World Impact Summit 2022 : un sommet international pour innover autrement

Cette année, le World Impact Summit, sommet international des solutions à impact positif, se tiendra les 30 novembre et 1er décembre au palais des Congrès à Bordeaux. Parrainée par le célèbre explorateur et environnementaliste Bertrand Piccard, la 5e édition de cet événement attendu s’attachera...

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Most Australian mine workers dissatisfied with their jobs – report

A recent report led by researchers at Curtin University has found that Australian mining companies have a stronger focus on employees’ physical health and safety than on their mental health and well-being.

The study examined employee welfare in the mining sector and found that only 22% of workers were very satisfied with their overall job, with employees experiencing poor job satisfaction, job security and job prospects compared to other industries.

By reviewing secondary evidence from the Australian Human Rights Commission, the authors of the report also found the mining sector is one of the worst five industries in the country in relation to sexual harassment issues, with 40% of workers and 74% of female workers reporting sexual harassment in the last five years.

The dossier develops a unique index to capture the prioritization of employee health and well-being based on mining companies’ public reports and found that many of them, particularly those that are larger or have women at the helm, are prioritizing well-being. However, only 33% refer to loneliness, social connection, or isolation in their reports, and only 50% of mining companies refer to sexual harassment, assault, and sexism.

(Graph from the “Towards a healthy and safe workforce in the mining industry: A review and mapping of current practice” report).

According to Astghik Mavisakalyan, co-author of the study and a professor at the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre, all of these factors contribute to the mining industry rating the lowest among all Australian industries for job satisfaction.

“We found that while mining sector workers experienced good physical health and were more satisfied with their jobs now compared to 15 years ago, the number of very satisfied workers was the lowest of all industries,” Mavisakalyan said. “The report also showed that the levels of high distress of mining sector workers had risen considerably in the past decade, from 9% in 2009 to 15% in 2019.”

For Mavisakalyan and her colleagues, it is important to identify and support employees that are experiencing poor mental health and proactively create a healthy work environment.

“This means developing work cultures in which women are welcome and accepted, as well as, for all workers, having meaningful jobs with decent rosters, acceptable levels of job demands, and supportive managers,” Sharon Parker, a researcher at Curtin’s Future of Work Institute, said. “Having anti-harassment and mental health policies is necessary but not sufficient. These policies need to be backed up by on-the-ground support, such as effective systems for reporting harassment, and education and training of managers to effectively implement the policies.”

Parker and Mavisakalyan also mentioned this report is the first contribution to a major project that is intended to promote positive and effective change for those working in the mining industry who might be experiencing poor mental health and well-being, as well as those subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace.

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Un intrigant dinosaure nain avec une tête plate découvert en Transylvanie

Une nouvelle espèce de dinosaure nain a été découverte en Transylvanie. Sa particularité : une tête exceptionnellement plate !

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Le MIT crée des robots intelligents auto-répliquants !

Des robots intelligents capables de se répliquer eux-mêmes en totale autonomie : voici l'invention presque dystopique que le MIT a présentée la semaine dernière. Ces robots sont composées de petits polyèdres de métal connectés qui leur offrent la possibilité de transporter leur propre...

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Une « triple épidémie » de virus respiratoires menace les hôpitaux

Grippe, Covid-19 et bronchiolite, trois virus respiratoires majeurs dont la circulation active menace les hôpitaux français déjà fragilisés, notamment dans les services pédiatriques. Quelle est la situation actuelle ?

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Cassiar Gold drilling in northern British Columbia returns promising grades

The latest results from drilling at Cassiar Gold’s (TSXV: GLDC; US-OTCQX: CHLCF) Taurus deposit in the Cassiar North area of northern British Columbia confirm the project’s bulk-tonnage potential, the Calgary, Alberta-based company says.

According to Cassiar’s CEO, Marco Roque, the assay results from six holes drilled this summer demonstrate similar grades and apparent thickness as drill holes used in the 2022 Taurus resource estimate.

Highlights include drill hole 22TA-158 at Taurus West, which intersected 72.3 metres of 1.09 grams gold per tonne from 337 metres downhole, extending mineralization 50 metres beyond the inferred resource open-pit shell.

Drill hole 22TA-152 at Taurus Central returned several intervals, including 20.2 metres of 1.33 grams gold from 157.4 metres downhole outside the current resource grade shell, including 0.5 metre of 25.9 grams, and 29.1 metres of 1.17 grams gold from 279.7 metres downhole. The holes expanded on deeper mineralized areas outside the inferred pit shell.

Also, in the Taurus Central area, hole 22TA-149 cut 36.8 metres of 1.3 grams gold per tonne from 8.2 metres downhole, including 5.3 metres of 4.09 grams gold, confirming near-surface mineralization encountered in historical drill holes.

The company’s 2022 program included 70 drill holes and over 23,000 metres of diamond drilling that began in June and finished in October. The exploration focus of the drilling targeted high-priority areas at the Taurus deposit, significant vein prospects at Cassiar South and more brownfield opportunities on the property.

The Taurus deposit hosts a near-surface, inferred resource of 1.4 million oz. grading 1.14 grams gold per tonne in 37.9 million tonnes of material, which remains open in all directions.

With Cassiar’s most extensive drilling program to date now complete, the company expects to release more results through year-end and into the new year. Results from 19,102 metres of drilling (57 drill holes) remain pending.

The company is working towards a potential resource update in 2023, dependent on results from the 2022 drill campaign at Cassiar North and Cassiar South.

Cassiar had C$10.3 million cash in the bank as of September.

The company’s Toronto-quoted equity fell about 5% on the news Tuesday to C52.5¢ per share, giving it a market cap of C$42.8 million. It is down about 31% over the past 12 months, having tested C48¢ to C$1.48 per share.

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Fortescue keeps women on the top job with Fiona Hick’s appointment

Australia’s Fortescue Metals Group (ASX: FMG) has named former Woodside Energy (ASX: WDS) executive Fiona Hick as its new chief executive officer, effective February 2023.

With the appointment, the iron ore miner ends a year-long search for a leader to replace current CEO Elizabeth Gaines, who will remains on Fortescue’s board as a non-executive director.

Hick, who began her mining career at Hamersley Iron in 1996, joins Fortescue at a time when the company is tapping into new commodities, such as critical minerals and rare-earths.

The miner has also kicked off a transition plan into a green energy firm through its unit Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), and Hick said she is ready to grow the company into one of the world’s most climate-responsible miners.

She will be directly responsible for the iron ore operations in the Pilbara and a new iron ore mine in Gabon, as well as an ambitious energy minerals exploration program.

“I am so thrilled to have found someone so close to home that knows the Pilbara like the back of her hand,” Andrew Forrester, Fortescue’s founder and executive chairman said in the statement.

“I have enjoyed and grown immensely during my 20 years in energy. I am as committed to the new future of the world as Andrew is,” Hick noted. “We must provide the metals and the energy which will help to accelerate the energy transition.”

The upcoming CEO spent more than two decades at Woodside, most recently as the executive vice-president of Australian operations.

She was part of the team that led the company through its $40 billion merger with BHP’s petroleum division.

Hick’s nomination to one of the top roles in corporate Australia comes after some high-profile executive departures within Forrest’s business empire. 

Former Reserve Bank of Australia deputy governor Guy Debelle stepped down last week as chief financial officer of Fortescue Future Industries, the company’s green energy arm. 

His departure followed former NAB executive Andrew Hagger’s, who in October vacated the CEO position at of Forrest’s philanthropy firm Minderoo and private investment vehicle Tattarang.

Elizabeth Gaines made history when she was appointed in 2017, becoming the first woman to run the iron ore giant and the second chief executive officer to have taken the role since Fortescue inception in 2003.

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L'énorme densité neuronale des éléphants impressionne les scientifiques

Le cerveau des éléphants reste relativement inexploré et l'extraordinaire musculature de la trompe ainsi que sa polyvalence sont toujours source d'interrogations. Des chercheurs ont étudié sa motricité et ont établi que le noyau facial différait de celui des autres mammifères terrestres....

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Artemis I : Orion capture une éclipse de la Terre comme vous n’en avez jamais vu !

La mission Artemis I se poursuit et c’est un véritable succès, a souligné l’administrateur de la Nasa, Bill Nelson, ajoutant qu’Orion « a terminé une série d'événements historiques ». « Mais c’est un test, rappelle-t-il. Nous le testons et nous le stressons ».La Terre et la Lune vus d'Orion à...

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Twitter : les données personnelles de plus d'un million de Français piratées

Twitter est victime d’une énorme fuite de données privées qui pourrait atteindre 24 millions de comptes d’utilisateurs. Près de 5,5 millions d’informations personnelles ont déjà été publiées lors d’une première collecte en décembre dernier. Lors d’une seconde fuite, qui serait trois fois plus...

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Major US labs launch energy storage consortium

Three ‘major-league’ laboratories in the US have joined forces to launch Stor4Build, a new consortium on energy storage for buildings that is tasked with accelerating the growth, optimization, and deployment of storage technologies. 

Co-led by the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Stor4Build will focus on cost-effective energy storage for the large-scale deployment of renewable electricity, electrification, and decarbonization. 

According to the labs, as much as 50% of electricity consumption in buildings in the United States goes toward meeting thermal loads. Thermal energy storage (TES) solutions, thus, show promise as a cost-effective energy storage alternative.

