(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Group contributed to widespread damage due to waste left at an abandoned copper mine in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, and risks to local communities are ongoing, a report has found.
Panguna, which was operated by Rio subsidiary Bougainville Copper, was once one of the world’s largest copper mines. It was shut in 1989 after local protests over the disbursement of revenue from the mine degenerated into a civil war that killed as many as 20,000 people.
https://www.thesudburystar.com/
The film brings to life Sudbury’s journey from a desolate landscape scarred by pollution to the vibrant, thriving region it is today
Science North has premiered its latest production, Planting Hope: A Regreening Story, a powerful documentary that celebrates the transformation and resilience of Greater Sudbury. The premiere at Dynamic Earth captivated audiences with the remarkable tale of one of the largest and most successful environmental reclamation projects in the world.
Through powerful imagery and inspiring stories, the documentary reveals how collaborative efforts, innovative regreening techniques and a shared commitment to the land have revitalized Greater Sudbury.
https://www.northernminer.com/
China’s ban on U.S.-bound critical mineral exports is “mineral extortion,” Washington D.C.-based National Mining Association (NMA) president Rich Nolan said on Wednesday. The export ban announced a day earlier targets gallium, germanium, antimony and graphite. These minerals are needed for semiconductors, 5G phone tech, defence systems and electric vehicle batteries. Antimony is found in bullets. Nolan described the export ban as a calculated bid for geopolitical leverage.
“China has weaponized the world’s mineral supply chains,” he said in an emailed statement. “We must confront Chinese mineral extortion and recognize that U.S. mining policy is the foundation of our nation’s economic, energy and national security.”
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Authorities in Mali have issued an arrest warrant for Barrick Gold Corp. chief executive officer Mark Bristow in a fresh escalation of a tax dispute in the West African country, Malian journalists have reported.
Copies of the arrest warrant, posted by one of the journalists on social media Thursday, show that Mr. Bristow is being charged with money laundering and violating Mali’s financial regulations during the period from 2019 to 2023.
President-elect Donald Trump has announced that his administration will pursue a path toward “US energy dominance”. He emphasized that “America is blessed with vast amounts of ‘Liquid Gold’ and other valuable minerals and resources,” declaring, “We will ‘DRILL BABY DRILL.’”
Achieving energy dominance will necessitate substantial quantities of minerals, ranging from tungsten in exploration drill bits to copper in electrical transmission lines. Crucially, this goal also requires secure mineral supply chains.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/
Threats of a 25 per cent tariff sounded alarms in industries around the world
Threats of a 25 per cent tariff on goods exported from Canada into the United States have sounded alarms in industries around the world, including mining and those operating in Labrador. Tamer Elbokl, editor in chief of the Canadian Mining Journal, told CBC Radio Friday that any kind of tariff would be bad news on his industry.
“It will have a huge impact. Not just on iron ore, but all minerals exported from Canada to the United States,” Elbokl said. Canada was the world’s eighth largest producer of iron ore in 2023, with the majority of trade going to the United States.
https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/
A spokesperson for Glencore Canada said Tuesday the company will close its Kidd Creek Mine near Timmins at the end of December 2026.
Alexis Segal, head of communications for Glencore Canada, told CTV News the decision comes after a 2021 study found there was no way to extend the life of the mine. “It’s already the deepest base metal mine in the world,” Segal said. There was no way to safely and economically mine deeper, forcing Glencore to close.
Carol Anne Hilton is the CEO and founder of Indigenomics Institute.
Reconciliation is becoming Canada’s biggest business story—and its greatest economic opportunity
In 2025, Indigenous communities across Canada will gain more control over their land and resources, opening up new opportunities for development, profit and reinvestment. The result will be a virtuous cycle in the Indigenous economy that’s going to make Bay Street stand up and pay attention.
