Canada's mining sector contributed $36 billion to the national GDP in 2010, and employed 308,000 workers in mineral extraction, smelting, fabrication and manufacturing.

An additional 3,215 companies supplied engineering, geotechnical, environmental, financial and other services to mining operations, the industry body said.

In 2010, the value of Canadian mineral production rose by 31 percent and mineral exploration increased by 35 percent.

The industry exported $84.5 billion worth of metals, non-metals and coal in 2010, which accounts for 21.2 percent of Canada's total exports.

Mining Association of Canada president and CEO, Pierre Gratton, said: "Mining in Canada is playing a leading role in Canada's economic recovery. We are generating significant results, we are creating valuable new jobs and we are optimistic about the opportunities in the future.

"Working responsibly and co-operatively, we believe mining will be a good news story for Canada for years to come."

According to the association, Canada's mining industry plans to invest a further $139 billion in new projects nationwide over the next decade.

The success of these projects will depend on several factors including: an efficient regulatory process, sufficient human resources and improved infrastructure.

The Mining Association of Canada is the national organization for the Canadian mining industry. Its members account for most of Canada's production of base and precious metals, uranium, diamonds, metallurgical coal, mined oil sands and industrial minerals and are actively engaged in mineral exploration, mining, smelting, refining and semi-fabrication.

Friday, the latest data from Statistics Canada showed 2,300 net new jobs were added in January due to layoffs in construction and professional services, which offset some growth in manufacturing.

The unemployment rate also edged up to 7.6 percent from 7.5 percent - the highest since April 2011, said Statistics Canada.

Economists expected 23,100 new positions, with the jobless rate holding steady at 7.5 percent.

For the three months ended December 31, the company posted net income of $107 million, or $0.22 per share, up from a net loss of $161 million, or $0.33 loss per share, a year ago.

Revenues increased less than half a percent to $2.6 billion.

According to Thomson Reuters, analysts had expected just 19-cents per share.

Genworth CEO Michael D. Frazier said: "For Genworth, 2011 was a year of repositioning actions to move the company to move through an uncertain environment and provide a foundation for improved shareholder value.

"We made progress in several areas and will maintain an intense execution focus during 2012.

"At business portfolio and product line levels, we took important steps to improve our focus, strengthen risk buffers and capital generation, and support future redeployment of capital."

Part of Genworth's improvements include the re-segmenting of its business into three divisions.

The insurance and wealth management division, which includes the U.S. life insurance, international protections, and wealth management services, posted a 12 percent increase in fourth quarter earnings to $145 million, driven by a 14 percent increase in the U.S. life insurance segment.

The mortgage insurance division, which includes both U.S. and international mortgage insurance services, posted a net operating loss of $16 million, compared to a loss of $254 million a year ago, drive by U.S. mortgage insurance results.

The corporate and runoff division includes variable annuities, small remaining blocks of Medicare supplement insurance following the sale of the business, as well as corporate activities.

The corporate segment posted an operating loss of $43 million, compared to $11 million in the year-ago period, which was offset by a $20 million operating income in the runoff segment, largely on the sale of the Medicare supplement business, and fixed maturity bond redemptions.

For the fourth quarter, premiums revenues fell eight percent to $1.35 billion, while insurance and investment product fees increased 39 percent to $416 million.

For the full year fiscal 2012, earnings fell 14 percent to $122 million, or $0.25 per share, while revenues increased three percent to $10.3 million.

In New York, shares of the Richmond, Virginia-based company rose 13.18 percent to $9.10, as of 2:39 pm EDT.

The Japanese electronics firm joins rivals Sony (NYSE:SNE) and Sharp as they struggle to fix their broken TV businesses and show they have not lost their way.

Together, Panasonic, Sony and Sharp Corp expect to lose $17 billion this year, highlighting the savaging of Japan's electronics industry by foreign rivals led by South Korea's Samsung Electronics, as well as weak demand and a strong yen.

With TVs becoming smart - linked to other devices like tablets and smartphones - an inability by Panasonic to win in the TV market risks hobbling sales across their wider consumer electronics line-up.

Panasonic trimmed its forecast for the number of flat-screen TVs it will sell by 1 million to 18 million sets for the year ending March.

The company, which is in the process of shedding 17,000 jobs by the end of March, also missed third-quarter market forecasts, diving to a loss of 197.6 billion yen from a profit a year earlier, much of the damage coming from the TV business.

The yen's strength against the dollar and euro, which erodes foreign earned income when repatriated to Japan, also hurt Panasonic, which gets just under half its sales from outside the country.

At a press briefing, Panasonic president Fumio Ohtsubo apologized for the unprecedented loss.

"I feel the responsibility for the huge amount," Ohtsubo said.

He gave no sign, however, that he would step aside to let someone else try to revamp the sprawling consumer electronics giant, as Sony's boss Howard Stringer has done.

Thursday, Sony warned of a bigger-than-expected annual loss as it announced that Kazuo Hirai will take over from Stringer as chief executive in April.

By 2015, annual global sales of liquid crystal TVs will contract by eight percent to $92 billion, forecasts flat panel industry research company DisplaySearch. Worse still, plasma sets, a market that Panasonic dominates, will shrink 38 percent to $7 billion.

Moody's Investors Service downgraded the debt ratings of Panasonic and Sony last month and retained a negative outlook for both, citing their continued TV losses.

It's not only TVs, though, that pose a risk to profits and are keeping investors away from Panasonic shares, analysts say.

Weighing on Panasonic's finances, and adding to 514 billion yen in restructuring costs, is a 250 billion yen goodwill writedown from the 2009 acquisition of Panasonic's rival Sanyo, bought as part of a strategy to focus more on business-to-business markets such as auto components and green technologies.

If that business performs poorly, analysts say there could be a need for a bigger write-off.

Ohtsubo said he had no regrets over buying Sanyo. The acquisition, he insisted, "provided clarity about the future course of Panasonic".

Panasonic does expect to make an operating profit - which excludes one off items such as restructuring charges - though this is now seen at just 30 billion yen, down from a previous 130 billion yen forecast.

In its previous year, Panasonic logged an operating profit of 305 billion yen.

The merged company will control about 900 square kilometres of exploration ground in Peru's Macusani Plateau uranium district.

Copper Fox Metals (CVE:CUU) Friday announced further assay results from four diamond drill holes as part of the 2011 drill program on the Schaft Creek deposit in British Columbia, as well as unveiled metallurgical testwork from the Paramount zone of the project.

Among the highlights, diamond drill hole (DDH) CF419-2011, located in the Liard zone, intersected 0.46 percent copper, 0.41 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, 0.043 percent molybdenum and 2.15 g/t silver (0.96 percent copper equivalent) over an interval of 110.8 metres starting at a core length of 10.2 metres.

Salazar Resources (CVE:SRL) has closed a non-brokered private financing in a move that gives Lundin Mining (TSE:LUN) a 15.4 percent stake in the junior miner, the company said.

