Nonferrous

• Collahuasi to start moly output ahead of schedule Oct 21, 2005

  Chilean copper miner Cia. Minera Dona Ines de Collahuasi SCM plans to begin producing molybdenum from a new plant in November, two months ahead of schedule, Thomas L. Keller, chief executive officer, said.

• CEZinc production steady, sales volume up in qtr. Oct 21, 2005

  Production of zinc at Falconbridge Ltd.'s Canadian Electrolytic Zinc Ltd. (CEZinc) refinery in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec, has held steady despite the whirl of activity surrounding the company's ownership.

• Trimet drops offer for Hamburg aluminum smelter Oct 21, 2005

  Trimet Aluminium AG, Essen, Germany, has withdrawn a bid for Hamburger Aluminium-Werk GmbH's smelter in Hamburg, Germany, a company executive said.

• Chase Brass adding 2¢ for energy Oct 21, 2005

  Brass rod maker Chase Brass & Copper Co. Inc., Montpelier, Ohio, plans to introduce a 2-cent-per-pound energy surcharge on all shipments and orders beginning Nov. 1.

• Mueller logs mixed quarterly, 9-month results Oct 21, 2005

  Higher sales and prices helped U.S. copper and brass products manufacturer Mueller Industries Inc. log a 30-percent gain in third quarter earnings, though it failed to prop up the Memphis, Tenn.,-based company's nine-month results.

• Inco starts up hydromet plant in Newfoundland Oct 21, 2005

  In what was called a "significant milestone" for the Voisey's Bay nickel project, Inco Ltd.'s chairman and chief executive officer cut the ribbon Thursday on the company's demonstration hydrometallurgical plant in Argentia, Newfoundland.

• PD allots $1.5B for shareholders Oct 21, 2005

  Copper producer Phelps Dodge Corp., Phoenix, plans to return $1.5 billion to shareholders by the end of 2006 in the form of share repurchases and special dividends.

• Alcan answers the succession issue and moves on to taming costs Oct 21, 2005

  When Travis Engen, president and chief executive officer of Alcan Inc., hands over the reins of the company to Richard B. Evans next March, it will mark the end of the five-year tenure that has seen the Montreal-based company transform.

• The mission 'The situation now is very different. The focus is on execution' Oct 21, 2005

  Richard B. Evans' appointment to succeed Travis Engen as Alcan Inc.'s chief executive officer will bring an unusual management structure to an end.

• Norilsk holds line on nickel output plan as 3d qtr. tallies in at 61,000T Oct 21, 2005

  MMC Norilsk Nickel produced 61,000 tonnes of nickel and 113,000 tonnes of copper in the third quarter of 2005, the Moscow-based company said.

• Greenwich to keep trading lead despite staff defections to INTL Oct 20, 2005

  Greenwich Metals Inc. plans to remain in the lead business despite the recent loss of three staff members to International Assets Holding Corp. (INTL).

• Refco filing lists claims of nearly $50 billion Oct 19, 2005

  Refco Inc. has liabilities of nearly $50 billion, according to its filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, with a number of familiar names in the commodities market listed as creditors.

• Alcan gets environmental nod on Coega smelter Oct 19, 2005

  South African authorities have granted environmental approval for Alcan Inc., Montreal, to build a proposed aluminum smelter at the Coega industrial zone.

• Peru's SPCC changes name to Southern Copper Oct 19, 2005

  Peru's largest copper producer has changed its name to Southern Copper Corp. from Southern Peru Copper Corp., according to a notice filed with securities regulator Bolsa de Valores de Lima.

• Constellation amends Mexico mine estimates Oct 19, 2005

  Constellation Copper Corp. has announced new estimates for its Terrazas deposit in Chihuahua, Mexico.

• US lead premiums stabilize in tight market Oct 19, 2005

  U.S. lead premiums were fairly stable this week as prices on the London Metal Exchange bumped along near record highs.

• Vekselberg move against VSMPO said thrown out by Cypriot court Oct 19, 2005

  An attempt by metals and oil magnate Viktor Vekselberg to gain control of Russian titanium producer VSMPO-Avisma Corp. has been thwarted by a Cypriot judge.

• Energy costs nudge up zinc alloy premiums Oct 18, 2005

  Zinc alloy premiums edged higher this week, driven by runaway energy costs that impacted both production and transport. Supply constraints brought on by zinc producer strikes, as well as rising copper and aluminum prices, have further muddied the pricing picture.

• Freeport's earnings up on sales, pricing gains Oct 18, 2005

  Higher copper and gold sales and higher prices helped boost Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.'s third-quarter net income and return it to profitability in the nine-month period ended Sept. 30.

• Copper premiums firm in tight, strike-torn mart Oct 18, 2005

  U.S. copper premiums are firm as stocks remain tight in the wake of a decision by Falconbridge Ltd. to declare force majeure on deliveries from its idle Kidd Creek complex in Timmins, Ontario, and the continuation of a strike at troubled producer Asarco Inc.

• Alcoa building larger facility to serve Ferrari Oct 18, 2005

  Alcoa Inc. will build a larger manufacturing facility in Modena, Italy, as part of a long-term strategic partnership with Ferrari SpA aimed at creating advanced aluminum spaceframe technology.

• Nymex, MexDer in deal to facilitate natural gas futures trade in Mexico Oct 18, 2005

  The New York Mercantile Exchange will allow the Bolsa de Derivados de México SA de CV (MexDer) to use its Henry Hub natural gas futures settlement price as a reference point for a futures contract to be traded on MexDer.

• Newmont names three senior VPs Oct 18, 2005

  Gold producer Newmont Mining Corp., Denver, has appointed three senior vice presidents.

• Aldoga project delayed 6 months Oct 18, 2005

  Plans for a 420,000-tonne-per-year aluminum smelter in Australia have been shelved for a further six months, according to Aldoga Aluminium Smelter Pty. Ltd., but local government sources suggest the project may never get off the ground.