Canadian Media Resource Articles

The long climb out of Totten – by Angelica Zagorski (CIM Magazine – November 25, 2021)

November 26, 2021

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

The evacuation and investigation of the Totten mine incident

his was not your typical mine rescue, Ted Hanley, general manager of Ontario Mine Rescue, recalls thinking when he received a call from Vale’s Totten mine in Sudbury at 2 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 27. At that time, Vale decided it would bring its workers out of the mine via secondary egress after a scoop bucket was slung into the Totten mine and became lodged in the shaft trapping 39 miners at the 650-foot level.

Even though what the miners were doing was common, the incident was not. Hanley said this rescue mission was different because of the atypical use of the ladderways in the mine. Miners are used to climbing 100 to 200 feet to another level, where they can get a ride in a vehicle and travel via a ramp system out or to their next workstation.

Leonardo DiCaprio is wrong — the Coastal GasLink Pipeline is good for Indigenous people – by Ellis Ross (National Post – November 26, 2021)

November 26, 2021

https://nationalpost.com/

An open letter to a misinformed movie star

Dear Leo, I was confused and alarmed when I read your Tweet claiming “militarized raids” have been ordered against protestors participating in illegal and dangerous blockades opposing the Coastal GasLink project in Northern British Columbia.

But then I thought, given your busy schedule as a Hollywood movie star, you may not have learned the full story behind this transformative, environmentally sustainable project. So please, allow me to fill you in.

Canada has the minerals needed for EVs. How much bargaining power does that really give us? – by Alexander Panetta (CBC News World – November 26, 2021)

November 26, 2021

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/

When discussing Canadian clout over critical minerals we’re talking potential, not reality

There’s this emerging notion of Canada as an impending superpower in mining the critical minerals that will run defining technologies of this century, from electric vehicles to smartphones and solar panels.

It was a recurring theme of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent Washington visit. It’s sometimes raised as a potential source of geopolitical power for Canada, say, against the United States in a trade spat.

Lucara says diamond market “healthiest” in years – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – November 24, 2021)

November 26, 2021

https://www.mining.com/

Lucara Diamond (TSX: LUC) said on Wednesday the global market for rough stones and diamond jewellery has reached a healthy balance thanks to supply improvements and fundamentals. The Vancouver-based miner said it expected the positive trend to continue in years to come and set its 2022 targets accordingly.

Next year, which marks its Karowe mine’s tenth year of operations, Lucara anticipates producing up to 340,000 carats, to be sold through its multi-sales channel approach, which should generate revenues of between $185 million and $215 million.

B2Gold weighs acquiring gold assets in Zimbabwe – by Felix Njini and Katarina Hoije (Bloomberg News – November 25, 2021)

November 26, 2021

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

B2Gold Corp., the Canadian company that owns mines in Africa and the Philippines, is interested in acquiring gold assets in Zimbabwe.

The mid-tier gold producer which has mines in Mali, Namibia and the Philippines, has held talks with the government and other officials in the southern African nation “to see if they are ready for us to come in,” said Clive Johnson, chief executive officer at the Vancouver-based company.

Six Canadian-listed diamond companies poised to prosper as market recovers – by Alisha Hiyate (Northern Miner – November 24, 2021)

November 26, 2021

Global mining news

Whether they’re producers, developers or explorers, Canadian-listed diamond companies are a tough lot. Those that have survived the disruptions of the pandemic — and the soft diamond market that preceded it — may be in an excellent position to capitalize on the diamond recovery and lower supply and recent closure of Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine in Australia. Here are six companies that are actively exploring or mining diamonds – at home and elsewhere.

Arctic Star Exploration (TSXV: ADD) has enjoyed exploration success in the Northwest Territories’ prolific Lac de Gras kimberlite field this year, discovering five kimberlites at the Diagras project. The project also hosts 23 kimberlites discovered by De Beers in the 1990s.

N.W.T. mining projects eye roads to get them up and running (CBC News North – November 26, 2021)

November 26, 2021

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

Two mining projects in the Northwest Territories looking to cash in on the growing demand for batteries that are key in the battle against climate change are inching forward.

Robin Goad, the president and CEO of Fortune Minerals, the company that owns the NICO project, a cobalt, bismuth, gold and copper deposit about 50 kilometres northeast of Whatì, provided an update on the project during a virtual appearance at a geoscience conference held in Yellowknife Thursday.

How Congo could become low-cost, low-emissions producer of battery materials – report – by Staff (Mining.com – November 25, 2021)

November 25, 2021

https://www.mining.com/

In a report launched at the DRC-Africa Business Forum 2021 taking place this week in Kinshasa, BloombergNEF (BNEF) states that the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) could leverage its abundant cobalt resources and hydroelectric power to become a low-cost and low-emissions producer of lithium-ion battery cathode precursor materials.

