Extractive industries
Lifting US jade sanctions ‘a mistake’: Myanmar minister
The minister in charge of mining in Myanmar’s conflict-ridden state of Kachin says it was a mistake for the United States to lift sanctions on the country’s notorious jade industry. Kachin lies at the heart of the “jade tract”, a small area that has deposits ...
Stone, sand, water the key ingredients changing the Salween landscape
Tun Lin has a unique occupation: he is the security guard at Linno limestone karst cave on the bank of the Salween River in Myanmar’s southeast Karen (Kayin) State. He earns 80,000 Myanmar kyat (around $60) per month to guard the entrance to the cave, ...
Lessons from the $2 billion coal mining lawsuit against Indonesia
Indonesia cannot be held liable for $2 billion in compensation sought by Churchill Mining for the revocation of a coal-mining concession, the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes ruled in a Dec. 6 verdict. The tribunal determined that Churchill’s claim to the ...
Villagers wary of M’kiri mine project
An environmental impact assessment released on Friday for a $245 million mining project slated to begin operations in Mondolkiri province next year has raised concerns about its potential effects on the environment and local communities. The project, proposed by the Chinese-owned Alex Corporation, would see ...
Shut gold mine shows investors risks of Thai junta rule
When Thailand’s junta leader-turned-prime minister used his absolute power to suspend gold mining, causing an Australian miner’s shares to plummet 19% in a single day, he complicated efforts to attract foreign investors already spooked by military rule. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced the order last ...
Minister faces music on sand
Mines Minister Suy Sem could not give parliament’s anti-corruption commission an acceptable explanation for why Cambodian customs data failed to note $750 million in sand exports that Singapore says it received, the committee’s chairman said after a hearing on December 15. Sem was called in ...
Gold mine ban ‘not final’
Experts believe junta order allows room for amendment later; Akara Resources says 1,000 workers will lose jobs. Environmental experts believe that the junta’s order on Tuesday to suspend gold mining operations is not final and there is room to reverse the decision or amend the ...
Vietsovpetro to exceed annual gas target
Russia and Viet Nam’s oil and gas exploration joint venture, Vietsovpetro, will ship ashore around 1.6 billion cu.m of gas this year, 27 per cent more than its annual target. Of this, 654 million cu.m of gas will come from Lot 09-1, in the northwest ...
Rights groups welcome order to shut Thailand gold mine
Human rights groups on December 14 welcomed a decision by Thailand to close the country’s only active gold mine by the end of the year as the mine’s operator said it had laid off the employees. Thailand’s ruling junta on December 13 said it is suspending all ...
Will coal shares bounce back?
The strong increase in coal prices has rekindled hopes for Vietnam’s miners and securities investors after a period of disappointment. After eight years of decline, the coal price began recovering in early 2016. Analysts commented that the coal price has been witnessing the strongest recovery compared ...
