Music festivals seek greener footprint

Paris (AFP) – Three planes, 270 tonnes of equipment, 800 square metres of stage: the figures from Madonna's massive free concert in Rio in May sounded like they came from another age.

Issued on: 04/07/2024
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© Oli SCARFF / AFP


These days, megastars are usually keener to claim a smaller footprint.

Coldplay, who just headlined Glastonbury Festival in Britain, recently announced they had cut carbon emissions on their world tour by 59-percent compared with their last tour in 2016-17.

They have taken innovative steps including solar panels and even a special dance floor that generates electricity from the movement of the audience.

Critics point out they are still flying around on planes, and there was particularly opprobrium in 2022 when they announced a partnership with Finnish oil giant Neste.

Though Neste promised to help them use sustainable biofuels, the Transport and Environment campaign group said Coldplay were being used by the oil firm as "useful idiots for greenwashing".

Though the overall impact is hard to measure, one study by University of Oxford's Environmental Change Institute in 2010 estimated that Britain's industry alone generated 540,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.

Climate group Clean Scene found that the top 1,000 DJs took 51,000 flights in 2019, equivalent to 35,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
Climate commitments

As a result, all the big festivals now have climate pledges and initiatives, from composting and car-pooling schemes at Coachella in California to renewable energy usage at Glastonbury.

One festival that has taken a lead is We Love Green in Paris, as the name suggests.

Some 110,000 festival-goers attended last month's event to see artists including Sza, who travelled with "almost no equipment" according to Marianne Hocquard, the festival's head of sustainable development.

She said that was down to the festival ensuring they have much of the equipment needed by its artists, and setting energy caps for performances.

Others have taken radical steps: the Bon Air festival in Marseille canceled DJ I Hate Models this year after learning that he was coming by private jet.

Many events now encourage their attendees to take greener modes of transport.

We Love Green launched a partnership with the French Cycling Federation to organise convoys of bikes for this year's edition, and said 14 percent of ticket-holders came on two wheels despite the dodgy weather, up from eight percent last year.

Glastonbury is one of many festivals with climate commitments © Oli SCARFF / AFP

But there is a limit to how much can be done.

When Taylor Swift played Paris in May, the city mayor's office said there was a surge in arrivals of private jets at local airports.

Private jet operators have been jumping on entertainment events such as festivals or the Euro 2024 football tournament to boost their business.

There was little about the climate in a recent press release by private jet operator KlasJet, which said: "When you're traveling to an amazing event like Euro 2024, the last thing you want is for your experience to be ruined by a delayed flight."

© 2024 AFP

Making an impression: Swiss collection shown in a new light

Lausanne (AFP) – The Langmatt's prestigious collection of Impressionist masterpieces is being seen in a new light, literally, after leaving the museum in northern Switzerland on loan for the first time.

Issued on: 04/07/2024 - 
Young visitors in front of Renoir's 'La Natte' (The Braid) at the Heritage Foundation in Lausanne © Valentin Flauraud / AFP
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Around 50 paintings, including works by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cezanne, Claude Monet and Edgar Degas, are being shown in brighter surroundings at the Hermitage Foundation in Lausanne while the Langmatt undergoes renovation.

"I've never seen the paintings in this light," the Langmatt's director Markus Stegmann said.

The collection has never been seen outside the cocoon of the Langmatt villa in Baden, near Zurich, where the artworks are displayed under the light of crystal chandeliers and latticed windows.

At the Hermitage, overlooking the western Swiss city of Lausanne, the 19th-century villa's large bay windows give free rein to the same play of light that inspired the Impressionists.
The 19th-century villa that is home of the Heritage Foundation, where the Langmatt chose for the first-ever loan of its Impressionest collection © Valentin Flauraud / AFP

The collection includes Renoir's "The Braid" (1886-1887), Monet's "Ice Floes at Twilight" (1893) and Gauguin's "Still Life with Bowl of Fruit and Lemons" (1889-1890).