Lundin Mining acquired the stake by taking up over 80 percent of the private placement financing. Salazar noted it has granted Lundin a non-dilutive right to participate in future equity financings to maintain their ownership percentage.

African Queen Mines (CVE:AQ) said Friday that it has now resolved and completed all details of the legal settlement process relating to a land dispute over certain areas of its Rongo Gold Fields project in southwest Kenya.

By the close, the Dow Jones had jumped 157 points to 12,862. The NASDAQ leapt to an 11 year high, up 46 points to 2606.

The US created 243,000 jobs in January, according to the latest figures from the US Labor Bureau, with the unemployment rate easing down to 8.3 percent from 8.5 percent, the lowest since February 2009.

The 243,000 increase in payrolls was the most since April and exceeded all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey by a wide margin.

December jobs data was also revised up to 203,000 jobs and November payrolls revised up to 157,000.

In corporate news, Tyson Foods (NYSE:TSN) saw its stock rise over five percent Friday, following news of its first quarter results, which beat analysts' estimates, despite higher feed ingredient costs during the period.

For the three months that ended December 31, the meat processor posted $156 million, or $0.42 per share in profits, down 48 percent from $298 million, or $0.78 per share, a year ago.

Analysts, however, had only expected $0.33 per share in earnings, according to Thomson Reuters. Sales rose over nine percent to $8.33 billion, from $7.62 billion in the same period last year.

Clorox Co. (NYSE:CLX) posted better-than-expected second quarter earnings driven by price increases, despite the company’s continued struggle with rising commodity and transportation costs.

Spirit maker Beam (NYSE:BEAM) said Friday its fourth quarter profit jumped 10 percent driven by its Skinnygirl cocktail brands, and higher margins, despite lower than expected sales.

However, shares in the Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) sank by as much as 6% Friday, as the company's third quarter forecast was well below analysts' estimates.

Japan's Panasonic Corp. (NYSE:PC) Friday warned of a record annual $10.2 billion net loss for its fiscal 2011 year, due to restructuring charges and writedowns for its Sanyo Electric unit.

The Japanese electronics firm joins rivals Sony (NYSE:SNE) and Sharp as they struggle to fix their broken TV businesses and show they have not lost their way.

On the economic front, factory orders for December rose 1.1%, slightly below expectations.

Elsewhere, the January installment of the ISM Services Index hit 56.8, surpassing economists' expectations for 53.1, and up sharply from the prior month.

Commodities

In NYMEX futures trading, crude for March delivery rose 70 cents, or 0.7%, to $97.03 a barrel while gold futures for April delivery settled at $1,740.30 an ounce, down 1.1%.

Europe

European markets closed sharply higher today with shares in London leading the region. The FTSE 100 was up 1.81%, while Germany's DAX rose 1.67% and France's CAC 40 gained 1.52%.

As of 1:15pm ET, the S&P/TSX Composite was up 30.79 points, or 0.25%, to 12,584.27, while the more junior S&P/TSX Venture Composite rose 7.51 points, or 0.45%, to 1,668.08.

The US created 243,000 jobs in January, according to the latest figures from the US Labor Bureau, with the unemployment rate easing down to 8.3 percent from 8.5 percent, the lowest since February 2009.

The 243,000 increase in payrolls was the most since April and exceeded all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey by a wide margin.

December jobs data was also revised up to 203,000 jobs and November payrolls revised up to 157,000.

Canada's economy, however, fared far worse in comparison, adding a slight 2,300 net new jobs in January due to layoffs in construction and professional serivces, which offset some growth in manufacturing.

The unemployment rate also edged up to 7.6% from 7.5% - the highest since April 2011, said Statistics Canada.
Economists expected 23,100 new positions, with the jobless rate holding steady at 7.5%.

Commodities were mixed, with gold for April down 0.97% to $1,742.20 an ounce, while silver futures fell more than 1.1% to $33.79 an ounce.

Crude oil for March delivery ticked higher by 90 cents to $97.26 an ounce, while base metal copper contract prices gained nearly 3.2% to $3.9 a pound.

Metals and mining, industrials and financials were the three biggest gainers in Toronto, followed closely by the energy sector. Infotech and telecom were in the red.

The gold sector was impacted as Kinross Gold (TSE:K), Goldcorp (TSE:G), and Barrick Gold (TSE:ABX) all fell 1.7%, 2.12% and 2.07%, respectively.

Copper heavyweight Teck Resources (TSE:TCK.B) rose 2.33% on the price of the base metal, while Cline Mining (TSE:CMK) shares increased around 5.4%.

In energy, Suncor Energy (TSE:SU) gained 1.1%, while Talisman Energy (TSE:TLM) advanced 2.8%.

Financials were higher by 0.81% as Manulife Financial (TSE:MFC) rallied over 4%, while Bank of Nova Scotia (TSE:BNS) edged higher by 0.56%.

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (TSE:RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM) lost 1.86% as the company was downgraded to "underperform" from hold at Jefferies, with its price target slashed to $15 from $17. The smartphone maker also said it will give its tablet, the BlackBerry PlayBook, out to Android developers in exchange for their apps.

In corporate news, Magma Metals (TSE:MMW)(ASX:MMW) shares rocketed more than 76% after it said Friday morning that Panoramic Resources (ASX:PAN) made clear a plan to acquire the company.

The proposed offer consideration is two Panoramic shares for every 17 Magma shares held, which implies a value of AUD 14.94 cents per Magma share.

The unsolicited offer, said Magma, appears opportunistic, and advised shareholders to take no action in response to the proposal.

Aircraft component maker Héroux-Devtek (TSE:HRX) said Friday third-quarter profit ballooned by 33.8 percent, spurred by strong demand for heavy equipment in its industrial products business.

The maker of landing gears and airframe components for both commercial and military aircraft said sales rose 8.8 percent to $93.4 million in the period. That is up from $85.8 million last year.

For the quarter that ended December 31, net income jumped 33.8 percent to $6.9 million, or 23 cents per share, compared to a year-prior profit of $5.2 million, or 17 cents per share.

Salazar Resources (CVE:SRL) has closed a non-brokered private financing in a move that gives Lundin Mining (TSE:LUN) a 15.4 percent stake in the junior miner, the company said.

Lundin Mining acquired the stake by taking up over 80 percent of the private placement financing. Salazar noted it has granted Lundin a non-dilutive right to participate in future equity financings to maintain their ownership percentage.

Macusani Yellowcake (CVE:YEL) said Friday it was buying Southern Andes Energy (CVE:SUR) for about $10.1 million worth of stock, in a friendly bid intended to consolidate the junior uranium explorers' properties.

The merged company will control about 900 square kilometres of exploration ground in Peru's Macusani Plateau uranium district.

Paper and paper product maker, Domtar (TSE:UFS)(NYSE:UFS) said Friday its fourth-quarter earnings dropped on weak pulp sales.

For the three months ended December 31, the company posted earnings of $61 million, or $1.63 per share, down 81 percent from $325 million, or $7.25 per share, a year ago.

Adjusted for certain one-time items, earnings fell ten percent to $93 million, or $2.43 per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had estimated $2.15 per share in profits.

