Canadian Media Resource Articles – Page 606

HudBay playing long game in bid for Augusta – by Rachelle Younglai (Globe and Mail – March 21, 2014)

March 21, 2014

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

HudBay Minerals Inc.’s strategy to buy a reluctant Augusta Resource Corp. is likely quite simple and will not require a higher bid.

The Toronto-based mining company recently extended its hostile offer for Augusta and waived its minimum tender condition. It is a risky plan for HudBay, which already owns 16 per cent of Augusta. The company could fail in its bid to acquire the miner and be stuck with a much larger chunk of Augusta that it would have trouble selling if it so desired. But the strategy has worked for HudBay’s chief executive officer in the past.

“We are not running an emotional roller-coaster here. We have a game plan and I think it’s well executed up to this point,” HudBay’s CEO David Garofalo said in an interview.

Mr. Garofalo would not say whether he would continue to extend HudBay’s offer or sweeten the bid for Augusta, which is developing a large copper mine in Arizona. However, a look at one of his past deals sheds light on how HudBay plans to wear Augusta down.

Mining companies show increased confidence in British Columnbia – by Alana Wilson (Troy Media – March 20, 2014)

March 21, 2014

http://www.troymedia.com/

But there’s still plenty of room for improvement

Alana Wilson is a senior economist with the Fraser Institute and co-author of the Survey of Mining Companies 2013.

VANCOUVER, BC, Mar 20, 2014/ Troy Media/ – British Columbia was once regarded by miners as hostile to investment and ranked last in Canada for the attractiveness of its mining policy environment. However the tide has turned in recent years and British Columbia has again improved its ratings for global mining investment.

Bringing a mine from discovery to production is a long, expensive and time-consuming process with thousands of mineral prospects explored for each new mine eventually developed. For this reason, mining companies seek out stable, predictable, and transparent policy environments for mining investment. Results from the recent Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies suggest that the province is becoming more attractive to mining investment with miners rating the province higher for a fifth consecutive year. However, despite this vote of confidence, B.C. could go further and become a global leader in mining.

The mining survey is based on the opinions of mining executives and assesses the effects of different public policy factors on attracting or dissuading investment. British Columbia has been included in the survey since its inception in 1997, where British Columbia ranked last of Canadian mining jurisdictions assessed.

Osisko says $4.4-billion Canadian Malartic mine plan proves Goldcorp’s bid is far too low – by Peter Koven (National Post – March 21, 2014)

March 21, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

TORONTO – As Sean Roosen sees it, Canadian Malartic is the second most valuable gold mine fully owned by a North American producer.

The chief executive of Osisko Mining Corp. said Thursday that his shares should be worth $10 to $12 each on the value of this asset alone, or as much as 58% above the current level. He spent all day in Toronto to try to get that point across to shareholders and convince them not to tender to Goldcorp Inc.’s hostile bid.

“There’s a lot of value left on the table here that we’ve been able to highlight,” he said in an interview. Mr. Roosen’s claims are based on Osisko’s updated mine plan for Canadian Malartic, which it released on Thursday. Based on that plan, Osisko estimates that the Quebec-based mine has a net present value of about $3.1-billion. And after accounting for the relative trading multiples of other gold miners, the company figures it should be valued at about $4.4-billion.

That is far above the $2.9-billion in cash and stock that Goldcorp currently has on the table. Goldcorp will almost certainly boost its offer in the weeks ahead, so the pressure is on Mr. Roosen to show this transaction is a bad idea.

Transparency is vital to relationship between oil industry and aboriginals – by Claudia Cattaneo (National Post – March 21, 2014)

March 21, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

Calgary – As Canada’s aboriginals play a larger role in the development of Canada’s natural resources, the federal government is taking steps to boost the transparency of the payments they receive from developers.

But the move, which would force annual disclosure of payments worth $100,000 or more, is drawing push-back from those affected the most — aboriginals and the oil industry.