The exhibition, which runs until November 3, pays tribute to not only the 150 years since the start of the Impressionist art movement but also to Sidney and Jenny Brown, the couple who amassed the collection between 1908 and 1919.
Art from the heart

A wealthy family from the industrial bourgeoisie of northern Switzerland, the Browns showed exceptional taste.

All the works "were bought with the heart" rather than on the advice of art experts, Stegmann said.

The Langmatt collection includes Cezanne's 'The Bathers' © Valentin Flauraud / AFP

Take for example Eugene Boudin's "Washerwomen on the Bank of the Touques" (1895), showing the women leaning over the water with a smoking factory in the background.

Bought by the Browns during their Paris honeymoon in 1896, the painting "is not an easy work, it's not a loveable work", said Hermitage Foundation director Sylvie Wuhrmann.

The Browns also collected works by the Munich Secession association of visual artists, before becoming exclusively passionate about contemporary French artists.

Renoir became a big favourite, alongside Cezanne and Camille Pissarro.

The couple's devotion to Impressionism was not without risk in society circles where such artists raised eyebrows.
Change of style

Alongside "The Boat" (circa 1878) and the portraits of his children, Renoir's "The Braid" is among the most recognisable works in the collection.

It is inspired by the classicist works of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, and it has even been nicknamed the Langmatt Mona Lisa.

It also goes well with the Hermitage's own collection: the Lausanne museum has an exceptional set of 17 paintings and drawings by Suzanne Valadon, the model depicted in "The Braid".

In 1919, for reasons difficult to pin down, the Browns changed their tastes. Out went Impressionism and in came 18th-century French painters.

They sold eight artworks, including paintings by Renoir and Cezanne, to buy "Young Girl with a Cat" (circa 1770) by Jean-Honore Fragonard, which is also being shown in Lausanne.

And the couple asked the Austrian artist Max Oppenheimer to paint their portrait in a style mixing Expressionism and Cubism.

In 1941, Sidney Brown died and Jenny Brown stopped buying art, living as a recluse at the Langmatt villa until her own death in 1968 aged 96.
Firmer financial footing

When Stegmann reached out for a temporary home for the Langmatt's paintings during the villa's renovation, the Hermitage enthusiastically said yes as it celebrates its own 40th anniversary.

Stegmann said the collaboration also made it possible to publish a comprehensive catalogue by experts on the Langmatt collection, something the Baden museum did not have the means to do alone.

In November, facing serious financial difficulties, the museum sold three Cezannes at auction in New York.

"Fruits et pot de gingembre" (1890-1893) fetched $38.9 million, "Quatre pommes et un couteau" (circa 1885) sold for $10.4 million, and "La mer a l'Estaque" (1878-1879) raised $3.2 million.

At the time, Stegmann called the sale a painful last resort to secure the museum's long-term future.

After Lausanne, the collection will be shown in Cologne, Germany, from March to July 2025, and then in Vienna from September next year to February 2026, before returning home to Baden.

© 2024 AFP

 

Rio Tinto to install zero-carbon smelting technology ELYSIS at demonstration plant in Quebec

Rio Tinto will install carbon-free aluminium smelting cells at its Arvida smelter in Quebec, Canada, using the first technology license issued by ELYSIS, the company announced on Friday June 28

July 3, 2024

By Yasemin Esmen

Rio Tinto will design, engineer and build a demonstration plant with 10 pots operating at 100 kiloamperes (kA) adjacent to the company’s existing Arvida smelter, which will allow for the use of the current alumina supply and casting facilities at Arvida.

The new plant will be owned by a joint venture between Rio Tinto and the Government of Quebec, through Investissement Québec, which has also been supporting ELYSIS alongside technology giant Apple.

ELYSIS is a joint venture between Alcoa and Rio Tinto that has developed a technology to replace carbon anodes in the aluminium smelting process.

Alumina smelting using carbon anodes produces carbon dioxide as a by-product while turning alumina (aluminium oxide) into aluminium.

ELYSIS replaces these carbon anodes with inert anodes to produce oxygen and aluminium as a result of the smelting process, eliminating all direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the traditional process.

ELYSIS has achieved further progress with Rio Tinto’s plans to launch the first industrial-scale demonstration of the breakthrough technology, Alcoa said in a statement.