Total sales for the quarter fell 0.3 percent to $1.37 billion. The company also said pulp prices were expected to remain under pressure in certain geographies.

Digital whiteboard maker Smart Technologies (TSE:SMA) said its quarterly net profit declined 13% on costs related to moving its Ottawa assembly operations, as well as lower gross margins. The company's shares plummeted more than 14.4% in Toronto.

Bernier has 27 years of applied geoscientific research and project management experience.
Currently, he is a senior geoscientist for Chibougamau-based Table Jamésienne de Concertation Minière (TJCM) at its applied research division.

From 2009 to 2011, Bernier acted as senior mining industry advisor to Makivik Corp., an organization that protects the economic rights and interests of the Inuit of Nunavik.

Since November 2010, he has also acted as senior technical advisor to Focus on the Lac Knife graphite project, and for the review of new business development opportunities.

In addition, Bernier is a director of Majescor Resources (CVE:MJX) and its unit Simact Alliance Copper-Gold.

He is a registered geoscientist and practicing member of the Ordre des géologues du Québec. Bernier also has a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in geology from the University of Ottawa.

"Marc-André brings to the board a wealth of experience in applied geoscientific research and mineral exploration project management,” chief executive Gary Economo said in a statement.

"I am delighted Marc-André will be joining our leadership team at Focus, where I am confident he will make a valuable contribution to the next phase of our company's growth and development strategy."

Last month, the miner announced it acquired 65 claims in south-western Quebec from vendors for $60,000.

The claims, which are all natural flake graphite prospects, including a past producing property, are located on five properties within the Gatineau – Bois Franc area.

Prior exploration work reported the prospects are hosted in quartzite and consist of graphitic and massive graphite veins and veinlets. Graphite flakes are large to medium size, the company added.

The company will pay vendors 100,000 common shares of Focus Metals.

Focus Metals is an emerging mid-tier junior miner. It is the owner of the highest-grade 16 percent technology graphite resource in the world. Its aim is to be a low-cost producer of technology grade graphite.

It holds a 100 percent stake in the Lac Knife, Quebec property. The concession, some 35 kilometres south of Fermont, Quebec, is in the pre-development state with infrastructure, surface mining and primary processing site construction planned for completion next year.

Graphite is used to make brake linings, lubricants, and molds in foundries. A variety of other industrial uses account for the remaining graphite consumed each year.

Earlier this month, the company released the results of a feasibility study on the Chandgana Mine-Mouth power plant project, which is to be built next to the company's Chandgana Tal coal deposit from where coal will be supplied.

Construction of the power plant project, which is estimated to have 30 years of commercial operation, is planned to start in April 2013, with the first 150 MW unit being commissioned in October 2015.  The remainder of the units are to be rolled out in April 2016, October 2016, and April 2017.

The study projected an after tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 21.9 percent from the project, and a net present value of US $364.7 million, assuming a discount rate of 12 percent, and a debt interest rate of 10 percent.

The company said Tuesday that in the past three months, four Chinese EPC companies have reviewed the project data, and conducted site visits in Mongolia, while several other international companies have also expressed a written interest in bidding for the contract.

Prophecy expects to have key EPC proposals by March 31, 2012, with the company expecting to have picked a firm by the second quarter. The EPC firm is also expected to bring in a lender for debt financing, the company said.

With regards to the power purchase agreement, the company has been in close talks with the Mongolian Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy for the signing of the deal since Prophecy obtained the power plant construction license last November.

This month, a working commission on the power purchase agreement was constituted, and endorsed by the Minister, with both the company and the commission working together towards a deal. The aim is to have the power purchase agreement and the EPC contract selection finished at the same time.

Separately, Prophecy has met with Chinese government-sponsored policy banks involved in Mongolian projects for project financing, as well as private equity firms focused on international energy production projects.

The company also expects interest in the project from institutional investors. Prophecy said that once a power purchase agreement is signed, it anticipates being able to secure the necessary equity funding this year to move the project towards construction in the second quarter of 2013.

Under the feasibility study for the power plant, it was projected that coal will be supplied by the Chandgana Tal deposit, which contains 140 million tonnes of measured coal, at a steady rate of 2.7 million tonne per year, with the delivered coal price set at $15.50/t with a 2 percent semi-annual price increase.

The electricity tariff is targeted at US $0.06/kWh, with a 2 percent semi-annual increase.

Capital cost is projected to be US $744 million for the 600MW project, or US $1,240 per kW. This includes the power plant, overhead transmission lines, and administrative costs, the company said, but excludes mine development costs.

The company's coal resource is next to a two-lane highway and 150 kilometres from the existing power grid.  Once power and the mine are brought online, there is good potential to introduce additional plant units at lower capital costs, it added.

Prophecy Coal is a Canadian company that has over 1.4 billion tonnes of surface minable thermal coal resources on two coal properties in Mongolia. Its Ulaan Ovoo coal mine is in production and its Chandgana mine mouth power plant has been permitted.

Rainy River's June 2011 NI 43-101 resource estimate shows a measured and indicated resource of 4.41 million ounces of gold averaging 1.17 grams per tonne (g/t) gold, in addition to an inferred resource of 2.33 million ounces of gold averaging 0.94 g/t gold.

In this resource estimate, Rainy River considers the material above the final depth of the conceptual pit shell (450 metres vertical depth) offers reasonable prospects for economic extraction from an open pit, using a cut-off grade of 0.35 g/t gold.

Recently, Bayfield reported that a wide shear zone is now in the initial stages of exploration on the far east portion of the Burns Block. This zone is the easterly strike extension of the main ODM17 gold target that hosts Rainy River's deposit as well as the zone that hosts Bayfield’s high grade gold and silver mineralization 700 metres to the west.

Bayfield’s CEO, Jim Pettit, told Proactiveinvestors that the Burns Block is basically a rectangular block in the middle of Rainy River's property, and since 2010, Bayfield has completed about 70,000 metres of diamond drilling from the western border heading east, and is budgeted for another 30,000 metres of drilling in 2012.

The aim of the campaign, said Pettit, is to explore and expand the extension of gold and silver mineralization that is being defined by Rainy River on its ground adjacent to Bayfield's claims.

Early on in the 100,000 metre program at the Burns, hole RR10-15 tapped into a high grade gold and silver shoot and returned 31.71 g/t gold and 50.23 g/t silver over 3 metres at 160 metres below surface right beside the western border.

The company quickly followed up this result with hole RR10-18, which returned 35.93 g/t gold and 360 g/t silver over 10 metres.

Drilling on Burns Block was halted for a break over the holiday season, but has since resumed with exploratory drilling of mineralization initially discovered at surface in 2010 on the eastern portion of the Burns Block.

Earlier this month, the company reported assay results from this program that conclusively showed that structurally controlled gold-silver mineralization continues for at least 700 metres from west to east across the Burns Block property. Much more infill and definition drilling is planned along this strike length.