“A multidisciplinary consortium like Stor4Build can accelerate the discovery-to-deployment timeline so that thermal energy storage can be deployed on a massive scale to tackle climate change,” Ravi Prasher, Berkeley Lab’s former associate lab director who was instrumental in the development of this collaboration, said in a media statement. 

TES refers to the energy that can be stored in a material as a heat source or a cold sink, rather than as electrical energy, and reserved for use at a different time. These solutions can increase load flexibility, promote the use of renewable energy sources, and allow heat pumps to function more effectively and in more extreme climates.

The general target of TES systems is to reach installed capital costs of less than $15 per kWh of stored thermal energy, and the consortium plans to develop metrics for identifying optimal performance targets for power and energy density, working temperature, materials and systems costs, round-trip efficiency, lifetime and durability, installation and operation, and maintenance costs.

“By shifting HVAC loads off-peak, TES addresses grid challenges associated with electrification and decarbonization. To become impactful nationwide requires new materials and new methods of integrating storage with HVAC,” said Kyle Gluesenkamp, ORNL senior scientist and Stor4Build co-director. “Stor4Build will bring together the stakeholders necessary to accelerate development and market adoption of scalable TES technologies.”

Gluesenkamp and his colleagues identified four research areas as foundational to all consortium activities: materials optimization and manufacturing; modelling and analysis; system optimization and integration; and market, policy, and equity. 

Democratizing thermal energy

Led by industry-recognized experts at the national laboratories, the consortium also plans to include active participants from diverse stakeholder groups representing industry, utilities, nonprofit organizations, communities, building owners, academia, government, and other research institutions. The cross-cutting team will address the need of developing equitable solutions to ensure the benefits of storage technologies are clear for all communities, including those historically disadvantaged.

“A major goal of the consortium is to develop and deploy thermal energy storage technologies for all communities while accelerating their commercialization and utilization for building applications,” Sumanjeet Kaur, Stor4Build’s Berkeley Lab co-director, said. “Thermal energy storage is a natural solution for buildings that can complement other energy storage technologies. In fact, proper system sizing and controls of these hybrid systems that combine on-site electrochemical and thermal energy storage could result in better overall performance than either system alone.”

The consortium plans to complete a community-scale demonstration of technologies to showcase the initial achievements of the consortium, which will serve as a foundation for large-scale deployments of TES, along with electrochemical battery energy storage and systems capable of satisfying both the heating and cooling needs in buildings.

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Les bébés les plus vieux du monde viennent de naître

Une femme américaine née en 1989 vient de donner naissance à des jumeaux dont les embryons ont été congelés en 1992 ! La fécondation in vitro a permis ce nouvel exploit, plus fréquent qu’on ne le pense au cours des trente dernières années.

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Consensus forecast is for two years of stagnant copper prices

The copper price fell on Monday as unprecedented street protests in cities across China threatened to further dampen already subdued economic activity in the country responsible for more than half the world’s consumption of base metals.

Copper for delivery in March fell 1% on the Comex market in New York, touching $3.59 per pound or $7,915 per tonne. The bellwether metal is now down 27% since hitting record highs in March and a new survey of over 30 investment banks and economic research houses sees little prospect for an exit from the bear market.

FocusEconomics, a Barcelona-based independent research company, says demand for copper and industrial metals should stay fairly limp during the first half of next year “as global interest rates peak and China’s economy likely stays weighed down by the property crash and covid-19.”

The consensus forecast for average copper prices in 2023 is below current levels at around $7,660 per tonne, according to FocusEconomics with the lowest prediction at just $5,430 per tonne and the top end at an uninspiring $8,775 per tonne. 

In 2024 prices are expected to average $8,000 per tonne – with the most bearish prediction pegged at below $5,000 and the highest $10,750 per tonne. 

FocusEconomics quotes Goldman Sachs as saying historically low global inventories of copper could boost prices in the near term:  

“Whilst we would attribute limited benefit to the expected copper end demand path next year from [Chinese economic] reopening per se, the potential for a meaningful restock to occur on confidence effects would still have a significant bullish implication given global visible stocks now stand at just under 240kt, the lowest level for this point in the year since 2006.

“We estimate that if China were to increase its stocks in consumption terms from the current 1 week to the 3 weeks seen during the immediate pre-covid era, that would boost China’s physical demand by close to 500kt next year.”

The longer term outlook is also bullish, with the Economist Intelligence Unit commenting that “underinvestment in futures projects to tighten the underlying fundamentals in the second half of the decade”:

“Although recent mine and smelter expansions have seen minimal disruptions, we maintain our view that factors such as resource nationalism and stricter environmental oversight are likely to persist in the long term, raising concerns that new mine projects and planned smelter expansions will be insufficient to meet future demand.”

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BHP averts strike at world’s biggest copper mine

Unionized workers at Escondida mine in northern Chile have accepted BHP’s (ASX, LON, NYSE: BHP) latest offer and will not move forward with a strike that was planned for Nov. 28 and 30.

Workers at Sindicato 1, which represents more than 2,000 members, backed on Monday the agreement reached last week between union representatives and the Australian miner.

The deal, which was subject to vote, came after days of negotiations with union representatives, who had called for a strike on November 21 and 23 due to multiple “non-compliances, infractions and violations” allegedly committed by BHP.

“This proposal contains a series of concrete and verifiable measures to improve the hygiene and safety of workers,” the union said in a statement. “Especially an intense joint inspection program between the union and the company of all work areas.”

It noted the proposal also “set aside changes in operating practices the company was pursuing.”

With the deal, BHP has averted a strike at the world’s largest copper mine at a time of tight global supplies and high prices for the the orange metal, a key material needed for the world’s transition to a green economy.

The Escondida copper mine is responsible for about 5% of the world’s total copper output and Chile is the world’s top producer of the metal.

In 2017, unionized workers at the mine staged a 44-day strike, the longest in Chilean mining history. The labour action cost the company $740 million in losses and meant a contraction of about 1.3% of Chile’s GDP.

While Escondida is majority-owned and operated by BHP, Rio Tinto and a Japanese consortium that includes Mitsubishi Corp and JX Nippon Mining & Metals also hold stakes in the mine.

Chile’s state owned mining company Codelco, the world’s biggest copper producer, warned last week that global shortages of the metal may reach eight million tonnes by 2032, as soaring demand continues to offset new projects numbers.

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Et si les extraterrestres se cachaient dans des grottes ?

Pendant des millénaires, les humains se sont abrités dans des grottes. Et les scientifiques savent aujourd’hui que les conditions qu’elles offrent permettent à des écosystèmes uniques de s’y développer. Alors pourquoi n’en serait-il pas de même sur d’autres planètes que notre Terre ? Des formes...

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Elon Musk pourrait lancer un smartphone alternatif

Après les voitures électriques, les fusées pour Mars, ou encore le rachat de Twitter et son bouleversement, Elon Musk pourrait bien créer son smartphone alternatif. Une intention dévoilée en un tweet. Est-ce que le nouveau patron de Twitter y arriverait mieux que ses prédécesseurs ayant tenté...

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Antarctique, une clé de voûte du monde en péril ?

Au cœur du dossier qui ouvre le nouveau Mag' Futura : l'Antarctique et ses secrets. Situé aux extrémités de la Terre, royaume des glaces éternelles longtemps considérée à l'abri. La science a désormais apporté son lot de connaissances et l’Antarctique est parmi les zones sauvages les plus...

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L’atmosphère de Vénus aurait été détruite par d’énormes éruptions volcaniques

Comme sur Terre, les grandes éruptions volcaniques auraient pu bouleverser le climat de Vénus. Mais si la Terre s’en est à chaque fois remise, l’environnement vénusien en aurait été définitivement affecté.

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La première édition de Ma thèse en 3 minutes par Orange fait la Une !

Depuis plus de 10 ans maintenant, le Salon de la Recherche et de l’Innovation d’Orange permet de découvrir, tester et toucher du doigt des ruptures structurantes conçues par le Groupe. Pour mieux les faire connaître, cette nouvelle édition a eu l’idée d’une battle de pitchs : « Ma thèse en 3...

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Offrez-vous le ciel profond et devenez astronome citoyen avec les eVscopes d'Unistellar

Les eVscopes (Enhanced Vision Telescope) d'Unistellar sont des télescopes intelligents et contrôlés via votre smartphone. En quelques minutes, ils se pointent sur une galaxie du ciel profond pour en donner des images en couleurs. Mieux, ils sont reliés à une communauté de plus en plus vaste à...

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UK, South Africa seek deeper cooperation on critical minerals

London and Pretoria announced a partnership to promote the responsible exploration, development, production, and processing of critical minerals in South Africa.

In a media statement, both governments said that this new collaboration will start with the launching of regular ministerial and technical dialogues between South Africa’s Department for Mineral Resources and Energy and the UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

“South Africa is a leading producer of minerals including platinum, palladium and iridium for hydrogen production and vanadium and manganese for battery storage,” the release points out. “Cooperation will help to support investment into exploration, production and beneficiation activities, securing and expanding access to minerals that are key for clean industrial and economic development and the global clean energy transition.”

South Africa is responsible for 60% of the global manganese supply, 75% of the platinum supply and 40% of the palladium supply. It also produces or has the potential to produce, vanadium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements.