Yet greater transparency would promote better practices, increased accountability, set ground rules and inform the public debate around the impacts of resource extraction on Canada’s aboriginal people. The proposal is part of an international effort to put a spotlight on payments made by extractive industries to governments.

But Ottawa’s proposal goes farther. It would require payments made by oil and gas and mining companies to all levels of governments, including aboriginal communities, domestically and abroad, to be disclosed, preferably through public filings to provincial securities regulators.

Greg Rickford could bring more collegial approach to Natural Resources portfolio – by Bruce Cheadle (Canadian Press – March 19, 2014)

March 21, 2014

http://www.680news.com/

OTTAWA – The arc of Greg Rickford’s career isn’t the norm but should give him an interesting perspective on his latest professional challenge.

From nurse to lawyer to MBA to member of Parliament, and now the new federal Natural Resources minister, Rickford, 46, has spent a lot of time dealing with First Nations issues in Ontario’s rugged and remote northwest.

Since last July, he’s been immersed in helping shepherd a massive northern Ontario mining development proposal through the federal-provincial funding labyrinth — a file fraught with political one-upmanship that Rickford has mostly avoided.

So when Prime Minister Stephen Harper tapped the Kenora, Ont., MP on Wednesday to replace Joe Oliver, the newly promoted finance minister, even the Conservative government’s critics were ready to cut him some slack.

Those who know Rickford say he’ll bring a collegial, level-headed approach to some of the biggest economic files on the Harper government’s plate. “He’s a practical, smart and down-to-earth guy,” said Geoff Norquay, a former senior aide to Harper who knows Rickford well.

Tricky talks await new Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford – by Shawn McCarthy (Globe and Mail – March 20, 2014)

March 20, 2014

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

OTTAWA — Greg Rickford will need to call on all his experience working with First Nations to resolve some of the toughest roadblocks in the Conservative government’s plan for energy and mining development.

The 46-year-old MP from Kenora, Ont., was appointed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Wednesday to replace Joe Oliver as Natural Resources Minister. Awaiting him are brewing resource battles in British Columbia and Ontario that are both economically important and fraught with political risks for the government heading into the next election.

In both cases, the government’s relationship with aboriginal communities and its willingness to help finance their development are key.

Mr. Rickford came into politics promising to try to improve the economy and infrastructure of First Nations. Early in his career, he worked as a nurse and a lawyer in remote communities in northwestern Ontario. Running for election in 2008, one of his central campaign promises was about the need to improve conditions for aboriginal Canadians.

Can Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford transform Canada into an ‘energy superpower’? – by Peter Koven and Jeff Lewis (National Post – March 20, 2014)

March 20, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

TORONTO/CALGARY – Greg Rickford knows mining, and he knows how to work with First Nations communities. Now he has to prove he can manoeuvre Canada through the rough-and-tumble world of pipeline politics.

Mr. Rickford, 46, was named the new federal natural resources minister on Wednesday as Joe Oliver moved on to finance. He inherits a grand plan to transform Canada into an “energy superpower” with $650-billion in resource development over the next decade.

The appointment was praised across Ontario’s mining sector, where Mr. Rickford is widely respected and is already at the centre of the province’s biggest new resource development. But it elicited shrugs in the West, where the Kenora native is a virtual unknown.

“Now is a critical time for Canada’s natural resource sector, and [Mr. Rickford] will need to get up to speed quickly on a number of files,” said David Collyer, president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.

Among the plans championed by Ottawa are accelerated extraction of Alberta’s oil sands and liquefied natural gas exports on the West Coast. Then there are the contentious pipeline issues:

New finance minister Joe Oliver could boost push for national regulator – by Lisa Wright (Toronto Star – March 20, 2014)

March 20, 2014

The Toronto Star has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on federal and Ontario politics as well as shaping public opinion.

Markets should react well to ‘serious guy’. Joe Oliver’s move into the finance minister’s seat could boost federal hopes of establishing a national securities regulator.