Initial wide-spaced drilling in the eastern portion of Burns Block has intercepted multi-gram gold assays, including values up to 5.58 g/t gold and 32.87 g/t silver over 1.9 metres.

Pettit said he believes that more detailed drilling in this eastern area has an "excellent chance" of intercepting richer assay results once key high-grade mineralized structures are identified.

In late 2010, surface mapping and sampling found that mineralization underneath the till cover on the western portion of the property was widely exposed at surface in an outcrop on the eastern side of the Burns Block, leading to further exploration and drilling in 2011.

Much like the western portion of the Burns Block, Bayfield is defining a lower grade envelope that could encompass much higher grade gold and silver zones at depth over to the east, the company said.

The potential for this is seen with one of the latest holes, RR11-205, which intercepted a 22.0 metre wide zone containing several distinct zones of gold mineralization in the range of 1.74 to 5.58 g/t gold, along with silver values up to 34.30 g/t silver.

Also in the northeast quadrant of the Burns Block, hole RR11-202 returned 3.00 metres of 2.56 g/t gold and 9.00 g/t silver as well as 1.50 metres of 4.08 g/t gold and 9.80 g/t silver.

Indeed, Bayfield said gold and silver values are getting richer at depth, and approximately 500 metres of the down plunge distance within the south-dipping shear zone is unexplored.

In November, Rainy River Resources released a preliminary economic assessment on its property, with plans for a combined open pit and underground operation, with a planned underground decline development looping right around the Burns Block property.

The report, which looked at mining operations over 13.2 years, estimated a life-of-mine net present value of $786 million using a $1,200 gold price, a $25 silver price and a discount rate of five percent. It also reported a 19.4 percent internal rate of return and a payback period of 3.4 years.

Pettit noted though that Rainy River's initial mine plan is "very cost-sensitive" because of the lower grades, with a mill head grade of 0.7 g/t gold, an open pit cut-off grade of 0.30 g/t gold and an underground cut-off grade of 2.0 g/t gold.

Pettit suggested that as a result of this sensitivity, underground mining is planned to hit pockets of high grade below the pit to enhance the initial economics of the mine. He added that this underground mining could target some of Bayfield’s high grade zones that are “very rich in grade” and are located near to the initially proposed underground workings in Rainy River’s 17 East Zone.

Life-of-mine average annual production for the Rainy River gold project is currently projected at 329,000 gold ounces and 497,000 silver ounces, with production anticipated to start in the second half of 2015.

The ODM17 gold zone, which extends onto the Burns Block near surface, is the first zone to be fed into the proposed mill, according to Rainy River's mine plan, added Pettit.

Pettit went on to note that another potential benefit of owning the Burns Block property is the "nice, big" outcrop located on the asset, "ideal for Rainy River's needs for constructing a mill", he said. An outcrop is an area of visible bedrock that is not covered with soil and it offers hard, stable ground as most of the district is quite boggy.

The Burns Block property can be accessed through numerous all-weather, secondary provincial highways and township roads, which lead off of paved provincial highways 11 and 71. The project therefore has good access to labour and equipment.

Aside from Burns Block, which accounts for around 99 percent of Bayfield's asset value, the company also holds the B Block and the C Block properties in the Rainy River district, which constitute "blue sky" exploration potential for the company.

Diamond drilling is now underway on the 1,976 acre C Block property situated to the west of Rainy River Resources' deposit, an area that has never before been drilled.

Around 3,000 to 3, 5000 metres of exploratory drilling is planned at the C Block, with the aim of establishing the character of the bed rock across the under-explored property. The vast majority of the asset is covered by glacial till deposits, necessitating a drilling technique called overburden drilling, which uses a reverse circulation drill, to establish gold targets for diamond drilling.

Drill targeting is also being guided by the results of ground magnetic surveys completed in 2007, and by the results of helicopter VTEM and magnetic surveys flown for Bayfield in late 2010.  Bayfield said the geophysical data is similar to that collected from its Burns Block and B Block properties, as well as the area hosting Rainy River’s deposit.

At the 1,185 acre B Block, around 2,500 metres of drilling is planned. In 2008, Bayfield drilled 2 metres of 5.84 g/t gold in the south-central portion of the B Block, with the mineralization lying within 200 metres of the surface.

Bayfield, with just under $4 million in the treasury, said it is fully funded through the balance of its exploration plans, and doesn't expect the need for more money via a financing.

Pettit, who has more than 15 years of experience managing junior resource companies, is confident with his exit strategy plans for the company given the drilling and exploration that has been done to date.

Aside from Pettit, Bayfield's management boasts president and director, Donald C. Huston, who has over 25 years in the mineral exploration industry, having been an in-field manager for several projects in North America.

Bayfield's stock has risen nearly 28 percent since the start of 2012, currently changing hands at around 61 cents, suggesting a takeover may be in the works.

In early January of this year, Doug Casey’s International Speculator refreshed its "buy" rating of Bayfield Ventures, noting that the company's bulk-tonnage lower grade mineralization in addition to higher grade drill results continue to add value to the Burns Block property, and that whatever the size of this new area of mineralization to the east is, it simply makes a takeover more likely.

Fission is engaged in the acquisition and exploration of uranium properties in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Quebec in Canada, as well as the Macusani District in Peru.

Versant has a "speculative buy" rating on Fission Energy with a $1.25 price target. Tuesday, Fission shares closed up 1.3 percent at $0.78.

Fission Energy's flagship Waterbury Lake project is located immediately west of Hathor Exploration’s (TSE:HAT) Roughrider uranium deposit, which is in the heart of a district that hosts over 110 million pounds of uranium.

Hathor was recently subject to a takeover battle in late 2011 between mining giants Cameco Corp. (TSE:CCO)(NYSE:CCJ) and Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO)(LON:RIO), with the latter emerging as the winner with its $654 million friendly bid trumping Cameco's $625 million bid.

Fission's J East Zone at Waterbury is the likely western extension of Hathor's Rougrider deposit as the property line is the only thing separating the two, Versant noted.

J East is one of several pods of mineralization along a “string of pearls” formation that runs deeper from west to east and includes Fission’s Summit, Talkiser, J Zone and J East Zones as well as Hathor’s Roughrider, Roughrider East and Far East Zones.

In a research note, Versant analyst Rob Chang said: "Fission will soon release its initial 43-101 compliant resource estimate for the [Waterbury Lake] J Zone. The resource is expected to be between 13–23 million pounds of uranium. We estimate that it will be about 18 million pounds of uranium."

In terms of consolidation, Versant Partners said that with the recently completed battle for Hathor won by Rio Tinto, it is generally believed that Hathor alone is too small to significantly impact the bottom line for the mining giant.

"As such, the consolidation of Hathor’s neighbour that has the shallower mineralization is a likely subsequent step," Versant Partners concluded.

Other companies in the below $250 million market cap range included in Versant's top picks for the year are Mawson West (TSE:MWE), MEGA Brands (TSE:MB) and QHR Technologies (CVE:QHR).

Monday morning, Tournigan shares were up 5.5 percent to $0.09.

