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Canadian Media Resource Articles

Gold is overbought, but remains well supported as US dollar weakens – by Neils Christensen (Kitco News – April 17, 2025)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – With markets closed on Friday for the Easter long weekend, investors took some profits off the table on Thursday after gold reached a new record high above $3,350 an ounce. And while gold continues to look overbought, some analysts have said that the market remains in a solid uptrend.

Despite the selling pressure, gold has held solid support around $3,300. Spot gold last traded at $3,316.90 an ounce, up nearly 2.5% for the week. David Morrison, Senior Market Analyst at Trade Nation, described gold’s price action this week, including Wednesday’s $100 rally, as a blowoff top.

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Ontario to OK mines in half the time: Ford – by Colin McClelland (Northern Miner – April 17, 2025)

https://www.northernminer.com/

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is proposing new legislation to cut mining permit times in half, designate geographic areas for speedy treatment like the Ring of Fire by September and limit foreign ownership.

The new legislation announced on Thursday mentions Wyloo Metals’ Eagle’s Nest project by name. The proposed battery metals mine would be within a Ring of Fire special economic zone northeast of Thunder Bay and have its environmental assessment (EA) process, which the company had voluntarily advanced nearly 15 years ago, entirely removed because it’s out of date.

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The billion-dollar standoff: Alamos Gold versus Türkiye – by Gordon Feller (Canadian Mining Journal – April 15, 2025)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

An important mining dispute is playing out in The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), which is considered to be the world’s leading institution devoted to international investment dispute settlement. It has administered the majority of all international investment cases.

Almost all member states of the U.N. have agreed that ICSID should serve as the forum for investor-State dispute settlement — and they have encoded this into most international investment treaties, as well as in numerous investment laws and contracts. As of today, 165 countries have signed the ICSID Convention, with 154 of these having ratified it, thereby becoming contracting member states.

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‘We celebrate President Trump’: Why Trump could be a boon for this controversial Canadian seabed-mining firm – by Allan Woods (Toronto Star – April 17, 2025)

https://www.thestar.com/

U.S. President Donald Trump penchant for tariffs has signalled doom and gloom for many a Canadian company relying on trade partners and customers south of the border. But things are suddenly looking up for a controversial Vancouver-based firm that wants to mine the depths of the ocean floor for a resource it likens to “a battery in a rock.”

For The Metals Company and its scruffy-chic chief executive, Gerard Barron, Trump could be the disruptive catalyst flashing a long-awaited green light to begin retrieving potato-sized “nodules” that scatter the seabed and contain critical minerals that could be key to a clean-energy future.

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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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BHP warns of trade war fallout as it ramps up copper output (Bloomberg News – April 17, 2025)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

BHP Group Ltd. is warning U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff spree could trigger a global economic slowdown and challenge trade flows, as the world’s biggest miner posted a solid quarterly production performance for key commodities including copper and iron ore.

“Despite the limited direct impact of tariffs on BHP, the implication of slower economic growth and a fragmented trading environment could be more significant,” Chief Executive Officer Mike Henry said in a statement Thursday. “China’s ability to shift toward a consumption-led economy and for trade flows to adapt to the new environment will be key to sustaining the global outlook.”

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Mali shuts Barrick office and issues threats to key mine in tax dispute – by Geoffrey York (Globe and Mail – April 15, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Mali’s military junta has closed Barrick Gold Corp.’s national office and threatened to seize control of one of its biggest gold mines in a further escalation of a protracted tax dispute, the Toronto-based company says.

Barrick says it negotiated an agreement with the Malian regime in February to resolve the dispute, but the deal has been blocked by a small group of individuals for “personal or political reasons.” The company’s long-term future in the West African country is now at risk, it said.

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Throne speech ignites outcry over Ford’s environmental rollbacks – by Abdul Matin Sarfraz (National Observer/Penticton Herald – April 2025)

https://www.pentictonherald.ca/

Despite years of public outcry and widespread criticism from experts and advocates over weakened conservation laws, the Ford government doubled down on its first day back in power — vowing to slash environmental oversight to fast-track mineral and infrastructure projects.

Critics warn the plan will gut crucial environmental reviews, provoke legal battles, spark First Nations resistance and further weaken protections already under strain.

