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Canadian Media Resource Articles

Rickford takes mid-election jab at Ontario Liberals over Ring of Fire – by James Munson (iPolitics.ca – May 29, 2014)

http://www.ipolitics.ca/

Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford waded into the Ontario election after appearing at the House of Commons natural resources committee today, taking a battering ram to the governing Liberals for making splashy resources announcements without giving specifics.

“We’ve gone through some silly exercises by the provincial government and I’ve been clear about that before,” said Rickford, after exiting the committee room where he was presenting his department’s latest main estimates.

“Announcing up to one billion dollars hasn’t taken investor confidence, private sector, First Nations or the federal government very far,” he said, referring to Premier Kathleen Wynne’s announcement before the writ dropped that her government would put $1 billion toward opening up the Ring of Fire mineral deposit in the province’s north.

“Saying that you’re going to have a development corporation with no articles of incorporation, no policy documents by their own admission to support it is unbelievable,” he added.

In December, Ottawa and Queen’s Park got into a scrap over Wynne’s announcement of a development corporation to get the region opened up to transportation infrastructure. The announcement of $1 billion before the election earlier this month hinged on the budget passing, which didn’t happen after the NDP pulled their support.

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Ottawa 580 CFRA News Talk Radio Host Rob Snow interviews RepublicOfMining.com’s Stan Sudol about Ring of Fire (May 26, 2014)

http://www.cfra.com/index.aspx Since taking over the drive home slot on 580 CFRA in 2004, Rob Snow has built his “Afternoon Edition” into one of the region’s most popular and influential radio shows. Snow describes himself as just an old-fashioned radio reporter at heart. Combining that reporter’s natural curiosity with a no-nonsense, let’s-just-get-to-the-point approach drives his intelligent, …

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Ring of Fire Reality Check?: Superior Morning’s Lisa Laco Interview with Mining Watch’s Ramsey Hart (CBC Thunder Bay – May 27, 2014)

http://www.cbc.ca/thunderbay/ Reality Check? It’s a big issue in the North, and the promises to ignite the Ring of Fire are flying. But Ramsey Hart of Mining Watch Canada says we shouldn’t put the horse before the cart. Click here for the interview: http://www.cbc.ca/superiormorning/episodes/2014/05/27/reality-check/

Barrick reaches deal with indigenous groups over Pascua Lama mine – by Rachelle Younglai (Globe and Mail – May 29, 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.

Barrick Gold Corp. has struck a deal with the indigenous groups that opposed the company’s mothballed Pascua Lama project. But the miner must still overcome huge obstacles before it can resume developing the massive gold and silver deposit in the Andes.

The mountaintop project on the border between Chile and Argentina has been put on hold indefinitely while Toronto-based Barrick waits for market conditions to improve.

The company’s mismanagement of Pascua Lama pushed costs up to $8.5-billion as the gold market soured, forcing Barrick to halt construction late last year in order to conserve cash.

Although Barrick is nowhere close to restarting the South American project, the company said Wednesday that it had reached an initial agreement in April with 15 Diaguita communities in Chile.

Barrick said it will share technical and environmental information about Pascua Lama with the indigenous groups as well as provide funding for any independent analysis.

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More pain ahead for mining investors: Michael Berry – by Alisha Hiyate (Mining Markets Magazine – May 28, 2014)

http://www.miningmarkets.ca/

Self-described natural resources bull and co-editor of Disruptive Discoveries Journal (formerly Morning Notes) with his son Chris, Michael Berry is an economist, a former professor, with 25 years of experience investing in the natural resources and life sciences sectors.

In an interview with Mining Markets in late May, Berry, who is a frequent guest lecturer at the Federal Reserve, explains where the U.S. is in its economic recovery, why gold and silver will remain range bound, and what risks and opportunities await investors in the commodity and capital markets.

Mining Markets: Let’s start off with the general state of the U.S. and global economies. Earlier this month, you wrote we are still in an economy that has not and will not achieve escape velocity – or growth – for many months or even several years. What has to happen before a recovery can take hold?

Michael Berry: In most recoveries from a recession historically, you’ve had a 4% to 4.5% economic growth rate. Today we are barely at 2%. In most recoveries, central bankers want to generate inflation to avoid the Japanese deflationary experience: they want rising prices and wages. We’re not seeing any of these at present.

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A voice in the wilderness barks again for the Northern Ontario Heritage Party – by Roy Macgregor (May 29, 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.

NORTH BAY, ONT. — ‘Just give me a minute to put my teeth in!”

It has been a wild week for 82-year-old Ed Deibel of the Northern Ontario Heritage Party. The clock on the wall behind the double-screen computer on which he hammers out his missives on how the North gets shortchanged has ticked past 2 p.m., the deadline for registering as a candidate for the June 12 provincial election, and he is getting a bit jittery waiting for the confirmation from Elections Ontario that eventually does come.