The research paper estimates that it would cost $39 million to build a 10,000 metric-tonne cathode precursor plant in the DRC. This is three times cheaper than what a similar plant in the US would cost, whereas if it were to be built in China or Poland, it would cost $112 million and $65 million, respectively.

‘Certainly better than nothing’: lukewarm reaction from northern Ontario leaders to new revenue sharing plan – by Erik White (CBC News Sudbury – November 25, 2021)

November 25, 2021

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

Premier Doug Ford promised resource revenue sharing during 2018 election campaign

The Ontario government has fulfilled a campaign promise by returning some mining and forest revenue to towns and cities in the north, but some municipal leaders say it isn’t enough.

The new Northern Ontario Resource Development Support Fund will split $15 million among the 144 cities and towns and townships of the north every year for the next five years.

Winners and Losers of David Suzuki-gate and the Coastal GasLink pipeline battle – by David Staples (Edmonton Journal – November 24, 2021)

November 25, 2021

https://edmontonjournal.com/

Here is one fact about the $6.6-billion Coastal GasLink pipeline in northwest British Columbia that may not be top of mind just yet: All 20 elected Indigenous groups across the 670 km route have signed agreements supporting the pipeline.

That’s right, 20 out of 20, 100 per cent, though the pipeline is still not supported by one smaller group led by Wet’suwet’en hereditary clan leaders. Without knowing that 100 per cent of elected Indigenous council support the project, there’s no way for any of us to fully grasp what’s happening in this pipeline dispute, correct? It’s vital context. That’s why I’m focusing on it.

Coal phase-out may take longer than countries are willing to admit – report – by Staff (Mining.com – November 23, 2021)

November 23, 2021

https://www.mining.com/

A new report by Wood Mackenzie states that despite countries agreeing to phase down coal at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, thermal coal demand is expected to rise until the mid-2020s.

“Under our base case Energy Transition Outlook (ETO), which is aligned to a 2.7°C warming TO scenario, demand for thermal coal will peak in 2025 at just over 7 billion tonnes, falling by just 5% to 6.7 billion tonnes in 2030,” Julian Kettle, who is senior vice president and vice-chair of metals and mining at WoodMac, wrote in the report.

Gold price faces a new wave of selling pressure watch support at $1,761 – analysts – by Neils Christensen (Kitco News – November 23, 2021)

November 23, 2021

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – The gold market is struggling to find some footing as prices slide further below $1,800 an ounce again and analysts are expecting to see some further pain in the near term.

The gold market continues to digest the White House’s news that President Joe Biden will re-nominate Powell to be head of the Federal Reserve. Following the announcement, markets have increased their expectations that the U.S. central bank will tighten interest rates more aggressively in 2022.

After failing to find the motherlode, First Cobalt reinvents itself as a battery metal middle man – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – November 20, 2021)

November 23, 2021

https://financialpost.com/

In early 2018, Trent Mell, chief executive of Toronto-based First Cobalt Corp., was riding high on hopes that his company would discover a motherlode of cobalt in North America — a key component in the cathodes of lithium-ion batteries.

Nearly three-quarters of the world’s cobalt is produced in the Democratic Republic of Congo, much of which comes from small-scale and artisanal mines, where the use of child labour, dangerous working conditions and other human rights abuses have been well-documented.

Stop the injury and insult. Ontario should back off on mining at Grassy Narrows – by Star Editorial Board (Toronto Star – November 20, 2021)

November 23, 2021

https://www.thestar.com/

If there’s a shorthand expression in Ontario for the betrayal of Indigenous citizens, their rights, health and well-being, it is probably two words: Grassy Narrows.

The Northern Ontario community bedevilled by mercury pollution in the English River system for a half-century has heard enough empty promises over the decades to last an eternity. In Grassy Narrows, mercury contamination in fish — the result of dumping by a pulp and paper company, dating back to 1962 — continues to poison people.

Trudeau and Biden double down on efforts to destroy our economy – by Rex Murphy (National Post – November 23, 2021)

November 23, 2021

https://nationalpost.com/

Here is a perfect symmetry. Trudeau wants to kill the oil and gas industry. Biden wants to kill our auto industry. Simpatico. They are twins

The Three Amigos? I beg your pardon. Is that an appropriate nomenclature for a conclave of the three finest minds in the statesmanship of our present-day world? What ugly slur next — the Sombrero Summit? Enough of these careless and undignified representations.

Surely a meeting between leaders of the intellectual stamina of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and particularly that giant of international understanding and competence — a Churchill for our time — U.S. President Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., calls for a more dignified, respectful designation than a play on some fifth-rate movie. Shame on the news wires and networks.