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Global delegates converge on Sudbury to chart a path forward in mining – by Lindsay Kelly (Northern Ontario Business – October 11, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Australian mayor shares his community’s experience of growth in the ore-rich Pilbara at the OECD conference

The City of Karratha in Western Australia’s Pilbara region is a hive of mining-related activity. Known for its rich iron ore deposits, the region has a population of just over 24,000 people. Karratha alone generates a whopping $20 billion annually in gross domestic product (GDP).

Put in other terms, each person working in the region contributes $375 per hour to the GDP; that’s in comparison to the national average of $56 per hour. “That’s how important our region is to the national economy of Australia,” said Daniel Scott, mayor of the City of Karratha, while speaking in Sudbury this week.

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Ontario stonewalling marine conservation area, proponents say – by Nicole Stoffman (Timmins Daily Press – October 11, 2024)

https://www.timminspress.com/

Bourgouin: ‘The province should be at the table with Mushkegowuk Council’

A proposed marine conservation area in the James Bay Coast is being hindered without the support of the province, Mushkegowuk Grand Chief Leo Friday says. The Mushkegowuk National Marine Conservation Area (NMCA) would protect 86,000 square kilometres of federal waters in the Hudson and James Bays and 20 kilometres of coastal buffer zones under provincial jurisdiction.

The federal waters have been approved for conservation by the Ministry of the Environment, but without Ontario’s approval of the 20-kilometre buffer zone, the NMCA could still proceed but will be “very limited,” according to Lawrence Martin, director of Mushkegowuk Council’s lands and resources department.

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Moore brothers reflect on nickel boom and now bust as BHP’s Kalgoorlie smelter shuts down – by BJarrod Lucas (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – October 10, 2024)

https://www.abc.net.au/

A profile image of a man with dark, spiky hair.

Brothers Donald and Tim Moore lived through the country’s first nickel boom in Western Australia’s resources-rich Goldfields. The metal’s discovery near Kambalda in the 1960s sparked a modern-day renaissance for the historic mining region built on its 1890s gold rush.

It set the brothers on different paths that were heavily influenced by the “magic metal” of the day. Donald, 60, worked extensively in gold mining and spent 13 years at the Kalgoorlie Nickel Smelter, while his 59-year-old brother Tim has documented the region’s ups and downs as a historian with the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

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Teck CEO Says Canada Must Spend More to Erode China’s Critical Minerals Dominance – by Erik Hertzberg (Bloomberg News – October 10, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Teck Resources Ltd.’s chief executive officer warned the Canadian government that it isn’t doing enough to foster development in the critical minerals sector.

Speaking Thursday at an event in Ottawa, Jonathan Price said that while both the US and Canada have focused on developing the electric-vehicle and battery manufacturing sectors on the continent, support for mines and mineral processing continues to lag.

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Ottawa announces nearly $25M in federal investments for critical mineral projects in northern Ontario – by Jonathan Migneault (CBC News Sudbury – October 10, 2024)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/

Around $8.4M in conditional funding to be available to projects in the northeast

Ottawa continues to invest heavily in the critical minerals sector in northern Ontario. Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson announced nearly $25 million in federal funding for critical mineral projects during visits in Thunder Bay and Sudbury this week.

“There are enormous opportunities in Ontario for critical minerals,” Wilkinson told CBC News. In the northeast, those investments included $8.4 million in conditionally approved funding provided through the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund (CMIF) for several companies.

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Project 2025 wants gold to rule again — But is it fool’s gold? – by Ernest Hoffman (Kitco News – October 10, 2024)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – The Project 2025 conservative policy blueprint has been making waves in recent months as journalists, lawmakers, and academics pore over its recommendations. And while much of the attention has centered on its ideas around social policy and executive authority, one economic proposal will quicken the pulse of precious metals investors regardless of their political affiliation: Reestablishing the gold standard.

The 900-plus page document from the Heritage Foundation is aimed at shaping the policy agenda for the United States government with a focus on conservative principles. Launched in 2023, the Project is geared toward preparing for a potential Republican administration in 2025, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive plan to restore what its proponents view as core American values and governance principles.

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The future is nickel in Indonesia – by Joseph Rachman (Asia Times – October 9, 2024)

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Indonesia’s nickel policy point man outlines the nation’s EV vision, tackles China issues and debunks critics in exclusive AT interview

Indonesia’s nickel industry is booming. The global adoption of electric vehicles (EV) is driving demand for the metal, which is a key element in many EV batteries. In 2023, Indonesia produced a massive 40.2% of the world’s supply, sparking hopes the country can leverage its nickel reserves as a base to build a domestic EV industry.

At the same time, the nickel boom has courted controversy. In September, the US Department of Labor reported that forced labor was being used in the Indonesian nickel industry. Nickel companies have also faced accusations of environmental destruction and pollution.

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Opinion: Breaking barriers: A vision for Canada-U.S. co-operation in a changing world – by Mark David Wiseman (Globe and Mail – October 10, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Mark Wiseman is a Canadian investment manager and business executive who serves as a senior adviser for Boston Consulting Group and a board member for NOVA Chemicals.

