NWT seeks $600 million for roads, bridges (CBC News North – August 28, 2013)

http://www.cbc.ca/north/

Minister says oil, gas, and mining industry would benefit

The Northwest Territories wants to welcome heavy industry such as mining and oil and gas extraction. But Industry Minister Dave Ramsay says it won’t happen without a hefty investment from Canadian taxpayers.

Ramsay says the NWT’s requests for federal infrastructure spending add up to $600 million. The territory wants the money to improve roads, airports, bridges and other infrastructure over the next decade.

This week in Yellowknife, ministers in charge of mining in all three Northern territories met with industry representatives. Delegates called for improved roads and air transport.

Ramsay says the territory of about 40,000 people cannot invest in such huge projects alone. He says better infrastructure would benefit local residents and set the stage for industry.

“We want companies to come back and invest in exploration and development of our resources. We need that infrastructure in place to allow that to happen,” he said.

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Prospecting under cover: Frontiers of exploration research – by Kip Keen (Mineweb.com – August 28, 2013)

http://www.mineweb.com/

In Part II of Mineweb’s series on exploration trends, Kip Keen turns to the Deep Exploration Technologies Cooperative Research Centre in Australia and talks paradigm shifts.

HALIFAX, NS (MINEWEB) – So the success rate falls. Now exploration money buys fewer discoveries. This was one of the key insights Richard Schodde, of Minex Consulting, discussed in Part I of this interview series on exploration trends. The rate of discovery used to correlate well with increases in spending, in part because the deposits were easier to find. More boots on the ground. More rocks chipped. More ore deposits discovered.

But now the boots are more expensive to pay for and many of the surface rocks, especially in developed countries, have already been kicked forcing exploration to go deeper and become more extensive. Meantime, labour costs, until recently that is, were sky-rocketing amid intense competition to secure services.

To some degree, as the market cools, a process unfolding for a couple years now, the cost of exploration gets cheaper as, for example, geologists lower their rate of pay and drilling contractors cut down margins to get contracts. But it can only go so far. That much is clear now as discoveries, especially in developed countries, come at depth and require increasing geological expertise to find and more drilling.

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Commentary: Guatemalans’ lawsuit against Hudbay in Canada – by Christina Hall and Kevin MacNeill(Northern Miner – August 27, 2013)

The Northern Miner, first published in 1915, during the Cobalt Silver Rush, is considered Canada’s leading authority on the mining industry. 

On July 22, 2013, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled in Choc v. Hudbay Minerals Inc. that three separate lawsuits brought by indigenous Guatemalans against Canadian mining company Hudbay Minerals and other defendants, can go forward in Canada.

The plaintiffs’ lawsuits allege that between 2007 and 2009, security personnel working for Hudbay’s subsidiaries — who were allegedly under the control and supervision of Hudbay, the parent company — committed various human rights abuses. These include the alleged gang rape of 11 Guatemalan women, the beating and shooting death of a respected Guatemalan indigenous leader who had been an outspoken critic of mining practices, and the shooting of another Guatemalan man in an unprovoked attack which left the man paralyzed.

All of these abuses are alleged to have been committed by security personnel at Hudbay’s Fenix mining project, a proposed open-pit nickel mining operation located on Lake Izabal in northeastern Guatemala. According to the pleadings in the lawsuit, Hudbay and the other the defendants asserted that they had a valid legal right to this land, while indigenous communities claimed that the Mayan Q’eqchi’ were the rightful owners of the lands, which they considered to be their ancestral homeland.

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Canadian mining executive freed by Colombian rebels – by Nadja Drost (Globe and Mail -August 28, 2013)

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.

SEGOVIA, COLOMBIA — After 221 days of captivity at the hands of Colombian rebels, Canadian mining executive Gernot Wober is free.

He was handed over Tuesday in an isolated clearing in northern Colombia by rebels of the National Liberation Army (ELN) to a Red Cross delegation and whisked away by helicopter and then plane to Bogota. “He looks good. He’s suffered a lot, but he’s very excited about his liberty,” said Archbishop Dario de Jesus Monsalve, a member of the delegation.

