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British Columbia Mining

Changes to claim staking gives B.C. prospectors the jitters – by Nelson Bennett(Business In Vancouver – January 20, 2025)

https://www.biv.com/

Mineral Tenure Act changes a hot topic at annual Roundup conference for mineral exploration

While many business leaders in the resources sector are exercised over the threats of American tariffs on Canadian exports, a policy creating even greater angst for prospectors and junior miners in B.C. is a domestic one – revisions to the B.C. Mineral Tenure Act – a hot topic at this week’s annual Association of Mineral Exploration (AME) Roundup conference.

Revisions to the “free entry” claim staking process in B.C. are to be implemented in March, and there are fears that it will put a major chill on investment in mineral exploration in B.C.

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Natural Resources Minister pitches joint Canada-U.S. investment in Teck’s germanium operations – by Niall McGee,Brent Jang and Steven Chase (Globe and Mail – January 16, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is pitching a joint investment with the United States to bolster Teck Resources Ltd.’s production of the critical mineral germanium.

Vancouver-based Teck produces germanium at its Trail smelter in British Columbia’s Kootenay region as a byproduct of zinc mining in Alaska. Germanium is used in fibre-optic networks, infrared vision systems and solar panels.

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Why critical minerals mined in B.C. could stop being exported to the U.S. amid Trump tariffs – by Akshay Kulkarni (CBC News British Columbia – January 15, 2025)

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

B.C. manufactures or has access to 16 of 50 critical minerals the U.S. considers vital for national security

Economists say B.C.’s mining industry could play a major role if proposed tariffs by U.S. president-elect Donald Trump go through, after Premier David Eby hinted that critical minerals manufactured in the province could be subject to an export ban.

Eby said Tuesday the province is working on a strategy to fight the 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods proposed by Trump. The U.S. president-elect is threatening the measure in response to what he says is Canada’s inability to tackle illegal immigration and drug smuggling across the Canada-U.S. border.

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FPX Nickel releases optimistic economic impact numbers for its Baptiste project – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – January 13, 2025)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

FPX Nickel released an economic impact study for its Baptiste nickel project in central British Columbia. The company engaged Mansfield Consulting to assess the potential regional, provincial, and national economic impact of the Baptiste Nickel Project.

The impact study is based on the findings of FPX Nickel’s pre-feasibility study from September 2023. Company studies indicate the mine has a life of over 30 years.

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Why Teck’s Trail smelter may hold leverage against Donald Trump’s tariff threat – by Derrick Penner (Vancouver Sun – January 12, 2025)

https://vancouversun.com/

Canada can help its case countering incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s punishing tariffs with germanium produced by Teck in Trail.

With a population of just over 8,000, the smelting and mining city of Trail may hold some leverage in helping Ottawa counter U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s threats to impose steep tariffs on Canadian imports.

Trump this week doubled-down on his expansionist rhetoric, threatening to use “economic force” to annex Canada, and suggesting his administration would use military force to take over Greenland and the Panama Canal. “We don’t need anything they have,” Trump said Wednesday, referring to Canada during a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

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Nickel executives raise alarm over potential flood of Indonesian imports stemming from free trade agreement – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – December 22, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canada’s new free-trade agreement with Indonesia is causing an uproar in the nickel industry, with some executives saying that Ottawa should be clamping down on the Southeast Asian country, instead of opening up the domestic market to a flood of cheap supply produced at questionable environmental standards.

Earlier this month, International Trade Minister Mary Ng announced the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which will see tariffs phased out on many goods between the two countries as of 2026. The trade deal had been in the works for several years. Canada already has no tariffs on imports of nickel from Indonesia.

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Looking ahead in B.C. and Yukon – by Marilyn Scales (Canadian Mining Journal – December 16, 2024)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Recent strong gold and metal prices have many mine-makers looking to western Canada for opportunity

Seemingly, North Americans look to the west for opportunity. And when we in Canda look left, we see British Columbia and Yukon. Opportunities abound there for miners, so let us jump in. Where better to begin than with one of the world’s largest copper, gold, and silver resources all wrapped up in the Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell (KSM) project belonging to Seabridge Gold.

With reorganization and a new focus on gold, the company bought what is now the KSM project from Placer Dome in 2000. The property is located 65 km northwest of Smithers, B.C. Exploration began in earnest in 2006, and by 2010 a prefeasibility study (PFS) was released estimating there were 8.5 million oz. of gold, 7 billion lb. of copper, and 133 million oz. of silver in the ground.

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Contrary to industry claims, red tape not slowing B.C. mineral boom, finds audit – by Stefan Labbé (Business In Vancouver – December 11, 2024)

https://www.biv.com/

Audit finds delays to approve dozens of B.C. mines were largely caused by market forces — not government permitting.