The joint venture between Alcoa and Rio Tinto is continuing its research and development program to scale up the ELYSIS technology. Construction of larger prototype 450 kA cells is completed, and commissioning of these industrial prototype cells has begun, with the start-up sequence set to begin in 2024.

Both Alcoa and Rio Tinto anticipate that the investment will help in the development of ELYSIS and in developing the companies’ expertise in its installation and operation toward full-scale industrialization of the ELYSIS technology.

Rio Tinto expects the plant to have the capacity to produce up to 2,500 tonnes per year of commercial quality aluminium without direct GHG emissions, with first production targeted by 2027.

Alcoa will have the option to purchase up to 40% of the metal produced over the first four years from the Arvida demonstration plant through an offtake agreement.

“This investment will further strengthen Rio Tinto’s industry-leading position in low-carbon, responsible aluminium in North America with our hydro-powered smelters and our recycling capacity,” Rio Tinto aluminium chief executive Jérôme Pécresse said.

Both Alcoa and Rio Tinto have proprietary low-carbon aluminium brands, Sustana EcoLum and RenewAl, respectively.

Demand for low-carbon aluminium in the US is being led by the automotive, packaging, and wire and cable industries.

Fastmarkets launched its US low-carbon aluminium differentials in November 2023 to meet market demand for a low-carbon aluminium pricing mechanism and to bring transparency to the market.

Fastmarkets assessed both the aluminium low-carbon differential P1020A, US Midwest and the aluminium low-carbon differential value-added product, US Midwest at zero on Friday June 28, with low-carbon units trading at parity with high-carbon units.

Fulcrum Metals Acquires Three Saskatchewan Uranium Projects

byEleanor Laurence - Content Producer, The Assay
2 days ago


UK based Fulcrum Metals (LON: FMET) announced on Monday that its wholly owned subsidiary, Fulcrum Metals Canada Ltd, has agreed to acquire a 100% interest in the Charlot-Neely Lake, South Pendleton, and Snowbird uranium projects in Saskatchewan, spanning 11,481ha.

Fulcrum paid a cash consideration to the Dunn Option Vendors of C$5,000 and upon exercising the option on 28 June this year, Fulcrum has paid a further cash consideration of C$60,000.

This takes the company one step closer to a definitive agreement with Terra Balcanica Resources Corp. over the sale of all of its uranium projects totalling more than 59,000ha, Fulcrum said in a news release.

Fulcrum also owns The Big Bear gold project situated over the western end of the Schreiber-Hemlo Greenstone belt, the Jackfish Lake gold project in Ontario, and the Tully gold project, located 25km northeast of Timmins within the Timmins-Porcupine Gold Camp.

The company aims to create an environmentally friendly and sustainable tailings and mine waste business, driving mining change through combining low discovery risk assets and jurisdictions with transformative technology capable of near-term cash flow whilst capitalizing on a portfolio of exploration assets.

First Quantum stock jumps on Panama plans for mine audit

Reuters | July 2, 2024 |

President Jose Raul Mulino. Credit: Galeria del Ministerio de Defensa del Perú, Wikimedia Commons

Shares of Canadian miner First Quantum Minerals jumped 6% on the Toronto Stock Exchange in early trading on Tuesday, following news that Panama would conduct an environmental audit of the Cobre Panama mine to decide whether it can safely be reopened.


President Jose Raul Mulino officially took charge of the Panama government on Monday and made the announcement of an environmental audit in his first address as the head of the government.

“I will order a strict environmental audit of the mine, with the best international experts, so that the country knows the truth about the state of the site…,” President Mulino said in his speech on Monday. He added that Panama will choose an auditing company which will not generate any costs for the government.

“The plan to open and definitively close the mine in a safe and positive manner for our country will depend on the results of that environment study,” Mulino said.

First Quantum did not respond to an email query.

The Cobre Panama mine, one of the newest and biggest copper mines in the world, was ordered to be shut down by the Panama government last December after public protests. Last week, Reuters reported that First Quantum was planning to launch a formal arbitration proceeding against Panama this month.