“He knows all the players, the banks, the regulators. He would have, certainly, contacts where he can sit down and have a conversation,” said Thomas Caldwell, chief executive of Caldwell Securities Ltd. in Toronto, who has known Oliver for 40 years.

Outgoing finance minister Jim Flaherty had long pushed for a national regulator; Canada is the only major industrialized country without one. Oliver, who was named to the new post Wednesday, has worked as an investment banker with Merrill Lynch and is a former executive director of the Ontario Securities Commission.

The 73-year-old Harvard MBA is also former president of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada, and played a prominent role as chair of the advisory committee of the International Council of Securities Associations, and as chair of the consultative committee of the International Association of Securities Commissions.

Soaring energy prices making Ontario look dim for manufacturers – by Adam Radwanski (Globe and Mail – March 19, 2014)

March 20, 2014

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

For businesses in Brockville, the attempt to lure them over the border wasn’t new. But the pitch was. Earlier this winter, manufacturers in the Eastern Ontario community received a letter reminding them that their province’s industrial electricity rates were projected to rise by 33 per cent over the next five years, and 55 per cent by 2032.

“As a hedge against these increases,” it suggested, “setting up an operation just across the border in St. Lawrence County, New York, may be a competitive strategy you should consider.”

Such overtures, if not in written form then made more casually, are becoming increasingly common in Ontario. While they may not find immediate takers, they are emblematic of the mounting economic threat from an energy-cost trajectory that – following a series of questionable policy decisions – the province now seems powerless to do much about.

Owing mostly to a combination of overdue investments in infrastructure, phasing out coal and an ill-fated gamble on green energy, soaring power rates have already greatly increased the cost of doing business in Ontario.

Nickel prices affected in wake of Ukraine-Russia crisis – by (CBC News Sudbury – March 18, 2014)

March 19, 2014

http://www.cbc.ca/sudbury/

A recent upswing in nickel prices is being attributed to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s policies towards Ukraine — and the threat of international sanctions against the Putin regime could have big ramifications for the commodity.

Monday’s sanctions by Canada and the United States were mostly aimed at individuals, but some observers suspect Russia’s nickel exporters, and other industries, will be next on the list.

Sudbury representatives for nickel mining companies like Vale declined a request for comment, but analyst Donald Rumball, a Toronto-based analyst who studies the Sudbury mining market, said the price fluctuation probably won’t last.

“Well, the problem with sanctions is very porous,” he said. “If Russia was stopped from selling nickel, what would stop it from selling to China and Indonesia and Vietnam and who else.”

$3B potash mine possible for Sedley – by Bruce Johnstone (Regina Leader-Post – March 19, 2014)

March 19, 2014

http://www.leaderpost.com/index.html

Rio Tinto partners with North Atlantic

A brief mention of a joint venture project with North Atlantic Potash Inc. in Rio Tinto’s 2013 annual report has the potash industry buzzing about a large find of potash near Sedley, about 30 kilometres southeast of Regina.

As it turns out, Saskatoon-based North Atlantic internally announced the discovery of 329 million tonnes of potash on its website in December, but never released the information to the public, according to a North Atlantic employee.

In the annual report, Rio reported that the Sedley area discovery contained “encouraging potash grade and thickness,’ according to an article earlier this week in The Australian, the country’s largest national newspaper.

The joint venture between Rio Tinto Potash Management, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, one of the largest mining companies in the world, and North Atlantic Potash, a subsidiary of JCS Acron, one of Russia’s largest mining companies, was formed in 2011.

How Europe is turning to North America to wean itself off Russian energy exports – by Yadullah Hussain (National Post – March 19, 2014)

March 19, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

As Russia moved at lightning speed to annex Ukraine’s Crimea region, a hapless Europe continued to move at an oil tankers’ pace to wean itself off Moscow’s formidable energy resources.

