Global Scans · Mining · Weekly Summary

• [New] Once permitted, the Alaskan mining project is expected to extract commercial quantities of critical and strategic minerals essential to U.S. economic growth and national security. Permitting Council
• [New] Lunar and Asteroid mining operations could supply metals / rare materials with far less terrestrial habitat destruction, deforestation, and pollution than Earth mines. NextBigFuture.com
• [New] Economic development and the global energy transition will continue to drive a boom in mining activities across Africa, with demand for key ETMs sourced predominantly from Africa expected to grow by up to 40-fold by 2040. Nature
• [New] Globally, mining directly threatens 8% of vertebrate species and drives widespread habitat loss. Nature
• [New] Embedding offsite deforestation levels into environmental impact assessments for new mining projects will be key to ensuring zero-deforestation or no-net-loss supply chains for critical minerals and reduce future mining-driven forest losses in sub-Saharan Africa. Nature
• [New] The metal mining segment is expected to remain in the second position in 2026, backed by rising demand for critical minerals such as copper, lithium, and nickel. Persistence Market Research
• [New] The software automation segment is predicted to lead with a share of approximately 44.6% in 2026, as it has become the core of mining automation due to its ability to connect and control everything in real time. Persistence Market Research
• [New] Asia Pacific is anticipated to dominate in 2026 with a share of nearly 42.9%, as it combines large-scale mining activity with fast adoption of automation. Persistence Market Research
• [New] Mining lithium from the earth has proven to be very taxing from an energy and environmental standpoint, so pulling lithium directly from saltwater could be a very important future route. Futurity
• [New] Brazil increasingly emerged as a strategically important lithium Jurisdiction because of geological potential, infrastructure access, Mining friendliness, and growing global investor attention toward diversified critical-mineral Supply chains outside traditional jurisdictions. Kalkine
• [New] Saudi Arabia's major investment opportunities have become a strong attraction for leading Russian mining companies.
• [New] Streamlining permitting and reducing red tape will unlock significant returns for investors in Peru's mining sector. Industrial Info Resources
• [New] Streamlining regulations is seen as essential to unlock Peru's full mining potential and meet growing global demand, especially for copper. Industrial Info Resources
• [New] The World Bank Group's metals and minerals strategy confirms that lending for mining projects is expected to rise sharply from approximately $3 billion during FY21 - 25 to an estimated $17 billion in FY26 - 30, a continuing trend from the previous reporting period. OriginBrief
• [New] China currently accounts for approximately 60% of global REE mining and 90% of processing capacity, creating significant geopolitical and economic vulnerabilities. SpringerLink
• The mining sector will need to hire between 100000 and 220000 employees by 2033 to replace retirees and fill new positions to meet baseline production targets. IEA
• Autonomous systems could reduce mining haulage costs by up to 15-20%, driven by improved utilization rates and reduced accident-related downtime. Persistence Market Research
• Extreme droughts in East and Southeast Asia have limited purified water availability for semiconductor fabrication and copper ore processing in key South American mining regions, exposing vulnerabilities throughout high-tech supply chains. GOV.UK
• The higher 2026-2027 coking coal assumptions reflect higher year-to-date prices and reduced supply due to disruptions in Australia and a mining accident in China, while demand from steelmakers remains robust. petromindo
• Any meaningful contribution to economic development will need the US and Congolese governments to address persistent patterns of corruption and human rights abuses in the mining sector. Human Rights Watch

Last updated: 03 July 2026