TORONTO, Dec 7 (Reuters) – Harry Winston Diamond Corp
has no plans to sell or spin off its watch and jewelry
division from its mining division in the next year, though the
retail arm will eventually stand on its own, the company’s chief
executive said on Friday.

“In the fullness of time, it will certainly either become
separated or be sold to someone that can do better with it than
we would be able to,” Chief Executive Robert Gannicott said in a
conference call with investors.

Dec 5 (Reuters) – Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc’s
decision to diversify into energy highlights the dearth
of attractive options available in copper, its main business,
but few competitors are likely to follow its lead into
unfamiliar territory.

Unlike many miners, Freeport – the world’s largest listed
copper producer – has roots in oil and gas. That made it easier
for the U.S.-based miner to take its leap of faith in search of
high margins.

Dec 5 (Reuters) – Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc
said Wednesday it would buy Plains Exploration & Production Co
and McMoRan Exploration Co for a total of $9
billion in cash and stock in a major expansion into the energy
sector.

The deal will also leave Freeport with $20 billion in debt,
which scared some investors and sent Freeport shares sliding 13
percent in morning trade. The cost of protecting its debt
against default also rose sharply.

TORONTO, Dec 3 (Reuters) – Canada, hoping to spur economic
development of its far north, has approved the construction of a
massive iron ore mine in the Arctic territory of Nunavut that
could help top steelmaker ArcelorMittal reduce its
dependence on outside suppliers.

The open-pit Mary River project on remote Baffin Island was
approved on Monday by the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and
Northern Development, based on the recommendation of the Nunavut
Impact Review Board.

Dec 3 (Reuters) – Newmont Mining Corp on Monday said
Chief Executive Richard O’Brien will step down, making it the
third major gold miner this year to replace its top manager as
the industry seeks to boost dwindling production and control
mushrooming costs.

O’Brien, 58, will step down on March 1 as head of the
world’s No. 2 gold producer and also will retire from the board.
Chief Operating Officer and President Gary Goldberg will take
the reins.

Dec 3 (Reuters) – Newmont Mining Corp said on Monday
Chief Executive Richard O’Brien will step down on March 1,
making Newmont the third major gold miner to announce the
departure of its CEO this year.

The world’s No.2 gold producer said its current chief
operating officer and president, Gary Goldberg, will take over
the reins from O’Brien, who is retiring. O’Brien will also leave
his position on the Newmont board.

TORONTO, Dec 2 (Reuters) – “Strike while the iron is hot,”
the old saying goes, and a legion of iron ore miners setting up
in Canada’s remote Labrador Trough want to do just that. But,
for now, they have to wait.

Iron ore, the main component of steel, has turned ice cold
in recent months, with the benchmark price
plunging to $86.70 a tonne in September from $149.40 in April.
It has since recovered to about $116 a tonne.

TORONTO, Dec 2 (Reuters) – “Strike while the iron is hot,”
the old saying goes, and a legion of iron ore miners setting up
in Canada’s remote Labrador Trough want to do just that. But,
for now, they have to wait.

Iron ore, the main component of steel, has turned ice cold
in recent months, with the benchmark price
plunging to $86.70 a tonne in September from $149.40 in April.
It has since recovered to about $116 a tonne.

TORONTO, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Lawyers for Chevron Corp
asked an Ontario judge on Thursday to toss out a bid by Amazon
villagers to seize its Canadian assets to help pay a $19 billion
award granted by an Ecuadorean court in decades-old pollution
case.

The hearing marks the first time the plaintiffs, 47 Amazon
villagers, have sought to persuade a foreign court to collect
damages awarded to them for environmental contamination in the
South American country dating back to the 1960s. Chevron
Canada’s assets are worth more than $12 billion, the plaintiffs
say.

TORONTO, Nov 28 (Reuters) – Inmet Mining Corp said
on Wednesday that it had turned down a C$4.86 billion (US$4.89
billion) unsolicited takeover bid from its larger rival First
Quantum Minerals Ltd, sending Inmet shares up more than
17 percent.

The Canadian base metal miner, which is building the massive
Cobre Panama copper mine in Central America, also said it had
adopted a shareholder rights plan, giving it more time to
evaluate bids and potentially seek alternatives to a takeover.