Website traffic statistics Pages viewed and unique visitors to BMI Online Month/ year Page views Unique visitors Dec '11 30,478 3,022 Nov '11 27,841 3,394 Oct '11 26,528 3,175 Sep '11 25,125 2,889 Aug '11 28,196 2,806 Jul '11 27,350 2,728 Jun '11 28,207 2,684 May '11 27,308 2,659 Apr '11 29,976 2,538 Mar '11 35,400 2,797 Feb '11 32,548 3,004 Jan '11 36,291 3,044 Bulk Materials International: For bulk handling and transportation professionals worldwide. CLICK HERE for our FREE bi-weekly eNewsletter with latest industry news and events Search:  Home | Archive | Upcoming Events | Publications | Free Email Alert | Sitemap Advertise | Subscribe | Back Issues | Sample Issue | Contact | My Account Headline news... Grindrod sells stake in Maputo coal terminal Logistics group Grindrod has announced that it is to sell a 35% interest its Maputo coal terminal concession to energy trading company Vitol Group for US$67.7M. More FLSmidth bids Au$267M for Ludowici FLSmidth, a leading supplier of equipment and services to the global cement and minerals industries, has entered into an agreement to acquire Australian-listed company Ludowici for Au$7.20 per share, which corresponds to an enterprise value of approximately Au$267M. More Ncondezi signs rail/port deal with Rio Tinto Ncondezi Coal Company has signed an agreement with Rio Tinto Coal Mozambique (RTCM) and Minas Revuboe on a proposed greenfield rail and port project to be developed in Mozambique. More BHP Billiton rail project on track BHP Billiton has given the Queensland Government notice of a proposed rail corridor alignment to the Port of Abbot Point which can be used to accommodate multiple rail lines, including a dedicated rail line for BHP Billiton and its joint venture partners in the Bowen Basin. More CP announces long-term potash agreement Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (CP) has announced a ten-year agreement with Canpotex Limited. More Arch Coal announces new London sales team Arch Coal Sales' London team has been confirmed as Alexander Newman, vice president of international thermal coal sales, Europe, and Wyn Davis, vice president of international metallurgical coal sales, Europe. More ECT signs MoU with K-Coal Environmental Clean Technologies has announced that following meetings in South Korea it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Korea-based energy company K-Coal Co. Ltd. More Coeclerici announces new appointments Bill Graybeal and Joseph Kulbeth have been respectively nominated deputy chairman and CEO of Coeclerici Americas. More XCSA completes sail of Mpumalanga assets Xstrata Coal South Africa (XCSA) has completed the sale of its Spitzkop and Tselentis collieries and supporting coal assets, located in Mpumalanga, South Africa, to the Imbawula Group for an undisclosed amount. More North Star resource increases to 2.1 bt Australian mining company Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) has announced a 72% increase in the North Star magnetite deposit of 880 mt, taking the total resource to 2.12 bt at a Fe grade of 31.6%. More Patriot Coal to cut met coal production U.S coal producer Patriot Coal will curtail higher cost production at its southern West Virgnina mining operations in response to weaker market demand for metallurgical coal. More Schmidt-Seeger GmbH is now Buhler GmbH Schmidt-Seeger GmbH is now Buhler GmbH following completion of the acquisition by Buhler Technology Group of the German grain management specialist. More SA and Swaziland to build rail link South African freight and logistics group Transnet and Swaziland Railways have agreed to jointly develop a 146 km line linking Lothair in Mpumalanga, South Africa and Sidvokodvo Junction in Swaziland as well as upgrading the adjacent networks in both countries. More Mechel to expand port capacities Mechel, one of Russia's largest steel and mining groups, is planning to expand the handling capacity of its Mechel-Temryuk port, Russia's southernmost harbour on the Sea of Azov, from the current 2 mtpa (mainly coal and coke) to 3.27 mtpa (including 3 mtpa of coal). More Pakistan favours China for Gwadar Pakistan's Defence Minister, Ahmed Mukhtar, "dropped a bombshell" recently when he announced that China will take over management of Gwadar port authority, in Balochistan province, upon expiry of the current Port of Singapore Authority management contract. More Midget nozzle design for dust suppression Dust Control Technology has introduced a new nozzle design for its atomised misting equipment, engineered specifically for applications requiring smaller droplet sizes or reduced water volumes to minimise surface wetting. More FFS bagging system first for Lafarge Building materials and cement manufacturer Lafarge Cement UK will be the first customer to install one of the new Haver & Boecker Adams(r) 2000 form-fill-seal bagging systems for filling powder-type products into watertight PE bags. More Ukraine to develop grain export logistics Ukraine is looking for ways to improve its grain export logistics. More Chinese steel mills use more local ore Chinese steel production has been hovering around record levels for months, but iron ore imports are yet to follow suit. More K Line moves management of JSW bulk carrier operations to India Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, (K Line) has announced that K Line (India) will commence management of bulk carrier operations (post fixture) from India. More Rio Tinto invests US$310M in Pilbara Rio Tinto will invest US$310M to assure a sustainable water supply for its iron ore operations in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, ensuring a sufficient resource to accommodate the expansion of annual production capacity up to the planned 333 mt. More Vedanta's India port project to be ready by Q1 2012 The Rs6.75B (US$147M) mechanised coal handling facility of Vedanta Resources Plc at India's Visakhapatnam port is set to become operational by first quarter of 2012. More Pretoria considers Transnet split South African transport utility Transnet appears to have confirmed rumours that the government is considering spinning