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Canada Mining

Donald Trump wants to annex Canada to gain access to its critical minerals, Trudeau says – by Steven Chase and Laura Stone (Globe and Mail – February 7, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told an economic summit on Friday that he believes U.S. President Donald Trump is sincere in his desire to annex Canada and that this stems from the American leader’s interest in gaining access to this country’s critical minerals, a source said.

Mr. Trudeau made the comments to an audience of about 200 business leaders, trade experts and union executives in Toronto who have gathered to map out ways to boost economic growth and attract new capital investment in the face of the looming threat of U.S. protectionism.

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Canadian critical minerals companies not panicked by Trump tariff threat because of 10% carve-out – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – February 7, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canada’s critical minerals sector would suffer a significantly less punishing blow from U.S. President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs compared with the broader Canadian economy if he moves ahead.

Mr. Trump earlier this week temporarily backed off from imposing 25-per-cent tariffs on most Canadian imports, but the risk remains high, with the possibility that he’ll follow through after the 30-day reprieve runs out.

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Municipal district scraps Grassy Mountain appeal after provincial coal rule changes – by Joel Dryden (CBC News Calgary – February 05, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/

Alberta government lifted ban on coal exploration in Eastern Slopes in late January

The reeve of a southwestern ranching community says the municipal district has cancelled its appeal of exploration applications tied to the Grassy Mountain site in southwestern Alberta. Ron Davis, reeve of the M.D. of Ranchland, said recent rule changes from the provincial government have upended the district’s arguments tied to its Alberta Court of Appeal case.

“Given that the government has changed the rules, our case didn’t seem like it had as much impact as we would like,” Davis said. In August 2024, Alberta’s top court allowed Ranchland’s appeal, with Justice Kevin Feth writing he found that “a serious, arguable issue [was] established” after the provincial energy regulator accepted applications from Northback Holdings, the company behind the Grassy Mountain mine project.

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Amid trade skirmish, Wilkinson raises eyebrows with pitch for closer ties with U.S. on critical minerals and energy – by Darius Snieckus (National Observer – February 5th 2025)

https://www.nationalobserver.com/

The U.S. and Canada should “jointly invest” in North American critical minerals and energy megaprojects, Canada’s minister of energy and natural resources said Tuesday, raising eyebrows as Canada continues to grapple with the threat of punishing tariffs — and concerns the country could risk relinquishing total control of its natural resource wealth.

Such an alliance would aid the U.S. in reducing its reliance on rivals Russia and China for uranium, germanium, lithium and other next-generation energy materials, Jonathan Wilkinson said, while building on a “many decades-long” trade relationship between the U.S and Canada.

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Trump is firing up resource nationalism. But can Canada’s energy and mining sectors pivot away from the U.S.? – by Niall McGee, Emma Graney, Nicolas Van Praet and Brent Jang (Globe and Mail – February 6, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The threat of U.S. tariffs is firing up a brand of Canadian resource nationalism not seen in decades, inspiring a rallying call for this country to build more of its own energy, power and mining infrastructure. But executing on that plan will be no easy feat.

U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week backed off from immediately imposing tariffs on Canadian imports, but the risk remains high that he’ll follow through after a 30-day reprieve runs out. Amid this threat, Canada’s resource sector, most of which would be subject to a 10-per-cent tariff, is looking at diversifying away from the United States to insulate itself from more shocks that lie ahead.

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Trump tariffs include 10% carve-out for Canadian gas, power, minerals – by Killian Staines, Daniel Weeks, Kip Keen, Zack Hale, and J Robinson (S&P Global – February 2, 2025)

https://www.spglobal.com/

US President Donald Trump on Feb. 1 followed through on a threat to hit the nation’s three largest trading partners with steep tariffs. Energy imports from Canada — including oil, natural gas, electricity, coal, uranium, and critical minerals — were singled out, however, to be taxed at a lower rate of 10%.

Outside of the energy exclusions, Trump’s executive orders imposed 25% across-the-board tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on imports from China. No energy-related exemptions were identified for Mexico or China. The new tariffs will take effect on Feb. 4.

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Donkin coal mine will likely restart production when world prices rise, says U.S. analyst – by Tom Ayers (CBC News Nova Scotia – January 31, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/

Industry observer says mine owners have invested hundreds of millions and will want to make that back

A U.S.-based analyst says he believes the undersea coal mine in Donkin, N.S., will reopen someday. Joe Aldina, who writes for thecoaltrader.com, said the Cline Group, whose company Kameron Coal owns the Donkin mine, has made significant investments there that it will likely want to recover.

“They’ve invested a few hundred million dollars US in [capital expenditures] in that mine and that was the last project that Chris Cline, the founder of the company, really put himself into, so I don’t see them walking away from that,” he said.

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Canadian Tariffs Will Undermine U.S. Minerals Security – by Gracelin Baskaran (Centre for Strategic and International Studies – Janaury 29, 2025)

https://www.csis.org/

Gracelin Baskaran is the Director, Critical Minerals Security Program.