(By Divya Rajagopal and Elida Moreno; Editing by Maria Sheahan and Chizu Nomiyama)

Rio Tinto in talks to prevent strike at copper mine in Mongolia

AKIPRESS.COM - Global miner Rio Tinto opens new tab is negotiating with workers at its Oyu Tolgoi copper operations in Mongolia to avert further industrial action over a sharp drop in wages that triggered an earlier strike in May, Reuters reported.

Changes in Mongolia's Labor Law, which came into effect at the start of 2022, prompted Rio Tinto to recalculate employee allowances. Wages have dropped by as much as 80%, according to non-governmental organization OT Watch, which is in contact with the mine workers.

"The key demand of workers is to bring wages to similar levels paid for the same type of work performed in other Rio Tinto mines," OT Watch said in a briefing note shared with Reuters, adding that workers were being paid a "miserable $1,596 per month for work far from home".

"Rio Tinto is committed to finding a resolution that benefits all parties involved," a Rio Tinto spokesperson said.

Oyu Tolgoi is a significant part of Rio Tinto's copper operations, contributing substantially to the company's output. It has been a crucial asset in Mongolia, with significant investments and collaborations with the local government and workforce.

Impala Platinum reports strike at Bafokeng operations

Reuters | July 2, 2024 |

Credit: Royal Bafokeng Platinum Ltd.

South Africa’s Impala Platinum on Tuesday reported a strike at part of its recently acquired Bafokeng operations in Rustenburg, which it said mostly involves contractors demanding permanent positions.


“Impala Platinum is closely monitoring an illegal work stoppage, which began on Thursday 27 June 2024, at the North Shaft of Impala Bafokeng’s BRPM operation in the North West province,” the miner said in a statement.

The company said it had obtained a court order against the job boycott. “The longer-term impact of this illegal strike poses a risk to sustainable employment, particularly given Impala Bafokeng’s recent underperformance,” Impala said.

Impala acquired the assets of smaller producer Royal Bafokeng Platinum last year following a protracted battle with Northam Platinum.

The group and its South African platinum group metal-producing peers Anglo American Platinum and Sibanye Stillwater, facing their worst crisis in decades, are cutting thousands of jobs to contain costs after metal prices plunged last year.

Prices of platinum – mostly used by automakers to curb toxic emissions – fell sharply amid concerns over weak global economic growth and destocking by manufacturers who built up inventories during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Impala has said it could cut 3,900 jobs as it restructures its South African operations, while Anglo American Platinum plans to lay off 3,700 workers.

On Tuesday, Sibanye Stillwater said it had reduced its workforce by 14% from 81,500 employees at the end of 2022 to just over 70,000 currently through a combination of layoffs, natural attrition, a hiring freeze and a review of contractor arrangements.

(By Nelson Banya; Editing by Jan Harvey)

Rio Tinto completes construction of its solar power plant at Diavik Diamond Mine

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02 July 2024

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YELLOWKNIFE, Canada--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Rio Tinto’s Diavik Diamond Mine has completed installation of its 3.5 megawatt capacity solar power plant in Canada’s Northwest Territories. The project represents the largest off-grid solar power plant across Canada’s territories.

The 6,620-panel facility is expected to generate 4.2 million kilowatt-hours of solar energy annually, reducing diesel consumption at Diavik by one million litres per year and cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2,900 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. This is comparable to removing 630 cars from the road each year.

The solar power plant will provide up to 25% of Diavik’s electricity during closure work, with commercial production at the mine expected to end in 2026 and closure to run until 2029. The facility is equipped with bi-facial panels which not only generate energy from direct sunlight, but also from the light that reflects off the snow that covers Diavik for most of the year.

The solar project complements a wind power plant at Diavik, which has been operating since 2012 and is the largest wind power installation in Canada’s North, having generated over 195 million kilowatt-hours of electricity since activation.

Chief Operating Officer of Diavik Diamond Mine Matthew Breen said: “The largest off-grid solar power plant in Canada’s North is our latest commitment to the environment we live and work in, and will improve the energy efficiency of our operations at Diavik. We are proud to lead the way for large-scale renewable energy projects in Canada’s North.”

