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 Countries
Boldly
Stake Claims for Arctic Mineral Wealth -
During
the summer of 2007 (in the northern hemisphere), several countries
began to plan for the future as the warmer temperatures reveal
potential mineral wealth and new navigation routes above the Arctic
Circle. This summer will probably be logged as the warmest yet and some
researchers believe the arctic could be ice free by 2040. The thoughts
of rising sea levels and receding glaciers are grim, but countries
bordering arctic regions are acting quickly to protect mineral wealth
and establish economic control.
Researchers from the U.S. are
currently mapping the sea floor north of Alaska. They believed that a
submerged plateau called the Chukchi Cap may contain vast oil and
natural gas resources. The sea floor mapping exercise was prompted by
the fact that Russia ........ read
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Steve Fiscor, Editor in Chief
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The Aluminum
Crucible Continues to Roil - The
global aluminum industry’s consolidation
and expansion activity has thrown off a
steady stream of mega money deals and project
development announcements. Rio Tinto’s agreed
acquisition of Alcan, announced July 12,
2007, appears to be on track for a successful
conclusion, and several very large, early-stage
alumina refinery and aluminum smelter projects
moved closer to realization in the mid-July
to mid- August period.........
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Xstrata Bids $1Billion
for Eland Platinum - Xstrata
Alloys and Eland Platinum in early August
announced an agreed cash takeover of Eland
Platinum by Xstrata valued at about $1 billion.
Eland Platinum’s primary asset is its 65%
interest in the Elandsfontein project on the
western limb of the Bushveld igneous complex
in South Africa. Xstrata Alloys, a business
unit of Xstrata PLC, is headquartered in Rustenburg,
South Africa, and is one of South Africa’s
largest producers of ferrochrome and vanadium.......
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Lundin
Mining Strategy on Track - In the past three
months the Canada and Sweden-based Lundin
Mining group has effectively completed the
major planned acquisitions.
On July 3, 2007, Lundin Mining and Tenke
Mining Corp. finalized their business compilation,
potentially the most substantial step to
date in Lundin’s aggressive growth program.
Tenke’s South American assets and $5 million
have been conveyed to a new Torontolisted
company called Suramina Resources Inc. Paul
Conibear, Tenke’s president, will be president
and CEO of Suramina and will join Lundin
Mining as senior vice-president of projects
.... read
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| Newmont
Sheds Its Gold Hedges - Newmont
Mining Corp. announced early in July the elimination
of its entire 1.85-million-oz gold hedge position,
establishing the company as the world’s largest
unhedged gold producer. Newmont also announced
plans to monetize components of its royalty
and equity portfolio over the next 12 months,
resulting in the discontinuation of the company’s
Merchant Banking Segment as a separate business
unit....read
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Agnico-Eagle Moves
Ahead with Pinos Altos
- Canadian gold miner Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd.
announced on August 9 that it had decided
to formally begin development of its 100%
owned Pinos Altos gold project in northern
Mexico. The company also reported that, as
a result of recent drilling at Pinos Altos,
gold ounces in reserves increased 21% from
the figure released in February 2007. The
silver ounces in these reserves increased
a further 18% over the same period.
AEM noted that current gold reserves at Pinos
Altos total 2.2 million oz from 20 million
mt of ore in probable reserves grading 3.5
g/mt, an increase of 13% in gold grade over
the previous reserve estimate...... read
more
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Toshiba Tunes In on Kazakh Uranium
Project
- Toshiba Corp. said it would participate
in the Kharassan uranium mines project, a
new development project in southern Kazakhstan
promoted by Kazatomprom (KAP), a Republic
of Kazakhstan state-owned enterprise.
The Kharassan project is being promoted
by two KAP-related companies, Kyzylkum LLP
and Baiken-U LLP. Test excavation of uranium
ore is due to start within the year, and
output is expected to reach approximately
5,000 metric tons of uranium annually by
2014. Japanese companies have acquired indirect
ownership
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| PotashCorp Spending $1.6B on New
Brunswick Mine/Mill - Potash Corp.
of Saskatchewan recently announced plans for
a new 2-million-mt potash mine and expanded
milling operations in New Brunswick, which
will raise the company’s projected total annual
potash capacity to 14.9 million mt by 2011.
The four-year construction project will begin
once necessary regulatory approvals are obtained
and has an estimated cost of $1.6 billion,
which includes $100 million for additional
upgraded granular production capability.....
