Diggers & Dealers 2025 live: Final day of annual mining forum underway in Kalgoorlie-Boulder
The annual mining conference is marching into its third and final day in Kalgoorlie-Boulder.
Appearances by the State Mines Minister and Federal Resources Minister brought the battle for more rare earths and downstream production woes into the fore. Greatland Resources clarified some guidance queries, meanwhile Liontown Resources and PLS (Pilbara Minerals) lamented a very tough lithium market.
Battery metals miner Chalice Mining is up to present today, as well as Gold Road Resources and Gold Fields. This evening is also the WesTrac Gala Dinner, where awards for best Digger, and Dealer, of the year will be announced.
Stay tuned for rolling coverage of the conference’s final day.
Ivanhoe Atlantic skips Diggers
A company gearing up for a hotly-anticipated IPO won’t be presenting at Diggers.
Ivanhoe Atlantic was due to present on Wednesday but has seemingly fallen off the schedule.
The company is backed by billionaire financier Robert Friedland, and piqued a lot of interest with plans to debut on the ASX this year and a view of raising $300 million.
Ivanhoe’s main asset would be the high-grade, Kon Kweni iron ore deposit in Guinea, the same west African country Rio Tinto is currently developing the so-called ‘Pilbara Killer’ Simandou deposit.
Spurring further intrigue in the potential new ASX-lister has been the company’s biggest shareholder; a mining and energy technology enterprise named I-Pulse Inc that was founded and currently led by US billionaire Robert Friedland.
And the lithium pain continues
Tuesday saw two lithium miners united in their belief that markets for the battery mineral need to be improved:
And it looks as though the ailing lithium hydroxide refinery in Kwinana will keep on keeping on, despite minority JV partner IGO writing its entire value down to zero:
In case you missed it: King won’t rule out taking stakes in miners
Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King on Tuesday suggested Australia could replicate the US government’s move to grab a big shareholding in a rare earths company.
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