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British Columbia Mining

Opinion: B.C.’s critical mineral ambitions require focus and clearer policy – by Trish Jacques (Business In Vancouver – April 11, 2025)

https://www.biv.com/

With uncertainty clouding mineral claim processes, the B.C. government must address key issues to restore investor confidence in the critical minerals sector

British Columbia has introduced a framework for government to consult with First Nations before a mineral claim is issued—the very start of the mineral exploration process. The Mineral Claims Consultation Framework meets a deadline set by the B.C. Supreme Court in Gitxaala vs. British Columbia.

While its development took most of the 18 months set by the court, government eventually put forward a plan to consult First Nations for any impacts claim registration may have on their rights. This was a substantial effort, and the Association for Mineral Exploration (AME) is grateful to government for listening to some of its members’ key concerns.

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FPX Nickel extends exploration partnership with JOGMEC (Mining Technology – April 8, 2025)

https://www.mining-technology.com/

FPX Nickel has secured 60% ownership in new JV projects.

Canada-based nickel mining company FPX Nickel has extended its Global Generative Exploration Alliance with the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC), turning it into an open-ended joint venture (JV).

After two years of collaboration, the partnership will continue to focus on identifying and acquiring high-quality awaruite nickel properties globally, particularly those geologically similar to FPX’s flagship Baptiste Nickel Project in British Columbia. The Generative Alliance has established a budget of C$1.5bn for its third year, running from April 2025 to March 2026.

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B.C. mining firm seeking U.S. approval to dig in international waters -by Inayat Singh (CBC News Science – April 03, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/

The Metals Company, fed up with sluggish international process, turns to Washington

A Vancouver-based mining company is looking to sidestep the international agency charged with regulating mining in international waters after lengthy negotiations it says have gone nowhere. The Metals Company (TMC) will instead seek permission from the U.S. to start deep-sea mining in the Pacific Ocean, rather than from the UN-affiliated International Seabed Authority (ISA).

Co-founder and CEO Gerard Barron says he believes U.S. could help start mining “much sooner than we would have been under the ISA pathway.” “The United States’ regulator is open. They encourage… dialogue and consultation,” he said. “That’s how companies get projects moving through the permitting process.”

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Hudbay becomes sole owner of Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia – by Staff (Mining.com – March 27, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

Hudbay Minerals (TSX, NYSE: HBM) has consolidated ownership of the Copper Mountain mine in southern British Columbia, a move that aligns with the Canadian miner’s strategy to boost its copper production in North America.

On Thursday, Hudbay said it is acquiring Mitsubishi Materials’ 25% stake in the mine for $44.25 million in cash, of which $4.5 million is paid upfront and $21 million paid in seven equal annual installments. The remaining $18.75 million will consist of five equal payments contingent on certain operating milestones.

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First Nations slam BC mining claims framework (Northern Miner – March 27, 2025)

https://www.northernminer.com/

British Columbia’s new framework requiring consultation with First Nations before registering mining claims misses the mark for consulting with Indigenous groups, First Nations say. The new consultation Mineral Claims Consultation Framework (MCCF), released last week, outlines processes for consulting with industry and First Nations groups.

But BC Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Terry Teegee criticized the changes, implying they don’t remotely align with the collaborative approach outlined in the province’s Indigenous rights law.

‘Step backward’

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High Teck: The Canadian miner’s reinvention as a critical-metals player—via its massive copper mine in Chile’s Andean foothills— could prove its undoing as an independent company – by Eric Reguly (ROB/Globe and Mail – March 24, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The Canadian plan to evolve into global critical-metals player by opening one of the biggest copper mines in South America got off to an unlucky start. On Sept. 25, 1996, Frank Pickard, the Sudbury, Ont., native who was the CEO of Falconbridge, then one of Canada’s top two diversified mining companies (the other was Inco), boarded a small aircraft on the Chilean coast and flew to the Collahuasi mine in the Atacama Desert, in the far north of the country, in the Andean foothills near the Bolivian border.

Within minutes of stepping out at 4,400 metres (14,400 feet)—half the height of Everest—he was felled by a heart attack and died. He was 63. A retired mining engineer and consultant friend of mine, Jeffrey Franzen, who worked for a subsidiary of Falconbridge at the time, told me that based on the story he’d heard, Pickard’s failure to acclimatize before reaching the Andean heavens, where effective oxygen levels are far lower than those at sea level, probably triggered his death. (Legend says he was buried in a coffin made of nickel, Falconbridge’s main product, as was his wish.)

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Barrick fined for releasing excessive cobalt into British Columbia river – by Staff (Mining.com – March 15, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

Barrick Gold has been hit with a C$114,750 (approximately $79,800) fine for its repeated, excessive discharge of toxic materials from the now-decommissioned Nickel Plate gold mine located 3 km away from Hedley, BC.

The decision follows an inspection by provincial inspectors who found that the former underground and open pit mine had been releasing mine waste containing high concentrations of cobalt into Hedley Creek, which flows into the Similkameen River. This occurred on 17 separate occasions between 2021 and 2023, the inspectors found.