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Diavik Diamond Production Exceeds Expectations
- Diavik Diamond Mines Inc., operator of the
Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest
Territories, reported that approximately 3.3
million carats of diamonds were recovered
from the mine during the second calendar quarter
compared with around 2.7 million carats for
the comparable period last year. Production
for the first half of the calendar year was
almost 5.9 million carats. This, according
to the company, is well ahead of the current
plan and principally the result of higher
recovery of diamonds per metric ton of ore
processed.... read
more
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| Mt. Hope Moly to Expand Mill Throughput
- Idaho General Mines announced plans to increase
mill throughput capacity at its Mt. Hope molybdenum
mine in eastern Nevada from 44,000 t/d to
an average of approximately 60,000 t/d, with
actual annual throughput dependant on ore
characteristics and other factors. The increased
throughput capacity is expected to expand
average annual molybdenum production during
the first 10 years of operations to 37 million
lb from the company’s prior estimates of approximately
31 million lb.... read
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Pilot Mining at Bolivar Earns $10.3
Million for Dia Bras - Dia Bras Exploration
announced that second quarter 2007 net estimated
smelter production value from its Bolivar
pilot-mining program in Chihuahua, Mexico,
totaled $4.8 million for a cumulative amount
of $10.3 million for the first six months
of 2007 compared with $6.8 million and a cumulative
$12.1 million for the same period in 2006.
During the quarter, the company processed
28,240 dry metric tons (dmt) of material averaging
grades of 5.27% Zn and 1.13% Cu (cumulative
production of 58,254 dmt for the first six
months of 2007 at 6.04% Zn and 1.24% Cu) ……
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Palmarejo Project Moves Ahead with
Construction, Equipment Acquisition
- In late July Palmarejo Silver and Gold Corp.
issued an update on activities at its Palmarejo
silver-gold project located in Chihuahua,
Mexico. According to the company, progress
at the project site included the arrival of
mining shovels, trucks and drill rigs in Chihuahua;
erection of carbonin- leach, intensive leach,
solution and detox tanks; completion of cutting
and flanging of mill sections; and completion
of evaluation by engineering consultants Pells,
Sullivan and Meynink of the mine’s waste rock
dump…. read
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Apex Begins Silver Concentrate Production
at San Cristobal - Apex Silver Mines
announced on August 7 that production of silver-bearing
concentrates at the San Cristobal zinc, lead
and silver mine in southwestern Bolivia had
begun. According to the company, the plant
reached mechanical completion in late June
2007 and began start-up commissioning in early
July. The first rail shipments from the plant
were expected to take place a week after the
August 7 announcement. Apex Silver said that,
as of July 31, more than 3.5 million million
mt of ore had been stockpiled for the concentrator….
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Fluor JV Wins BHP Billiton Iron Ore
Expansion Job - Fluor Corp. announced
that BHP Billiton has awarded the Mine &
Port Development JV (MPDJV) a contract to
provide engineering, procurement, construction
management and commissioning services for
an iron ore expansion project in Western Australia.
Total project value is $1.8 billion and Fluor’s
share of the EPCM contract is 50%. MPDJV is
a 50:50 joint venture between Fluor Australia
Pty Ltd. and Sinclair Knight Merz. The MPDJV
office in Perth, Australia, will lead the
project…. read
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Indonesia Will Put Mining Rights Out
to Tender - The Indonesian government
will use a tender process, rather than the
existing direct appointment mechanism, to
award the mining permits that will be issued
under the proposed new mining law. The Energy
and Mineral Resources Ministry’s director
general of geology and mineral resources,
Simon Sembiring, said during a seminar on
July 18 that the government, based on the
mining bill (currently still under deliberation
in the House of Representatives), will in
future put mining concessions out to tender.
“You may submit your bids in line with the
preliminary data for a mining concession issued
by my ministry. We will also give you time
to conduct due diligence before submitting
your bids,” Simon said…. read
more
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Sino Approves White Mountain Gold
Development - Sino Gold Mining’s
board of directors recently approved development
of the company’s second gold mine, the White
Mountain gold project in Jilin Province,
northern China. According to the Australiabased
company, mobilization and site preparation
was already in progress with site construction
to commence in earnest once a provincial
project permit is received. The Environmental
Impact Assessment approval has already been
received and Sino said it “was confident”
that the provincial permit would be received
within four to six weeks following the announcement
…. read
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Rekodiq Project Will Involve $6
Billion Investment - Pakistan government
officials believe that the joint public/private
Rekodiq copper and gold project under way
in Balochistan Province has the potential
to draw foreign investment totaling as much
as $6 billion over the next five years.
