Rio Tinto is on the lookout for pay dirt. Rio Tinto Limited, one of the world's largest mining operations (along with BHP Billiton and Vale), is the Australian half of dual-listed sister companies, with Rio Tinto plc taking up residence in London. Although each company trades separately, the two Rio Tintos operate as one business. Rio Tinto mines iron, copper, uranium, industrial minerals (borax, salt, talc), gold, and diamonds. It also produces aluminum products through Rio Tinto Alcan. The company sells globally, but the majority of its operations are located in Australia and North America.

Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (TSX:AVL)(OTCQX:AVARF) is a mineral exploration and development company focused on the rare metal deposits in Canada. Its flagship project, the 100%-owned Nechalacho Deposit, Thor Lake, Northwest Territories, is emerging as one of the largest undeveloped rare earth elements resources in the world. Its exceptional enrichment in the more valuable ‘heavy' rare earth elements, key to enabling advances in green energy technology and other growing high-tech applications, is one of the few potential sources of these critical elements outside of China, currently the source of over 95% of the world supply. Avalon is well funded, has no debt and its work programs are progressing steadily. Social responsibility and environmental stewardship are corporate cornerstones. Avalon presently owns five rare metals and minerals projects in Canada, four of which are at advanced stages of development. These are: Nechalacho, Thor Lake, Northwest Territories, a rare earth elements ("REE") project in the pre-feasibility stage, Separation Rapids (lithium) in Ontario, Warren Township in Ontario (calcium feldspar project, currently inactive pending resolution of permitting issue), and East Kemptville, Nova Scotia, a tin-indium-gallium-germanium project where large inferred resources have been identified requiring further drilling to bring the project to the pre-feasibility stage.

Metalor Technologies International smelts and refines precious metals for a wide range of uses. Its refining division recycles precious metals -- gold, silver, platinum, etc. -- and converts them into powders, grains, or ingots. From there, the metals are turned into technical coatings, components for the watch and jewelry industries, and silver contacts for the electrical industry and electrotechnics. The company has subsidiaries in 15 countries.

Ryerson has a heart of steel. A distributor and processor of metals, Ryerson company offers its 40,000 customers steel products (carbon, stainless, and alloy) and aluminum, brass, copper, and nickel alloys. It buys bulk metal products (in sheets, bars, and other forms) from metal producers and processes them to meet the specifications of its customers -- machine shops, fabricators, and machinery makers. Ryerson company also offers pipes, valves, and fittings; metal roofing, flooring, and grating products; and fabrication services. Ryerson operates 90 facilities in the US and Canada as well as in China. Private investment firm Platinum Equity owns Ryerson and filed to take it public in 2010.

UC Resources (TSX-V: UC) is a Canadian exploration, development and production company which has an opportunity-driven acquisition strategy. Its main focus is on production and exploration opportunities in Mexico. However, it will also be active in Canada on a very select basis on exploration projects, which have the potential to add significant shareholder value. The Company’s Canadian exploration program is at the McFauld’s Lake volcanic-hosted massive sulphide (“VMS”) project in the James Bay Lowlands of Ontario. This areas has recently received significant interest by the investment community due to some significant results by Noront Resources (TSXV:NOT). To date, in excess of $9 million has been expended on the project, of which 47 drill holes, totaling nearly 15,000 meters have been drilled on the McFauld’s #1 and #3 occurrences. Some of the highlights of this drill program in past years includes: McF-04-57 18.8 meters of 8.02% Copper and Mc-03-18 discovery hole intersected multiple zones, enriched in Zinc, averaged 4.83% Zn over 25.75 meters (also 0.51% Cu). UC Resources Company currently has an option to earn-in up to 55% undivided interest in the McFauld’s Lake Project.The current exploration program by UC has returned some significant results, including an intersection of 4.35% Zn, 2.69% Cu, 0.35 g/t Au and 6.63 g/t Ag over 19 metres.

Banro is constructing a "Phase 1" gold mine at its wholly-owned Twangiza gold property located near the city of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (the "DRC"). Scheduled for completion in late 2011, this gold operation is designed to produce 100,000 + ounces of gold per year, with future expansion to 300,000 + ounces of gold per annum. With Proven and Probable Reserves of 4.54 million ounces of gold, Twangiza already hosts a major gold resource and offers several promising new targets for exploration and future resource expansion, including Ntula, Mufwa, Tshondo, Luhwindja and Kaziba. The results of a full feasibility study of Twangiza were announced in January 2009 and updated in June 2009. Banro's pipeline includes three additional, wholly-owned properties, each with mining licenses, along the 210 kilometre long northeast to southwest trending Twangiza-Namoya gold belt in the DRC. Banro's second major project is Namoya, where a scoping study was completed in July 2007; the Namoya Pre-Feasibility study is due for completion in 2010. Exploration is also ongoing at Lugushwa, where a Scoping Study is planned for completion in 2010. A "desktop" analysis of the Kamituga project was completed in 2009 and it is planned to begin exploration at Kamituga in 2010. The Company has so far identified 6.72 million ounces of Measured and Indicated Resources, plus Inferred Resources of 4.46 million ounces. In addition to its current properties, which have mining licenses and cover 2,613 square kilometers, Banro in 2007 was awarded 14 exploration permits covering 2,638 square kilometres and located on highly prospective ground between its Twangiza and Lugushwa projects. Applications for additional PRs contiguous to and located between the Company's Lugushwa and Namoya projects, along with areas south of Twangiza, are pending.

Lithic Resources isn't interested in stone, but it is interested in the minerals attached to the stone. Lithic Resources explores the zinc/indium/copper Crypto property in Nevada. The Crypto project has been in development since its acquisition in 2005 from EuroZinc, which has since merged into Lundin Mining. Lithic Resources was founded in 2002 through the restructuring of Berland Resources.

Gabriel is a Canadian-based resource company committed to responsible mining and sustainable development in the communities in which it operates. Gabriel is engaged in the exploration and development of mineral properties in Romania and is presently in the permitting stage and preparing to develop its 80.46%-owned Rosia Montana gold project (the "Project"). Minvest S.A. ("Minvest"), a Romanian state owned mining company, and one other private Romanian company, hold a 19.54% interest in Rosia Montana Gold Corporation ("RMGC"), and Gabriel holds the pre-emptive right to acquire the 19.54% minority interest.

Feroleto Steel Company, Inc., founded by Frank V. Feroleto in 1958, processes flat rolled steel for companies large and small. In December of 1990, the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota Tsusho America, Inc. Since the acquisition, Feroleto has expanded to Knoxville, TN and Weirton, WV to meet customer’s needs.Feroleto specializes in value added products and maintains close ties with vendors and customers in order to maximize value to customers. The company is financially strong and built around servicing customers’ needs.Feroleto adheres to the highest safety and environmental standards in the industry. We have earned, rightfully so we believe, the reputation as a knowledgeable, respected and responsible business partner.

In 1947, Steel Warehouse began in a small rented building with a used shear, rented lift truck, lots of manual labor and a plan to liquidate steel from a toy building venture. Shortly thereafter, other opportunities seized by company founder and president Nate Lerman set Steel Warehouse on a path of growth, innovation and industry leadership.Since then, growth of Steel Warehouse company has been steady, if not at times explosive. At first, there was just a handful of employees. Today, there are over 600 members of the Steel Warehouse family.Originally, we serviced customers within a small radius of South Bend. Now, we ship material throughout most of the country from South Bend - the site of our earliest beginnings - and our network branch facilities.

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