Teeth in, the man known for decades more for his bark than his bite is ready to go. “On Monday I wasn’t a leader, I wasn’t a candidate, the party was going to be de-registered,” he says. “Now I’m a candidate … and I guess I’m the leader.”

There were only two registered candidates on the NOHP ticket, but then a group of disenchanted northerners in the riding of Thunder Bay-Atikokan rounded up 25 signatures, enough to get a name on the ballot, and they asked if the old leader of the often-dormant party would let his name stand.

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[KGHM] Company unveils new plan for controversial Kamloops B.C. mine to address concerns about health risks – by Cam Fortems (Vancouver Sun – May 29,2014)

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

KAMLOOPS – The company behind a controversial copper-gold mine near Kamloops has unveiled a new proposal in an effort to address concerns about potential health risks.

Members of the Kamloops Area Preservation Association have said an estimated 90,000 people could be exposed to toxic dust containing arsenic, lead and aluminum that would blow over the city from the open-pit mine that they fear is too close to homes.

Now, KGHM Ajax has come up with a plan to move the mine farther south and eliminate a tailings stack in favour of a conventional tailings pond to the southeast.

The tailings pond will cover Goose Lake, which the company described as a slough with a maximum depth of one metre. Ajax officials announced last August that they were working on a new mine plan. They also said the pit would be expanded, along with ore production.

The joint venture involves Poland-based KGHM and Vancouver junior partner Abacus Mining & Exploration Corp. The project must still be approved by the federal and provincial governments after environmental assessments have been done.

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Citigroup: Don’t be tempted to buy gold stocks – by David Berman (Globe and Mail – May 29, 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.

After getting slaughtered last year, gold mining stocks are showing modest gains in 2014 and are also outperforming gold by a narrow margin. That’s the good news. The bad news? Gold miners are still burning through cash, making them unattractive investments.

“Understandably, many shareholders are toiling with the idea of buying into gold equities given the past 12-month’s decline in share prices,” said Johann Steyn, an analyst at Citigroup, in a note. “We continue our theme of ‘don’t be tempted.’”

But rather than condemning all gold miners, Mr. Steyn holds out some hope for a select few that show more promise than their peers. These rare opportunities include Goldcorp Inc. and Barrick Gold Corp.

His negative assessment of gold miners in general comes at a time when the sector has been bloodied beyond recognition. When the price of gold fell 29 per cent in 2013, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs index of 18 global producers plunged nearly 55 per cent, approaching 10-year lows.

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Jacynthe Côté exiting as head of Rio Tinto’s aluminum unit – by Bertrand Marotte (Globe and Mail – May 28, 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.

MONTREAL — Jacynthe Côté, Rio Tinto Ltd.’s head of aluminum operations, is stepping down. The Anglo-Australian global mining giant said on Tuesday that Ms. Côté is leaving Montreal-based Rio Tinto Alcan “for personal reasons to pursue other interests.”

She is being replaced by BP PLC veteran Alfredo Barrios, 48, the executive director and executive vice-president (downstream) at joint venture TNK-BP, one of Russia’s largest vertically integrated oil and gas companies. Ms. Côté was promoted to the job in 2009, two years after her predecessor – Richard Evans – presided over the huge $38-billion takeover of Alcan Inc. by Rio Tinto.

“Jacynthe has long been a key member of Rio Tinto’s leadership team and has enjoyed a successful career with Rio Tinto and Alcan spanning more than 25 years,” said Rio Tinto chief executive Sam Walsh.

“The ongoing improvement in the performance of the Aluminium business is testimony to her commitment to the business throughout her career.” Under Ms. Côté’s watch, aluminum prices fell dramatically, forcing significant cost-cutting measures and job cuts at head office and elsewhere.

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Benefits agreement for [Newfoundland and Labrador] Kami iron ore mine announced (CBC News Newfoundland and Labrador – May28, 2014)

http://www.cbc.ca/nl/ The completion of the benefits agreement is a major step for the project, and Labradorians are being told they’ll benefit most, thanks to a Labrador-first hiring protocol. We hear from Natural Resources Minister Derek Dalley, from people on the street in Labrador West – an area still reeling from the closure of the Wabush …

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Developing mines in Northern Saskatchewan requires strong partnerships (Regina Leader-Post – May 24, 2014)

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

In the past several years, more than 315 agreements have been signed across Canada between resource companies and First Nations and Métis people to provide secure benefits to the communities.

According to Sean Willy, the director of corporate responsibility at Cameco, the partnerships in Northern Saskatchewan have been a benchmark for other companies across the country. “Saskatchewan has always been one of the leaders in Aboriginal engagement. Our model is emulated across the country and around the globe,” he said.

