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British Columbia Mining

OPINION: Canada’s mine decision was no rubber stamp – by R. Brent Murphy (Anchorage Daily News – September 23, 2024)

https://www.adn.com/

R. Brent Murphy is senior vice president for environmental affairs at Seabridge Gold.

Having spent my entire career at the intersection of mining and sustainability, I have grown accustomed to the widespread misinformation surrounding our industry. Unfortunately, it’s a reality my colleagues and I face daily on a global scale, and if we responded to every instance, we would have little time left for the work that truly matters.

However, the sheer level of inaccuracy and hypocrisy regarding the Substantially Started Determination, or SSD, status for our proposed KSM project in Brian Lynch’s recent commentary demands a response. First and foremost, Lynch’s commentary failed to acknowledge several key facts regarding our two decades of dedicated efforts and nearly CAD $1 billion of investments to responsibly advance the KSM Project.

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Northern B.C. coal mine comes back to life after 24 years – by Hanna Petersen (CBC News British Columbia – September 09, 2024)

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

Company, mayor hope Quintette Mine will bring huge boost to Tumbler Ridge

After 24 years, a steel-making coal mine in northeastern B.C. has roared back to life. Last week, Conuma Resources received permits from the province giving it the green light to restart operations at a portion of the Quintette Mine, located 20 kilometres south of Tumbler Ridge.

“We were very excited to receive it,” said Conuma Resources CEO Brian Sullivan. “We’re going to spend upwards of $500 million bringing it back into production. It will have a permanent workforce of more than 400 permanent good paying jobs.”

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Glencore scraps plans to ditch coal on investors pressure – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – August 7, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Glencore (LON: GLEN) scrapped on Wednesday plans to separate its coal division, which it had announced following its acquisition of assets from Teck Resources last year (TSX: TECK.A, TECK.B)(NYSE: TECK), as shareholders opposed the move.

The Swiss miner and commodities trader said in November it would merge Teck’s steelmaking coal business with its own coal assets, after which it would demerge the combined unit.

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Glencore’s coal takeover draws ire of MPs – by Natasha Bulowski (National Observer – July 29, 2024)

https://www.nationalobserver.com/

A Swiss-based mining company with a sketchy foreign business record that won approval to take over Teck Resources’ B.C. coal mines has MPs from multiple parties and environmental groups up in arms.

François-Philippe Champagne, federal Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, approved mining giant Glencore’s $12.3-billion takeover of Teck Resources’ coal mines — called Elk Valley Resources — on July 4.

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Teck draws M&A attention from big miners in rush for copper – by Jacob Lorinc, Mariana Durao, Dinesh Nair and Thomas Biesheuvel (Bloomberg News – July 26, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — The world’s biggest miners are back in serious dealmaking mode and Teck Resources Ltd. is taking center stage.

The Canadian miner, which has exited its coal business with a sale this month to Glencore Plc, is drawing attention from across the industry because of its attractive copper assets, as the biggest names position for the next wave of activity in the wake of BHP Group’s failed bid for Anglo American Plc.

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Sale of B.C. coal mines to Glencore was bad deal for Canada: report – by Nelson Bennett (Business In Vancouver – July 22, 2024)

https://www.biv.com/

MiningWatch report question’s Swiss mining giant’s track record

Canadian and British mining watchdogs are criticizing the Trudeau government’s approval of the sale of B.C. steel-making coal mines to Glencore Plc, saying it’s a bad deal for Canada.

On July 4, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, François-Philippe Champagne, approved the sale of 77 per cent of the B.C. metallurgical coal mines (Elk Valley Resources) owned by Teck Resources in the southeastern Kootenays to Glencore plc for $9.5 billion. The sale closed July 11.

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Would Canada allow Rio Tinto to buy Teck? Miners aren’t so sure – by Alisha Hiyate (Northern Miner – July 12, 2024)

https://www.northernminer.com/

The federal government’s attempt to clarify its rules for foreign investment in mining is instead causing more confusion as the industry grapples with changing rules under the Investment Canada Act. But Rio Tinto’s interest in buying Teck Resources, as reported by Sky News, could serve as a test for what the feds will allow as it tries to keep critical minerals available for Canada.

Last week, the federal government formally approved Glencore’s purchase of a 77% stake in Teck’s coal business. At the same time, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne issued a statement saying the government would only greenlight future foreign takeovers of “important Canadian mining companies engaged in significant critical minerals operations… in the most exceptional of circumstances.”

