Details emerging from investigations into Areva's purchase of African uranium miner UraMin are beginning to resemble a spy novel.

Elissa Resources ("Elissa" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:ELI)(OTCQX:ELSRF)(PINKSHEETS:ELSRF) reports that drilling has commenced at its 100%- owned Thor heavy and light rare earth element (REE) project in Nevada. Multiple diamond core drill holes will initially target the Lopez Trend, a 1.6-mile (2.6-km) long REE-bearing monazite structure that is coincident with a prominent magnetic anomaly.

Gold traders are the most bullish in two months after mainland China imported the most metal ever from Hong Kong and investors bought US bullion coins at the fastest pace in more than two years.

The Globe and Mail reports that Canadian one- and two-dollar coins, known as "loonies" and "toonies", will this spring be made from steel, replacing the more expensive nickel they are currently made from:

The Wall Street Journal reports Peru on Friday announced a programme of social and infrastructure investments in its poor Cajamarca region aimed at winning over local protesters who have brought to halt Newmont Mining's $4.8 billion Conga project over environmental concerns.

Caterpillar is building on its Bucyrus acquisition with the recent signing of another contract to deliver an automated longwall coal plow system to Chinese company Gasification Co part of Lvliang Dongyi Group. The system marks the 11th plow system from DBT/Bucyrus/Caterpillar for delivery to Chinese mines. The system will be delivered in the first quarter of 2013 and will go to work in the Xinyan mine in Shanxi province

BHP Billiton, which is developing the huge Jansen potash mine is Saskatchewan, says it will sell its potash independently and not through the Canadian potash marketing agency Canpotex.

Bloomberg reports Chile's state-owned firm Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, plans to invest $5 billion in 2012 on capital projects, more than twice the $2.3 billion it allocated last year. Also on Friday a Santiago court blocked Anglos from selling any more shares in its Sur subsidiary while it battles Codelco over an option to acquire 49% of its Chile operations.

The Australian reports the Queensland government is going after speculative prospecting by what the state treasurer termed two-dollar shell mining companies, slapping the industry with $375 million in additional fees. Under the radical new rules competitive cash-bidding auctions for mining exploration permits will replace the flat $1,030 application fee in force currently.