The project was supported by C$3.3 million in funding from the Government of the Northwest Territories’ Large Emitters GHG Reducing Investment Grant Program.

It is the first project in the Northwest Territories to benefit from funding from the Large Emitters Grant, which sets aside a portion of carbon tax paid by large operations such as Diavik for projects that commit to GHG reduction projects in the territory.

Northwest Territories’ Minister of Infrastructure Caroline Wawzonek said: “I commend Rio Tinto for the completion of the largest off-grid solar plant in Canada’s North at the Diavik mine. The project demonstrates Rio Tinto’s leadership when it comes to reducing emissions, and signals potential for leadership in the renewable energy sector in and by the North. The Government of the Northwest Territories is proud to have contributed to the project through the Large Emitters GHG Reducing Investment Grant program, which provides funding to industry to reduce emissions as part of our made-in-the-NWT approach to the federal carbon tax.”

Construction began in February 2024, contracted to Whitehorse-based Solvest Inc. and the Indigenous-owned Tłıchǫ Investment Corporation, with support from Diavik. Approximately 30% of the construction workforce came from the Tłıchǫ Investment Corporation.

CEO of Solvest Inc. Ben Power said: “Building off the success of their wind farm constructed in 2012, Diavik has taken another significant step forward in demonstrating the viability of renewable energy for Northern and off-grid mines. Solvest is proud to have had the opportunity to work with our partners at Tłıchǫ Investment Corporation to construct the largest off-grid solar power plant in Canada’s North. We believe this project provides a blueprint to facilitate the integration of solar into mines across Canada and in Northern regions.”

Diavik is working with the Government of the Northwest Territories and community partners to determine how its renewable energy infrastructure can best benefit the region following closure.

Rio Tinto is progressing decarbonisation initiatives across its global operations, with the aim of reducing its Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 50% by 2030 and to achieve net zero across its operations by 2050.

Rio Tinto to build two solar farms on Australia’s Gove Peninsula

Staff Writer | July 3, 2024 |\

Rio Tinto Gove is located 650km east of Darwin in North East Arnhem Land. Credit: Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) is looking to build two new 5.25-megawatt (MW) solar farms on Gove Peninsula in the Northern Territory, as the Australian miner works to secure a more sustainable power supply for the region beyond mining.


Rio Tinto’s Gove site in Australia’s Northern Territory has been supplying the global aluminum industry with bauxite for more than 40 years. The bauxite is shipped internationally as well as being used to supply the Queensland Alumina Limited and Yarwun refineries in Gladstone, Queensland. These refineries produce alumina as feedstock for Rio Tinto’s Australian aluminum smelting operations and for sale on the international market.

Bauxite mining operations in the Gove Peninsula are expected to end later this decade and work is already underway to support the closure of the operation and rehabilitation of the refinery, mine site and tailings facilities.

The two solar farms will be built on Gumatj and Rirratjingu country, the largest Traditional Owners groups who are signatories to the RTA Gove Traditional Owners Agreement. The solar farms will be built on Rio Tinto leases following agreements with the Traditional Owner groups on the location of the facilities.

The solar farms will help underpin a low-carbon future for the Gove community after mining operations cease, towards the end of the decade, Rio said.

Scotland-based mobile modular power provider Aggreko has been engaged to construct, own and operate the solar farms for Rio Tinto for up to 10 years, beginning construction in July 2024 and with completion scheduled for early 2025. The two sites will have a combined capacity of 10.5MW.

“The Gove solar project is part of our shared vision with traditional owners to leave a positive legacy for the Gove Peninsula communities after bauxite mining ceases,” Rio Tinto Gove operations’ acting general manager Shannon Price said in a news release.

“We’re excited to work with the Gumatj and Rirratjingu clans to provide an opportunity to secure alternative electricity generation assets on their country and to discuss opportunities to commercialize energy infrastructure in the future,” Price said.

