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An interesting article in a South African weekly discussing the upcoming African Mining Indaba, an annual conference now in its 18th year with the stated goal of bringing investors in to help fuel investment into African mining, caught our eye this week.

With more than 6,500 delegates expected at this year’s Indaba, next month’s event in Cape Town is set to be the biggest conference yet.  Particularly interesting from an American Resources perspective is the fact that organizers report a significant increase in interest from resource-hungry China and India, not just in terms of attendance, but active participation.

The conference is known to be a place where many mining deals have been struck in the past.  Against that background, the fact that China and India, both of which have worked feverishly to increase their footprint in Africa in an effort to gain access to the continent’s vast mineral riches, are looking to step up participation in the event is a clear indication that the global race for resources shows no signs of slowing down.

Another interesting take-away from the article points in the same direction:  Given the success of the conference in Africa, there are now plans to hold a similar Indaba in Asia this fall.  With awareness of the need to ensure future access to critical mineral resources increasing around the world, will policy makers in Washington, D.C. finally give the issue the attention it deserves?

In this first full trading week of 2012, there is a lot of talk about what the year will bring for investors, manufacturers and consumers, with much of it revolving around the U.S. Presidential primaries and the Eurozone financial crisis. While the importance of these issues cannot be dismissed, the British daily The Independent reminds (…) more

Continuing our informational campaign to highlight the breadth of our nation’s metals and minerals needs, we’re going to drill down into the utilities of and challenges associated with zinc this month. In its ongoing efforts to satiate its growing appetite for mineral resources, China – long having enlarged its footprint in Africa – has recently (…) more

The Department of Energy officially released its 2011 Critical Materials Strategy, an update of last December’s inaugural report on metals essential to green-tech applications ranging from wind and solar power to EV batteries and CFL lighting.  Five metals made the critical risk quadrant for both the short-term (today to 2015) and medium-term (2015 to 2025); (…) more

With China’s restrictive rare earths export policies having triggered a rush for other nations to get their hands on the sought-after set of critical minerals, Canada has hopes of filling the REE void left by China, according to the Gemcom Software Mining blog. A nation already rich in a broad variety of mineral resources, Canada is (…) more

In 2011, we saw a lot of countries enter into cooperative agreements to develop critical minerals.  This trend will likely continue this year, as nations that do not possess or develop some of the most sough-after metals and minerals are looking to secure future access and alleviate or stave off supply shortages. The last few (…) more

A lengthy piece in the Asia Times online edition discusses China’s ever-increasing footprint in Africa, arguing that this manifestation of China replacing the West as the “dominant economic and political force in Africa epitomizes the most dramatic shift in geopolitics since the collapse of the Soviet Union.” In its global quest for mineral resources, China (…) more

Northeastern University scientists caused a stir earlier this week with their announcement that they have designed a “super strong magnetic material that may revolutionize the production of magnets found in computers, mobile phones, electric cars and wind-powered generators,” alluding to the possibility of replacing neodymium/praseodymium permanent magnets. On his website TechMetalResearch.com, American Resources expert Gareth (…) more

Working to implement a “strategy to reverse years of neglect and decline in its Far North,” Russia appears ready to re-embrace a Cold War, according to a detailed story in the Toronto Star.  Home to vast mineral resources including oil, zinc, and gold, for example, the Arctic is viewed by Russia as its strategic future, (…) more