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U.S. states rely on B.C. to export thermal coal. Should the shipments be taxed? – by Yasmine Ghania (CBC News British Columbia – March 12, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/

Proposal also brings fear of retaliation after U.S. president lashed out at Ontario

As President Donald Trump’s tariff threats continue to hang over Canada, B.C. Premier David Eby wants the federal government to impose a tax on U.S. thermal coal shipped out of the province as a way to pressure the White House.

But after the president lashed out at Canada for Ontario’s levies, there are also fears that any more retaliation from provinces could backfire.

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BC mineral exploration continues to slide – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – March 5, 2025)

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/

Mining is a cornerstone of British Columbia’s economy – employing roughly 40,000 workers, paying C$1.1 billion ($760 million) in taxes, and contributing C$11.2 billion ($7.7 billion) to the province’s gross domestic product (GDP). However, the mineral exploration investments needed to advance the next generation of B.C. mines are on the decline.

Mineral exploration spending fell to $552 million in 2024. According to data collected by Ernst & Young for its annual British Columbia Mineral and Coal Exploration Survey, this marks the second consecutive year of declining mineral exploration.

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David Eby’s green goals at odds with his plan to fast-track B.C. mines – by Rob Shaw (National Post – February 27, 2025)

https://nationalpost.com/

He’s going full steam ahead with his plan to harness critical minerals — despite Indigenous and environmentalist resistance

Deep in deficit, wrestling with a stalled economy and under the threat of American tariffs, B.C.’s eco-focused New Democratic government has turned to an unlikely economic ally: the mining sector.

Premier David Eby has peppered his speeches over the last two months with support for new and expanded mines. His government is poised to introduce legislation within weeks to fast-track at least four major mining projects, with the rationale they’ll generate much-needed jobs and revenue.

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Mining and the idea of Canada – by John Sandlos (Canadian Mining Journal – February 24, 2025)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

For me, every January begins with another trip through the key events of Canadian history since 1867, courtesy of a course I have taught for nearly 20 years at Memorial University of Newfoundland. As I write, I just stepped out of a class on Confederation, where we examine all the reasons that four tenuously related colonies decided to become the nation we call Canada.

As most teachers do, I covered off some key factors that produced a new political union: political gridlock and instability in the two Canadas (present-day Ontario and Quebec), fears of an attack from the U.S., dreams of a transcontinental nation, and the mania for railroads that might knit British North America together as a powerful, integrated industrial economy.

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New claim-staking process an ‘existential’ threat to mining in B.C., lobby group warns – by Vaughn Palmer (Vancouver Sun – February 14, 2025)

https://vancouversun.com/

Government process adds months of consultation to process after 2023 court decision

VICTORIA — The NDP government’s new policy of consulting First Nations before registering mineral claims threatens the survival of the mining industry, says the Association for Mineral Exploration. The association issued the warning in a letter to Mines Minister Jagrup Brar as the province prepares to implement the new court-ordered consultation framework on March 26.

“The association and its board do not endorse the current mineral claims consultation framework,” association chair Trish Jacques wrote last week. “This is an existential crisis for our industry and has the potential to materially harm our members.

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B.C.’s $50M lithium refinery aims to break China’s grip – by Nelson Bennett (Business In Vancouver – February 13, 2025)

https://www.biv.com/

Construction on Mangrove Lithium facility in Delta to begin soon

In 2023, global demand for lithium-ion batteries was forecasted to grow sixfold—from 0.7 terawatt hours to 4.7 terawatt hours—by 2030, driven largely by demand from electric vehicles.

For North America, Japan and Europe, one of the challenges in EV and battery manufacturing will be producing enough battery grade lithium to meet the demand in EV growth, especially now that China has made moves to restrict the export of lithium refining technology.

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B.C.-made critical mineral could be used as a ‘reactive weapon’ in trade war – by Stefan Labbé (Business In Vancouver – February 7, 2025)

https://www.biv.com/

Most Canadians oppose U.S. companies taking greater control over the country’s natural resource projects — a level of defiance found to be strongest in British Columbia, according to a new poll.

Holding back a critical mineral processed in B.C. and critical to high-tech industries could be used as an “reactive weapon” in a trade war with the United States.

That’s according to John Steen, director of the University of British Columbia’s Bradshaw Research Initiative in Minerals and Mining, who pointed to the province’s production of germanium. The critical mineral is increasingly used in electronics and solar technology, fibre optics, and infrared optics used regularly by militaries to see at night.

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Economics, not politics, main reason mines fail to materialize in B.C., researcher suggests – by Marcy Nicholson (CBC British Columbia/Canadian Press – February 06, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/

Simon Fraser University research survey indicates fast-tracking of project no guarantee of success

The mining industry is applauding the British Columbia government’s decision to fast-track permits for several projects amid the ongoing U.S. tariff threat, but research suggests economic factors have been behind long delays for many other proposals.

Simon Fraser University associate professor Rosemary Collard says research shows that regulatory fast-tracking of mining projects is no guarantee that they will all materialize. She’s the co-lead author of a recent study of 27 B.C. mining projects granted environmental assessment certificates since 1995 and projected to open by 2022, showing that most failed to open on time.

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