Altura Mining has completed the first stage of commissioning at its lithium project in the Pilbara region in Western Australia.

United States oil and gas giant Harbour Energy has increased its takeover offer for Santos by $US480 million ($650 million).

DGO Gold will make a strategic investment in Pilbara gold counterpart, De Grey Mining, helping it to advance assets in the region.

Australian Vanadium says it has recovered cobalt, nickel and copper in a sulphide concentrate from the Gabanintha vanadium project in Western Australia.

Lucapa Diamond Company has recovered a 25ct yellow gem diamond from the Mothae kimberlite mine in Lesotho.

Heron Resources has awarded two key contracts for the Woodlawn zinc-copper project in New South Wales.

The Women in Industry Awards recognises and rewards the achievements of women working within the mining, engineering, manufacturing, process control industries and commercial road transport industries

Supporting Australia’s mining companies to create more high-wage, high-skill jobs is the best way to strengthen regional communities and lessen inequality, according to Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) interim chief executive officer David Byers.

ASX-listed WorleyParsons has been awarded an offshore engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) contract by Neptune Energy.

Evolution Mining and Emmerson Resources will move forward with the proposed restructure of their joint venture in the Northern Territory.

Volatile prices of commodities or raw materials is the major trend observed in the last few years, according to Grand View Research. The mining equipment market is also expected to witness the impact of this unpredictability.

Red River Resources has launched development of the Far West zinc project, which would be its second underground mine at Thalanga in central Queensland.

China’s Tianqi Lithium has agreed to buy around a quarter of Chilean lithium company, SQM, for $US4.07 billion ($5.42 billion).

Mining, resources and energy job advertisements have led the chart on the jobs portal SEEK, with Queensland advancing on a growth rate of 91 per cent year on year.

The World Gold Council (WGC) has released an essay collection called Gold 2048, which claims that due to an expanding middle class contingent in countries like China and India, demand for gold will rise.

The mining sector saw a 32.1 per cent increase in job opportunities since a year ago, despite a 6.2 per cent fall in the RBA’s Non Rural Bulk Commodity Price Index last April. The rise is reflected in the DFP Mining and Resources Job Index, which has experienced consistent rise for 10 consecutive months.

Minetec has been awarded a contract to supply BHP’s Olympic Dam mine in South Australia with an underground fleet management system.

Caterpillar dealer WesTrac will launch the Cat 320 GC, 320 and 323 hydraulic excavators at events in Perth and Sydney in May and June.

In marking Fortescue Metals Group’s 15th year of working with the local communities of the Pilbara in Western Australia, the company announced that it will provide grants of up to $10,000 for local communities projects.