Thus, in addition to boosting the mining sector, the UK and South Africa plan to work together to identify and carry out joint projects aimed at developing clean energies and technologies such as battery storage, fuel cell technologies, energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions.

“This joint work aims to create an enabling environment for promoting participation of private sector companies, support investment flows into the minerals mining sector and grow new clean jobs, noting that the UK is a leading centre of mining finance, standards, and metals trading,” the communiqué reads. “Both countries will encourage and support partnerships between UK and South African companies across the value chain for minerals and clean energy to grow and strengthen business links to the benefit of both economies.”

Commenting on the announcement, Jordan Roberts, from market analysis firm Fastmarkets NewGen, said that industry observers may not be so fond of a UK-SA collaboration and would rather view cooperation with the likes of Canada and Australia on battery materials being more attractive, particularly when considering their ESG prospects.

“Despite this massive mineral endowment, many believe that the South African economy faces major long-term challenges, amid concerns around its sovereign debt, political corruption and the loss of high-skilled workers,” Roberts said.

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Electrokinetic mining allows for green, efficient recovery of REEs

Researchers at China’s Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry have developed a new technique, electrokinetic mining (EKM), for the green and efficient recovery of rare earth elements from weathering crusts.

The technique exerts a voltage on the top and bottom of the ion-adsorption rare earth deposits (IADs), which generates an electric field to accelerate REE and water migration toward the cathode.

Compared with conventional techniques, EKM achieves ~90% recovery efficiency, ~80% decrease in leaching agent usage, and ~70% reduction in metallic impurities in the obtained REEs.

To get to those figures, the scientists first carried out bench-scale experiments in a homemade prototype with a simulated IAD. Results suggested that the REE recovery efficiency achieved by the EKM technique was 2.6 times higher than that achieved by the commonly used ammonium leaching technique.

Illustration of IAD mining via EKM and AIP mechanisms. (Graph by Nature Sustainability.)

Then, they carried out scaled-up experiments at the kilogram scale (20 kg) in a larger EKM setup. The results were consistent with the bench-scale trials, that is, the EKM technique was able to achieve higher recovery efficiency and required less treatment time.

Based on the successful bench-scale and scaled-up experiments, the researchers applied the EKM technique to an actual IAD (~14 t-scale) during an on-site field experiment. Results suggested that the REE recovery efficiency was higher than 90% in 264 hours.

The group, thus, decided to further explore the mechanisms underlying the high REE recovery efficiency of the EKM. They noticed that the applied electric field that accelerates REEs and water migration unidirectionally towards the designed place via electromigration and electroosmosis is the key to enhancing REE recovery efficiency.

According to head researcher He Hongping, apart from its sustainability and high recovery efficiency, the EKM technique shows selectivity for REEs from other metallic impurities, namely, Al3+, Ca2+ Na+, and K+.

“We identified an autonomous impurity purification mechanism during the electrokinetic process, which is based on velocity and reactivity diversity between REE and other active metal ions,” He said.

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On sait comment les trous noirs accélèrent naturellement les particules… ou presque !

Les trous noirs supermassifs sont des objets étranges dont les astronomes n’ont pas encore percé tous les secrets. Mais un mystère vieux de 40 ans vient tout juste d’être résolu. Ou presque…

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Êtes-vous incollable sur le nucléaire ? Testez-vous avec ce questionnaire !

Le Mag' Futura s’apprête à revenir avec de nombreuses réponses à la question « Le nucléaire peut-il vraiment être écolo ? ». Mais avant cela, testez donc vos connaissances sur ce sujet qui divise et vérifiez si vous êtes incollable sur le nucléaire !

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La Chine dévoile le nouveau design de sa mégafusée pour aller sur la Lune

C’était jusqu'à présent de nature spéculative, désormais c'est officiel. La Chine a opté pour un nouveau design de sa fusée lunaire Long March 9, incluant de la réutilisation. Un premier modèle a été exposé en maquette lors du grand salon de l’air et de l’espace de Zhuhai, au sud du pays, il y a...

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Vider complètement la batterie de son smartphone prolonge sa durée de vie, vrai ou faux ?

Est-ce que vider complètement la batterie de son smartphone aide à prolonger sa durée de vie ?On entend souvent dire qu'utiliser son téléphone portable jusqu'à ce qu'il ait 5% de batterie, c'est la meilleure solution pour le garder de nombreuses années. Eh bien il est possible que ce ne soit pas...

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Astronautes : la proportion de femmes sélectionnées est plus importante que celle des femmes candidates

À l’occasion de la présentation de la nouvelle promotion d’astronautes de l’Agence spatiale européenne, nous nous sommes entretenus avec Jean-François Clervoy. Cet astronaute du Cnes et de l’ESA, toujours en activité et avec trois vols de navette à son actif, nous livre ses réflexions sur cette...

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Transformez vos selfies en personnages historiques avec l’AI Time Machine

Un nouvel outil basé sur l’intelligence artificielle se propose de vous faire voyager dans le temps. L’AI Time Machine se base sur vos photos pour générer des dizaines d’images de vous tel que vous pourriez apparaître dans différentes périodes de l’histoire.

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On a simulé en laboratoire la création de particules par le Big Bang

D'où viennent la matière et la lumière du rayonnement fossile ? Les physiciens ont des idées à ce sujet depuis le début des années 1960 et ces idées ne sont pas sans relation avec le rayonnement des trous noirs. Certaines pistes, issues de la théorie quantique des champs en espace-temps courbe,...

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Sécurité énergétique et réchauffement climatique : comment réduire nos émissions de méthane ?

Le Giec nous l’avait rappelé il y a quelques mois et l’OMM, l'Organisation météorologique mondiale, plus récemment. Le méthane (CH4) est le deuxième plus important contributeur au réchauffement climatique que nous connaissons actuellement. Flavia Sollazzo, directrice Senior, Transition...

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Vers des « supers El Niño » dès 2030 avec des sécheresses et des inondations extrêmes pour une partie du monde

El Niño et La Niña sont deux phénomènes climatiques majeurs qui influencent la météo d'une partie du monde. Une nouvelle étude australienne annonce que le réchauffement climatique va perturber, ou plutôt renforcer ces phénomènes, bien plus tôt que ce que l'on pensait.

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Austral Gold sells Pinguino project in Argentina to ASX-listed E2 Metals

Austral Gold (TSXV: AGLD; ASX: AGD) is selling its Pinguino polymetallic project in Argentina to E2 Metals (ASX: E2M) for $10 million in cash and shares, the companies said on Friday.

The deal is for $5 million in cash, with $2.5 million paid on closing plus staggered payments of $750,000 on the first and second anniversaries of closing and $1 million on the third, the companies said in a release.

The rest is to be paid in options and shares amounting to 19.99% of E2. Austral also keeps its option to purchase all or half of the existing 2% net smelter return royalty on the Pinguino project. They expect the deal to close by the end of March.

“This transaction with E2 Metals will enable us to share in the project’s potential upside and use the proceeds from the sale to fund our exploration activities in Argentina and Chile,” Austral chief executive officer Stabro Kasaneva said in the release.

“We will become the largest shareholder in an ASX-listed company with a sound shareholder base and strong position in the mining friendly Argentine province of Santa Cruz.”

Melbourne-based E2 Metals reported drilling this month showing “encouraging” mineralization at its Conserrat gold and silver project, just 30 km from Pinguino. The company also owns other properties in Argentina and Australia.

The Pinguino sale marks another stage in the long-running silver, gold, zinc, lead and indium project in south-central Argentina. Austral, led by Eduardo Elsztain, one of the country’s most prominent business leaders with large real estate and agriculture holdings, joined the project in 2013 when it was run by the now dormant Argentex Mining. But exploration at the site stretches back decades. At one point a financing arm of the World Bank held 12% in Argentex, which acquired the project in 2003.

An indicated resource estimate from 2014 shows Pinguino has 6.3 million tonnes grading 103.4 grams silver and 0.58 gram gold per tonne, 0.77% zinc and 0.54% lead (or 132.3 grams silver equivalent per tonne) for 20.9 million contained oz. silver and 117,000 contained oz. gold.

Pinguino, located about 300 km southwest of the city of Comodoro Rivadavia in Santa Cruz, a province known for mining. Pinguino lies in the same Deseado Massif geologic structure as AngloGold Ashanti’s (JSE: ANG) Cerro Vanguardia mine and Newmont’s (TSX: NGT; NYSE: NEM) Cerro Negro mine, Austral said, while noting six other projects have been developed in recent years in the same province.

The strike length at Pinguino has intermediate sulphidation epithermal veins. The deposit has a near-surface silver-gold oxide zone with supergene enrichment and older intrusive-related sulphide epithermal veins with zinc, silver, indium, lead and gold.

E2 Metals also holds the Cobar copper and gold project about 600 km west of Sydney, 900 sqkm of titles in Argentina’s Santa Cruz province and 273 sqkm of land in Rio Negro province further north.

Deal specifics

In the details of the Pinguino deal, Austral gets 15 million options worth one share of E2, but they can be used only until Austral has 19.99% of E2. They have an exercise price of C$0.26 until the third anniversary of the closing.

