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This will provide us with highly efficient microwave power and help us achieve our goal to recover ore from previously mined material that would normally have been discarded. If we can commercialise this technology at scale it will be akin to tapping into a new ore body.

Mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto should post record half-year profits as they reap the benefits of an industrial commodities boom, and are likely to use the results to bolster their arguments in a $123 billion (66 billion pound) takeover stand-off. Both are also likely to outline big expansions in key profit sectors such as copper and iron ore, where analysts predict higher prices next year on the back of strong demand for imported raw materials from China's industrial sector. Consenus figures based on forecasts by 20 analysts and provided by BHP point to a 12 percent rise in annual net profit to $15.4 billion, suggesting second-half profit will have risen 30 percent to $9.4 billion from $7.2 billion previously. Analysts polled by Reuters Estimates forecast Rio's January-June underlying profit will have risen 40 percent to $5.2 billion. BHP's financial year ends June 30, while Rio follows the calendar year.

Rio Tinto has announced bumper results for H1 2008, with net earnings up 113% on the same period last year, to a record US$6,914million. Results were boosted by higher sales volumes, particularly iron ore, and the first full 6 months to include Alcan. These gains were offset in part by lower copper product volumes, primarily due to lower grades at Kennecott Utah Copper. "The effect of price movements an all major commodities was to increase earnings by US$2,790 million," said the company, following new record price levels for many of its products in the first half, including copper at 20% higher than a year earlier. The company announced an interim dividend of US68c per share, an increase of 61% on H1 2007, and re-emphasized its commitment to, "increase total 2008 and 2009 dividends by at least 20% in each year".

Chinese aluminium maker Chinalco may increase its minority stake in Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto if market conditions are right, but has no timetable for such a move, its president said on Monday.

Tom Albanese took over last year as the head of one of the world's biggest mining groups. But after an aggressive start to his tenure with the $44bn acquisition of aluminium group Alcan, the 50-year-old chief executive found himself on the defensive after another mining heavyweight - Marius Kloppers of BHP Billiton - launched a $160bn hostile bid for Rio Tinto.

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto PLC (RTP) expects historically high levels of copper supply disruptions to keep the market tight in the coming years, Chief Executive for copper Bret Clayton said Thursday.

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - European antitrust regulators said Monday they had restarted a probe into miner BHP Billiton's hostile bid for rival Rio Tinto Inc., setting a new deadline to rule on it by Jan. 15.

Besides copper, the Bingham Canyon Mine is about to become a major supplier of molybdenum and rhenium. Rio Tinto, parent company of mine operator Kennecott Utah Copper, announced Wednesday that it will invest $270 million into a molybdenum autoclave process (MAP) facility.

The boss of mining firm Rio Tinto has spoken of its ''great prospects'' as it fends off a rival takeover bid from BHP Billiton.

LONDON (Reuters) - Copper prices could hit fresh record highs this year as the Chinese economy continues to expand despite a slowdown in the United States, the chief economist of miner Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday.

Australian mining major Rio Tinto today said it was bullish on mining prospects in India and is looking into opportunities in eight states in the country

South Africa's competition authorities have recommended approval of BHP Billiton's takeover of mining rival Rio Tinto

"In the near term, the Chinese economy is pausing for breath. China is not completely insulated from an OECD recession and we will see an impact on Chinese exports. However, the near term slowdown of growth is substantially due to tightening of monetary policy introduced by the Chinese government last year in order to tackle inflation. Furthermore, we expect third quarter economic data to show an exaggerated slowdown, reflecting the postponement of projects during the Olympics. Looking further out, Chinese GDP will remain largely driven by the domestic economy and we expect industrialisation and urbanisation to continue apace with strengthening demand across a range of Rio Tinto products.

Australia's competition regulator has cleared Chinalco's planned $19.5bn investment in Rio Tinto, ruling that the transaction was unlikely to "unilaterally decrease global iron ore prices below competitive levels".