Gold mine sales on the horizon for Africa – as expected

Some of the lowest valuations in decades and rising pressure on Africa’s gold producers to restructure or perish are likely to spur a wave of acquisitions in a sector attracting a growing number of potential buyers.

Mali plans $9.5bn Chinese-built resources rail links to coast

Landlocked Mali aims to diversify its mining sector away from gold with Chinese-built rail projects worth $9.5 billion that would link it to the Atlantic coast, even as slowing Chinese growth and falling commodity prices cool investment.

Gold Fields says licence not at risk

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African gold producer Gold Fields said on Monday it had received a letter from the government expressing concern about its social and labour plans but did not think the licence at its flagship South Deep mine was in jeopardy. “I can confirm that we received a letter from DMR (department of mineral resources) … Read more

Sibanye H1 profit falls after share issue

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African gold producer Sibanye Gold said on Thursday its first-half earnings fell by more than 50 percent, reflecting the dilutive impact of a share issue this year. Diluted headline earnings for the six months to end-June totalled 8 U.S. cents a share, compared with 17 cents a year earlier. Gold production … Read more

South African stocks end lower but mining shares rise

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African stocks edged lower on Monday in line with global peers as simmering political tensions in Ukraine weighed on appetite for risky assets. But shares of mining firm Anglo American Platinum rose 4.69 percent to 478.74 rand after the company said it would sell its strike-hit and underperforming mines in Rustenburg. Resource shares … Read more

SA’s AngloGold appoints ex-Sasol executive as new CFO

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Africa’s top gold producer AngloGold Ashanti said on Monday that Christine Ramon would be replacing Richard Duffy as its chief financial officer from October 1. Ramon, 47, is one of the most high-profile female executives in South Africa. She was CFO at petro-chemicals giant Sasol from 2006 to 2013, when the company initiated a number of … Read more

AFRICA INVESTMENT-The Swiss commodities connection in African poverty

By Ed Stoddard JOHANNESBURG, June 27 (Reuters) – Are mispricing and the opacity of commodities trading in Switzerland contributing to Africa’s underdevelopment? The world’s poorest continent remains heavily dependent on natural resources and so is extremely vulnerable to manipulations in the price of the commodities it extracts and exports, with very real consequences for its … Read more