Extractive industries
Minerals and mineral products
Wa State suffers as fewer Chinese come to party
In a remote casino in northeastern Burma, China’s pervasive campaign against graft has taken its toll. Hundreds of local traders and farmers place petty bets as low as 10 cents, outnumbering a few Chinese who were once the VIPs of a gambling hall decorated with ...
Urban FMCG market rising as rural market sees lower growth
2016’s GDP reaching 6.21 per cent fell short of the target of 6.5 per cent but CPI was controlled at 2.67 per cent, lower than the targeted 3-4 per cent. Retail sales of consumer goods also maintained double digit growth, at 10 per cent on ...
Villagers demand investigation into gold mines
Mandalay farmers have staged a sit-in for the past four days in protest of gold mines they claim have encroached on their land. The Wet Tae village residents are demanding the government suspend the mining activities until the conclusion of an investigation. They also called for ...
Indonesia eases ban on mineral exports
Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry on January 12 announced sweeping changes to mining regulations that allow exports of nickel ore and bauxite for another five years under certain conditions. The announcement illustrates the challenges facing the resource-rich country, which instituted a ban on mineral ore ...
The Salween Peace Park: a radical, grassroots alternative to development in Karen State
A path has opened for environmental conservationists and rights advocates to strengthen their fight against gold mining and other socially and environmentally destructive projects in the rich forests of Karen State in eastern Myanmar: the Salween Peace Park. The 5,200-square-kilometer Peace Park is a radical ...
Coal piles up as VN firms prefer imports
According to statistics from the General Customs Department, as of December 15 Viet Nam had imported a total 13 million tonnes of coal worth US$860 million during the year, more than four times the targeted 3 million tonnes. Why did coal purchases increase so sharply? ...
Pheapimex ties ‘cause for concern’
Alex Corporation, the firm behind a proposal for an ambitious Mondulkiri mining project, appears to be ultimately owned by ruling party Senator Lao Meng Khin and his wife, Choeung Sopheap, the Post has discovered, a scenario rights groups say should give cause for concern. The ...
Lifting US jade sanctions ‘a mistake’: Myanmar minister
The minister in charge of mining in Myanmar’s conflict-ridden state of Kachin says it was a mistake for the United States to lift sanctions on the country’s notorious jade industry. Kachin lies at the heart of the “jade tract”, a small area that has deposits ...
Shut gold mine shows investors risks of Thai junta rule
When Thailand’s junta leader-turned-prime minister used his absolute power to suspend gold mining, causing an Australian miner’s shares to plummet 19% in a single day, he complicated efforts to attract foreign investors already spooked by military rule. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced the order last ...
Gold mine ban ‘not final’
Experts believe junta order allows room for amendment later; Akara Resources says 1,000 workers will lose jobs. Environmental experts believe that the junta’s order on Tuesday to suspend gold mining operations is not final and there is room to reverse the decision or amend the ...