The Rekodiq mining area has proven estimated
reserves of 2 billion mt of copper and 20
million oz of gold. According to the current
market price, the value of the deposits
has been estimated at about $65 billion.
The Balochistan government has a 25% stake
…. read
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Ambatovy Sponsors Arrange for $2.1
Billion of Project Debt Financing
- Sherritt International Corp. announced on
August 24 that it has executed financing agreements
for the provision of $2.1 billion of project
debt to the Ambatovy nickel project in Madagascar
with a group of international lenders from
Japan, Korea, Europe, Canada and Africa. First
disbursement of funds is expected after the
satisfactory completion of certain conditions,
and Sherritt said it expects these conditions
to be satisfied later this year…. read
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Platmin Okays Development at Pilanesberg
PGM Project - Platmin Ltd. recently
reported the results of a feasibility study
for its Tuschenkomst and Ruighoek properties
at the company’s Pilanesberg project, and
also announced that its board of directors
approved development of the project on July
12 based on the favorable recommendation
offered by the study. Platmin is a TSX and
AIM (PPN) listed PGM exploration and development
company with four advanced projects that
host PGM mineral resources and reserves……
read more
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Second Powerful Bounce at Utah Mine
Kills Three Rescuers Trying to Reach Six
Trapped Miners - Underground rescue
operations took a turn for the worse on
the evening of Thursday, August 16, when
a significant bounce occurred at Genwal
Resources, Inc.’s Crandall Canyon mine in
Emery County, Utah, USA. Three rescue workers
were killed, including a U.S. Mine Safety
and Health Administration (MSHA) inspector.
Six others were hospitalized. The following
day the mine owner, Robert E. Murray, and
MSHA announced that all underground rescue
efforts had been suspended.
The rescuers were trying to reach six miners
that had been trapped by a large cave-in.
Seismologists at the University of Utah
recorded seismic activity occurring at the
time of the mine’s collapse early Monday
morning, August 6. MSHA said that mine officials
notified them of the collapse at 3:40 a.m.
Seismologists were initially unsure….
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Productivity Considerations for Shovels and Excavators
Better technology and more power make loading tools more productive, but well-trained operators are the most important aspect.
By Steve Fiscor, Editor-in-Chief
Cycle times can be one of the more puzzling
aspects of open-pit mining. Depending on one’s
perspective, the term has several connotations.
A rope shovel operator might view a cycle
as the point from which the bucket dumps to
the point where it dumps again, while a truck
driver might view it as the time it takes
to complete a circuit from the face to the
dump……. read
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 Canadian Mining: A Crowded House
Although consolidation has chipped away at the ranks of major Canadian producers, investment levels remain high and junior companies are intent upon filling the gaps
By Russell A. Carter, Managing Editor
By any commonly accepted unit of measurement,
Canada is a mining powerhouse, with a strong
domestic industry and a hefty global share
of mineral exports, international exploration
activity and mining technology transfer. Canadian
mines produce 60 commodities—ranking the nation
among the top 10 global producers for 17 of
them—and 60% of all mineral exploration companies
are listed in Canada. It’s also estimated
that about 50% of all mining- related equity
financing takes place there as well. Canadian
mineral production, including coal, was valued
at $33.6 billion in 2006, almost 23% higher
than the $27.4 billion reported in 2005......
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Technical Factors for Selecting Optimum Heap Leach Pad Sites
Selection of a pad site can
have significant, long-lasting effects on
leaching performance, safety and environmental
impact.
By Saeed Karimi Nasab, Azadeh Hojat and Mohammad Reza Mollaei Fard
Since the 1970s, heap leaching has been widely
used by mining companies to extract valuable
minerals from low-grade oxide ores while generally
offering improved worker and site safety,
easier work conditions and less energy consumption
than other processing methods. However, improper
site selection of such facilities can significantly
influence capital and operating costs and
result in serious short-and-long term environmental
hazards. This article outlines key technical
factors that should be considered in selecting
optimum sites for heap leach pads…...
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 Partnership
at Pyhäsalmi
Haulage is one key focus for
partners Pyhäsalmi Mine Oy and Sandvik.
By Kyran Casteel, European Editor
For the mining industry, with its sitespecific
requirements, to conceive the equipment supplier–mine
customer relationship as a partnership is
a simple and logical proposition. Many manufacturers
preached the partnership message around the
turn of the century. Practice, however, was
not so simple: customer and supplier expectations
of the level of supplier commitment to be
provided sometimes differed, occasionally
to the point of quite spectacular fallings
out. Today, suppliers are offering more precisely
defined after-market partnering deals.....