Austral also keeps its 51% interest and option to acquire an additional 49% interest in the Sierra Blanca project, which is next to Pinguino, from Capella Minerals (TSXV: CMIL). Austral owns the Guanaco-Amancaya mines in Chile and the Casposo-Manantiales mine complex (currently on care and maintenance) in Argentina.

The company has non-controlling interests in the Rawhide Mine in Nevada, in Ensign Gold, which holds the Mercur project in Utah, and in Chile copper project developer Pampas Metals (TSXV: PM).

Shares in E2 Metals closed A$0.015 higher on Friday in Sydney at A$0.145, within a 52-week range of A$0.10 and A$0.36, valuing the company at A$28.9 million.

Austral Gold stocks fell C$0.01 each to C$0.035 on Friday, its lowest-ever price, valuing the company at C$21.4 million. It’s traded as high as C$0.09 in the past year.

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Historique : le premier parastronaute rejoint la promotion de l'Esa

Pour cette semaine du 21 novembre : la nouvelle promotion de l'ESA, des moutons qui tournent en rond, un " super gène " anti-Covid, notre plus vieil ancêtre commun et de l'IA dans nos disques durs. Bonne écoute et bon week-end ! [Transcription de l'épisode] Abonnez-vous sur vos apps et...

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European consortium gets 12.3m euros to develop mine management system

A multidisciplinary consortium made of partners from Norway, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Slovenia, and the Netherlands has been granted 12.3 million euros by Horizon Europe, the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation, to develop an innovative and holistic mine management system that aims to digitize and modernize the industry.

The ultimate goal behind the new system is to reduce Europe’s dependence on imported minerals and metals used to produce everything from mobile phones, to renewable energy, and modern defence equipment.

The project’s name is DINAMINE, which stands for “Digital and Innovative Mine of the future.” Its main focus will be on the small and medium-sized mines that account for more than half of the value added in Europe.

Among the technologies to be developed and demonstrated is a smart database system for real-time integration of various types of information such as geological and geophysical data, mineral resources, geomechanics, mineral processing data, tailings and environmental data. The data system will be utilized in combination with the economical and practical factors for holistic mine planning, monitoring, and managing.

The companies involved in the consortium also plan to create a machine vision-based technology for improving rock engineering-related activities such as rock mass mapping, optimizing rock blasting, and suggesting relevant stabilizing measures. This will be achieved by incorporating the technology in a semi-autonomous jumbo drill.

Finally, a real-time geomechanical monitoring technology for underground openings and open pits is also expected to be developed.

All the new systems and solutions will be tested at two demonstration sites in Norway and Portugal, under the auspices of Norwegian Skaland Graphite and Portuguese Felmica Minerais Industriais, respectively. The test sites have been selected to be representative of European regions, raw materials, and value chains.

In addition to these two firms, other consortium members are the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute, which is heading the 3.5-year project; fellow Norwegian companies and organizations AMV AS, SINTEF Nord AS, SINTEF AS and SINTEF Helgeland AS; Spain’s Worldsensing SL, Slovenia’s National Institute of Chemistry, Italy’s Ciaotech Srl and the Netherlands’ SPECTRAL Industries BV.

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Rio Tinto-Turquoise Hill takeover vote set for December 9

Canada’s Turquoise Hill Resources (TSX: TQR) has set December 9 as the date its shareholders will finally vote on the proposed $3.3 billion takeover of the company by Rio Tinto (ASX, LON: RIO).

The meeting has been repeatedly delayed because of the opposition of key minority shareholders in Turquoise Hill, mainly US-based fund managers. 

The situation took a turn for the worst earlier this month, after a Canadian top securities regulator decided to review the transaction, following a side deal between Rio Tinto and dissident shareholders. 

Turquoise Hill said Quebec’s Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) has cleared the transaction and that its board has repeated its unanimous recommendation to minority shareholders to vote for the sweetened offer.

Rio Tinto initially offered C$34 a share in March this year, but increased it to C$43 per share in cash in August. That was a more than 19% premium to the stock’s end-of-August closing price and a 67% premium from the day before the initial offer was made.

The Australian mining giant has had a rocky relationship with Turquoise Hill, particularly over how to fund Oyu Tolgoi’s expansion. The mining giant has also drawn criticism from some of Turquoise Hill’s minority shareholders about the control it exerts over the company.

The Melbourne and London-based firm, which has mined copper from Oyu Tolgoi’s open pit for a decade, and the Mongolian government ended earlier this year a long-running dispute over the $7 billion expansion of the mine.

Biggest new copper mine 

Once completed, the underground section of Oyu Tolgoi will lift production from 125,000–150,000 tonnes in 2019 to 560,000 tonnes at peak output, which is now expected by 2025 at the earliest. This would make it the biggest new copper mine to come on stream in several years.

“Rio Tinto’s strategy over its stake in Turquoise Hill has been subject to discussion for many years, but we didn’t think it would end up offering to buy out the minorities based on previous form,” BMO Metals and Mining analysts said in a note to investors.

“Given the dearth of copper opportunities elsewhere, combined with its recently lowered risk profile, perhaps increasing its Oyu Tolgoi exposure now makes sense,” BMO Alexander Pearce and David Gagliano wrote in September.

Rio Tinto chief executive Jakob Stausholm has said the proposed takeover would simplify governance, improve efficiency and create greater certainty of funding for the long-term success of the Oyu Tolgoi project.

Experts forecast a vast deficit in the copper market due to a ramp up in the clean energy and electric vehicles (EV) sectors.

It is estimated the copper industry needs to spend more than $100 billion to build mines able to close what could be an annual supply deficit of eight million tonnes by 2032.

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Emmanuel Macron va se doter d'un smartphone hyper sécurisé

L'affaire Pegasus a montré que n'importe quel chef d'État peut voir son smartphone personnel piraté et ses communications sensibles espionnées. Alors que le téléphone ultra-sécurisé Teorem est délaissé par le pouvoir, car peu pratique, l'Elysée va revoir sa flotte en créant des smartphones...

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Une IA a inventé le chocolat au lait ultime

Comment préférez-vous votre chocolat ? Au printemps dernier, une intelligence artificielle a collecté et analysé plus de 1,5 million de discussions sur les réseaux sociaux portant spécifiquement sur ce sujet. Pour enrichir cette base et améliorer l'analyse, un chocolatier a aussi interrogé des...

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Des robots pour éliminer les criminels bientôt à San Francisco ?

La police de San Francisco demande à utiliser des robots tueurs dans les situations où ses agents pourraient se trouver en danger de mort. Des robots de déminage et d’exploration seraient détournés pour porter des explosifs ou tirer des balles et tuer le ou les criminels.

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Il y a une énorme tache sombre sur la face opposée du Soleil

Fin 2019, notre Soleil entrait dans son 25e cycle d’activité. Et rapidement, les astronomes avaient annoncé qu’il pourrait se révéler particulièrement intense. Ils semblent ne pas s’être trompés. Depuis plus de deux ans, le niveau moyen d’activité de notre Étoile se montre deux à trois fois...

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Tribune : pour une science au service de l'avenir

Après 20 ans de vulgarisation scientifique en ligne et un premier magazine annuel, Futura continue de grandir et lance la version trimestrielle de son Mag'. Fidèles à nos fondamentaux, nous voulons accentuer, avec ce nouveau format papier, l’immersion sur le terrain au cœur de la science et...

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Le Mag' Futura est de retour avec plein de nouveautés !

Il y a presque un an, le Mag Futura voyait le jour grâce à vous. Face à l’engouement pour cette première édition, Futura voit plus loin et vous propose un tout nouveau rendez-vous… 

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1 milliard de jeunes adultes risquent la surdité prématurée (La Santé Sur Écoute #19)

Jusqu'à 1,35 milliards d'ados et d'adultes pourraient être menacés par une surdité prématurée. En cause : notre environnement sonore toujours plus saturé, depuis le grondement du trafic automobile à la musique que nous écoutons à fond. Cette semaine, Julie Kern fait l'état des lieux et vous...

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L'ESA dévoile sa nouvelle promotion d'astronautes

Débuté en mars 2021, le processus de sélection de la nouvelle promotion d’astronautes de l'ESA, l’Agence spatiale européenne, s’est achevé mercredi 23 novembre 2022 avec la présentation de tous les candidats sélectionnés. Cette quatrième promotion d'astronautes compte deux nouveaux corps. Celui...

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La magnifique nébuleuse d’Orion sondée en profondeur par 3 télescopes spatiaux de la Nasa et de l’ESA

L’image de la nébuleuse d’Orion dévoilée par des chercheurs est fidèle à sa réputation. Une image tout simplement merveilleuse qui raconte joliment l’histoire de ce sublime nuage de gaz et de poussière.

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Les anti-inflammatoires pourraient aggraver l'arthrose

L’arthrose, la forme la plus courante d’arthrite, concerne plus de 500 millions de personnes dans le monde. Cette inflammation douloureuse de l’articulation est le plus souvent traitée par des anti-inflammatoires non stéroïdiens, dont l’utilisation à long terme pourrait en réalité s’avérer néfaste.

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Le tardigrade peut résister aux conditions les plus extrêmes !

Dans ce nouvel épisode, nous explorons l'intelligence du tardigrade ! Aussi surnommé ourson d'eau, cet animal microscopique grassouillet aux petites pattes griffues vit sur tous les continents. Mais ne te laisse pas abuser par son air pataud. Le tardigrade est un champion toutes catégories de la...

