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Year: 2012

Air Creebec flies high as Plan Nord ramps up – by Fancois Shalom (Montreal Gazette – September 18 2012)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

Airline Inaugurates its new $10-million hangar and terminal at Trudeau airport
 
Jean Charest may be gone, but he is far from forgotten – by Air Creebec at least. “We view (the former premier’s) Plan Nord as really a personal friend,” said Sylvain Dicaire, chief financial officer of the Val d’Or-based airline owned by the Cree nation. “We couldn’t agree with it more.”
 
Since its founding in 1982, the airline has banked heavily on northern development – mostly mining, forestry and Hydro-Québec.
 
But Charest formalizing the economic development of Quebec’s far north as a premier strategic objective for the government means that “the sky is the limit for us now,” Dicaire said. The occasion Monday was itself a testament to the benefits of that interest.
 
On its 30th anniversary, Air Creebec inaugurated its new $10-million hangar and terminal on the edges of the runway at Dorval’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport – built with a $1.3-million subsidy from the province, Dicaire noted. Plan Nord may be a formal stamp, but in truth, Dicaire said, “we sensed it before (it was launched).”

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Summit boosts Vladivostok’s profile – by Jonathan Manthorpe (Vancouver Sun – September 17, 2012)

The Vancouver Sun, a broadsheet daily paper first published in 1912, has the largest circulation in the province of British Columbia.

Russia spent $22 billion to build gateway port for Europe-bound Asian goods
 
When Vladivostok was asked to host the summit of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum Russian leader Vladimir Putin saw an opportunity to reverse the steady decline of a region that covers a third of the country’s territory.
 
In the years leading up to the weeklong APEC summit earlier this month Moscow and other levels of government spent about $22 billion to establish the port city of Vladivostok as the gateway for Asia to the resource-rich eight provinces of Pacific Russia.
 
The plans are also to make Vladivostok the hub of a transportation network that will allow the overland export of Asia’s manufactured goods to Europe and the Middle East, cutting at least 20 days off the time taken to ship by sea.
 
At the same time, Vladivostok and the surrounding province are in the early stages of crafting their own manufacturing industries, primarily automotive and home appliance factories at this point. The investments in Vladivostok sparked by the APEC summit are impressive.

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Australian mining seen as vulnerable to competition from emerging nations – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – September 18, 2012)

www.mineweb.com

Australian mining is losing global market share to rapidly emerging resource-rich economies, says a report from the Minerals Council of Australia.

To download the report, Opportunity at risk, Regaining our competitive edge in mineral resources, go to www.minerals.org.au

RENO (MINEWEB) – Australia’s mining boom is not over, says a study commissioned by the Minerals Council of Australia, but its dynamics have changed and its policy demands are greater and more urgent.
 
The report by the Australian strategy consulting firm, Port Jackson Partners, is the “most detailed panorama yet painted of the burgeoning cost environment in Australia, our deteriorating reputation as a place to do business and the threat this poses to our ability to capture market share and future investment,” said the Minerals Council.
 
In the study, Port Jackson Partners suggest that over the next 20 years, demand for key minerals will increase by between 50% and 200%.  While growth in iron ore demand slows as infrastructure is developed, “there is likely to be new growth in demand for products such as copper, aluminium and other minerals and metals and consumers demand more sophisticated products.”

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Celebrating a ‘blue-eyed sheik’ – by Peter Foster (National Post – September 18, 2012)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

Peter Lougheed took a managerial approach to economic affairs, which very much reflected the spirit of the times
 
Peter Lougheed, who died, much honoured, last week, was very good to me, both as a topic and, on one occasion, as an unpaid publicist. It was the fall of 1979. My first book, The Blue-Eyed Sheiks, had just come out and I was on a promotional tour in Calgary. Premier Lougheed was due to give a speech in the city and I decided to turn up and give him a copy.
 
Mr. Lougheed not only graciously accepted the tome, but — to the astonishment and delight of both myself and my real publicist — proceeded to take it with him to the podium, hold it aloft, and even read snippets off the back cover!
 