Mr. Wober, vice-president of exploration for Canadian junior mining company Braeval Mining Corporation, was a bargaining chip in a long-standing battle over mining rights between Colombia’s leftist guerillas and its government. Now, his release could have implications for future peace in a country racked by 50 years of violent armed conflict, by opening the door to allow the ELN, Colombia’s second-largest guerrilla group, to the negotiating table.

The Canadian went from being a pawn in the conflict over resources to a possible lynchpin in negotiating peace with one of Latin America’s oldest rebel groups.

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Honourable Joe Oliver: Minister of Natural Resources Canada – Speech at the 2013 Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference (August 26, 2013 – Yellowknife, Northwest Territories)

This speech was given by the Honourable Joe Oliver, Minister of Natural Resources Canada, at the 2013 Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories on August 16, 2013.

Thank you Minister Ramsay, and good afternoon everyone. Thank you Premier McLeod and the people of Yellowknife for your hospitality and welcome. It’s wonderful for me to be back. “Spectacular” is an apt description of the Northwest Territories – and this city – and I am delighted that we are here for our important meetings.

Let me take this opportunity to recognize the great work of Premier McLeod’s government in developing a land use and sustainability framework that will guide planning in the Territories. I am pleased that my Department, Natural Resources Canada, was able to contribute to this initiative.

Le Nord est un élément fondamental du patrimoine, de l’identité et de l’avenir du Canada. En effet, le Nord s’avère l’endroit idéal pour tenir nos discussions en raison de tout ce qui entoure ses possibilités de développement économique et pour l’importance qu’on y accorde au respect de l’environnement.

The North is fundamental to Canada’s heritage, identity and future. Indeed, the North is the perfect setting for our discussions because of its history in both pursuing economic opportunity and respecting the environment. And its people know more than most about taking the long view. Honouring and preserving their inheritance. And building a vibrant economy for their children and grandchildren.

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I’ll be back – juniors, exploration trends, and a major change – by Kip Keen (Mineweb.com – August 27, 2013)

http://www.mineweb.com/

MinEx’s Richard Schodde discusses the changes to global exploration trends seen over the last few years and why he is not quite as pessimistic as some about the future.

HALIFAX, NS (MINEWEB) – In this two part series Kip Keen unpacks the trends developing within the exploration sector, with the people that know it intimately.

This is not a tonic for those sick to the stomach as they contemplate the state of exploration spending and discovery trends. But then neither is it poison, exploration hemlock, taking you on the path to oblivion. It’s an interview with Richard Schodde, an academic and the owner of MinEx Consulting. He thinks and presents on exploration trends and recently produced a wide ranging synthesis on the exploration sector in a presentation entitled, “Long Term Outlook for the Global Exploration Industry ‘Gloom or Boom.’” (Outside link to presentation here; and full acknowledgement to the blog incakolanews.com for inspiration.)

Lots will strike you in the presentation. Some of it we show you here: Like China’s expenditures booming from almost next-to-nothing to 14% in the past decade. Or global exploration expenditures reaching near $30 billion in 2012, far up from under $5 billion back during hell days in the early 2000s. And – spoiler alert – Schodde doesn’t see them going back there either.

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Canada must capitalize on its resource bounty while it still can, says Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver – by Jason Fekete (Vancouver Sun – August 26, 2013)

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

OTTAWA — Calling the development and export of Canada’s resources “nation building,” federal Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver says Canada must seize a once-in-a-lifetime energy opportunity or watch the associated economic benefits disappear.

But cultivating Canada’s natural resources demands that governments do more to earn the social licence to develop the oil, gas, diamond, uranium and other lucrative deposits found across the country, he said Monday at the annual meeting of Canada’s energy and mines ministers in Yellowknife, N.W.T.

Yet, groups observing the talks, such as Environmental Defence, say the feeling around the conference is “very disconnected with the reality” of Canadians’ concerns about the impacts of natural resource development on land, water and air.

In a keynote speech to fellow ministers, Oliver compared the development and export of the country’s natural resources to the building of the railroad across Canada or construction of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The country’s economic prosperity is not a birthright, he said, meaning Canada must capitalize on its resource bounty while it still can.

