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Canadian Media Resource Articles

Lithium Americas revamps Thacker Pass deal with GM in new US$625M JV – by Blair McBride (Northern Miner – October 16, 2024)

Global mining news

Shares in Lithium Americas (TSX: LAC; NYSE: LAC) jumped by 20.2% on Wednesday after it announced anew, US$625-million joint venture agreement with General Motors for its Thacker Pass project in northern Nevada.

Under the deal that the developer calls the largest ever by a U.S. original equipment manufacturer in a lithium project, GM is to acquire a 38% stake in Thacker Pass for US$625 million in cash and letters of credit. The JV deal replaces the US$330 million in second tranche equity investment from GM announced in January 2023, and is in addition to the US$2.3 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

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Gold Nears Fresh Record With Focus on US Election and Fed Rates – by Mark Burton (Bloomberg News – October 16, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Gold rallied toward a fresh record high as investors turned their attention to the upcoming US election, with polls forecasting a razor-thin contest with less than three weeks to go.

The precious metal is one of the strongest performing commodities in 2024, setting successive records thanks to its appeal as a safe haven asset and rapacious central-bank buying. Now, it’s finding fresh support as investors across financial markets reposition their portfolios in response to uncertainty over the outcome of the US presidential race.

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Equinox Gold stock takes hit on lowered production guidance for Greenstone mine – by Staff (Mining.com – October 17, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Equinox Gold (TSX: EQX) (NYSE American: EQX) said on Thursday it is expecting lower-than-forecasted output this year from its new Greenstone gold mine to reflect its ramp-up progress towards commercial production.

Since its first gold pour in May, the mine located near Geraldton, Ontario, has produced approximately 59,000 oz. of the precious metal, including 42,500 oz. during the third quarter. During Q3, the processed grade averaged 1.15 grams gold per tonne at an average recovery rate of approximately 80%, which Equinox says was largely on plan.

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Opinion: The bill is coming for net zero — and it’s big, both politically and economically – by Shannon Joseph (Financial Post – October 15, 2024)

https://financialpost.com/

Net zero talk is all about climate dividends and green opportunity. It’s time to get real about what doubling the electricity supply will cost

Governments across Canada and around the world have been promoting both electrification and net zero. That’s fine, go for it. But please stop saying it’s going to be cheap. It isn’t. And voters will find out.

Today, electricity fulfills about 20 per cent of our energy needs. That means 80 per cent of the energy Canadians rely on is from direct use of natural gas, refined petroleum products and other fuels. What is being proposed in Canada’s electricity strategy is not just fewer or even no emissions from our electricity systems. It is to have electricity provide that other 80 per cent.

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Gold racks up record highs on safe-haven bidding, bullish charts – by Jim Wyckoff (Kitco News – October 17, 2024)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – Gold prices are higher and have notched new all-time highs in midday U.S. trading Thursday. Spot gold hit a record high of $2,697.90 and December Comex futures a new high at $2,712.70.

Safe haven demand amid geopolitical tensions and the uncertainty surrounding the U.S. presidential elections is driving gold prices north. Technical-based buying amid bullish charts is also fueling gains in both gold and silver. December gold was last up $13.30 at $2,704.60 and December silver was down $0.234 at $31.74.

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‘We believe Canada needs more nickel,’ Wyloo boss says – by Nicole Stoffman (Sudbury Star – October 13, 2024)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Nickel produced and processed in Northern Ontario and the Ring of Fire would be destined for the EV market

Kristan Straub, CEO of Wyloo Ring of Fire, provided an update on the Eagle’s Nest Mine at the State of Mining luncheon in Timmins recently. The mine site in the Ring of Fire in northwestern Ontario has a ‘small footprint’ of one square kilometre or half the size of the Timmins Airport, Straub said.

The site contains a deposit of 17 million tonnes at 3.3 per cent nickel, copper and platinum group elements. It also has some of the world’s largest chromite deposits outside of South Africa, Straub said.

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Coal mining in the foothills of the Rockies: A tale of two municipalities – by Emma Graney (Globe and Mail – October 14, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A coal mining proposal has divided two neighbouring municipalities in Southern Alberta – and one of them recently received a blow from the Alberta Energy Regulator, which denied its application for an adjournment of licence hearings for a new coal development.

To the north is Ranchland, a municipality of rolling terrain in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains with around 100 residents. To the south is Crowsnest Pass, a municipality of about 5,700 people. Both picturesque, the two municipalities could not be more different when it comes to their positions on coal mining.