The study gave Kuriskova a pre-tax internal rate of return of 30.8 percent, a 1.9-year payback period, and a net present value of $277 million at an eight percent discount rate.

Tournigan also said the indicated resource at the Slovakia uranium deposit has increased 94 percent to 28.5 million pounds since a 2009 preliminary economic assessment (PEA) and uranium grade was up 62 percent from the earlier PEA to 0.408% uranium concentrate.

Based on estimated indicated resources, mineral reserves were estimated at 2.5 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.346% uranium, which was determined to provide an underground mining rate of about 210,000 tonnes of ore per year for around 13 years.

Life-of-mine uranium concentrate production was estimated at 20.9 million pounds, or 9,500 tonnes.

Tournigan's president and chief executive officer, Dorian L. Nicol, said: "We are very pleased with these results. They demonstrate that the Kuriskova project has the potential to be among the lowest cost uranium producers in the world.

"The PFS not only illustrates the robust economics of the Kuriskova project but also the competitive advantages it has over other uranium projects as a result of its high-grade resource and relatively low operating cost estimates."

Initial capital costs for Tournigan's Kuriskova  project are seen at $225 million, which includes owner's costs and a contingency of $31 million. During the 13-year life of mine, there will be sustaining capital requirements of about $71 million, the company said.

Tournigan also indicated a 92 percent uranium recovery rate and 26 percent-lower life of mine operating costs.

The PFS estimates $22.98 per pound uranium life-of-mine operating costs and $16.68 per pound costs during the first four years of production.

Looking ahead, Nicol continued: "Our next step is, working with our strategic partner AREVA, to begin a feasibility study and environmental assessment study that will continue to define project parameters to a higher degree of confidence and allow the permitting of the project to begin.

"The development of the Kuriskova uranium project could provide Slovakia with a secure source of uranium for approximately 30 years at its current consumption rate."

AREVA SA (EPA:AREVA) is a French nuclear energy powerhouse that is partnering with Tournigan. In December, Tournigan announced a number of transactions in an effort to expand its uranium presence in Europe, including the formation of an alliance with Areva  and the purchase of seven uranium properties in Finland and Sweden from Mawson Resources (TSE:MAW).

Tournigan said that according to the PFS for Kuriskova, the project can be best developed as an underground mine/processing facility, with a very small surface footprint using the best available technologies in its mining and processing operations.

The uranium explorer also said that there were multiple exploration targets within the Kuriskova license area, with the potential to expand the resource base and extend project life.

The PFS was prepared by independent consultant Tetra Tech.

Tournigan said it was planning an exploration program to continue testing multiple uranium exploration targets within the Kuriskova license area.

Exploration success would likely add resources that could be accessed from the planned Kuriskova infrastructure, and Tournigan said it will conduct further step-out exploration drilling where the high-grade mineralization is open along strike and at depth.

Tournigan is a uranium exploration and development company. Its flagship asset is the Kuriskova uranium deposit in Slovakia, which is among the highest-grade uranium deposits in the world.

Slovakia currently has four nuclear reactors generating half of its electricity, with two more reactors planned or under construction.

One reverse circulation drill has started on gold exploration targets located on the Medrizien license, the company said, with one diamond drill expected to start drilling on the Adi Rassi target in the southern part of the Debarwa license within three weeks.

The drills are expected to complete roughly 12,000 metres of drilling over the next four to six weeks, Sunridge said.

The first planned drill targets are a series of four, sub-parallel gold mineralized shear zones, which can be followed over strike lengths of 1,000 metres to several kilometres in length, and 50 to 200 metres in width on the western part of the Medrizien exploration license.

The company said that many of these zones have been mined by Italian colonists by both open-pit and underground methods, including the Hara Hot zone which was the largest single open-pit seen on the Asmara project.

Sunridge mapped and sampled parts of the four zones ahead of the drilling program, with a total of 450 rock chip and grab samples taken. Of these, 72 returned gold assays greater than 1 gram per tonne (g/t), including 16 samples with over 5 g/t.

The best gold values were seen at 68 g/t gold in a grab sample, and 15.9 g/t gold over 2 metres in a rock chip sample.

Meanwhile, at the Debarwa license on the eastern side, a newly discovered gold mineralized shear zone, known as Adi Kubulo, will be drilled. The zone can be traced for several kilometres, with an average width of about 80 metres.

At the area, 102 rock chip and grab samples were taken so far, with assays pending, Sunridge said.

On the southern part of the Debarwa license, the Adi Rassi prospect will be the first target drilled by the diamond rig, with the target located just 10 kilometres southeast of the Debarwa deposit.

Adi Rassi is associated with a north trending shear zone about 600 metres long and averages 70 metres wide, mineralized with copper and gold.

"Management believes that Adi Rassi could be a potentially large new copper and gold discovery based on earlier drilling results such as AR-002D: 84 metres with an average grade of 1.32 g/t gold and 0.84% copper; AR-003D: 25 metres with an average grade of 0.75 g/t gold; and 0.54% copper and AR-004D: 78 metres with an average grade of 0.22 g/t gold and 1.0% copper," Sunridge said in a statment Thursday.

Results from the 12,000 metre drill program are expected within two months.

Sunridge is a mineral exploration and development company that aside from Asmara, also has exploration properties in Madagascar.

In January, the company said it expects a feasibility study for the Debarwa copper-zinc-gold-silver deposit at Asmara in the first quarter of this year, which will examine the potential for a stand-alone open-pit mine and process plant at the deposit over a seven year mine life.

The other deposits at Asmara, collectively referred to as the Asmara North project area, include the copper-zinc-gold-silver Emba Derho deposit, the zinc-gold-copper Adi Nefas deposit, and the Gupo gold deposit.

Updated resources estimates for each of these deposits are expected within the first two months of this year. A pre-feasibility study for Emba Derho is expected for the second quarter of 2012, with a full feasibility study to follow.

Shares of the company were up 9.3 percent to 59 cents as of 11:37am ET.

Gulf Keystone Petroleum (LON:GKP) has received permission to transfer its interest in the Hassi Ba Hamou permit in Algeria to BG Group and Sonatrach at no cost. 

The receipt of formal government approvals ends a process that began back in 2010.

It is part of a strategic exit from the country which will allow the company to concentrate on its world class oil assets in Kurdistan, the semi-autonomous region of Iraq.

Todd Kozel, company’s chief executive, said:  "We are pleased that with the HBH transfer we have made good progress towards achieving our goal of a gradual strategic exit from Algeria. 

“We are firmly focused on our operations spanning four exploration blocks in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, including the Shaikan world-class discovery, where the 2012 and 2013 high impact drilling campaign is currently underway following excellent results achieved in 2011.”

The flagship Shaikan block is estimated to contain 8 billion barrels of crude calculated on a P90 basis – meaning the oil has a 90 per cent certainty of being produced.  The P10 value is 13.4 billion barrels, giving a mean figure of 10.5 billion barrels.

The last update was possibly one of the most encouraging so far as the company’s chief operating officer, John Gerstenlauer, said the Shaikan-4 may be the best well it has logged to date.