A handful of EU nations, however, are waking up to the energy abundance of their NATO allies in North America. Ambassadors from Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland sent a letter to U.S. House Speaker John Boehner this month to help expedite approval for liquefied natural gas export licences to their countries, and help reduce their dependence on Russia.

Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, said he has not received a similar request from the countries, but noted that Canada can be part of the solution by exporting energy products to the European Union.

“Europe’s strategic need to diversify its sources of energy points to Canada and complements our strategic imperative to diversify our markets,” the minister said in a statement sent to the Financial Post.

B.C.’s LNG tax could bomb – by Jack M. Mintz (National Post – March 18, 2014)

March 19, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

What purpose does the LNG tax have besides being a revenue-grab?

The BC proposal for a new tax on proposed Liquefied Natural Gas plants certainly galvanized negative reaction from some producers. Project proponents like Shell and Chevron expressed concerns over its economic feasibility (Imperial Oil, of which I am director, said less). On the other hand, the B.C. government claims that the projects will be tax competitive with the U.S. and Australia, resulting in large employment gains to the province.

The BC government also forecasts that the projects will yield substantial new provincial revenues – the new LNG tax as well as corporate, personal, and sales tax revenues ranging from $4-billion to $11-billion annually (2012 prices) depending on prices and capacity. So lots at stake for the BC economy in terms of jobs and revenues.

Yet, I think the new LNG tax proposed by BC raises critical issues that go beyond questions of competitiveness and revenues. The new LNG tax could create a policy precedent that could lead to poor tax policy in the coming years in Canada and not necessarily in the interests of British Columbia itself.

Mysterious Canadian’s life in the fast lane fuelled by penny stock scam: SEC – by Joe O’Connor (National Post – March 18, 2014)

March 18, 2014

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

The 700,000 emails were sent at about 2:30 p.m. EDT on Feb. 23, 2012. The senders were AwesomePennyStocks.com and PennyStocksUniverse.com, a pair of affiliated stock promotion websites that touted penny stocks to potential investors.

The must-buy on this day was America West Resources Inc., a small coal-mining outfit headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. Its shares typically traded for about 29 cents each. The company seldom attracted much investor interest.

But Feb. 23, 2012, was different, according to documents filed last week by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in a federal court in Manhattan. The America West promo was an alleged scam. Its mastermind: John Babikian, a 26-year-old Montrealer with multiple passports and whose whereabouts, at present, are unknown.

Mr. Babikian, a scourge among regulators, revenue collectors, investors and securities watchdogs, was, among stock promoters, something of a celebrity, albeit a mysterious one.

The young stock pusher fled Canada in 2012 after being charged with tax evasion. He is believed to possess passports from Guatemala, Lebanon and Nevis and was last reported — by his wife’s divorce lawyer — to be in Monaco.

Short-term investment focus has to go, Franco-Nevada’s Harquail tells PDAC – by Alisha Hiyate (Mining Markets – March 3, 2014)

March 18, 2014

http://www.miningmarkets.ca/

David Harquail, president and CEO of gold royalty company Franco-Nevada (TSX:FNV; NYSE: FNV), first started coming to the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention when he was a kid in the ’60s. His job was to transport rye and scotch from his dad’s car to the suite the exploration geologist had booked at the Royal York.

As potential investors examined the targets on the hand-coloured geological maps spread out over the bed in the smoky suite, Harquail remembers the tinkling of ice in their glasses.

He also remembers that before they left, quite a few of those investors would actually hand over a cheque to the elder Harquail, James, who had worked for mining legend Thayer Lindsley before going on to form a number of exploration syndicates.

“I think those investors, because they were getting a one-on-one with the fellow that was coming up with the project and executing on the project, they had a pretty clear view of what their odds of success were and what they were buying in terms of the prospect that summer,” Harquail told an audience at PDAC yesterday.

“That was a different era and none of those things that they were doing there you could probably do today.”