Columbus Gold Corporation announced on Friday the acquisition of three new projects in the Greater Mahogany Hills, bringing its total gold property portfolio in Nevada to 26, covering approximately 37,000 acres. Columbus Gold plans to complete mapping and further sampling with plans to drill target areas in late 2011 and 2012. Columbus Gold is a gold exploration and development company operating in French Guiana and Nevada. In French Guiana, Columbus Gold recently acquired an option to earn a 100% interest in the Paul Isnard gold project, which has a 43-101 compliant 1.9 million ounce inferred gold resource and substantial expansion potential.

SouthGobi Resources announced that it has been notified by the Mineral Resource Authority of Mongolia (MRAM) that the company's Soumber coal deposit has been officially registered. The registration process includes calculation of resources to Mongolian standards, review of the calculations by MRAM-appointed industry experts, and defense of the calculations before the Minerals Resource Committee. Mineral deposit registration is a prerequisite for applying for a Mining License.

London Stock Exchange Group and its takeover target, TMX Group, said Friday Canadian competition authorities won't challenge the proposed combination of two exchange operators. The issuance of the no action letter satisfies a condition of a Feb. 9 agreement by LSE and the company that operates the Toronto Stock Exchange to join forces in a $3 billion deal. A consortium of nine major Canadian banks and investment funds called Maple Group Acquisition Corp has made a hostile offer for TMX worth C$3.6 billion ($3.7 billion). The LSE proposal was not expected to raise any red flags from Canadian competition authorities, unlike the Maple bid.

Orvana Minerals announced the commissioning of its El Valle-Boinás/Carlés ("EVBC") gold-copper mine in northern Spain by Kinbauri España S.L.U. ("Kinbauri"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Orvana. EVBC initiated the start-up and commissioning of the mill May 31, 2011, with the first shipment expected in June. EVBC will initially produce at 70% capacity, increasing to its full annual target production levels of over 100,000 ounces gold, 3,900 tonnes copper and over 150,000 ounces of silver once the shaft is completed in early 2012.

Mammoth Energy Group, a lithium and alternative energy mining company, announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary Compania Lithium Investments Limitada of Chile has signed a Letter of Intent to acquire six concessions for a total of 2471 acres (1000 hectares) of lithium concessions located in the Salar de laco in northeast Chile. "The Salar de laco is approximately 10 miles from the border of Argentina and approximately fifty miles away from the Salar de Atacama, Chile's largest mined lithium reserve," said William Lieberman, President of Mammoth Energy Group.

Grande Cache Coal announced its financial and operating results for the three and twelve months ended March 31, 2011. Net income for fiscal 2011 was $27.7 million ($0.28 per basic and diluted share) representing a 38% increase from $20.1 million ($0.21 per basic share and $0.20 per diluted share) in fiscal 2010. Fourth quarter net income was $5.1 million ($0.05 per basic and diluted share) compared to $1.4 million ($0.01 per basic and diluted share) in the same period last year.

Cliffs Natural Resources announced Thursday it will reduce its outlook from 6.5 million tons of coal this year to 5.1 million tons, citing severe weather damage at its Oak Grove mine in Alabama and carbon monoxide hazards in its Pinnacle mine in West Virginia. The company also said its newly acquired Bloom Lake operation will yield 4.8 million tons of iron ore concentrate this year.

Joy Global Inc. had a successful second quarter. The mining equipment manufacturer reported net income of $162 million for the second quarter of 2011, or $1.52 per share, compared to $120 million, or $1.15 per share, for the same period last year. Second quarter bookings were up 46% to $1.5 billion, while net sales jumped 19%. "We had another outstanding quarter, reaching record levels of performance in order bookings, shipments, operating profit margins and earnings per share,” said Mike Sutherlin, President and Chief Executive Officer. Sutherlin pointed to Joy Global's recent $1 billion acquisition of LeTourneau Technologies as an important complement to its rope shovel capability, by expanding into the wheel loader and drilling products markets. Image by Joy Global Inc.

Traditional Aboriginal owners in the Pilbara stand to receive more than $2 billion over 40 years under a watershed agreement with Rio Tinto that sets a new standard for negotiations between miners and indigenous Australia. Seven years in the making, the land-use agreement with five Aboriginal groups will allow about 40 new iron ore mines to proceed in an area of 70,000sqkm