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La fonte rapide des glaciers libère des bactéries dans les écosystèmes qui inquiètent les scientifiques

Les glaciers qui fondent rapidement en raison du réchauffement climatique libèrent d'innombrables bactéries dans les rivières. En plus de présenter un danger pour la santé des humains et des animaux, ces bactéries peuvent transformer tout un écosystème.

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Et voici le premier disque dur dopé à l'Intelligence artificielle !

Aux États-Unis, un professeur d'université et ses étudiants ont développé la première puce basée sur l'apprentissage automatique pour optimiser le stockage et la lecture sur les disques durs. Cette IA permet de disposer de plus de capacité et de réduire la latence lors de l’accès aux données.

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Le tardigrade peut résister aux conditions les plus extrêmes !

Dans ce nouvel épisode, nous explorons l'intelligence du tardigrade ! Aussi surnommé ourson d'eau, cet animal microscopique grassouillet aux petites pattes griffues vit sur tous les continents. Mais ne te laisse pas abuser par son air pataud. Le tardigrade est un champion toutes catégories de la...

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Les planètes et leur étoile grandissent en même temps

Il y doit d’abord y avoir une étoile. Avant que n’arrivent les planètes. Cela semble être dans l’ordre des choses. Pourtant, des chercheurs suggèrent aujourd’hui que les planètes peuvent se former très tôt dans le processus. Et grandir en même temps que leur étoile.

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C’est confirmé : les vaccins anti-Covid-19 perturbent le cycle menstruel

Les témoignages de femmes qui ont constaté un changement dans leur cycle menstruel après une vaccination contre la Covid-19 sont nombreux. Plusieurs mois après ces premiers rapports, quelle est la conclusion sur le sujet ? Quelles explications donnent les scientifiques ?

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Climat : quelles avancées dans la réduction des émissions de méthane ?

Le Giec nous l’avait rappelé il y a quelques mois et l’OMM, l'Organisation météorologique mondiale, plus récemment. Le méthane (CH4) est le deuxième plus important contributeur au réchauffement climatique que nous connaissons actuellement. Flavia Sollazzo, directrice Senior, Transition...

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Ces enceintes « invisibles » veulent révolutionner le son en voiture

Conçue par LG, la Thin Actuator Sound Solution se débarrasse des haut-parleurs, des bobines et des aimants pour devenir ultraplate. Cette membrane vibratoire de 2,5 mm d'épaisseur devrait être intégrée dès l'an prochain dans les voitures pour obtenir un son précis et puissant tout en gagnant de...

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Artemis I : des images magnifiques du vaisseau Orion qui frôle la Lune

Après son survol de la Lune, Orion se prépare à rejoindre son orbite rétrograde prévu vendredi. Il s'éloignera de la Lune de plusieurs dizaines de milliers de kilomètres, ce qui permettra à la Nasa et à l'ESA de s'assurer que ce véhicule est apte aux vols habités. Lors de son approche au plus...

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La première édition de Ma thèse en 3 minutes par Orange fait la Une !

Depuis plus de 10 ans maintenant, le Salon de la Recherche et de l’Innovation d’Orange permet de découvrir, tester et toucher du doigt des ruptures structurantes conçues par le Groupe. Pour mieux les faire connaître, cette nouvelle édition a eu l’idée d’une battle de pitchs : « Ma thèse en 3...

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Le dépistage du cancer du foie serait bientôt possible grâce à un test sanguin

Le dépistage organisé existe maintenant pour plusieurs cancers : cancer du sein, cancer colorectal, cancer du col de l’utérus. Pour mettre en place ce type de dépistage, il faut disposer d’un test simple à mettre en œuvre. Ce sera peut être bientôt le cas avec ce test sanguin de dépistage du...

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La Chine dévoile le nouveau design de sa mégafusée pour aller sur la Lune

C’était jusqu'à présent de nature spéculative, désormais c'est officiel. La Chine a opté pour un nouveau design de sa fusée lunaire Long March 9, incluant de la réutilisation. Un premier modèle a été exposé en maquette lors du grand salon de l’air et de l’espace de Zhuhai, au sud du pays, il y a...

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Réchauffement climatique : vers quel scénario nous dirigeons-nous ?

La réalité du réchauffement climatique fait aujourd'hui l'unanimité parmi la communauté scientifique, mais son évolution est encore sujette à des incertitudes. Se dirige-t-on vers une hausse des températures de +1,5, +3 ou +5 °C d'ici la fin du siècle ? Découvrez les différents scénarios...

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Des hackers parviennent à glisser un malware dans Windows !

Il s’en va et il revient… Âgé de 14 ans, le malware Qbot est spécialisé dans la collecte de données bancaires ou l’installation de ransomwares. Il s'incruste encore une fois dans Windows via une attaque de phishing en passant outre les protections de Windows 10 et 11. 

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Artemis I : découvrez en direct la Lune survolée par le vaisseau Orion

Le vaisseau Orion est en train de terminer son approche de la Lune et s’apprête à réaliser un premier survol à moins de 130 kilomètres au-dessus de la surface. À l’occasion de ce survol, le vaisseau réalisera ses manœuvres pour prendre la route vers une orbite lunaire rétrograde. Nous vous...

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2023 : la mode sera au smartphone pliable

À quoi vont ressembler les smartphones dans les années à venir ? Pour compenser l'augmentation de la taille des écrans, des fabricants ont décidé de sortir des téléphones pliables. Plus épais, ils sont en revanche plus petits dans une poche. Samsung et Huawei ont déjà sorti leurs versions...

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Le nucléaire peut-il vraiment être écolo ?

À l'heure du réchauffement climatique et de la crise énergétique, Futura a décidé de décortiquer le nucléaire français à travers des reportages, des enquêtes et les récits de nos journalistes sur le terrain. Découvrez ce travail de décryptage dans le nouveau Mag' Futura, disponible en...

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Hundreds of power plants in the US violate Coal Ash Rule – report

A recent report by the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) and Earthjustice found that seven years after US Environmental Protection Agency imposed the first federal rules requiring the cleanup of coal ash waste dumps, only about half of the 265 power plants that are contaminating groundwater agree that cleanup is necessary, and 96% of these power plants are not proposing any groundwater treatment plan. 

The report, which is based on an examination of public records and data from coal plants across the country, also found that out of the 292 power plants assessed in 43 states, only one is planning a comprehensive cleanup, while 10 are proposing incomplete cleanup plans.   

“The failure of the vast majority of power companies to follow the 2015 Coal Ash Rule has serious consequences for water quality and public health. Monitoring data shows that 91% of US coal-fired plants have ash landfills or waste ponds that are leaking arsenic, lead, mercury, selenium, and other metals into groundwater at dangerous levels, often threatening streams, rivers, and drinking water aquifers,” the document reads.

(Graph by Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice).

The dossier mentions that although coal consumption has declined across the US over the last decade, the power industry continues to generate about 70 million tons of coal ash annually.  It also notes that after 100 years of burning coal, power plants have generated about five billion tons of coal ash.

The Coal Ash Rule requires the cleanup of both the source of pollution (coal ash) and the groundwater. However, the report authors found that of the 142 plants with contaminated groundwater that agree that cleanup is necessary, only 38 plants have committed to at least one cleanup action and, of those, 27 are not treating groundwater. They are instead relying on the pollution naturally dispersing. 

“Because some power plants have multiple waste disposal sites, there are a total of 515 coal ash waste ponds evaluated in this report. Of these, there are 372 unlined ash ponds within five feet of groundwater, and many of these are sitting in groundwater,” the dossier states. “The majority (200) are being closed without removing the ash, despite being in or dangerously close to groundwater. Companies have closed 81 ponds by removing the ash and have scheduled the closure of another 91 by removal.” 

Worst sites

Looking at the top 10 most contaminated coal ash sites in the US, the report ranked the San Miguel Electric Plant in Texas as the worst one as the plant has two coal ash ponds, an ash pile and some of the most contaminated groundwater in the country, including with cobalt at 488 X safe levels.

Next is the retired Reid Gardner station, northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. According to EIP and Earthjustice, despite having lithium concentrations in the groundwater at 161 X safe levels and arsenic and 121 X safe levels, the owners have failed to admit responsibility or select a remedy and continue to violate the Coal Ash Rule in a number of ways.  

The Naughton Power Plant in Wyoming ranks third on the list as the report authors found that the six ash waste ponds at this plant are leaking selenium into groundwater at 150 X safe levels, lead at 16 X safe levels, and arsenic at 10 X safe levels, while owners are pursuing an incomplete cleanup plan and have only selected a remedy for one of the six ponds.  

Also in Wyoming, the Jim Bridger Power Plant makes the list because it has two coal ash ponds and an ash landfill, and groundwater monitoring nearby shows lithium at 164 X safe levels and sulphate at 125 X safe levels. 

(Graph by Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice).

In North Carolina, the Allen Steam Station occupies the fifth spot because it has two ash ponds and a landfill and groundwater monitoring that shows cobalt at 466 X safe levels and lithium at 12 X safe levels. The owner is moving ash to a new landfill on the site but does not plan to treat the groundwater. 

Next is the New Castle Generating Plant in Pennsylvania, which has been closed since 2016 but still has a large, leaking ash disposal area. Groundwater monitoring shows arsenic at 372 X safe levels and lithium at 54 X safe levels. In addition to this, the report notes that the owner is not planning to take any cleanup action.