In an attempt to give some idea of the petroleum wealth that was flowing Alberta’s way, I had compiled a list of the lengths of time it would take the province to buy certain assets. They could, for example, have snapped up General Motors of Canada with 188 days provincial revenue, and the Montreal Canadiens in just two days and 16 hours. The exercise was a little hokey (at least in those two cases). Nevertheless, Mr. Lougheed read out a few of the examples, and was clearly not displeased with such indications of the province’s wealth.

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Right thing to do is ban extraction of asbestos – by David Olive (Toronto Star – September 18, 2012)

The Toronto Star has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on federal and Ontario politics as well as shaping public opinion.

The Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) was too generous last Friday in lauding Ottawa’s announcement that day that Canada will stop objecting to the listing of asbestos as a dangerous material under the U.N.’s Rotterdam Convention on exports of hazardous materials.

“Canada has a moral obligation, backed by well-grounded evidence, to close down this [industry] and stop exporting a potentially hazardous material to countries that are ill-equipped to protect the health of workers who handle asbestos fibres,” said Erica Di Ruggiero, chair of the CPHA.

“The Government of Canada has made a good public health decision,” she said. Ottawa has done no such thing. There is nothing to stop continued exports of Canadian asbestos. The feds’ hands were forced by Quebec premier-elect Pauline Marois, who in the closing days of the recent Quebec general election, vowed to cancel a $58-million loan guarantee offered by the Charest government to revive Canada’s sole asbestos mine, in the Eastern Townships community of Asbestos.

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China helping nickel: analyst – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – September 18, 2012)

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

Three key drivers will boost commodity prices in the second half of 2013 — China, China and China — says an economist with TD Securities. China consumes about 40% of the world’s nickel and copper, and its economy is “not c o l l a p s i n g ,” despite some naysayers, says Bart Melek.
 
China has $3.6 trillion in reserve, a minimum debt to gross domestic product ratio and a “big political incentive” to keep growing, Melek told about 100 people at a breakfast meeting Monday of the Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Service Association.
 
Stability is important in the one-party state, whose government is determined to keep people employed and food on the table, said Melek. China has also embarked upon a five-year plan to move 20 to 25 million of its citizens every year from rural areas to cities. That requires more housing and transportation services that require copper, nickel and iron ore.
 
China’s economy may be growing more slowly than it was, but it’s still growing three to four times as fast as our economy, said Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities. Melek is forecasting economic stability in the United States as well, because of a monetary policy to hold interest rates at 0% to 2015.

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Lack of criminal charges angers [Sudbury] Steelworkers convention – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – September 18, 2012)

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

The international president of United Steelworkers is joining a chorus of outrage over a police decision not to lay criminal charges in the 2011 deaths of two men at Vale Ltd.’s Stobie Mine.
 
Leo Gerard, in Sudbury to attend the USW District 6 triennial convention, said the investigation his union conducted into the deaths of Jason Chenier, 35, and Jordan Fram, 26, was one of the finest it has done.
 
It took eight months and resulted in a 200-page report with 165 recommendations, chief among them that criminal charges be laid against Vale under the Westray Bill of the Criminal Code of Canada.
 
“When you see what happened at Stobie, and you see what happened here in town with the police deciding not to lay any charges … I’ve been around a long time. I know that stuff,” Gerard said. Both his union’s and the Ministry of Labour’s investigations “said there was deliberate ignoring (of ) certain safety infractions,” said Gerard.

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Correction – Noront Resources Environmental Assessment NOT on hold – by Shawn Bell (Wawatay News – September 17, 2012)

 Northern Ontario’s First Nations Voice: http://wawataynews.ca/

The environmental assessment (EA) for Noront Resources’ Eagle’s Nest Ring of Fire project is nearing completion of its Terms of Reference.

In a Wawatay News article (Ring of Fire judicial review hits more delays, Sept. 13) it was reported that Noront’s EA has been put on hold. That is incorrect. In fact, the company is close to completing its Terms of Reference for the EA.
 
Noront President and CEO Wes Hanson submitted the following statement to Wawatay News following publication of the article:
 
“The Environmental Assessment for it’s flagship Eagle’s Nest project is in fact underway and NOT delayed due to the change in the road route proposed by Cliffs and the Ontario Government. The Company is currently completing the final copy of the Terms of Reference, which outlines the work that needs to be done in order to complete the Environmental Assessment.