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Rio Tinto to take over Ranger uranium mine cleanup – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – October 15, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Rio Tinto will carry out the rehabilitation of the closed Ranger uranium mine in Australia’s Northern Territory, a government body has ruled.

The Takeovers Panel’s decision ends a long-running dispute over whether Rio Tinto or its majority owned uranium producer Energy Resources of Australia (ASX: ERA) would assume the site restoration’s costs. It also clears the way for Rio to assume full control of the uranium producer via the company’s capital raising, announced in August.

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Greater Sudbury to study the well-being of mining communities – by Staff (Sudbury Star – October 9, 2024)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Federal government will pay for $150,000 report

The City of Greater Sudbury will get $150,000 from the federal government to study how to improve well-being in Northern Ontario’s mining communities.

“We know that Northern Ontario is home to a world-class mining and mining supply and services sector and this study will allow us to identify our competitive advantages and share lessons learned with fellow OECD members, Greater Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre said in a release.

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China’s Still Backing Overseas Coal Plants After Ban, Says CREA (Bloomberg News – October 14, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Chinese firms and banks continue to support the expansion of coal power overseas, three years after President Xi Jinping promised to end the practice, according to new research.

Some 8.6 gigawatts of previously unannounced Chinese-backed coal-fired power plants have entered construction or the pre-permitting phase in the past year in places like Southeast Asia and Africa, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said in a report on Tuesday.

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‘Far too dependent on China’: trade tensions still hot as graphite producers request tariffs – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – October 15, 2024)

https://financialpost.com/

The trade group said it faces a “pivotal” moment before demand exponentially increases

The North American Graphite Alliance on Thursday called on Canada to enact 25 per cent tariffs on six Chinese products used to make batteries, further amplifying trade tensions around the electric vehicle supply chain.

Graphite is used in lithium-ion battery anodes, and Canada produced around one per cent of the global total in 2022. The trade group said it faces a “pivotal” moment before demand exponentially increases from the EV transition and that it needs protection from China.

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Canada’s nuclear watchdog green-lights operation of aging Pickering reactors to 2026 – by Matthew McClearn (Globe and Mail – October 11, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canada’s nuclear safety regulator again extended a crucial permit for the country’s oldest nuclear power plant on Friday, allowing it to continue operating beyond its original design life.

On Friday the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission authorized its owner, Ontario Power Generation, to operate the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station for an additional two years, to Dec. 31, 2026. The extended permit applies only to its newest four reactors, Units 5 through 8, which are collectively known as Pickering B. Those reactors entered service between 1983 and 1986.

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Teck CEO Says Canada Must Spend More to Erode China’s Critical Minerals Dominance – by Erik Hertzberg (Bloomberg News – October 10, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Teck Resources Ltd.’s chief executive officer warned the Canadian government that it isn’t doing enough to foster development in the critical minerals sector.

Speaking Thursday at an event in Ottawa, Jonathan Price said that while both the US and Canada have focused on developing the electric-vehicle and battery manufacturing sectors on the continent, support for mines and mineral processing continues to lag.

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Ottawa announces nearly $25M in federal investments for critical mineral projects in northern Ontario – by Jonathan Migneault (CBC News Sudbury – October 10, 2024)

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

Around $8.4M in conditional funding to be available to projects in the northeast

Ottawa continues to invest heavily in the critical minerals sector in northern Ontario. Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson announced nearly $25 million in federal funding for critical mineral projects during visits in Thunder Bay and Sudbury this week.

“There are enormous opportunities in Ontario for critical minerals,” Wilkinson told CBC News. In the northeast, those investments included $8.4 million in conditionally approved funding provided through the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund (CMIF) for several companies.

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Project 2025 wants gold to rule again — But is it fool’s gold? – by Ernest Hoffman (Kitco News – October 10, 2024)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – The Project 2025 conservative policy blueprint has been making waves in recent months as journalists, lawmakers, and academics pore over its recommendations. And while much of the attention has centered on its ideas around social policy and executive authority, one economic proposal will quicken the pulse of precious metals investors regardless of their political affiliation: Reestablishing the gold standard.

The 900-plus page document from the Heritage Foundation is aimed at shaping the policy agenda for the United States government with a focus on conservative principles. Launched in 2023, the Project is geared toward preparing for a potential Republican administration in 2025, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive plan to restore what its proponents view as core American values and governance principles.

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