It achieved a flow rate of 4,970 barrels and 7 million standard cubic feet of gas a day from a thin zone at the bottom of the lower-lying Kurre Chine B formation.

The oil was a 39 degree API light crude, while the gas flowed at a wellhead pressure 1,101 PSI. 

In the Kurre Chine C, Shaikan-4 achieved a flow rate of 563 barrels a day and flowed 3.65 million cubic feet of gas. These were two of seven planned well tests.    

Isarene hosts the world class Ain Tsila gas field. 

The deal was first struck in April last year. Petroceltic says it is now owed over US$100 million from the deal and payment is due in the next 30 days.

"We are delighted to announce the completion of the Enel farmout and formally welcome our new partner to the Isarene Licence,” said chief executive Brian O'Cathain.

“Since announcement of the deal in April 2011 we have forged a valuable and co-operative working relationship with Enel and Sonatrach, culminating in the completion of the highly successful appraisal campaign. 

“We look forward to a long and successful relationship in this outstanding asset."

Under the terms of the deal, ENEL agreed to pay to US$36.75 million to Petroceltic. This gives the firm more than 24 per cent of all back costs incurred from 2005 until the end of the exploration period in April 2010. 

Additionally ENEL had to commit to funding 49 per cent of the costs associated with the recently completed six well appraisal drilling programme. These costs are capped to a maximum of US$145 million.

Furthermore, there is a further potential payment which is contingent up the outcome of future appraisal as well as future reserve volumes and production volumes. This could be worth as much as US$75 million for the company.

The company now retains a 56.625 per cent interest in the licence while Algeria’s national oil company Sonatrach owns 25 per cent and ENEL owns 18.375 per cent.

Earlier this week broker Daniel Stewart came out with a bullish assessment of Petroceltic. It says the firm has a well diversified asset base that has ‘game changing’ potential.

The bullish view is reflected in the broker’s punchy price target, set at 13.7p, which implies nearly 70 per cent upside from the current price of 8.2p a share.

The two drill holes were  a mile apart and had found two targets within a clearly identified porphyry system, containing copper, molybdenum and zinc, it added.

The drills encountered copper values in the range of 300-600 ppm, with zinc values greater than 200 ppm.

One hole showing visible molybdenite is being re-drilled after caving while there will be  further additional drilling to determine if economically viable higher grades are present.

David Newton, VANE’s chief executive, said: "These are encouraging results, showing a mineralised porphyry and confirming our geological theory that the porphyry systems that have been successfully discovered and mined at surface in this part of the US, also occur at depth.“

“Further drilling is required over the coming months to confirm whether this porphyry has economic potential. This successful drilling result at what is only our third project on this very favourable mineral trend gives us confidence of further exploration success in our remaining projects, " he added.

VANE added that the drill currently working at McGhee Peak will be moved to its next copper target once the re-drilling of hole MP-1 is completed as additional drill holes will require permitting. Permitting of the additional holes at McGhee Peak is underway.

VANE’s focus is the porphyry copper systems of the south-west US, and its targets on either side of the Arizona-New Mexico border. This is an area that is home to 60 per cent of all US production of the metal.

McGhee Peak is located on the Hillsboro-Chino-Tyrone-Bisbee porphyry mineral trend in southwest New Mexico.

Centamin is to take 67 million of the 161 million new shares to be issued and when added to its existing holding it will own 14.08 per cent of Nyota.

East Africa-focused Nyota said the £9.66 million raised would enable it to develop the Tulu Kapi gold project in Ethiopia between completion of the definitive feasibility study and before project finance.

Nyota added it would also be able to continue exploration on its Northern Block properties with the extra cash.

Richard Chase, Nyota’s chief executive, said he was delighted with the response from large shareholders to the cash call and also with Centamin’s involvement.

“The backing of an industry peer is encouraging, both for the prospects for Tulu Kapi and wider exploration within our Ethiopian assets and we greatly look forward to Centamin's ongoing support of our efforts in Ethiopia.” 

He also said he expects there to a number of cash calls from other exploration companies in the next four months and Nyota had to ensure it had enough money to carry out its objectives beyond this year.

The shares to be issued represent 25.19 per cent of the existing share capital. 

About 147 million will be issued to UK investors at 6p each, with the remaining 14 million sold Australian investors at A$0.089.

Today’s drilling report included the results received by the company since the last drilling update on December 20, including the last drill hole on the La India vein set and nine drill holes on the America vein set totalling 2,331 metres.

Condor reported a wide high grade gold intercept on the India-California structure including 4.19 metres grading 6.94 grammes per tonne (g/t) from the California vein and an interval of 7.37 metres at 6.31 g/t gold from the India vein.

The company said the two veins are just 25 metres apart at this intercept, which “adds credibility” to the potential for open pit mining.

The most significant results came from the Natalia vein, which was intercepted in six out of nine drill holes and is open in both directions along strike. The grades reported form this vein included 4.22 g/t gold over eight metres.

Condor is currently working on determining the 2012 drill programme, which it hopes will help it hit its target of increasing the La India resource to two million ounces of gold.

The company also plans to convert inferred resources into the indicated category, define potential open pit targets and proceed with feasibility studies for a commercial mine.

Condor decided to pause drilling during January to reassess its exploration strategy following the larger than expected mineral resource of 1.62 million ounces at La India announced on December 30.

Last week, the company received data for 3D models used to interpret the resource and plan future drill programmes.

New targets generated by the 2011 drilling campaign and recommendations from a mine concept study by consultants SRK Consulting will be used to determine drill programmes for 2012.

Investors welcomed the report as shares in Condor rose four per cent to trade at 6.75 pence in early deals, valuing the company at £37.7million.

The takeover of uranium miner Kalahari Minerals (LON:KAH) by Chinese state-owned Guangdong Nuclear (CGNPC-URC) has now been declared unconditional.

In a statement this morning, CGNPC-URC said all of the conditions of its 243.55 pence per share offer for Kalahari have now been satisfied or waived and urged Kalahari shareholders who have not yet accepted the offer to do so “without delay”.

Acceptances have so far been received for shares representing 89.5 percent of Kalahari’s share capital.

The offer, valuing the group at £630 million, was announced and recommended by Kalahari back in December and received the approval of Namibian regulators in January.

Kalahari’s main asset is a 42.5 per cent stake in Extract Resources (ASX:EXT, TSE:EXT), which is developing the Husab Uranium project in Namibia.

Extract received a mining licence at the start of December that will enable the project to move into its production phase, establishing Husab as one of the three largest Uranium mines in the world.

CGNPC-URC has made its offer in conjunction with CADFund, an equity investment fund, indirectly 100 per cent owned by China Development Bank Corporation.

Sunridge Gold is a junior explorer focused on Asmara, as well as exploration properties in Madagascar.

In a research note, Ocean Equities said that Thursday's "impressive" drill results support the company's goal to upgrade the current 189,000 ounce inferred gold resource to higher resource categories, supporting the prefeasability study on the Asmara North assets, but also increasing the overall size of the resource.