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Australia miners slam brakes on huge pipeline of projects – by Sonali Paul (Reuters – September 13, 2012)

http://in.reuters.com/

MELBOURNE, Sept 13, 2012 (Reuters) – A $246 billion pipeline of planned mining investments in Australia is on increasingly shaky ground, with nearly half already frozen or likely to be delayed, as miners and lenders wrestle with high costs and sliding revenue.

A sharp fall in iron ore and coal prices, driven by a drop-off in demand from China, has caught many by surprise and forced miners — from the world’s largest, BHP Billiton , down to the smallest — to review their investment plans.

“Anyone who was expecting to bank a project at the levels we were at about eight weeks ago had unrealistic expectations,” said Michael Blakiston, a partner at law firm Gilbert+Tobin, which advises miners and is a director of iron ore company Sundance Resources.

The commodities rout has thrust Australia into a debate over whether the mining boom is over and can no longer be relied on to create jobs, power growth and raise tax revenue in a $1.4 trillion economy that has gone 21 years without a recession. Dumping projects will mean millions of tonnes of future coal and iron ore supplies are stripped from the world market, laying the ground for a swifter price revival if Asian demand rebounds.

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South Africa warns mine unrest could spur recession – by Justine Gerardy (Globe and Mail – September 17, 2012)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

JOHANNESBURG — Agence France-Presse – South African police barred firebrand Julius Malema from a rally of striking miners Monday, as President Jacob Zuma warned that the country could ill-afford a recession over mine stoppages.

Mr. Zuma told a conference of the country’s powerful Cosatu labour group that 4.5 billion rand ($548-million U.S.) had been lost in gold and platinum production this year and a further 118 million rand lost in the coal sector. “The impact goes beyond the mining sector,” he cautioned, saying the manufacturing sector was showing strain.

“We cannot afford to go into a recession, and revert to the 2008 and 2009 period where the country lost close to a million jobs, which we are still battling to recover.” The warning came as British mining group Lonmin PLC cut its platinum sales forecasts over the continuing strike at its Marikana mine, which has been blighted by a violent strike that has crippled production for more than a month.

Lonmin became the epicentre of a wave of unrest to hit the vital mining sector in recent weeks, with tensions forcing several firms to suspend operations in the country’s platinum belt of northwestern Rustenburg. The striking miners at the Marikana mine meanwhile have accepted for the first time to lower their monthly salary demand of 12,500 rands, the mediator in the dispute said Monday.

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NEWSRELEASE: Canadian Arrow Commences Nickel Production, Discovers New Nickel Massive Sulphides at Kelex

SUDBURY, ON, Sept. 17, 2012 /CNW/ – Canadian Arrow Mines Limited. (CRO: TSX-V) (the “Company”) is pleased to announce it has commenced producing and stockpiling nickel-bearing massive sulphides produced from its Kelex mine.  Furthermore, initial mine development and overburden stripping have exposed unexpected near-surface nickel-bearing massive sulphides extending both east and west along strike of, and continuous with, the current production zone.  The stripping program will continue to further evaluate the discoveries that continue to project an unknown width, depth and strike distance below overburden cover.  Channel sampling is planned once the extent of mineralization is exposed.  Results will be published as they become available.
 
Mr. Kim Tyler, President of the Company stated, “We are pleased to have achieved the production milestone and are particularly excited about the discovery of the new strike extensions. Development work intended for ramp access in unmineralized rock unexpectedly encountered 2 metres of solid nickel-bearing massive sulphide on the sparsely drilled flanks of the known mineralization.  The new mineralization will be a welcome addition to our production plans and demonstrates greater continuity of the Alexo Nickel Complex mineralization on the whole.”
 
Widths of up to 3 metres of continuous massive and semi-massive sulphide over a 22 metre extended strike length on the west and 13 metres of extended strike on the east have so far been exposed.  Depth extensions will become better understood as production advances to depth.

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Conflicting [Ontario junior miner] decisions call duty to consult [First Nations] into question – by Jennifer Brown (Canadian Lawyer Magazine.com – September 17, 2012)

http://www.canadianlawyermag.com/

Junior mining company granted leave to appeal over injunction motion

A decision by the Ontario Superior court to grant leave to appeal an interim injunction obtained by a First Nation against a junior mining company could have significant implications for the resource industry, First Nation communities, and government.