The Saskatoon-based company is one of the world’s largest uranium producers. He said that signing an agreement with both the English River First Nation and the northern Village of Pinehouse in Northern Saskatchewan simply helped solidify an already-strong 25-year relationship.

“They asked if we’d be interested in signing an agreement, and we said, ‘Sure, if you think it would be in the best interests of your communities,'” said Willy. “We wanted to recapture everything we were already doing as partners – basically, we just needed to codify the formal relationship.”

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Swimming in a sea of sharks – by Ashley Fitzpatrick (St. John’s Telegram – May 29, 2014)

http://www.thetelegram.com/

When it comes to iron ore producers, Canada is a minnow in a sea of sharks, according to Alderon Iron Ore president and CEO Tayfun Eldem.

Sea of sharks

Speaking to an Atlantic Provinces Economic Council (APEC) gathering in St. John’s Wednesday morning, he said the country is producing about 45 million tonnes of iron ore a year, almost all from the Labrador Trough region on the Quebec-Labrador border. That production is about one and a half per cent of the total seaborne trade.

He compared this to the region of Western Australia, where mining companies are producing more than 450 million tonnes per year.

About 24 hours before his speech at the Delta Hotel, Alderon’s top man was signing a benefits agreement with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, based on the assumption the company’s Kami iron ore mine will be fully financed by the end of the summer — in a world where the sharks are always circling.

The Kami mine would mean $4 billion in tax revenues for the province, $2.6 billion by more conservative government estimates, and 400 long-term jobs post-construction, and would help keep Canada in the game globally as an iron ore producer.

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Ontario leaders tout Ring of Fire’s potential and promise action (CBC News Toronto – May 29, 2014)

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada

All 3 major parties want to develop the remote region that holds chromite and nickel

Northern Ontario’s largely undeveloped Ring of Fire is worth a $1-billion campaign promise from two of three major political parties.

Both NDP Leader Andrea Horwath and Liberal Leader Kathleen Wynne have promised to spend $1 billion on an all-season transportation corridor to the highly valuable region’s natural resources.

Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak, meanwhile, has proposed bringing the federal government and private companies to the table to discuss development. The Ring of Fire lies deep beneath the boreal forest, 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay and 1,700 kilometres north of Toronto.

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Côté’s exit leaves Rio Tinto at crossroads – by Sophie Cousineau (Globe and Mail – May 28, 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.

It is a bittersweet end to Jacynthe Côté’s distinguished 26-year career at Rio Tinto Alcan.

The Laval University-trained chemist who rose through the ranks at Alcan became head of Rio Tinto’s aluminium business in January, 2009, just as the financial crisis was ripping through the world economy. No other woman had accomplished such a feat in the company’s 112-year history.

On the day she was appointed, though, she announced the closing of the Beauharnois, Que., smelter she once directed, and that pretty much set the tone for her five-year term. As aluminium prices fell and Rio Tinto suffered from an acute case of buyer’s remorse over its $38.1-billion (U.S.) acquisition of Alcan – in cash no less – Ms. Côté closed smelters, laid off employees and turned every rock she set her eyes on to cut the producer’s costs.

Last year, the unit’s underlying earnings, at $557-million, were 10 times higher than in 2012. Now that the worst of the mining downturn appears behind Rio Tinto, Ms. Côté is leaving the company’s aluminium unit to “pursue other interests.” However, her replacement by BP veteran Alfredo Barrios as chief executive comes at a time when Alcan’s future within Rio Tinto is clouded.

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Kami iron ore mine to tap apprentices – by Ashley Fitzpatrick (St.John’s Telegram – May 27, 2014)

http://www.thetelegram.com/

Pen has been put to paper on an agreement stipulating direct benefits to be seen by Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with the start-up of a new mine in Labrador West.

Premier Tom Marshall (centre) prepares to sign a benefits agreement, alongside Natural Resources Minister Derrick Dalley (left) and Alderon president and CEO Tayfun Eldem. — Photo by Ashley Fitzpatrick

The Kami iron ore mine is being developed under a partnership of Alderon Iron Ore and China’s Hebei Iron and Steel. It is expected to contribute $18 billion to the provincial GDP during a 30-year life, providing the province $2.6 billion in taxes and royalties.

The new benefits agreement looks beyond royalty and taxation numbers, addressing topics including hiring and procurement practices and how the development can help expand the local skilled trades workforce. A signing ceremony was held Tuesday morning at Confederation Building in St. John’s.

The standing deal includes requirements for local-first hiring, the provision of a 40-space child-care centre in Labrador West and a $7-million education and training fund to be provided as the mine goes into production.

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