The capital markets firm said the results suggest the size the of the deposit at Gupo, part of the Asmara North deposits in Eritrea, "has the potential to grow to 300,000 ounces of gold".

Earlier Thursday, Sunridge unveiled assay results from the final 63 drill holes of the recently-completed 8,100 metre, 99-hole drilling program at the Gupo gold deposit.

Among the highlights, drill hole GG-116-R returned 3.05 grams per tonne (g/t) gold over 28 metres; drill hole GG-125-R encountered 3.08 g/t gold over 13 metres; drill hole GG-128-R returned 2.77 g/t gold over 19 metres and drill hole GG-142-R returned 5.72 g/t gold over 12 metres and 6.52 g/t gold over 7 metres.

At drill hole GG-156-R, the company encountered 2.31 g/t gold over 22 metres, hole GG-160-R returned 5.30 g/t gold over 19 metres and drill hole GG-168-R encountered 10.09 g/t gold over 13 metres.

Sunridge's president and CEO, Michael Hopley, said: "We are very pleased with the results of this latest drilling campaign at Gupo and are confident that it will achieve the goals of both upgrading and increasing the overall size of the Gupo Gold deposit.

"The next stage will be the completion of a new resource at Gupo by Snowden and this will be an important step towards completion of the Prefeasibility Study on the Asmara North in late March this year."

Sunridge said that in general, these results confirm the location and grade of gold mineralization defined by previous drill holes down to depths of approximately 80 metres (Gupo South) to 150 metres (Gupo Main).

In addition, new zones of mineralization have been found laterally - east and west - as well as at depth and in some cases, these zones are open.

Ocean Equities also said that Sunridge is set for a big first half of 2012: the company is expecting to release the results of a feasibility Study on the Debarwa VMS project, which includes a direct shipping ore copper zone providing early cash flow.

Released to the market will be an appropriate valuation of the Debarwa project, including a production schedule with initial direct shipping ore copper production to ensure quick ramp up and access to early cashflow.

In addition, prefeasibility studies on the Northern Asmara assets - Emba Derho, Adi Nefas and Gupo - are scheduled to be released to the market early in the second quarter.

Ocean Equities also said resource upgrades are also scheduled to coincide with the upcoming feasibility studies.

Trading in its shares touched 63 million in mid afternoon which were down 33% on the news.

Potential Bioenergy Game Changer

Leaf Energy now has a portfolio of three technologies it believes can change the economics of biofuels.

The other technologies are:

- INPACT, the company’s original technology, which has the ability to add valuable proteins to bioenergy processes, thereby improving the economics of processes that have been economically marginal; and
- A group of technologies including a novel pre-treatment technology for processing bagasse (waste sugarcane) into biofuels. These technologies will further improve the economics of converting agricultural waste into biofuels and Leaf Energy has rights to licence these technologies in Australasia.
A major benefit of all three technologies is that they do not reduce or compete with food production, whereas many first generation feedstocks for biofuels do.

Government supported research into the commercialisation of bagasse, as a feedstock for the production of biofuels will continue through the Syngenta Centre for Sugarcane Biofuels Development.

The rights issue will open on 17 February 2012 and close at 5pm (AWST) on 9 March 2012.

Pan Asia chief executive officer Alan Hopkins said recently, “The terrific progress on the TCM project is building a good platform for 2012 and the coming six months hold much potential.”

TCM has a JORC Resource of 114.6 million tonnes, with an overall exploration target of 200 million tonnes over the next 24 months.

Pan Asia expects to deliver a final Feasibility Study in the first half of 2012.

Legacy Iron Ore (ASX: LCY) has also recently reported that due diligence is underway to finalise negotiations on Minemakers' Wonarah phosphate project and Atlas Mining's (ASX: AGO) Ridley iron ore project.

Shares in Legacy Iron Ore were also 10.34% higher at lunchtime at $0.16.

NMDC recently acquired a 50% holding in Legacy Iron Ore.

Minemakers today confirmed discussions with representatives of NMDC regarding the development of the Wonarah Project, however it said no commercial outcome had been agreed.

Shares in Minemakers reached a high of $0.355 today, before dropping back to the $0.33 mark – still a 17.86% improvement on Thursday’s closing price of $0.28.

NMDC finance director S. Thiagarajan has reportedly said NMDC plans to take up a 50% stake in Wonarah.

The proposed acquisition is part of A$800 million of capital expenditure planned by NMDC over the coming months, as the company seeks to acquire overseas mineral resources.

In its quarterly report, released on January 31, Minemakers said negotiations regarding a joint venture with NMDC for the Wonarah projece were proceeding slower than anticipated.

Wonarah is located in the Northern Territory and hosts a Resource of almost 800 million tonnes at more than 18% phosphate, with a 10% cut-off grade.

The share price jump earned Minemakers a speeding ticket from the ASX. The company responded citing the talks with NMDC, the recently released quarterly report and generally strong upward movement of the phosphate sector this morning.

Funds will be used to accelerate the growth of the company’s integrated mobile advertising and marketing business.

More than 61.1 million shares were placed at a price of $0.018 each.

The raising comes at a time when Mobile Embrace is focused on increasing its market activity and growth in the industry.

Over the past four months, the company has averaged an $80,000 EBITDA profit per month.

The integrated mobile and digital communications focused company is currently forecasting the March 2012 revenue growth to be 10% higher than the preceding three months.

Mobile Embrace is also looking to gain access to publisher inventory.

Milestones targeted by the company in 2012 include tier 1 advertising publishing and advertising client acquisition.

The company retains a 74% interest in the advanced stage Moabsvelden coal project which is located within South Africa’s key coal region of Witbank.

Xceed acquired the Moabsvelden thermal coal project because it is relatively easy to develop, and is within the Witbank/Ermelo/Highveld coalfield complex that supplies 80% of South Africa’s coal.

The coalfield has excellent road and rail infrastructure, and is surrounded by many thermal power stations that generate electricity, and is also 80 kilometres from the main Johannesburg industrial belt.

The project is surrounded by metallurgical and thermal coal mines at Leeuwpan, Stuart Coal, Vanggatfontein, and Rietkuil, where each project outputs an average of 3 million tonnes of coal per year. New mines are under construction at Vlakvarkfontein, Kangala and Brakfontein.

The market value of Xceed’s share in the project was valued by Venmyn and applied to the previously defined 55 million tonnes of Indicated thermal coal resources.

Venmyn who are leading specialists in the valuation of South African mining projects valued Moabsvelden at $18 million or $0.20 per share.

This valuation preceded the recent round of drilling that upgraded the in situ Indicated Resource to a JORC compliant Measured Resource and paves the road to funding, development, and production in 2013.

Since that assessment was completed the company undertook a drilling and development program that increased the size of the coal resource to a JORC compliant 66.14 million gross in situ tonnes, with 96% of that tonnage now classified as Measured Resources. No further exploration drilling will be required on the property.