“We are working in partnership with the Northern Territory government and traditional owners to ensure a smooth transition of leased land and town assets and infrastructure as Rio Tinto prepares to stop mining at Gove later this decade.”

According to Rio, the group is committed to helping to plan for the region’s future, which includes providing options for reliable, affordable and environmentally sustainable infrastructure.

“The solar farms are also part of our ongoing commitment to decarbonize our business. Once operational, they are expected to reduce annual CO2e emissions at our Gove operations by up to 17%,” Price said.

“We intend for these farms to underpin sustainable power for the region beyond mining.”

When complete, the solar farms are expected to reduce the region’s annual diesel consumption by about 20%, or 4.5 million litres a year, and lower annual carbon emissions by over 12,000 tonnes, which is the equivalent of taking 2,800 internal combustion engine cars off the road, Rio estimates.

Gem Diamonds unearths 123-carat stone in Lesotho

Staff Writer | July 3, 2024 |

Letšeng is the world’s highest dollar per carat diamond mine. (Image from: Gem Diamonds’ presentation.)

Gem Diamonds (LSE: GEMD) has announced the recovery of a 123.2-carat type II white diamond at its Letšeng mine in Lesotho. This is the eighth greater than 100 diamond found at the operation in 2024, the company said.


Type IIa diamonds are the most valued and collectable precious gemstones, as they contain either very little or no nitrogen atoms in their crystal structure. Boart diamonds are stones of low quality that are used in powder form as an abrasive.

The 123.2-carat type II white diamond was recovered on June 29, the eighth stone over 100 carats found in 2024.

The prolific Letšeng mine is one of the world’s ten largest diamond operations by revenue. At 3,100 metres (10,000 feet) above sea level, it is also one of the world’s most elevated diamond mines.

The Letšeng mine is famous for the production of large, exceptional white quality diamonds, making it the highest dollar per carat kimberlite mine in the world, Gem Diamonds said.

Congo sells its own copper from joint ventures for first time

Bloomberg News | July 2, 2024 | 

Trucks at the Tenke Fungurume mine. Credit: CMOC

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s state miner has started selling its share of copper from joint-venture projects for the first time as the country seeks greater control over a metal key to the energy transition.


Gecamines holds minority stakes in large mines run by firms such as China’s CMOC Group and Glencore Plc. Until now, the joint ventures themselves have sold all the production. But the state company is taking a more active role in marketing its portion — totaling hundreds of thousands of tons a year – according to people familiar with the matter.

Gecamines is offering copper from CMOC’s giant Tenke Fungurume mine, in which it holds a 20% interest, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private negotiations. The state miner is assessing bids — including from Glencore, Trafigura Group and Mercuria Energy Group — for 90,000 tons from the project, two of the people said.

The three trading houses declined to comment, while the Tenke JV and Gecamines didn’t respond.

Gecamines’ move creates opportunities for traders to bid on sizable new contracts at a time of heated competition for copper deals. Congo has recently become the world’s No. 2 producer and has seen exports almost triple since 2016. Yet many expect global demand — led by growth in electric vehicles, grid infrastructure and data centers — to outstrip investment in new supplies.

Gecamines also held a smaller tender earlier this year, with CMOC metals trader IXM buying copper from the Kambove mine, according to the people. Kambove is a joint venture between the Congolese state and China Nonferrous Metal Mining Group.

IXM didn’t respond to questions about the Kambove tender.

Gecamines plans to run similar processes for its share of copper from Glencore’s Kamoto operation and the Chinese-owned Sicomines project, one of the people said. Together, those two assets produced more than 400,000 tons of the metal last year.


By organizing the tenders, Gecamines hopes to gain more insight into whether its partners — some of which are both miners and traders — are selling their larger portions at the best possible price, two of the people said.

Benchmark copper prices surged to a record above $11,000 a ton in May, before retreating on a softening market in top consumer China.

The state company hasn’t yet sold any cobalt, a copper byproduct that’s used in EV batteries, according to the people. Congo accounted for about three-quarters of global output last year, but prices have tumbled amid a glut of supply.

(By William Clowes, Michael J. Kavanagh and Winnie Zhu)