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Rio Tinto mulls potential bid for Teck — report – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – July 12, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Rio Tinto (ASX, LON, NYSE: RIO) is said to be studying potential takeover bids for smaller rivals, including Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A, TECK.B) (NYSE: TECK), Canada’s largest diversified miner, which successfully fended off Glencore’s (LON: GLEN) $23 billion attempt to buy the company last year.

The world’s second largest mining company has held talks with bankers over a potential offer for the Canadian target, but is not immediately planning to launch a bid, Sky News reports citing unnamed sources.

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Can Frank Callaghan strike gold twice in B.C.’s Cariboo? – by Nelson Bennett (Business In Vancouver – July 8, 2024)

https://www.biv.com/

The Barkerville prospector-promoter is again staking a claim in a region he helped develop

Frank Callaghan, the colourful and effusive prospector-promoter who assembled B.C.’s Barkerville Gold mine district, is back.

Several years after his company, Barkerville Gold, was acquired by Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd. (TSX,NYSE:OR) for $338 million, Callaghan has come out of retirement to promote a new gold project 70 kilometres north of Osisko’s Cariboo Gold mine.

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Sale of Teck’s steelmaking coal business to Glencore approved (CBC British Columbia/Canadian Press – july 6, 2024)

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

Teck Resources said it expects to receive $9.5 billion from the sale, excluding closing adjustments

The last hurdle in Teck Resources Ltd.’s years-long effort to off-load its coal mining business and become purely a metals producer is cleared after the federal government approved the sale of the operation to Swiss commodities giant Glencore.

In a statement posted Thursday, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the green light comes with “strict” conditions and represents a “much narrower” transaction than Glencore’s hostile takeover attempt of Teck last year.

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Copper consolidation: How merging several operations in British Columbia’s Highland Valley created Canada’s largest copper mine – by Ailbhe Goodbody (CIM Magazine – July 02, 2024)

https://magazine.cim.org/en/

Copper was first discovered in British Columbia’s Highland Valley porphyry copper district in 1899, but production did not start until Bethlehem Copper Corporation’s property began operations in 1962.

Several other large-tonnage, low-grade copper operations were developed in the area, including Lornex Mining Corporation’s Lornex mine (controlled by Rio Algom) in 1972 and Highmont Mining and Teck’s Highmont mine in 1980.

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Opinion: B.C.’s mining sector is at risk of losing jobs, investments and multi-generational opportunities – by Keerit Jutla (Business in Vancouver – June 24, 2024)

https://www.biv.com/

Keerit Jutla is president and CEO of the Association for Mineral Exploration.

Exploration is the lifeblood of the mining sector, a precursor to discovery and development that has historically propelled B.C.’s economy forward. It’s a catalyst for innovation, job creation and economic diversification.

Each year, exploration contributes hundreds of millions of dollars to B.C.’s economy and supports thousands of direct and indirect jobs. This is not just about economics—it’s about securing a sustainable future for generations to come.

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Indigenous groups in Washington, Alaska call for the right to consult on B.C. mining projects – Nathan Vanerklippe (Globe and Mail – June 19, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Native Americans in Washington and Alaska who want status as aboriginal peoples of Canada are considering legal action against the government of British Columbia, after the province said it would create a consultation process on mining and industrial projects for U.S.-based groups that is separate from that held with Canadian groups.

The B.C. Environmental Assessment Office, in letters earlier this year to the Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission, or SEITC, and the Lummi Nation, said it is working on a policy to consult Indigenous groups based outside of Canada that “will be different from that taken with B.C. First Nations.”

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Government regulation top threat facing British Columbia mining industry — report – by Staff (Mining.com – June 6, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Both opportunities and threats facing British Columbia’s burgeoning mining sector are revealed in a new report by PWC, as the province “primes itself to become one of the most reliable and sustainable suppliers of critical metals in Canada and globally.”

Critical metals are a key economic driver for the province, accounting for 26% of total revenue — C$3.8 billion ($2.78bn), according to PWC’s BC Mine Report 2023, with exploration and development driving growth in the sector, contributing most significantly to the 24% increase in capital expenditure year-on-year.

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Glencore to consult investors on coal spinoff after Teck deal – by Thomas Biesheuvel (Bloomberg News – May 29, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

Glencore Plc will start consulting with shareholders on the future of its coal business as soon as its deal to buy Teck Resources Ltd.’s mines closes later this year. Crucially, Glencore said that should the majority of shareholders support keeping its coal mines, the company will not proceed with a vote.

Glencore’s coal business is one of its most profitable units, driving record returns in recent years, and the plan to exit the fossil fuel and list a new company in New York represented a major strategic pivot under current boss Gary Nagle.

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