Gemecs completed the independent resource estimate based on 39 diamond drill holes that were completed by Xceed in 2010 and 2011, and was further supported by an airborne magnetic survey that identified geological structures across the property. The survey also confirmed that the southwest corner of the property was barren of coal and was an ideal site for a wash plant and other facilities.

The resource is contained in two separate coal seams with the shallowest seam known as the 4 seam, and carries an average combined thickness of 1.46 metres, hosting an in situ Measured Resource of 3.08 million tonnes.

The deeper resource is known as the 2 seam, and carries an average combined thickness of 16.86 metres, hosting an in situ Measured Resource of 60.67 million tonnes, and an additional Inferred Resource carrying a thickness of 15.53 metres for 2.39 million tonnes. 

The strip ratio for the shallower coal has been estimated at 1.5-1.6:1 for the first 5-6 years and at 2:1 for deeper coal, and will result in lower extraction costs.
 
Early washability tests confirmed that 100 tonnes of coal processed through a wash plant will produce 60.71 tonnes of 26.0Mj quality coal that provides 30.24 tonnes of export quality thermal coal and 30.47 tonnes of domestic quality coal suitable for local electricity production. More recent laboratory trials have refined this to produce a combined yield of 65.96 tonnes, and will add approximately 1 million tonnes of coal production over the life of the mine at no extra production cost.  

The company has established a production target of 3 million tonnes per year that produces 1 million tonnes of 20MJ/kg thermal coal that can be produced at an operating cost of US$16 tonne, and sold to local power plants operated by Eskom at US$25 tonne.

Local thermal coal prices are extremely low and are under pressure from producers who are selling into export markets to obtain better pricing.

Xceed expects to produce 680,000 tonnes of high quality 26.5MJ/kg export coal at an operating cost of US$47 per tonne. This coal can be sold at US$77 per tonne at the mine gate to third parties with contracts at the nearby Richards Bay coal export facility.

The company is planning to develop Moabsvelden to produce 1.68 million tonnes of coal for sale into local and export markets on an annual basis. The project has potential to generate an annualized EBITDA of A$28 million, and provide an after tax profit of $18 million, based on current market pricing for thermal coal.

Xceed recently delivered a 43.8 million tonne initial Reserve for Moabsvelden which will support an increased mine life. Following the establishment of Measured Resources, as well as the recent completion of a mining work program by mining consultants Belton Mining Group, Xceed has released Proved and Probable reserves of 30.7 million tonnes and 13.1 million tonnes respectively.

Moabsvelden is expected to have a mine life of fifteen years (with potential to add to this), and will be a low cost open pit operation utilising modular and simple process plant.

Xceed is confident that it will be able to extend the mine life by potentially going underground. The company will undertake further studies to investigate potential underground mining in areas on the project site where easement and environmental considerations constrain open cast mining.

Targeted markets for coal production include Eskom power plants at Kendal and Kreil, local industrial power producers, steel mills for metallurgical coal, cement manufacturers, general industry, manufacturers, and export of higher quality thermal to Indian power companies.

Competitive advantages include closeness to markets, acceptable calorific values, excellent volatiles, low ash and acceptable sulphur. The project is located within 50 kilometres of South Africa’s major coal fired power stations and is adjacent to lucrative inland markets based around Johannesburg.

The project is located between several existing mining operations, and is not within a sensitive water catchment area, so directors do not anticipate any major obstacles to the granting of approvals to mine the resource.

The company has retained independent mining consultants who have lodged an application for a Mining Right, and are preparing a Social and Labour Plan, collecting data for an Environmental Impact Assessment and preparing an Environmental Management Plan along with an application for an Integrated Water Usage Licence.

A detailed Feasibility Study is expected to be completed in March of this year so that funding arrangements can be completed, and plant construction commenced in the March quarter of 2013, with commissioning of the plant scheduled for the September quarter of 2013.

Capital costs for mine development fall into the A$25 – A$35 million range for a 3 million tonne per annum 2 stage wash plant, along with all supporting infrastructure. Xceed may develop Moabsvelden via a 60/40 equity raise and secured debt funding package.  

Various other options for funding Moabsvelden include 100% development funding by off-take partners, forming a BOOT or partnership with several funding partners who develop the project in return for a share of the financial returns, or possibly establish a lower cost mining operation that will sell Run of Mine coal to a local operator.

Roodeport Coal Project

Xceed has acquired a 70% interest in Roodeport on a Run of Mine per tonne basis. The project is adjacent to the Universal Coal (ASX: UNV) Roodekop thermal coal project hosting 84 million tonnes, and Exxaro Resources’ (JSE: EXX) New Clyesdale colliery located in the centre of Witbank coal field.

Roodeport covers 1,120 hectares and contains historic drilling that has identified near surface coal seams over half the property, and includes 5.6 metres on the #4 seam at a depth of 12.0 metres, and 6.65 metres on the #2 seam at a depth of 25 metres.

Drilling will commence shortly now that  regulatory approval has been received.    

Bankfontein and Vogelfontein coal projects

Bankfontein and Vogelfontein are two closely located properties in the Ermelo coal field, which is an eastern extension of Witbank and contains higher quality underground coal.

The two properties cover a total of 2,000 hectares and are surrounded by several operating and historical mines that are 35 kilometres from the main Richards Bay coal line hub.

Xceed has signed binding agreements to acquire a 70% interest in Bankfontein on a Run of Mine per tonne basis. The 22 historic drill holes on the property confirm the presence of all five of the Ermelo coal seams and of high quality coal in various holes. Like Roodepoort, all substantive conditions for the acquisition of Bankfontein have now been satisfied and Xceed will commence resource definition drilling of this project in the current quarter.

Some of this coal has start up potential for access via an open pit and includes 0.6 metres of the D seam from a depth of 10.9 metres, containing a raw coal CV of 28.78 and ash of 12.6%. The CL seam was intersected over 0.76 metres at a depth of 29.3 metres, containing a washed coal CV of 30.83, ash of 12.1% and a yield of 92.6%.  

Xceed can acquire a 74% interest in Vogelfontein on a Run of Mine per tonne basis, subject to due diligence and regulatory approval. This is a large property that is connected by rail to the Richards Bay terminal and is located in the world class Highveld-Ermelo coalfield that is adjacent to Xstrata’s Spitzkop colliery.

Historic drilling confirms the presence of high value coal seams on the property.

Analysis

Based on recent coal sector M&A transactions and current valuations of South African listed coal explorers, Xceed’s current valuation looks light and that even an exit strategy for Xceed would value it between $0.20 - $0.25 per share. 

Catalysts such as receipt of mining permits, off-take agreement and funding in planned timeframe could kick this valuation significantly higher. 

On an EV/tonne coal resource, Xceed is valued well below its coal sector peers.

Xceed could carry a similar valuation in 2012 as Moabsvelden develops into an operating mine and the portfolio produces a build up of resources for production, or acquires more low cost projects.  

Re-Listed Oro Verde

Upon its commencement of trading this morning, Oro Verde will have around 69.3 million shares on issue.