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AIMEX On Display
Earlier
this month AIMEX, the large mining trade show
held every four years in Sydney, Australia,
took place amid an Australian mining boom
that is rivaled only by the golden days of
the 1960s in terms of domestic and offshore
project investment. Touted by its sponsors
as the largest mining trade show ever to be
held in Australia. The event served as the
launching point for a number of mining-related
products—many of which were developed by Australian
suppliers—as well as a showcase for major
international equipment manufacturers to present
their latest models, technical innovations
and services. The following are a sample of
the technology that was on display at AIMEX
2007
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 Powertrans
- exhibited a new prime-mover tractor
unit for its mine haulage systems. The new
T1250 tractor represents the company’s initial
offering of its own prime movers for its surface
and underground haulage systems; previously
it used commercially available on-highway
prime movers. According to Powertrans, it
is now offering purpose-built tractor units
in order to reduce lead times, to provide
a prime mover specifically designed for mining
applications and conditions, and with all
safety systems built in from the ground up….
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 Bonfiglioli
Transmission (Australia) - was expected
to highlight the torque density of its Transmital
planetary drives. These multi-stage (up to
6 stages) planetary drives can handle peak
torque outputs of more than 1,000,000 Nm and
continuous outputs of more than 500,000 Nm.
They are extremely efficient in transmitting
power and very compact. Bonfiglioli has invested
$16 million in design and production facilities
and inventory, and these gearboxes can be
specified and assembled in Australia.…… read
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 FMC
Technologies - displayed the new
FMC 2000 Series conveyor idler rolls, which
exceed CEMA load ratings. The new rolls feature
pressed heads, eliminating distortion. Machined
bearing seats, and the placement of the bearing
close to the shaft supports, provides very
low bearing misalignment. Excellent protection
against the ingress of contaminants is provided
by the combination of an outer quad-gap horizontal
labyrinth member and a dual-lip nitrile rubber
shaft contact seal…. read
more
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 Liebherr
Australia - showed off its new hydrostatic
drive L 586 2plus2 wheel loader. This loader
is a new size for Liebherr (20.43 mt, 250
kW) and is the flagship of the recently released
generation 6 2plus2 range. The 2plus2 system
employs a variable flow pump and two variable
axial piston motors that accelerate the loader
continuously from standstill to maximum speed
in either forward or reverse. Fuel savings
of up to 35% over conventional loaders are
claimed. The engine and pump are mounted low
at the rear of the loader, providing significant
rear weight for high tipping…. read
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 Vermeer
Sales & Service - promoted the
Vermeer TL1255 600- hp terrain leveller. The
TL1255 has a 3.7 m wide tilting cutter drum,
and can cut up to 81.2 cm deep. The tilting
drum facilitates the use of laser guidance
technology to control grade. Proprietary “top
down cutting” technology is used, with the
teeth cutting into rock as the machine moves
forward. The TL1255 does not rely on tractive
force to create tooth penetration. It employs
heavy duty head shaft motors and splined headshafts.
Because the cutting drum is an attachment,
the TL1255 can be readily converted to work
as a trencher, increasing its versatility….
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 Danfoss
Australia - displayed its new VLT
family of AC drives, ranging in capacity from
0.18 kW to 1.2 MW and are highly efficient,
with 98% of the power being transferred to
the motor. Even this small percentage can
mean significant heat loss on a large drive,
but this is managed by transmitting 85% of
the excess heat through the back-channel heat
sink, removing it from the drive, panel and
working environment…. read
more
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 MicroMentis
- staged the world release of its
Surface Wave Intelligent Profiling System
(SWIPS) for visualizing the mechanical and
physical properties of solids at a range exceeding
100 m. The system comprises 16 wireless sensors,
a shear wave impact generator and a user interface
that incorporates the most advanced software
applications for earth analysis and modeling.
The components are packed into two carrying
cases each weighing 15 kg, so the system is
extremely portable. Operation of the SWIPS
equipment requires minimal training….read
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 Victron
Energy BV - introduced its power
solutions for stand-alone, standby and back-up
power systems. The unique Phoenix MultiPlus
inverter/charger has a powerful true sine
wave inverter; a sophisticated battery charger
with adaptive charge technology; a high-speed
AC transfer switch in a single enclosure;
and a compact robust housing. Unique advanced
features include UPS functionality (the inverter
takes over within 20 milliseconds of a power
failure), power control (it takes AC load
into account when charging the batteries),
power assist (the inverter can supplement
a generator for peak loads)…. read
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| OCTOBER 22-24,
2007: World Gold 2007, Cairns, Australia.