We’ve seen this trend begin to play out for the past few years. In 2021, for example, seven Mi’kmaw communities obtained a 50 per cent share in Nova Scotia–based Clearwater, one of the largest seafood companies in North America, for $1 billion. Last year, the Haisla Nation in B.C. became the majority owner of Cedar LNG, a natural-gas export terminal and the largest Indigenous-owned infrastructure project in Canada.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/
Campaign will run through the holidays with expanded placements in the new year
Ontario has launched a multimillion-dollar U.S. ad campaign touting economic and cultural ties between the province and its southern neighbour as Canada faces the threat of 25 per cent tariffs enacted by president-elect Donald Trump.
“For generations, this ally to the north has been by your side: Ontario, Canada, a partner connected by shared history, shared values and a shared vision for what we can achieve together,” a narrator says over new and archival video featuring shared landmarks like Niagara Falls and the Gordie Howe International Bridge.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/
The Coté Gold Mine has plans to hire around 110 people in the next year
Joanne Sallay, a self-confessed “city dweller”, says she never put much thought into the mining industry until she was invited to visit IAMGOLD’s Coté Gold Mine, located between Sudbury and Timmins. Sallay is the president and CEO of Teachers on Call, a tutoring company based out of Toronto. She was part of a group of 20 educators that visited the mine.
Several groups, including the Ontario Mining Association, Mining Matters and the Canadian Ecology Centre organized the trip to promote mining as a career option for students.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Paladin Energy Ltd.’s proposed acquisition of Canadian uranium development company Fission Uranium Corp. is hanging in the balance amid a deepening national security probe and a punishing Paladin stock sell-off that has spooked investors.
The Australian miner reached a friendly agreement in June to buy Kelowna, B.C.-based Fission in an all-stock transaction worth $1.14-billion. Fission is developing the Patterson Lake South (PLS) uranium project in the Athabasca Basin region of Saskatchewan.
Norway has paused its controversial plans to mine the seabed in Arctic-reaching territorial waters after the Socialist Left Party (SV), a small left-wing environmentalist group, secured an agreement to delay the initiative in exchange for supporting the national budget.
The government had intended to issue its first deep-sea mining exploration licenses in early 2025. Under pressure from the SV, preparatory work has been now slowed, with the government highlighting that it would continue work on environmental impact assessments and regulatory frameworks.
(Bloomberg) — Zinc could see more sharp price swings as growing tightness along the metal’s supply chain leaves buyers exposed to sudden changes in availability. The material used to galvanize steel had a turbulent time on the London Metal Exchange last week, finishing almost 5% higher despite a 2.5% slump on Thursday.
The spike was fueled by the withdrawal of huge volumes from LME warehouses, which stoked speculation of a potential squeeze on short-position holders. The volatile week underscored tight supply conditions that analysts see persisting into next year.
The Liberals were told to respect provincial jurisdiction, but their update to the federal environmental assessment regime doesn’t
On Thursday, the Alberta government announced that it has asked the Alberta Court of Appeal to provide an opinion on whether the newly amended federal Impact Assessment Act (IAA) is constitutional. The problem? The things that rendered much of the act unconstitutional, which had been pointed out by the Supreme Court last fall, were never addressed.
The flaw that tainted IAA 1.0 was one of jurisdictional blindness: the law didn’t keep the feds in their own lane, and instead gave Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault the ability to veto just about any infrastructure project he likes — even in-province pipelines and roads, as well as gravel pits and mines, which are all within provincial domain.
Province is starting to look to nuclear power to fill the void left by the departure of coal
Saskatchewan is one of a number of jurisdictions starting to look to nuclear power to fill the void left by the departure of coal and other carbon-emitting fuels as the push to decarbonize electricity production ramps up.
The expansion of nuclear power generation means serious growth potential for some players in the industry, including Westinghouse Electric Co. LLC, a Pennsylvania-based specialist in building nuclear reactors bought by Saskatoon-based Cameco Corp. and Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. in 2023.
