In this issue

Welcome to the latest issue of MINE Magazine.

This month, we go from Europe to Africa to see what the two continents have in common with regard to mining. UK-headquartered Pensana is looking to diversify the world’s supply of rare earths, and aims to develop parallel plants in England and Angola to wrest control of the rare earth supply from China, and establish a new source of the critical minerals. 

But how straightforward can it be to develop plants on similar timeframes, and with similar goals, in totally different parts of the world? Additionally, such an international initiative is not free from the environmental damage and social upheaval that can accompany new mining projects, raising questions as to whether this ambitious project can be delivered in a sustainable manner. 

Elsewhere, we check in with two firms who do not operate mines themselves, but could hold the key to developing sustainable mining. First, we speak to Deloitte and ask how the mining industry has adapted to the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, before talking to Tomra about its XRT sensors, which aim to deliver efficiency and efficacy for the sorting sector. 

With interest in new gold mines in the US state of California, we also look back at the famous gold rush of the 19th century. With a century and a half of lucrative, but ultimately inconsistent, production, can the latest generation of Californian miners capture the spirit of 1849 in a radically different mining world? 

For all this, plus our usual range of news, views and features, read on. 

JP Casey, editor