For several years, politicians and the mining industry have targeted Canadian regulations standing in the way of feeding a burgeoning critical minerals market. In advertisements and on its website, the Mining Association of B.C. (MABC) says the country’s westernmost province has a “generational opportunity” to supply the world with critical minerals needed for clean technologies.

The long-term economic impact, claims the group, could reach $800 billion. It’s a narrative that has been echoed by Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, and more recently picked up by B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad during the last B.C. election campaign. The only thing standing in the way, according to the MABC, is government red tape.

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Mining company charged 10 years after spilling toxic waste into B.C. waters – by Andrew Kurjata (CBC News British Columbia – December 10, 2024)

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

Collapse of Mount Polley tailings dam considered one of the worst environmental disasters in Canadian history

More than a decade after spilling millions of litres of toxic wastewater into rivers in the B.C. Interior, Imperial Metals Corp. has been charged with 15 violations of the federal Fisheries Act.

The charges were announced Tuesday by the B.C. Conservation Officer Service, which said it worked with the Department of Fisheries and Environment and Climate Change Canada to build the case for taking the company to court.

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First Nation goes to court, accusing B.C. of not consulting over major gold mine – by Ashley Joannou (Canadian Press/CTV News B.C. – November 25, 2024)

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/

A First Nation says it wasn’t meaningfully consulted before the British Columbia government “effectively greenlit” what has been called the world’s largest undeveloped gold mining project.

The Tsetsaut Skii km Lax Ha Nation has applied to the B.C. Supreme Court for a judicial review of the province’s decision to issue a “substantial start determination” for Seabridge Gold’s KSM Mine Project in Northwestern B.C., part of the final stage of the environmental assessment process.

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Osisko Development surges on permitting milestone for Cariboo gold project – by Staff (Mining.com – November 21, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Osisko Development (NYSE: ODV, TSXV: ODV) shares surged as much as 25% on Thursday morning as it reached a significant permitting milestone for the 100%-owned Cariboo gold project in central British Columbia.

The approval of its BC Mines Act permit means that the company can now move forward the construction and operation of the underground mine, which is expected to deliver 164,000 oz. of gold production annually over a 12-year life, as outlined in a 2023 feasibility study.

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Permitting delays impact BC projects valued at $38B, AME says – by Henry Lazenby (Canadian Mining Journal – November 21, 2024)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

British Columbia’s exploration sector has over 60 critical mineral projects waiting for permits. It’s a $38-billion pileup of economic opportunities, some waiting indefinitely, Association for Mineral Exploration (AME) president and CEO Keerit Jutla says.

Without action, B.C. risks falling further behind Ontario and Quebec, whose streamlined policies and targeted funding have helped them attract more exploration funding, Jutla said. His group represents about 5,000 members.

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Opinion: Can political leaders break the bottleneck in B.C.’s permitting process? – by Michael Goehring (The Orca – October 30, 2024)

https://www.theorca.ca/

Michael Goehring is the president and CEO of the Mining Association of British Columbia.

During the provincial election, both of B.C.’s main political parties emphasized the importance of mining and critical minerals to our economy and climate action. Both parties made solid commitments to expedite B.C.’s mine permitting process.

Governments globally are actively securing critical mineral supplies to support the clean energy transition and meet national security, defence and technology imperatives. Canada, B.C. and other provinces have critical mineral strategies with firm commitments to improve major mine permitting processes.

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Teck cuts copper forecast again as it encounters more problems at anchor QB2 mine in Chile – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – October 25, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Teck Resources Ltd. has cut its full-year copper forecast yet again owing to setbacks at multiple mines, including at its giant QB2 copper operation in Chile. Vancouver-based Teck said on Thursday that its 2024 copper production will be between 420,000 tonnes and 455,000 tonnes, about 6.5 per cent lower than predicted.

The downgrade was driven in part by issues with its haul trucks at its Highland Valley mine in British Columbia, including labour availability and problems with its autonomous system. Teck also cut its guidance for the QB2 mine in Chile, reducing its forecast by 6 per cent to roughly 205,000 tonnes.

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B.C. NDP releases mining support plan – by Nelson Bennett (Business In Vancouver – September 24, 2024)

https://www.biv.com/

NDP pledges guaranteed permitting timelines for critical mineral mines

On the heels of a B.C. Conservative platform on mining released earlier today, the B.C. NDP followed this afternoon with the release of their own plan for mining, with an emphasis on critical minerals.

One thing the two plans agree on: More than a dozen critical mineral mine proposals in B.C. need to be fast-tracked through the regulatory process.

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