On Sept. 4, the Ontario Superior Court granted leave to appeal [see attached pdf] an injunction obtained by the Wahgoshig First Nation against prospecting company Solid Gold Resources Corp., based in Thornhill, Ont.

Justice Wilton-Siegel granted Solid Gold leave to appeal a Jan. 3, 2012 injunction order from Superior Court Justice Carole J. Brown, who ordered all activity by Solid Gold stop for 120 days and they enter into consultation with the province and the First Nation regarding any further activity.

However, Wilton-Siegel ruled there is reason to doubt the correctness of the January order. He pointed to the Supreme Court of Canada decision in Haida Nation v. British Columbia, which determined third parties do not hold the Crown’s duty to consult.

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Aboriginal consultant is key Ring of Fire point man – by Donna Faye (Northern Ontario Business – September 2012)

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North.

After nearly a year in his role as Ring of Fire senior director for Webequie First Nation, Michael Fox says he is encouraged by the progress of the emerging mineral development project.
 
It has been more than two years since the Ontario government announced it would be opening up the large chromite deposit in the James Bay lowlands to development. “The lesson that I’ve learned is that there is always going to be politics,” he said.
 
“You have to deal with the politics, then the process, and then the project.” Fox’s job is not an easy task. He is responsible for consulting with the community closest to the discovery areas in the Ring of Fire with respect to the potential opportunities its members stand to gain.
 
Webequie First Nation is a remote, fly-in community of 600, situated 540 km north of Thunder Bay. It is west of where Cliffs Natural Resources wants to build a mine at its Black Thor chromite deposit, the largest of its kind in the world. With a 2015 production startup date, hundreds of construction, mining and transportation jobs will be created.

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Ring of Fire sparks Chinese interest in mining – by CBC News Thunder Bay (September 17, 2012)

  http://www.cbc.ca/news/

Chinese company Sinocan expected to start drilling near Webequie next month

Chinese diplomats are intent on building trust with northern Ontario First Nations to further their mining interests, according to a Chinese-Canadian business man.
 
Peng You, a Thunder Bay resident with ties to China, helped facilitate a recent visit by China’s Consulate-General to Webequie First Nation. He said the arrival of one of China’s top diplomats in Canada is significant.
 
“I think that part is very important. It’s not just for one company. In future, more companies [will] invest in northwest Ontario, especially in [the] mining industry.” Webequie is one of the First Nations closest to a promising chromite deposit in the James Bay lowlands.
 
For months, US-company Cliffs Natural Resources has been the focus of discussions about development in the Ring of Fire.  But the Chinese company Sinocan is expected to start drilling near Webequie next month. Peng You said soon chiefs and elders from northwestern Ontario could be on their way to China to talk about the Ring of Fire as part of a diplomatic exchange.

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Ivory Coast plans windfall tax on gold miners’ profits – by Loucoumane Coulibaly (Globe and Mail – September 14, 2012)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

ABIDJAN — Reuters – Ivory Coast plans a windfall tax of 19 per cent on gold mine profits to share in the benefits from soaring world prices for the metal. The decision, revealed in a government document, sets the scene for a possible dispute with foreign companies building up the sector.

West Africa-focused Randgold Resources Ltd., Australia’s Newcrest Mining and Toronto-listed La Mancha Resources all operate mines in the country. In August, the government granted production permits to Canada’s Endeavour Mining Corp. and Occidental Gold, a unit of Australia’s Perseus Mining Limited.

The document, seen by Reuters on Friday, also establishes a rate of 13 per cent, though it does not specify in what circumstances it will be applied. Under the proposal, submitted on Wednesday and adopted during a cabinet meeting, the West African nation will set an indicative cost of production at $615 (U.S.) per ounce, with profits taxed at a rate of 19 per cent.

“The price of gold, which was around $300 per ounce in 2002, is today above $1,700, or practically a six-fold increase without any comparable increase in production costs,” read the text of the proposal obtained from government spokesman Bruno Kone.

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