off rail operations from the rest of the company. More Chinese shipowners slate Vale The China Shipowners' Association has branded the decision by Vale to build a fleet of iron ore carriers, an investment slated at US$2.3B, as an "attempt to monopolise" the movement of iron out of Brazil. More New destination for South African coal The South African coal industry is set to secure an unexpected new market in the form of Ethiopia, the second most populous country in Sub-Saharan Africa. More More opportunities for Latvian ports Latvia is planning to increase last year's aggregate cargo handling volume of its seaports by 6-7% to around 65 mtpa this year and by 66% to 100 mtpa by 2025. More Petmin invests in Canadian project South African miner Petmin has announced details of a US$25M investment in its Canadian iron sands and pig iron joint venture project. More New shiploader from B & W Store Norske Spitsbergen Grubekompani (SNSG) in Norway recently ordered a mobile shiploader and a link conveyor from UK-based B & W Mechanical Handling, part of the Aumund group, to replace an existing installation that was damaged beyond repair during a heavy storm earlier this year. More  Feature articles Energy policy shift marks coal as growth product Germany's energy sector is facing an uncertain future after its announcement earlier this year that it will phase out all of its nuclear power plants by 2022 following Japan's nuclear disaster at Fukushima in March. More Catering to the upturn in biomass demand Biomass products, such as wood pellets and nut shells, are increasingly being used by power companies as they seek to utilise sustainable fuels. More Asian coal demand shows no sign of slowing Asia's sustained appetite for steel and energy will continue to underpin demand for coal. More Australia: a resources boom without end Australia is awash with mineral and energy developments. According to the latest report from the federal government's commodity researcher, at the end of April there were 94 projects at an advanced stage of development, with a record capital expenditure of A$173.5B. The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resources Economics and Sciences (ABARES) reported this was a 31% increase in just six months - and there have been several more multi-billion dollar projects approved since then. More Sample extraction: only half the story In the interests of accuracy, sample preparation in the laboratory is just as important as first obtaining a representative sample from a consignment of bulk material. More A value-added dimension to stockyard management The stockpiling and recovery of dry bulk commodities is becoming more than just a straightforward exercise in stacking and reclaiming as demand for simultaneous blending and other forms of primary processing increases. More New line-up on the grab crane supply side A major player in the bulk handling equipment industry has changed hands, marking an important phase for the sector. More Coaltrans Madrid: Exhibition Preview This year's venue for the Coaltrans World Coal Conference is Madrid.The conference will be complemented by an exhibition that will offer delegates the chance to see the brands and products important to a dynamic coal industry. More Grabbing at every opportunity While the grab market remains robust, there is a longer term uncertainty over which direction it will take. More Banking on offshore transfers The offshore transhipment industry has developed significantly over the past two decades since Coeclerici first commissioned BULK TRIEST. More It's all about the energy Conveyors represent the most efficient method of moving large volumes of bulk over relatively short distances but are under increasing scrutiny to reduce energy costs. More Great Lakes St. Lawrence seeing recovery After posting low cargo volumes in 2008 and 2009, and a small recovery last year, the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System is projected to handle slightly over 39 mt of cargo this year, a 7% increase over 2010. More Cement market growth highlights the need for environmental protection With leading cement maker Lafarge estimating market growth at between 2-5% in 2011 versus 2010, the issue of dust control becomes more important, especially as emerging markets continue to be the main driver of this growing demand for cement. More Continuous unloaders plough a steady course The market for continuous ship unloaders remains stable, but has not risen in keeping with continued international commodity demand. More ARA ports to benefit from nuclear fallout While coal tonnages through the ARA range exhibit a modest strengthening, an anti-nuclear backlash following Japan's nuclear crisis looks set to promote coal-fired power generation. More Rocky road paves the way for future Confidence is returning to the construction industry, which was badly hit by the global financial meltdown, leading to an upturn in the pneumatic cement-handling sector. The agri-bulk business maintains a stable outlook, boosted by the potential in the biomass market. More World fertiliser demand 'highest to date' The International Fertiliser Industry Association (IFA) has released its mediumterm report Fertiliser Outlook 2011-2015. More Heavy lift shipping faces choppy waters The heavy lift shipping and project cargo market is set for a lean period as market conditions deteriorate although operators remain confident over long term prospects. More Technology keeps the cable systems reeling Power-feed supply systems to large coal-handling plant can pose challenges but new technology goes a long way to solving such problems. More Semi-bulk sustainability Flexible intermediate bulk containers (FIBCs), as well as rigid-type IBCs which are employed primarily for handling liquids and pastes, have both been in widespread use for over 30 years and the industry has attained a level of maturity where technical innovations are nowadays infrequent and usually only of a specialised nature. More All contents © WCN Publishing, Northbank House, 5 Bridge Street, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 8BL, England.