Four miners have been killed in an accident at Vedanta’s Nchanga copper mine in Zambia. They were working on a new section […]

Alberta - Online heavy equipment operator training is available from Vista Training at a reasonable cost, according to the company. Thanks to the Internet, access is convenient - whenever (on demand at any time) and wherever (remote sites or those in populated areas).

Each of the lessons is about an hour long and focuses on common tasks in the mine, says Vista. They feature integrated tests to gauge how much knowledge trainees are retaining. At the end of each program, a personalized certificate of completion can be printed.

Following the success of its launch last year, the Engineering Council and Professional Engineering Institutions (PEIs) will once again be exhibiting together on the Professional Development Hub at The National Engineering & Construction Recruitment Exhibition (NECR) at the NEC, Birmingham on 6 & 7 May 2011.

The Professional Development Hub will cover more engineering disciplines for the May exhibition, with a greater number of PEIs taking part. This means that there will be an increased number of representatives on hand to advise visitors about their professional development options, including information about institution membership and professional registration.

China will increase a tax on rare earths from April 1, the official Xinhua News Agency said on Thursday. The State Administration of Taxation website carried a local media report, saying the resource tax would be raised to 30-60 yuan per tonne, depending on the type of rare earth mineral, a substantial increase from the current level of 0.5-3 yuan per tonne.

Franco-Nevada forecasts revenue this year to be between US$325 million to $350 million this year, using consensus commodity price assumptions of US$1,400 gold, $1,750 platinum, $575 palladium and $80 oil. However, the company warned its expenses will be significantly higher in the first quarter of the year, as transaction costs associated with the acquisition of Gold Wheaton will be expensed under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

Gold producer Newmont Mining Corp's (NMC.TO: Quote) board has approved funding for its estimated 7.2 million ounce Akyem gold reserve project, the company said in a statement on Thursday. Newmont's director for investor relations Monica Brisnehan declined to say how much funding was approved, but pointed to previous numbers released by the company in February which estimated capital expenditure for the project at between $700 million to $1 billion. Image from Newmont's Resettlement Action Plan

Canada's Inmet Mining said a letter from the Panama government confirmed that its copper-gold project will not be affected by the recent repeal of a law that allowed foreign government investment in mines within the Central American country. The law is crucial to Inmet, as the company plans to partner with Singapore's state investor Temasek and with Korea Resources Corp to finance and build its $4.3 billion copper-gold project in the country.

Diversified mining behemoth BHP Billiton is expected to pour billions of dollars into Australia in an effort to expand its iron ore and coal facilities, says a report from AFP: Mining giant BHP Billiton said Friday it would pour billions of dollars into expanding its coal and iron ore operations in Australia, key commodities that are driving the boom in Asian economies.

Avanti Mining Inc. (TSX-V:AVT) reported a net loss of $4.9 million ($0.01 per share) for the year ended December 31, 2010 compared to a net loss of $6.2 million ($0.04 per share) for the comparable period in 2009. The company deferred $13.0 million (2009 - $5.7 million) relating to the development costs of the Kitsault property in northwest British Columbia. The company had a cash balance of $18.0 million on hand at the end of 2010.