Contact: Alison McKenzie; Tel: 61 3 9662
3166; Fax: 61 3 9662 3662; E-mail: conference@ausimm.com.au
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| OCTOBER 31–NOVEMBER
3, 2007: Mining Indonesia 2007, Jakarta,
Indonesia. Contact: Maysia Stephanie;
Tel: 62 21 316 2001; Fax: 62 21 316 1983/4;
E-mail: maysia@pamerindo.com;
Web: www.pamerindo.com
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| NOVEMBER 5-11,
2007: 2007 Alaska Miners Association Annual
Convention, Anchorage, Alaska, USA.
Contact: AMA; Tel: 907-563-9229; Fax: 907-563-9225;
E-mail: ama@alaskaminers.org;
Web: www.alaskaminers.org |
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| DECEMBER 3-7, 2007:
Northwest Mining Association’s 113th Annual
Meeting and Exposition, Spokane, Washington,
USA. Contact: Northwest Mining
Association; Tel.: 509-624-1158; Fax: 509-623-1241;
E-mail: nwma_info@nwma.org;
Web: www.nwma.org |
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| JANUARY 17-20,
2008: IME 2008 Exhibition and 2nd Asian
Mining Congress, Kolkata, India.
Contact: The Mining, Geological & Metallurgical
Institute of India; Tel: 91(33) 23573482;
Fax: 91(33) 22435653; E-mail: mgmi@cal2.vsnl.net.in;
Web: www.indianmining.com
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| FEBRUARY 5-6, 2008:
Conference on Minerals Engineering, Luleå
Technical University, Luleå, Sweden.
Contact: Bertil Pålsson, Mineral Processing
Division, LTU; Tel: 46 920 491314 Fax: 46
920 97364; E-mail: Bertil.Palsson@ltu.se |
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| For a full calendar of
mining industry conferences and events -
click
here |
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| Newmont
Mining Corp. announced that Russell
Ball has been named senior VP and
CFO; Guy Landsdown has been
named senior VP, Project Development and Technical
Services; and Randy Engel
has been named senior VP, Strategy and Corporate
Development. |
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 Alcoa
announced that Jinya Chen
has been named president, Asia-Pacific Region.
He succeeds Lloyd Jones, who will retire at
the end of this year.
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Kiu Hung International Holdings Ltd. announced
the following appointments: Ying Chengping
as chief engineer in Coal Geology and Exploration;
Song Yuzhu as director and
chief engineer in Mining Operation; and Fan
Weikang as chief engineer in Pit
Exploration. |
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| Golden
Star Resources Ltd. announced that its President
and CEO, Peter Bradford,
will step down as a director and officer of
the company. The company also announced that
S. Mitchel Wasel has been
named VP Exploration. He replaces Dr.
Doug Jones. |
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 Marathon
PGM Corp. announced the appointment of Raymond
Mason as vice president of Operations.
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 Vista
Gold Corp. announced the promotion of Frederick
H. Earnest to president and COO. |
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Kimberly Gold Mines announced that Gary
Harbottle has been appointed controller
and De Anna Dwyer has been
appointed corporate secretary and treasurer.
Gene Higdem, secretary and
treasurer, recently retired. The company also
announced that Steve Cutler
has been named VP Exploration. |
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 Bucyrus
International, Inc. recently announced its
senior management integration plan for Bucyrus
and its recent acquisition of DBT. The senior
management team with overall corporate responsibility
will continue to be lead by Timothy
W. Sullivan, president and CEO. Overseeing
activities in their respective disciplines
are: William S. Tate, executive
VP, Global Markets and Strategic Support;
Craig R. Mackus, CFO; Barbara
H. Stephens, senior VP, Human Resources;
and Scott S. Cramer senior
VP, General Counsel. In addition, with overall
responsibility for the operation of the manufacturing
units are Kenneth W. Krueger,
COO, Bucyrus; and Luis de Leon,
COO, DBT. At the time of the acquisition DBT’s
management system included a management board,
which will remain in place and include Sullivan.
New to the board will be Dr. Ulrich
Noll, VP of Operations-Longwall.
Remaining on the board is de Leon
and Hermann Oecking, DBT.
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