Cliffs Natural Resources

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

A plan to open a chromite mine in northwestern Ontario and ship the ore to a Capreol plant for processing has been put on hold, along with hundreds of new jobs the development would have created.

On Tuesday, Cliffs Natural Resources announced it will suspend indefinitely its activities in the Ring of Fire by the end of the fourth quarter of 2013.

“As we’ve assessed the current challenges in the region and the costs to continue on the current path, we decided to suspend the chromite project indefinitely,” Bill Boor, senior VP of strategy and business development, said in a release. “Unfortunately, we will reduce the project team staffing, and close our Thunder Bay and Toronto offices, as well as the exploration camp site.”

Cliffs has determined “it will not allocate additional capital for the project given the uncertain timeline and risks associated with the development of necessary infrastructure to bring this project online,” according to its statement.

In June, the company suspended environmental assessments and in October, it announced it was planning to appeal a decision by the Mining and Lands Commissioner, who had dismissed its application to build an all-weather road through land staked by Montreal-based KWG Resources Inc.

Read more

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North. Ian Ross is the editor of Northern Ontario Business ianross@nob.on.ca.

The Ring of Fire’s biggest mining player has called an indefinite halt to its chromite project in Northern Ontario. Cliffs Natural Resources announced late Wednesday that is it suspending its $3.3-billion Black Thor chromite mine and mill project, and it is not allocating any further capital to the deposit in the James Bay lowlands for 2014.

All technical work, including the feasibility study, development and exploration activity, is under suspension. The company has not assigned a project restart date.

Cliffs spokesperson Pat Persico said the challenges and uncertainties to advance the project timelines, and the associated risks concerning unresolved infrastructure issues with the Ontario government “really brought us to this decision.”

“We’re allocating capital for the project and there’s a point where we can no longer continue to do that without further clarity and movement in that area.”

Read more

 http://www.northernlife.ca/

City officials were stunned Wednesday evening, following the announcement by Cliffs Natural Resources it was suspending all work on its massive Ring of Fire chromite project, including work on a billion-dollar smelter near Capreol.

“The company determined that it will not allocate additional capital for the project given the uncertain timeline and risks associated with the development of necessary infrastructure to bring this project online,” Cliffs said in the release.

“We continue to believe in the value of the mineral deposits and the potential of the Ring of Fire region for Northern Ontario. As we’ve assessed the current challenges in the region and the costs to continue on the current path, we decided to suspend the Chromite Project indefinitely,” Bill Boor, senior vice-president, is quoted as saying.

“Unfortunately, we will reduce the project team staffing and close our Thunder Bay and Toronto offices, as well as the exploration camp site. “We understand this is a hardship for our employees and their families. During this transition, we will be working with this talented team of professionals to explore other opportunities at Cliffs.”

Read more

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North.

Northeastern politicians have beating a steady path to the site of a potential ferrochrome refinery in an outlying area of Sudbury. Cliffs Natural Resources has had a continuous presence in Capreol, where it plans to build a ferrochrome processing facility, said councillor Dave Kilgour.

“Cliffs is in town almost all the time,” Kilgour said. “They’re moving forward and they’re spending money every day.” On Nov. 15, Kilgour joined local MPs Glenn Thibeault and Claude Gravelle, and MPP France Gelinas, on a tour of the proposed refinery site with Cliffs officials.

Gravelle said the site, located near the old Moose Mountain Mine, is remote and no major infrastructure has been been built but representatives from Cliffs did show him the plans for the plant. “They did seem very confident the project is going to move forward,” Gravelle said.

Conservative MPP and finance critic Vic Fedeli, representing Nipissing (North Bay) riding, also visited the proposed site, Nov. 12. “I can see why both Cliffs and the City of Greater Sudbury are excited for this project,” Fedeli said.

Read more

http://onotassiniik.com

Grads looking to political and mining company leaders for opportunities

William Boor is the Senior Vice President, Strategy & Business Development, Cliffs Natural Resources

The following is excerpted from a keynote address by Cliffs VP William Boor at the Ontario Mining Forum in Thunder Bay on June 20.

I think we have come to a time that will prove to be really critical in the history of the Ring of Fire development. …
I stand here talking tonight as a face of “industry” … (and) I know what comes with that. As “industry” I am expected to be self-interested for my company’s shareholders only, interested in keeping as much as possible, and by inference, giving as little as possible.…

But I’m asking you to hear me as a person – a person who believes that development, and particularly mining development, creates the possibility for everyone to succeed together. I believe that my position within industry is a wonderful place to change people’s lives.

Read more

Marilyn Scales is a field editor for the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication. She is one of Canada’s most senior mining commentators.

I can hear it now: “I told you so” from nationalists who believe nothing good ever comes from letting a foreign corporation take over a Canadian miner or junior. After all, it seems as soon as Vale bought Inco, a year long strike began bristling with the animosity Inco had tried so hard to defuse in recent years between itself and the unions.

The nationalist chorus is likely to increase in volume as Cliffs Natural Resources of Cleveland, OH, says it is thinking of pulling out of the Big Daddy chromium-PGM-nickel project in Ontario’s Ring of Fire. Cliffs gained a 70% interest in the project in 2010 when it swallowed Freewest. The remaining 30% is owned by KWG Resources of Toronto.

Since the Ring of Fire in the James Bay region has no infrastructure, developing any mine there will be a massively expensive undertaking. Not the least of the costs will be a means of transportation for concentrates headed to deep water ports. Here, opinions differ – should a railroad or an all-weather road be built?

Read more