In Maryland, the Brandywine coal ash landfill, southeast of Washington, DC, also joins the group because it holds waste from three power plants in the area and is contaminating local streams and groundwater, with monitoring wells showing lithium at 222 X safe levels and cobalt at 47 X safe levels. 

Following Brandywine is the R.D. Morrow power plant in Mississippi, which had two ash ponds and a landfill and stopped burning coal in 2018. The owners closed the ponds and removed their ash in 2021, and capped the landfill without removing the ash. But the company has not treated the contaminated groundwater, even though monitoring wells show molybdenum at 176 X safe levels and lithium at 167 X safe levels. 

In the ninth spot is the Hunter Power Plant in Utah, which has an ash landfill and pond, and groundwater beneath them with lithium at 210 X safe levels and cobalt at 28 X safe levels. The owners installed groundwater collection wells to capture the leachate, but monitoring data suggest they are not working. 

The last plant on the list is the Allen Fossil Plant in Tennessee, which is now closed but has contaminated groundwater, including with arsenic at 294 X safe levels and is threatening the drinking water aquifer that serves Memphis. According to the dossier, the owners are removing the ash from two onsite ash ponds, but only treating the groundwater and conducting monitoring at one of the two ash ponds. 

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Surprise : les pré-Néandertaliens étaient présents en Europe 200 000 ans plus tôt qu'on ne le pensait !

L’âge d’empreintes d’hominidés découvertes dans le sud de l’Espagne en 2020 vient d’être réévalué. L’étude montre qu’elles dateraient d’environ 300 000 ans et qu’elles appartiendraient à des hommes pré-Néandertaliens.

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Ötzi, l’homme des glaces, ne serait pas mort à l’endroit que l’on pensait

C'est une des momies naturelles les plus célèbres de l'histoire. Ötzi, qui a été découvert à 3 210 mètres d'altitude en 1991, continue à faire parler de lui. Plus de 30 ans après cet évènement historique, l'homme vieux de 5 300 ans est toujours au cœur de recherches poussées. Conservé au Musée...

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Découverte exceptionnelle de 24 statues de bronze romaine et étrusque qui pourraient « réécrire l’histoire »

Des archéologues viennent de faire une découverte extraordinaire en Italie : 24 statues de bronze ont été excavées près de Sienne, en Toscane. En parfait état de conservation, elles dateraient de l'époque de la république romaine, plus précisément d'il y a 2 300 ans !

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Réchauffement climatique : la moitié des arbres replantés ne survit pas

À l'heure où de grandes actions de restauration des forêts sont menées à travers la Planète, à la fois pour préserver la biodiversité mais aussi pour lutter contre le changement climatique, une étude pointe du doigt le taux de survie des arbres replantés : la moitié des jeunes pousses plantées...

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S'étirer avant le sport réduit les risques de courbatures, vrai ou faux ?

Est-ce que ça sert vraiment à quelque chose de s'étirer avant de faire du sport ?S'il est conseillé de faire du sport, il est aussi recommandé de s'étirer. Et là, il y a deux écoles : certains s'accordent à dire qu'il faudrait faire cet étirement avant la séance, certains préfèrent le faire...

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Des preuves d'une communication intentionnelle chez ces singes !

Une nouvelle étude vient de détecter une communication intentionnelle chez les « hocheurs », aussi surnommés singes « pain à cacheter » : lorsqu'un prédateur arrive, les femelles exécutent un cri d'alarme spécifique, visant à alerter les mâles pour défendre le groupe. Un comportement jamais...

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Bertrand Piccard : « on vit dans une société de gaspillage, d’inefficience et de déchets »

Alors que la COP27 bat son plein, Futura s’est entretenu avec Bertrand Piccard, créateur de la Fondation Solar Impulse, qui vise à promouvoir des technologies protectrices de l’environnement. La fondation a déjà rédigé un texte de 50 propositions, « Prêt à voter », s’adressant aux députés et...

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Une magnifique carte interactive d’une partie de l’Univers crée par des astronomes

Pour la première fois, une carte interactive et didactique permet de visualiser près de 200 000 galaxies et leur emplacement exact dans le Cosmos ! Appelée Map of the Universe, elle est explorable et téléchargeable gratuitement. Elle a été créée par des astronomes de l'université Johns Hopkins...

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Quand l’armée américaine découvre qu’elle utilise des logiciels russes !

La société Pushwoosh, bien connue des développeurs, permet d’ajouter des fonctions de suivi des utilisateurs sur les applications mobiles. Cependant, malgré son nom et des adresses américaines, elle est en réalité russe et collecte des données sur des milliards d’appareils.

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Découverte d’une tortue géante fossilisée qui avait la taille d’une voiture

Des chercheurs ont découvert, dans les Pyrénées espagnoles, les restes fossilisés d’une tortue marine géante mesurant près de 4 mètres de long !

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Cancer : une pompe administre la chimiothérapie directement dans le cerveau

Les médicaments de chimiothérapie diffusés par voie orale ou intraveineuse sont d’une efficacité limitée et engendrent souvent des effets secondaires indésirables. Dans le cadre d’un premier essai clinique, des chercheurs ont développé un nouveau mode d’administration prometteur.

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Retour vers la Lune : lancement réussi pour Artemis !

Pour cette semaine du 14 novembre : la course à la Lune, de la monnaie ancienne, les dangers du cannabis, des rats dansants et un astéroïde. Bonne écoute et bon week-end ! [Transcription de l'épisode] Abonnez-vous sur vos apps et plateformes audio préférées  Abonnez-vous à la newsletter podcast...

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Massive emerald cluster sets new record at Gemfields auction

Africa-focused Gemfields (LON: GEM) (JSE: GML) racked up $30.8 million in revenue from its latest emerald action, which included a massive cluster of emeralds weighing 187,775 carats (37,555 grams).

The Kafubu Cluster, discovered at its Kagem mine in Zambia in March 2020, set a new record as the most expensive single emerald item ever sold by Gemfields, the miner said without providing specifics.

“Our end-of-year emerald auction has delivered a pleasing and solid result despite a clear softening of both prices and sentiment when compared with the remarkable highs we enjoyed in May 2022,” Adrian Banks, managing director of product and sales, said. “This has been a record-shattering year for Kagem with an amazing $149 million in auction sales.”

The coloured gems producer said proceeds will be reinvested in Zambia, including  royalties due to the country’s government, which has 25% stake in Kagem.

Zambian emeralds tend to have a higher iron content than emeralds from other origins, which means they are less fragile. High iron content also means fewer surface-reaching fractures and less need for treatments and enhancements.

The 37.5 kg cluster set a record as the most expensive single emerald item ever sold by Gemfields. (Image courtesy of Gemfields.)

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Manger trop gras et trop sucré expose à des risques de troubles neurologiques

La stéatose hépatique non alcoolique touche les personnes ayant une consommation excessive de graisses et de sucres, qui les conduit à développer une cirrhose. Des chercheurs mettent en évidence l'axe foie-cerveau dans le bon fonctionnement des fonctions cérébrales, et par quel mécanisme la...

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On a simulé en laboratoire la création de particules par le Big Bang

D'où viennent la matière et la lumière du rayonnement fossile ? Les physiciens ont des idées à ce sujet depuis le début des années 1960 et ces idées ne sont pas sans relation avec le rayonnement des trous noirs. Certaines pistes, issues de la théorie quantique des champs en espace-temps courbe,...

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Les aspirateurs robots, la croisade de l’innovation

Le boom du marché des robots domestiques ne cesse de croître avec des inventions toujours plus surprenantes et fiables pour faciliter votre quotidien. Plus besoin de consacrer plusieurs heures par mois au passage de l’aspirateur, de la serpillière et au lavage manuel des vitres. Laissez faire...

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Listenbourg : l'épopée éclair d'un pays inventé par Twitter

Connaissez-vous le Listenbourg ? Comme les Américains n'ont jamais été très doués en géographie, des gens sur Twitter se sont amusés à créer un faux pays. Ils l'ont situé près du Portugal, et ils sont allés jusqu'à lui donner une constitution, un hymne ou encore une histoire. Ce qui n'était...

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Minister denies Baffinland Iron Mines expansion in Nunavut

Baffinland Iron Mines corporation announced Thursday that the Minister of Northern Affairs Dan Vandal denied the company’s Phase 2 expansion application.

In May, Baffinland Iron Mines’ proposed expansion of its Mary River iron ore operation on the northern tip of Baffin Island, in Canada’s Nunavut territory, suffered a major blow after a review board advised against the project on environmental grounds.

After four years of consultations and deliberations, the Nunavut Impact Review Board (NIRB) rejected the miner’s request to more than double output to 12 million tonnes a year, to eventually reach 30 million tonnes annually.

Mary River, considered one of the world’s richest iron deposits, opened in 2015 and ships about six million tonnes of ore a year.

“We are disappointed by the Minister’s decision,” Baffinland CEO Brian Penney said in Thursday’s news release. “Our Phase 2 proposal was based on on years of in-depth study and detailed scientific analysis, we executed a new Inuit Certainty Agreement with the QIA, and we have had extensive consultations with, and made additional commitments to stakeholders post release of the NIRB recommendation in May.”