As the United States races to reduce its reliance on China for minerals vital for national, economic, and energy security, tariffs with Canada may drastically undermine these efforts. Canada is the biggest source of the United States mineral imports, providing key sources of uranium, aluminum, nickel, steel copper, and niobium. To put it into perspective, in 2023, Canada accounted for $47 billion of United States mineral imports.

China followed with $28.3 billion. The consequences of tariffs would be particularly profound for the defense industry, nuclear energy, and heavy manufacturing. A 25 percent tariff on Canadian mineral imports could cost U.S. off-takers an additional $11.75 billion—a figure that would increase as base metal and uranium prices recover.

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Water for Food voices concerns over coal mining’s impact on ag sector – by Alexandra Noad (Lethbridge Herald – January 30, 2025)

https://lethbridgeherald.com/

Southern Alberta is known for its vast farmland, which contributes billions of dollars to the economy and Chris Spearman fears the proposed Grassy Mountain Coal Mine will negatively impact the agri-food sector and southern Alberta.

Spearman, former Lethbridge mayor and a spokesman for the group Water For Food, says he was alarmed at the Dec. 20 announcement and is wondering why the Albertan government would jeopardize the economy for a project that has a limited life span.

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‘It’s a catastrophe’: Southern Alberta’s ag industry concerned over potential coal mining pollution – by Karsen Marczuk (CTV News Calgary – January 23, 2025)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/calgary/

Pushback continues to mount over possible coal mining on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, with the latest being a letter penned to the provincial government over the impact coal mining could have on the agriculture industry.

“We are very concerned with the impact on integrated agriculture in southwestern Alberta,” said Chris Spearman with the Water for Food Group. “We don’t understand — our question to the Alberta government is basically – ‘are they prepared to sacrifice a multi-billion-dollar food industry for a coal mine?’”

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Wiring, energy, geopolitics drive 2025 metals: Sprott – by Staff (Northern Miner – Janaury 22, 2025)

https://www.northernminer.com/

Critical metals, uranium and gold will shine this year driven by accelerating deglobalization and energy security demands, Sprott said in a special report Monday.

Broader trade conflicts affecting allies and adversaries alike could reduce business investment and global GDP, while decoupling due to rising protectionism and trade tensions will likely accelerate in sectors that are strategic like AI, advanced technology, finance and defence, the asset management company stated.

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Alberta ignoring advice it sought from citizens on Rocky Mountain coal policy, former committee member says – by Emma Graney (Globe and Mail – January 22, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A member of Alberta’s coal policy committee says the provincial government is ignoring the will of tens of thousands of Albertans as it develops new rules around mining and is instead leaning on industry to guide its hand.

Bill Trafford was appointed to the coal policy engagement committee when it was established by then-Energy Minister Sonya Savage in 2021. Mr. Trafford is also the president of the Livingstone Landowners Group and worked alongside the four other committee members to gather feedback from across the province to help in the development of a modern coal policy.

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Trudeau, Canada’s Premiers Spar Over Using Resources as Trade Weapon – by Brian Platt and Laura Dhillon Kane (Bloomberg News/Financial Post – January 15, 2025)

https://financialpost.com/

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the premiers of Canada’s provinces are in high-stakes talks over how far to go in using oil and other commodities as a weapon if the US starts a regional trade war.

(Bloomberg) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the premiers of Canada’s provinces are in high-stakes talks over how far to go in using oil and other commodities as a weapon if the US starts a regional trade war.

Trudeau is meeting with the leaders of Canada’s 13 provinces and territories in Ottawa on Wednesday, trying to get on the same page over how to respond if US President-elect Donald Trump follows through on his vow to impose 25% tariffs on all goods the US imports from Canada.

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In Namibia, a Canadian copper company leaves a legacy of toxic waste – by Geoffrey York and Samuel Schlaefli (Globe and Mail – January 15, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Sickness has been common for years in Tsumeb, where Dundee Precious Metals was the biggest employer for more than a decade. Tests have now found the soil is contaminated with arsenic and other heavy metals

In the citrus orchards above the Namibian town, workers often fall sick. They say they feel a burning sensation in their eyes and throats and a metallic taste in their mouths as the wind blows across from the copper smelter a few kilometres away.

“When the gas is coming from that side, we get headaches and dizziness, and sometimes you feel like you want to throw up,” says Festus Gawab, who has worked for three years on a citrus farm near Tsumeb, watering the orange and lemon trees.

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Mali starts seizing gold stocks at Barrick site, company memo says – by Fadimata Kontao and Portia Crowe (Reuters – January 13, 2025)

https://www.reuters.com/

BAMAKO/DAKAR Jan 13 (Reuters) – Mali’s government has begun enforcing a provisional order to seize gold stock at Barrick Gold’s Loulo-Gounkoto site, the Canadian miner said in a note to Malian staff, warning again that it may have to suspend operations at the complex.

The move suggests that Mali’s military-led authorities are not ready to back down in a standoff over a contract based on new mining rules as they push for a greater share of revenues from Western miners. “A provisional order to seize our existing gold stock was issued last week and the Malian government began its enforcement on Jan. 11,” Barrick said in the staff memo.

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