� CODELCO The world ’ s biggest copper producer has managed to increase its first quarter output of the red metal , despite a surge in Covid infections across Chile . Chilean mines account for more than a quarter of global supply .

Rio Tinto has taken the next step in scaling up a breakthrough lithium production process developed at its Boron mine site in California .

What they said : Rio Tinto Minerals chief executive Sinead Kaufman commented : “ This is a valuable next step in scaling up our production of lithium at the Boron site , all from using waste material without the need for further mining . It shows the innovative thinking we are applying across our business to find new ways to meet the demand for emerging commodities like lithium , which are part of the transition to a low-carbon future .”

Drilling down the numbers : The demonstration plant has a design capacity of 10 tonnes per year of battery grade lithium . It will be run throughout 2021 to optimise the process and inform Rio Tinto ’ s feasibility assessment for progressing to a production scale plant with an initial capacity of at least 5,000 tonnes per year , or enough to make batteries for approximately 70,000 electric vehicles .

� IVANHOE MINES Ivanhoe Mines achieved a production record in February at the Kamoa- Kakula Copper Project in the DRC . The 339,000 tonnes mined and stockpiled in February had an average ore grading of 5.5 %. Founder Robert Friedland said expansion plans could see it rank as the world ’ s second largest copper producer .

� VALE The Ilha de Guaiba iron ore terminal in Mangaratiba in the state of Rio de Janeiro has been shut down by Brazilian authorities due to environmental concerns . It exports nearly 40 million tonnes of iron ore a year .

� COAL INDIA Coal India ’ s shipments sank to a four-year low in the 12 months to March , as the global pandemic continued crushing demand . The staterun miner reported sales of 573.8 million tonnes , down 1.3 % year-on-year .

miningglobal . com 11