“The Minister’s decision has immediate and significant implications for the current MAry River operations and our workforce of 2,500 people,” Penney said. “We look forward to immediately meeting with the QIA and the Minister to discuss a practical path forward.”

If the expansion is approved, Baffinland would send about 12 million tonnes of the 30 million tonnes via the North Railway to Milne Port. It also plans to build a second railway to Steensby Port, from which it intends to ship an additional 18 million tonnes of ore a year. 

Current shipping volumes have already had a “devastating” impact on the area’s narwhal population, Inuit hunters have said. Last year, a group of hunters from Arctic Bay and Pond Inlet blocked access to the mine in protest of the company’s ice breaking practices due to their negative impacts on narwhals.

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SQM expects high lithium prices to stay put

Chile’s SQM (NYSE: SQM), the world’s second largest lithium producer, expects prices for the battery metal to stay high into 2023 on the back of soaring demand boosted by strong sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in China.

In its results for the the three months to September 30, the miner announced record lithium sales, which more than quadrupled in the quarter from a year ago. 

The company’s highest quarterly sales, combined with above-average lithium prices, helped it achieve a net profit of $1.1 billion in the period. 

Revenue surged more than four times year-on-year to $2.95 billion, with lithium revenues growing more than 12 times.

Prices for the battery metal jumped to record levels during Q3 at more than $56,000 per tonne, it said.

Despite market fears over a possible cooling-off of China’s two-year lithium buying spree, SQM remains bullish on the long-term outlook.

The Santiago-based miner forecast global lithium demand to grow this year by at least 40% thanks to rising EVs sales in China, which it estimates will exceed 6.5 million units — double last year’s amount.

“On top of the strong demand growth, similar to what we have seen in the past, new lithium supply outside of SQM has been delayed and slow to come online,” it said. That will keep the market tight and means “this high-priced environment could continue for the remainder of 2022 and into 2023.”

Albemarle (NYSE: ALB), the world’s top lithium producer, also reported a surge in sales earlier this month.

Both companies are the only two producing the battery metal in Chile’s Atacama region, which supplies nearly one-quarter of the globe’s lithium.

The copper-rich country currently generates about 29% of the world’s supply, but it plans to double production by 2025 to about 250,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE).  

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Le télescope James-Webb a photographié un sablier formé par une étoile en train de naître !

Cet étrange phénomène vient d'être capturé par l'instrument NIRCam du télescope James-Webb, dans les infrarouges. On peut y voir une forme de sablier coloré, et au centre, cachée, une protoétoile, appelée L1527 ! Son disque protoplanétaire semble aussi dessiner une ligne sombre à travers...

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Découverte extraordinaire au Canada d’une pièce en or datant d’avant l’arrivée de Christophe Colomb !

La découverte de la plus ancienne monnaie en or d'origine anglaise a été annoncée au Canada. L'information a été relayée par le biais d'un communiqué de presse du gouvernement de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador publié au début du mois de novembre 2022. Une nouvelle qui interroge les historiens du Canada...

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L’évolution des arbres serait à l’origine de plusieurs extinctions de masse sur terre

Il y a environ 400 millions d’années, les océans de la Terre subissaient une série de crises biologiques connue sous le nom d’extinction du Dévonien. Si l’on sait que la disparition de près de 70 % des espèces marines à ce moment-là est liée à un manque crucial d’oxygène dans les océans, la...

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Le spermatozoïde : une espèce en voie de disparition ?

La fertilité masculine est sur le déclin. En l'espace de 50 ans, la concentration de spermatozoïdes dans le fluide séminal a réduit de pas moins de 51,6 %. Alors que se passe-t-il, d'où provient ce phénomène, et est-ce vraiment si grave ? Cette semaine, Julie Kern répond à vos questions dans La...

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Anglo American greens Australia operations

London-based multinational Anglo American (LSE: AAL) has reached an agreement with the Queensland government to supply all of its Australian power needs from wind and solar generation by 2025 and onwards.

The 10-year deal will see Stanwell Corporation, a government-owned power utility, effectively remove all scope two emissions from Anglo American’s steelmaking coal business in the country.

Scope two emissions refer to greenhouse gas released into the atmosphere from the generation of purchased energy such as electricity, steam, heat and cooling.

It aligns with Anglo’s strategy of achieving carbon-neutral operations by 2040.

Critically, Anglo American Australia CEO Dan van der Westhuizen said in a statement that Stanwell’s investment in 650 megawatts (MW) of renewable generating capacity is NPV positive compared with the current energy mix.

Combined with the agreements Anglo already has in place for all of its South America operations, from 2025, the major expects to be drawing 60% of its global electricity needs from renewable sources, transforming the important scope two emissions profile.

The company says metallurgical coal production remains critical to global decarbonization goals.

“Many of the metals and minerals we produce are critical to the infrastructure and technologies required to decarbonize the world’s energy and transport systems – and this includes the ingredients needed for steelmaking,” said Anglo’s group director for corporate relations and sustainable impact in a statement.

No value for the investment was disclosed.

The partnership between Anglo American and Stanwell underwrites investment in the two major Queensland renewable energy projects – Clarke Creek wind farm in Central Queensland, and Blue Grass solar farm near Chinchilla.

Anglo is the world’s third-largest exporter of metallurgical coal for steelmaking, and its operations in Australia serve customers throughout Asia, Europe and South America.

Its tier-one coal assets include the Moranbah and Grosvenor metallurgical coal mines in Queensland (88% ownership). The mines are underground longwall operations and produce premium-quality hard coking coal.

According to Anglo’s 2021 annual report, more stringent environmental and safety regulations have required many steel producers to run cleaner, larger and more efficient blast furnaces. That, combined with several mine closures in recent years, resulted in increased global structural demand for high-quality coking coal, such as that produced in Australia.

Anglo has completed its exit from thermal coal operations, having demerged to shareholders its remaining thermal coal operations in South Africa during 2021, and completed a sale of its 33.3% shareholding in Cerrejón in Colombia in January.

Anglo started getting serious about investing in renewables in South America in 2019. The supply agreements in place will see its Brazilian, Chilean and Peruvian carbon dioxide emissions fall 70% over time.

Elsewhere, Anglo unveiled in May a prototype of the world’s largest hydrogen-powered mine haul truck designed to operate in everyday mining conditions at its Mogalakwena PGMs mine in South Africa. The 2 MW hydrogen-battery hybrid truck generates more power than its diesel predecessor and can carry a 290-tonne payload.

It forms part of Anglo’s nuGen zero emission haulage solution that entails another industry-transforming prong of its 2040 decarbonization ambitions.

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Cette IA prédit ce que vous allez dire !

Une interface cerveau-machine capable de prédire ce que vous allez dire avant que votre bouche ne se soit mise en action, c'est le pari réussi d'une équipe de chercheurs de Caltech. Ce type d'interfaces, capables de relier directement le cerveau à un bras robotisé, un écran ou encore un...

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Newcrest resumes operations at Brucejack mine

Newcrest Mining (ASX, TSX, PNGX: NCM) said on Wednesday it had resumed operations at its Brucejack gold-silver mine in Canada, which had been shut since late October following the death of a worker.

Australia’s largest gold producer said that during the three-and-a-half weeks Brucejack was suspended, it reviewed the operation to identify major hazards and corresponding critical controls to prevent fatalities and life-changing injuries. 

“The devastating incident at Brucejack is a stark reminder that safety must always be our number one priority as a business,” chief executive Sandeep Biswas said in the statement.

The latest accident was the third workplace death at the northern British Columbia operation since it opened in 2018. In the two previous cases, either the mine or its contractors were disciplined for failing to ensure workers received adequate safety training.

Newcrest added Brucejack to its portfolio earlier this year, following the acquisition of Pretium Resources.

The mine began commercial production in July 2017 and is one of the world’s highest-grade operating gold mines.

The asset spans 1,200 square kilometres in the heart of British Columbia’s Golden Triangle, which has a 100-year mining history and also hosts the Red Chris, Eskay Creek and Snip mines. 

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Les rats aussi bougent en rythme sur la musique

Les rats sont-ils sensibles à la musique ? Perçoivent-ils les battements d'un tempo et y réagissent-ils ? Des chercheurs ont mis en évidence leur synchronisation sur certains rythmes en menant des expériences sur leurs comportements et en observant les activités neuronales chez ces...

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Tribune : pour une science au service de l'avenir

Après 20 ans de vulgarisation scientifique en ligne et un premier magazine annuel, Futura continue de grandir et lance la version trimestrielle de son Mag'. Fidèles à nos fondamentaux, nous voulons accentuer, avec ce nouveau format papier, l’immersion sur le terrain au cœur de la science et...

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Artemis I : la plus puissante fusée de l’histoire a décollé avec succès, les États-Unis sont de nouveau dans la course à la Lune

Tôt ce matin, le puissant lanceur SLS a décollé du Centre spatial Kennedy et mis en orbite le véhicule Orion à destination de la Lune pour une mission de 25 jours. Ce lancement réussi ouvre une nouvelle ère de l'exploration humaine avec en point de mire une installation durable sur la Lune et...