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PRESS RELEASE: Minister Oliver: Working Together, We Are Laying the Foundation for Canada’s Future

YELLOWKNIFE, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES–(Marketwired – Aug. 26, 2013) – The Honourable Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, today delivered keynote remarks during his annual meeting with federal and provincial counterparts at the 2013 Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference (EMMC) in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

Minister Oliver discussed our shared imperative of supporting Canadian jobs, energy security and standard of living through meeting the demand for Canadian natural resources at home and abroad. He highlighted milestones in our cooperative efforts to reach new markets and enhance Canada’s exemplary record of environmental stewardship.

“Canada is well-positioned to take advantage of enormous opportunity to supply burgeoning markets in the Asia-Pacific region and elsewhere,” said Minister Oliver. “This is a pivotal moment when we decide whether to take that opportunity or let it pass us by.”

Over the next decade, hundreds of major resource projects worth some $650 billion could begin in Canada. Natural resources directly and indirectly account for 1.8 million jobs and over 18 percent of Canada’s economy. Oil, natural gas and mining exports generate $30 billion annually to governments for critical social programs, including health care and education.

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Centerra reports ‘progress’ in talks over Kumtor mine in Kyrgyzstan – by Peter Koven (National Post – August 24, 2013)

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

TORONTO – After months of political turmoil, Centerra Gold Inc. may finally be closing in on a resolution to one of the mining industry’s most volatile disputes. Reports out of Kyrgyzstan suggest the government and Centerra are nearing agreement on a joint venture to operate the Kumtor mine. The Kyrgyz prime minister said they are discussing a 50-50 split of the project, according to one report.

Centerra cautioned that no deal has been reached, and warned investors not to speculate on the potential terms of a settlement. However, it indicated that talks with the government over its flagship mine are going well. The two sides have been discussing a transaction that would convert the government’s 32.7% stake in Centerra into a direct stake in the project.

“Centerra believes that progress has been made in those discussions,” the company said in a statement Friday. A settlement would be a relief for investors, who have feared the prospect of outright nationalization of Kumtor for more than a year.

The trouble started in June of last year, when a Kyrgyz parliamentary commission released an 800-page report on Kumtor that accused Toronto-based Centerra of massive environmental destruction.

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Mining slowdown begins to hurt as Bay Street sheds jobs, firms – by Boyd Erman and Jacqueline Nelson (Globe and Mail – August 23, 2013)

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.

A sustained downturn in Canadian capital markets claims its first big foreign victim Friday, as Stifel Financial Corp. shuts down its Toronto and Calgary operations and lets go of 60 people.

Businesses such as stock underwriting and trading have plunged, eating away at profits for investment dealers in Canada – particularly smaller ones – and forcing some firms to close or merge.

The problem is that deep weakness in the commodity and resource sectors and volatile markets have sharply curtailed deal volumes and new public offerings for investment dealers. The S&P/TSX materials index has fallen 22 per cent in the past year and the energy index was flat, even as U.S. markets have soared to record highs. That poor showing has curtailed investors’ interest in junior mining and oil and gas stocks, meaning that fewer resource companies are able to raise money.

Eleven investment dealers merged, closed their doors, or announced plans to do so in the first half of 2013, the Investment Industry Association of Canada said. Ten firms closed in 2012.

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Barrick Gold Corp. to sell three mines in Australia for $300 million (Canadian Press/Toronto Star – August 23, 2013)

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.

Barrick Gold Corp. has agreed to sell off three high-cost mines in Western Australia to South Africa-based miner Gold Fields Ltd. — a move analysts say will free Barrick up to focus on more profitable operations.

Barrick said it will receive about $300 million from the sale, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board.

The company said the three mines that comprise the Yilgarn South assets produced a total of 452,000 ounces of gold in 2012 and a further 196,000 ounces in the first half of this year.

Kerry Smith, an analyst at Haywood Securities, said selling the higher-cost mines will reduce Barrick’s operating expenses and have only a minimal impact on the company’s production volumes. “By eliminating those three mines out of their portfolio, it frees their management up to spend more time on other assets that actually make more cash,” Smith said.

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Arctic tour: Stephen Harper acknowledges social issues in Canada’s North – by Tonda MacCharles (Toronto Star – August 23, 2013)

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.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper shifted his political message in the North Thursday after he met Nunavut Premier Eve Aariak and faced media questions about the immense social challenges here.