A year ago in these pages, I argued that there is no place like home for investors, who should bank on a
North America, where Canada and the U.S. leverage their natural, economic and geographic advantages to create an unmatched regional bloc.

Since then, the case for Canada to embrace this approach has only grown stronger. The world is headed in a more protectionist, competitive direction. Reports show that the annual number of new global trade restrictions has steadily increased to more than 3,000 in 2023 from about 650 in 2017.

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‘Proud northern miners’: Detour Lake gold used for mint’s new coin – by Marissa Lentz-McGrath (Timmins Today – October 11, 2024)

https://www.timminstoday.com/

It’s the first time that a Northern Ontario mine is being used for the initiative

If you ever wanted to own gold poured right here in Northern Ontario, now’s your chance. The Royal Canadian Mint has launched its 2024 single-sourced gold maple leaf coin. It’s crafted entirely from gold poured from Agnico Eagle’s Detour Lake mine.

Detour Lake is located about 300 kilometres northeast of Timmins, this is the second time Agnico has teamed up with the Royal Canadian Mint for the bullion — a coin made from highly refined precious metal. It’s the first time a Northern Ontario mine is featured in the program.

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1 dead and 23 rescued after elevator issue at Colorado tourist mine left some trapped 1,000 feet underground for 6 hours – by Jeff Winter, Sarah Moon and Dalia Faheid (CNN.com – October 11, 2024)

https://www.cnn.com/

(CNN) One person has died and 23 people have been rescued after an elevator malfunction trapped them hundreds of feet underground at the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine, a tourist mine in Cripple Creek, Colorado, officials said Thursday.

At around noon Thursday, the mine experienced a mechanical issue with its elevator system, causing “a severe danger for the participants,” Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said during a news conference. The cause of the incident remains under investigation. “Accidents happen when dealing with this kind of machinery,” Mikesell said.

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The critical challenge of titanium shortages in MRO supply chains – by Avia Solutions Group (Aero Time – November 9, 2023)

https://www.aerotime.aero/

The aerospace and aviation industries have been fighting unprecedented supply chain challenges in recent years, and one of the biggest problems has been the shortage of titanium. This shortage has sent a significant shockwave through the Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) sector, creating a dire need for agile supply chain solutions to counteract the impact.

Toma Matutyte, CEO of Locatory.com, a leading aircraft parts locator in the aviation aftermarket, shares insights on the reasons behind the titanium shortage, the consequences it has brought, and the potential solutions that MROs must adopt to navigate this challenging landscape.

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Plibersek releases reasons why $1bn McPhillamy’s gold mine near Blayney is on hold – by Lani Oataway and Hamish Cole (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – October 11, 2024)

https://www.abc.net.au/

Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has found the ‘irreversible’ and ‘permanent’ loss to Aboriginal heritage outweighed the financial cost of halting a $1 billion gold mine development in the New South Wales Central West.

Ms Plibersek today released the Statement of Reasons behind her decision to protect part of the Belubula River, its headwaters and springs near Blayney, from the tailings dam earmarked for the site by Regis Resources McPhillamys gold mine.

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Rio Tinto’s real prize: Arcadium’s lithium extraction technology – by Ernest Scheyder and Clara Denina (Reuters – October 11 2024)

https://www.reuters.com/

Rio Tinto’s $6.7 billion buyout of Arcadium will give it a suite of lithium filtration technologies that are poised to revolutionize how the metal is produced for the electronics and electric vehicle industries.

Arcadium’s expertise in so-called direct lithium extraction (DLE) is the real prize for Rio, analysts said, and vaults it into contention with Eramet, Sunresin, Exxon Mobil and others aiming to make the technology commonplace in coming years.

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China’s critical minerals dominance ‘material risk’ to national security, Teck Resources CEO warns – by Jordan Gowling (Financial Post – October 11, 2024)

https://financialpost.com/

Stronger private investment crucial, says U.S. Ambassador to Canada

Teck Resources Ltd. chief executive Jonathan Price is sounding the alarm over China’s control of the critical minerals sector, warning that North America needs to invest more to catch up.

“China controls in the range of 40 to over 90 per cent of global processing capacity for many critical minerals, from copper to cobalt,” Price said during an event hosted by the Business Council of Canada and the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada in Ottawa Thursday. “With the increasing necessity of metals, it is clear that diversifying supply chains is now critical to both our economy and national security.”

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Will the Ottawa fund one Northern Ontario lithium refinery or four? Wilkinson plays coy – by Lindsay Kelly (Sudbury.com – October 11, 2024)

https://www.sudbury.com/

Federal minister says Canada must pick up the pace of critical minerals development, without cutting environmental corners

Canada needs to speed up the pace of mining-related development if it wants to be a critical minerals leader on the global stage. That was the message from federal Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson during an Oct. 9 appearance in Sudbury.

Speaking at the 2024 Conference of Mining Regions and Cities, hosted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Wilkinson noted Canada’s global ranking in the top five producing countries for 13 major minerals and metals, including palladium, gold, platinum and nickel.

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