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Defense Metals drills 221 metres of 2.14% TREO, including 3.52% at Wicheeda

The Wicheeda rare earths project is only 80 km from Prince George, B.C. Credit: Defense Metals

Assay results are only partial, but Defense Metals (TSXV: DEFN) shared what they have received from the additional 353-metre hole at its 100%-owned Wicheeda rare earth elements (REE) deposit. The property is located 80 km northeast of Prince George in central British Columbia.

Infill hole WI22-69 intersected a zone of dolomite carbonatite averaging 2.14% total rare earth oxide (TREO) over 221 metres, including 3.52% TREO over 111 metres.

The company has drilled over 5,500 metres in 18 holes this year as part of the Wicheeda resource delineation and pit geotechnical program. The company has released assays for a total of 2,493 metres in seven holes. Assays for the remaining 11 holes totalling 3,017 m are expected in the coming weeks and months.

“With these additional assay results our 2022 drilling continues to yield significant intervals of the high-grade REE dolomite carbonatite lithology,” Defense Metals president Luisa Moreno said in a release. “Recent flotation variability test work has shown this type of mineralization consistently delivers high-grade mineral concentrates greater than 40% TREO, at recoveries in excess of 80%.”

The 2021 preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for Wicheeda project demonstrated an after-tax net present value (8% discount) of C$517 million and an internal rate of return of 18%. A unique advantage of the project is the production of a saleable high-grade flotation-concentrate, according to Defense Metals.

The PEA contemplates a 1.8 million tonnes per year mill throughput, open pit mining operation with 1.75:1 (waste/mill feed) strip ratio over a 19-year mine life producing and average of 25,423 tonnes REO annually. The mining plan includes rapid access to higher grade surface mineralization in year one and payback of C$440 million initial capital within five years.

The Wicheeda deposit has an indicated resource of 5.0 million tonnes averaging 2.95% TREO and an inferred resource of 29.5 million tonnes at 1.83% TREO.

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Wealthiest nations offer Indonesia $20 billion to wean it off coal

Rich nations led by the US and Japan have pledged to give Indonesia a $20 billion-package to help the coal-dependent country shift to renewable energy and reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

The deal put forward by the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), which includes the US, Japan, Canada, the UK, and several European countries, including the EU and Norway, has been more than a year in the making.

Launched at the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia, which is being held in parallel to the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Egypt, the package includes $10 billion in public funding and a further $10 billion from the private sector, The White House said on Tuesday.

“Today, G20 leaders highlighted the importance of investing together and investing stronger to fill the enormous need for better infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries around the world, and we welcome all who share this vision to join our efforts,” US President Joe Biden said in the statement.

As part of the agreement, Indonesia committed to cap power sector emissions at 290 megatons of CO₂ annually by 2030, and to generate about a third of its power from renewable sources by 2030. 

Another $580bn needed

Indonesia, South-east Asia’s largest economy and home to the world’s third-largest rainforest, is one of the biggest carbon emitters globally.

It is estimated the nation needs $600 billion to phase out coal-based power sources in favour of a grid powered by renewables, which are crucial to Indonesia’s goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2060..

The government of Joko Widodo, who is in his second and final presidential term, has at times questioned climate deals, including an agreement inked last year to end deforestation by 2030. 

Officials welcomed the pact despite the worries.

“[The deal shows] we can create a more sustainable world for our grandchildren, our citizens, and the future generation,” Indonesia’s coordinating minister of maritime and investment affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said.

US climate envoy, John Kerry, the US climate envoy, said the accord was “groundbreaking”.

“We’ve built a platform for co-operation that can truly transform Indonesia’s power sector from coal to renewables and support significant economic growth,” Kerry said.

The pact with Indonesia is the JETP’s second of its kind. The first was an $8.5 billion deal inked with South Africa at the COP26 last year. Talks are under way with Vietnam, India and Senegal to reach similar agreements.

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Découverte exceptionnelle d'un long tunnel sous un temple en Égypte

C'est une prouesse d'ingénierie, un tunnel rocheux à 13 mètres de profondeur a été découvert sur le célèbre site de Taposiris Magna en Égypte, à 45 kilomètres de la ville d'Alexandrie. Une région où plusieurs équipes d'archéologues sont déployées pour mettre en lumière l'histoire locale par le...

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Des compléments alimentaires dérivés de la vitamine B3 soupçonnés d'augmenter le risque de cancer

Une étude récente suggère que les compléments alimentaires à base de nicotinamide riboside, un dérivé de la vitamine B3, augmentent le risque de cancer et de voir celui-ci se métastaser. Qu'en est-il vraiment ?

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Metso Outotec expands its Metrics to stationary screens

Metso Outotec is now expanding on Metrics, the company’s monitoring system, to cover the tools, sensors and dashboard access for monitoring customers’ stationary screening equipment. The cloud-based system portfolio is one of Metso Outotec’s key digital solutions for customers.

Metrics will now offer improved safety, increased uptime, higher throughput, and reduced unplanned maintenance. Additionally, it will enable operators, controllers and service professionals to see real-time analysis of vibrating screen performance and bearing condition.

“The customer feedback received has helped us to offer a solution focused on customer centricity and sustainability. Metrics for screens helps customers to optimize their process, as they can easily see how the changes implemented have impacted their screening operations,” says Jan Wirth, technology director with Metso Outotec’s screening solutions business.

“In addition, continuous monitoring helps in the avoidance of several potential breakdowns. It also has a positive impact on sustainability, as running the screen in an optimal way enables increased uptime and less consumption of media, spare parts, oil and energy. Our strong development roadmap will enable us to release more data-driven and value-added services soon,” says Wirth.

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Novel copper-based material key to safely convert heat into electricity

A recent study published in the journal Angewandte Chemie presents a new synthetic copper material that acquires a complex structure and microstructure through simple changes in its composition, thereby laying the foundation for converting heat into electricity.

In detail, the novel material is composed of copper, manganese, germanium, and sulphur, and is produced in a relatively simple process.

“The powders are simply mechanically alloyed by ball-milling to form a pre-crystallized phase, which is then densified by 600 degrees Celsius. This process can be easily scaled up,” Emmanuel Guilmeau, corresponding author of the study, said in a media statement.

Thermoelectric materials convert heat to electricity. This is especially useful in industrial processes where waste heat is reused as valuable electric power. The converse approach is the cooling of electronic parts, for example, in smartphones or cars. Materials used in this kind of application have to be not only efficient, but also inexpensive and, above all, safe for health.

However, thermoelectric devices used to date make use of expensive and toxic elements such as lead and tellurium, which offer the best conversion efficiency.

But Guilmeau and his team were convinced that it is possible to create safer alternatives. This is why they decided to explore derivatives of natural copper-based sulphide minerals. These mineral derivatives are mainly composed of nontoxic and abundant elements, and some of them have thermoelectric properties.

The team succeeded in producing a series of thermoelectric materials showing two crystal structures within the same material.

“We were very surprised at the result. Usually, slightly changing the composition has little effect on the structure in this class of materials,” Guilmeau said.

He and his colleagues found that replacing a small fraction of the manganese with copper produced complex microstructures with interconnected nanodomains, defects, and coherent interfaces, which affected the material’s transport properties for electrons and heat.

Guilmeau pointed out that the novel material is stable up to 400 degrees Celsius, a range well within the waste heat temperature range of most industries. He is convinced that, based on this discovery, novel cheaper and nontoxic thermoelectric materials could be designed to replace more problematic components.

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Salazar, Adventus reach deal for $270m Ecuador copper-gold project

Canada’s Salazar Resources (TSX-V: SRL) and Adventus Mining are set to ink a final a foreign direct investment agreement with Ecuador’s government for their El Domo copper and gold project.

The partners said that the country’s investment institution approved last week a draft contract whose final version is expected to be signed in four months.

The investment agreement includes a number of incentives for the miners, which are valid for about 10 years, until March 2033.

These include a 5% reduction in the income tax rate to 20% and a full exemption on capital outflow tax (ISD) on all imports of capital goods and raw materials.

The deal also grants Adventus Mining and Salazar Resources full exemption from import duties on capital goods and raw materials, including on all equipment related to mines and mills.

It incorporates as well the approval of a special article on dispute resolution, including international arbitration protection.

The Ecuadorian government has committed to guarantee fiscal and legal stability to the companies. This means that all applicable laws related to the mining industry will be frozen during the term of the contract, unless there are new regulations that benefit the miners.

“We are thrilled to have completed this significant approval milestone (…) to further advance El Domo towards the start of construction in 2023,” Christian Kargl-Simard, President and CEO of Adventus Mining said in the statement.

Among top three mines

The Toronto-based miners’ Curipamba project consists of seven concessions, including the El Domo deposit. 

Once built, El Domo will be Ecuador’s third major mining operation. The only large-scale mines in the country to date are the Mirador copper mine, run by China-backed Ecuacorriente and Lundin Gold’s (TSX: LUG) Fruta del Norte gold mine. 

The Curipamba project consists of seven concessions covering around 21,500ha, including the El Domo advanced high-grade copper-gold deposit. (Image: Salazar Resources’ presentation.)

The operation is also expected to bring $376 million in taxes and royalties into the state’s coffers over the 10-year mine life outlined by El Domo feasibility study, which does not include the additional development of underground resources identified, the companies have said.

Adventus Mining and Salazar committed in June to investing $270 million over the next 12 years at the project. The figure doesn’t include the $50 million both miners invested up to the end of 2021.

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