RANKIN INLET, NUNAVUT—On a day he intended to highlight more money for mining development, Prime Minister Stephen Harper shifted his political message in the North after he met Nunavut Premier Eve Aariak and faced media questions about the immense social challenges here.

Those had largely gone unmentioned by the prime minister during his eighth annual Arctic tour. Instead it has focused on resource development and Arctic sovereignty. Thursday was also supposed to boost the prime minister’s credentials as a supporter of basic science.

In Rankin Inlet, on the northwest coast of Hudson’s Bay, Harper, who is frequently criticized for failing to back scientific research and accused of muzzling scientists, threw his weight behind a major geological research project and brought geologists along to tell everyone about it.

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Michael Den Tandt: Days into Harper’s trip, the real problems of the North begin to emerge – by Michael Den Tandt (National Post – August 23, 2013)

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

RANKIN INLET, Nunavut — After days of singing the praises of Arctic sovereignty, resource extraction and development, Prime Minister Stephen Harper came face to face here with the stark challenge of catalyzing a 21st Century gold rush in a society afflicted by grinding poverty and social dysfunction. It is a daunting task, with no assured outcomes. What is clear, now, is that the Conservatives intend to try.

Thursday morning the PM appeared before a small crowd to deliver the day’s pre-packaged news — a $100-milion investment in geo-mapping, intended to lay bare the underground riches of the North. The goal is to send geologists fanning out across the Arctic Archipelago, first by air and then on the ground, to create a map that will guide mining firms in their own future explorations.

While he spoke, children played outside on a dirt field, as beat-up pickup trucks and four-wheelers raced along gravel roads, among the modular buildings that make up this hamlet of 2,358. Rankin Inlet, high on the northwest shore of Hudson’s Bay, is one of three regional centres in Nunavut, alongside Cambridge Bay and the capital of Iqaluit.

Though clearly better off than communities further north, Rankin has a developing-world feel — right down to the choking dust and chaotic traffic. Respiratory ailments, one resident told me, are rife, particularly among the elderly.

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NEWS RELEASE: Geo-mapping key to opening up mineral opportunities in Canada’s North – Mining industry commends the federal government on GEM funding announcement

OTTAWA, Aug. 22, 2013 /CNW/ – The Government of Canada’s decision to renew the Geo-mapping for Energy and Minerals (GEM) program is a positive and welcome investment that will help facilitate exploration activities in Canada’s North.

Building on a previous allocation of $100 million over five years from Federal Budget 2008, the government’s renewed commitment of $100 million over seven years will carry this important work forward to the benefit of the mineral industry, northerners and all Canadians.

“Mineral exploration is like looking for a needle in a haystack,” said Pierre Gratton, President and CEO of the Mining Association of Canada (MAC). “This continued investment in surveying will help the industry better determine where mineral deposits are located, and ultimately, where the next generation of Canadian mines can be developed.”

Geoscience is a fundamental building block of a minerals economy. For companies conducting exploration, it makes sense to spend their high-risk dollars in areas where good geological data is available in order to heighten the chances of finding a deposit. By developing a broader body of reliable geological information, Canada is enhancing its attractiveness as a destination for mineral exploration investment.

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Barrick Gold sells mines to Gold Fields as part of restructuring – by James Wilson and Andrew England (Financial Times – August 22, 2013)

http://www.ft.com/home/us

London/Johannesburg – Barrick Gold has started its promised restructuring by selling a trio of Australian gold mines to industry rival Gold Fields.

The $300m sale will help the Canadian miner’s stretched balance sheet and will switch Gold Fields’ main production focus away from western Africa to Australia, where it will bundle assets with its existing mines to try to lower costs.

Barrick, the world’s largest gold miner by volume, flagged the possible sale of the Yilgarn South mines earlier this month, when it posted an $8.6bn quarterly loss. The loss was linked to writedowns to asset values because of the fall in the price of gold this year.

The three mines at Yilgarn South produce 452,000 ounces of gold annually, equivalent to about a quarter of Gold Fields’ annual output. Barrick said the sale would not change its plan to produce between 7m and 7.4m ounces this year.

Nick Holland, Gold Fields’ chief executive, said there was “considerable opportunity for cost synergies” between the Lawlers mine, one of the Yilgarn South group, and its adjacent Agnew mine.

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