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Rare earth stocks rally on signs Trump supports sector – by Matthew Griffin (Bloomberg News – April 17, 2025)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

U.S. stocks linked to rare earth metals and other critical minerals gained this week, getting a boost from signs that the Trump administration will favor a sector that’s become a flashpoint in the trade standoff between the U.S. and China.

Rare-earth magnet player USA Rare Earth Inc. has jumped 68 per cent this week as of 1:49 p.m. on Thursday. TMC The Metals Company Inc., a Vancouver-based company that’s seeking permission from the U.S. to gather critical metals at the bottom of the ocean, is up 55 per cent in the short trading week.

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Ontario Throne Speech pledges to drop provincial trade barriers, speed up mines in face of U.S. trade war – by Jeff Gray and Laura Stone (Globe and Mail – April 15, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The Ontario government is pledging to shore up the province in the face of the threat of U.S. tariffs by taking down barriers to interprovincial trade, speeding up approvals for new mines in the Northern Ring of Fire region – and doubling down on a promise to build a lengthy and costly tunnel under the Toronto-area stretch of Highway 401.

In its Throne Speech, the Progressive Conservative government of Premier Doug Ford laid out its priorities after winning its third straight majority in the Feb. 27 election, saying its first two new pieces of legislation would lower Ontario’s interprovincial trade barriers and allow the designation of the Ring of Fire as a region of “strategic importance to the province’s economy and security interests.”

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One of the strangest chapters in copper mining is drawing to a close – by Frik Els (Mining.com – April 10, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

With so much happening in copper – from all-time highs mixed with price collapses – it’s easy to lose sight of the giant hole that exists in the industry where dynamite meets bedrock. Cobre Panama has now been sitting idle for 18 months, ordered to shut down by a supreme court ruling following months of protests that rocked the Central American nation.

The massive First Quantum Minerals mine, which entered production in 2019 is an increasingly rare phenomenon in copper mining. The mine’s global porphyry peers in terms of output have histories often dating back to the 19th century.

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Carney and Poilievre have promised they’ll get major resource projects done faster, but is that actually possible? – by Justine Hunter (Globe and Mail – April 13, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The federal Conservatives and Liberals are in a bidding war to cut red tape for major resource projects that will help Canada weather the economic storms brought by the U.S. tariff war.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre have both promised to fast-track approval processes: Mr. Carney says regulatory reviews for projects should take no more than two years, while Mr. Poilievre says he would set a maximum of one year.

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Osisko Metals’ Gaspé copper assays beat outlook – by Frederic Tomesco (Northern Miner – April 14, 2025)

Global mining news

Osisko Metals said initial drilling results at its Gaspé copper project in eastern Quebec topped expectations. Shares jumped. All five holes drilled in the past three months intersected significant disseminated mineralization within the volume of the company’s 2024 resource, CEO Robert Wares said in a statement Monday. New mineralization was also added at depth well below the base of the 2024 estimate.

Osisko is working to expand the Gaspé copper system’s resource with a view to potentially reopening the former Noranda mine in Murdochville, about 825 km northeast of Montreal. It’s targeting permits and construction by the early 2030s, with initial capital spending estimated at about $1.8 billion.

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Goldman puts $4,000 gold on the agenda as hunt for havens grows – by Sybilla Gross (Bloomberg News – April 14, 2025)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and UBS Group AG issued another round of bullish calls for gold, with stronger-than-expected central bank demand and the metal’s role as a hedge against recession and geopolitical risks underpinning expectations for even higher prices in 2025.

Goldman analysts including Lina Thomas now see gold rallying to $3,700 an ounce by the end of this year — with prices set to hit $4,000 an ounce by mid-2026 — while UBS strategist Joni Teves pointed to $3,500 an ounce by December 2025, according to two separate notes on Friday.

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TC Energy CEO touts Asia as key to Canada’s economic diversification away from U.S. – by Brent Jang (Globe and Mail – April 10, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The U.S. trade war has posed huge challenges, but Canada should take advantage of the time to diversify its economy toward exports to Asia, including shipments of liquefied natural gas, says TC Energy Corp.’s chief executive officer.

After the April 28 federal election, it will be important for the prime minister, premiers, business executives and Indigenous leaders to be aligned and strengthen ties with Asia, François Poirier said in a speech to Canadian Club Toronto that was webcast on Thursday.

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