appetite for coal.

The forward structure of the thermal futures curve shows investors are betting on prices peaking in October before falling steadily until August 2018.

China`s coal production in July fell 4.5 percent from a month earlier to its lowest since October, according to government numbers released in mid-August.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Large gas field discovered in north China

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Xinhua        Date: Aug. 24, 2017

North China`s Shanxi Province has discovered a large gas field with an estimated reserve of 545.6 billion cubic meters.

Shanxi is a major coal producer and has the country`s second-largest known coal reserve. It also has estimated coal-bed gas and shale gas reserves of 12.7 trillion cubic meters.

Authorities discovered a large coal field in the area bordering Yushe, Zuoquan and Wuxiang counties in 2006. Further exploration found it contained high levels of gas.

Since exploration started in 2015, the field has been estimated to contain 241.5 billion cubic meters of coal-bed gas and 304.1 billion cubic meters of shale gas, said Zhou Jipeng, deputy director of the provincial land and resources department.

Shanxi is speeding up gas exploration while reducing coal output as China seeks to power its economy with cleaner energy to reduce pollution.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China to ban primary mercury mining by 2032 as convention comes into force

Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: Reuters        Date: Aug.17, 2017

China will ban the production and trade of a range of products containing mercury by 2020, including thermometers and blood pressure monitors, and ban primary mercury mining by 2032, as a global pact to cut pollution from the metal comes into effect.

China - the world`s biggest miner and consumer of mercury - signed the Minamata Convention on Mercury in 2013. It was approved by the cabinet last year and takes effect on Wednesday.

Mercury is highly toxic and poses severe public health risks when it contaminates food and groundwater.

"China is a developing country and is a big mercury producer and consumer, and the task of implementing the treaty is very arduous," said Zhao Yingmin, vice minister at the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP), in a statement.

The convention commits signatory countries to phasing out old mines and banning new exploration projects, as well as reducing the use of mercury in gold mining. Countries must also ban the production, import and export of batteries, fluorescent lamps, cosmetics and pesticides that contain mercury by 2020.

However, the treaty makes exceptions for military applications as well as products where "no feasible mercury-free alternative for replacement is available".

China produced 4,000 tonnes of mercury in 2016, accounting for 88.9 percent of the world`s total supply that year, data from the U.S. Geological Survey shows.

"Looking to the future, the environment ministry will continue to work with other departments to promote the use of mercury-free and low-mercury technologies," said Zhao in the MEP statement posted on its website.

China vowed in its recent 2016-2020 five-year plan to control mercury emissions from coal-fuelled power plants, industrial boilers, non-ferrous metal metallurgy and cement production.

The country also aims to stop the launch of new primary mercury mining and calcium-made polyvinyl chloride (PVC) production projects by 2020.

PVC, measuring instrument manufacturing and battery production are the top mercury consuming sectors in China, which consumes more than 1,440 tonnes of mercury every year, according to the China Association of Environmental Protection Industries

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Officials: Let up on rare earths

Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: China Daily       Date: Aug.10, 2017

A worker at the site of a rare earth metals mine in Nancheng county, Jiangxi province. Photo/Agencies]

In 2011, fast-rising prices forced firms out of sector, triggering 5-year slump

China`s regulators are trying to cool down the price rally of rare earth, which has seen a sustained price increase since the beginning of this year, after five years of downturn.

The National Rare Earth Office issued a statement on Aug 8 to the six largest rare earth groups in China, including Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd and China North Rare Earth (Group) Hi-tech Co Ltd, asking them to help stabilize the rare earth market, according to industry insiders.

The statement asks the six groups to promote healthy development of the rare earth market, by strengthening industry self-discipline, maintaining production and operational order and strictly following the production control plan.

Part of the reason for the rapid rise in prices since June has been a lack of co-ordination in price settings and the stocking up of supplies in the rare earth market.

These moves have directly caused the soaring price, said Xu Ruoxu, an analyst from Shenwan Hongyuan Securities, adding that the reasonable rise of the rare earth products since earlier this year attracted the attention of speculators, including traders and manufactures.

"Pursuing high profits, they began to slow down the output rhythm and stockpile products in June. The rare earth prices have seen modest gains of about 15 percent from January to May, due to China`s economy recovery," Xu said.

Another reason for the rising price from January to May is that China has eliminated capacity by closing many illegal factories, said Zhan Sheng, a nonferrous metals expert from JZ Investment.

The statement asks the six rare earth groups not to take the lead in raising prices, but it may still be hard to hold down the rising tendency, Zhan added.

The rare earth prices were still on the rise on Wednesday with average price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide, the iconic rare earth product, at 435,000 yuan ($65,102) per metric ton, compared with 385,000 yuan on Tuesday.

Statistics show that the average price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide has increased 54 percent in 2017, and the price has risen more than 36 percent in the past two months.

At the same time, the listing prices of the six largest groups have also gone up in conjunction with the continued price rise of rare earth.

The monthly listing price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide from the China North Rare Earth is 420,000 yuan per ton in August, an increase of 53 percent from April`s 293,000 yuan per ton and a surge of 27.3 percent month-on-month.

The surging prices of rare earth products may harm the whole industry by squeezing downstream firms, Xu said.

In 2011, surging prices forced many small downstream companies out of the sector and led to a slump in the entire industry for more than five years.

Yuan Hui contributed to this story.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Coal producers report better profits

Source: www.chinamining.org     Citation: Xinhua           Date: Aug.7, 2017

Coal producers in China have reported impressive profits for the first half of this year.

Of China`s 37 listed coal companies, more than half have estimated half-year profits to double in the first half of this year from a year ago.

In its semi-annual report filed to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, Henan Shenhuo Coal and Power Co Ltd. said the company`s net profits excluding non-recurring gains and losses increased more than 11 fold year on year to 576 million yuan ($86 million) due to a rise in prices.

Meanwhile, China Shenhua Energy Company, the country`s largest coal miner, announced earlier that its first-half profit jumped 147 percent from the same period last year to 24.3 billion yuan.

The company attributed the huge rise to higher coal prices.

Other coal producers, including Shanxi Xishan Coal and Electricity Power and China Coal Energy Company Limited, also reported hefty gains for the January-June period.

About 111 million metric tons of capacity was forced out of the market in the first half of this year, 74 percent of the annual target, according to the National Development and Reform Commission, China`s top economic planner.

In the first five months, large coal companies registered total profits of 123.4 billion yuan, 120 billion yuan more than the same period last year.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2017 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin in September 23-25, 2017. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 19^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2017, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.