Coal – Page 8 – Republic of Mining

A deadly Canadian mining disaster: exactly 65 years later, there are still lessons for us – by Ken Cuthbertson (Toronto Star – October 28, 2023)

October 30, 2023

https://www.thestar.com/

The warning signs were all there. Yet economics dictated that the residents of Springhill, N.S., continue their blind reliance on coal — the ultimate fossil fuel.

One hundred and seventy-four men were working deep within the Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation (DOSCO) colliery at Springhill, N.S., on the evening of Oct. 23, 1958. That’s when death came calling. “At the surface (in Springhill), people … felt a bump,” a Nova Scotia Energy and Mines senior geologist would say many years later. “That wouldn’t explain what the miners felt deep underground. It was much more violent.”

It has been guesstimated that the force of what locals ever after came to refer to as “the Bump” was the equivalent of about 1,000 tonnes of dynamite being exploded underground. That may well have been so, for the grim consequences of the upheaval still stand as one of Canada’s worst workplace disasters. the hard-luck town of Springhill had a long, painful history of such misfortunes.

As Teck weighs offers for coal business, likelihood of regulatory approval a factor – by Amanda Stephenson (CTV News/Canadian Press – October 24, 2023)

October 24, 2023

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/

The head of Teck Resources Ltd. says he will only accept a bid for the company’s steelmaking coal business if he feels confident Canadian regulators will approve the transaction. Jonathan Price, CEO of Canada’s largest diversified mining company, made the comments on Tuesday as part of an update on Teck’s ongoing efforts to separate its base metals business from its steelmaking coal unit.

Price said the Vancouver-based company continues to evaluate offers put forward by prospective buyers of its coal business with the hope of making a decision before the end of the year. While he said he is pleased with the level of outside competition the process has generated, Price said regulatory clearance will be a crucial factor.

A deadly Canadian mining disaster: exactly 65 years later, there are still lessons for us – by Ken Cuthbertson (Toronto Star – October 23, 2023)

October 24, 2023

https://www.thestar.com/

The warning signs were all there. Yet economics dictated that the residents of Springhill, N.S., continue their blind reliance on coal — the ultimate fossil fuel.

BHP sells Blackwater and Daunia coal mines to Australian mining company Whitehaven – by Jessica Clifford (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – October 18, 2023)

October 18, 2023

https://www.abc.net.au/

Mining giant BHP has sold two of its central Queensland coal mines for more than $US4 billion. Australian company Whitehaven Coal has purchased the Blackwater and Daunia mines which produce some of the world’s highest quality coking coal for steelmaking.

The Blackwater site, located south-east of Emerald, is also one of the southern hemisphere’s longest coking coal mines, with a striking rate of 80 kilometres. Daunia is located south-east of Moranbah in the Bowen Basin and has only been operational since 2013.

Chinese miners to be hardest hit by global coal job cuts, study finds – by You Xiaoying (Nikkei Asia – October 12, 2023)

October 12, 2023October 12, 2023

https://asia.nikkei.com/

Shift to renewables is forecast to slash nearly 250,000 jobs in Shanxi by 2050

Chinese miners will likely be hardest hit by sweeping job cuts expected in the coal industry over the next three decades as countries shutter coal plants in favor of cleaner — and increasingly cheaper — renewable energy, a new analysis has found.

Coal mines in Shanxi province in northwest China, the country’s coal heartland, could slash 241,900 jobs by 2050, according to a report published on Tuesday by Global Energy Monitor (GEM), a San Francisco-based nongovernmental organization.

Kingston author looks back at one of the greatest disasters in Canadian history – by Peter Hendra (Kingston Whig Standard – October 2023)

October 10, 2023

https://www.thewhig.com/

Sixty-five years ago, in the tiny coal-mining town of Springhill, N.S., a mini-earthquake — what they called a “bump” — in the No. 2 mine took the lives of 75 people, making it one of the worst workplace disasters in Canadian history.

While he was born and lives in Kingston, Ken Cuthbertson, the author of the just-published “Blood on the Coal: The True Story of the Great Springhill Mine Disaster,” has roots in Nova Scotia and remembers his grandparents talking about the Halifax Explosion of 1917 and Springhill, a story that had captured the nation’s attention.

The politics of climate alarmism – by Derek H. Burney (National Post – October 3, 2023)

October 4, 2023October 4, 2023

https://nationalpost.com/

The climate debate has been hijacked by a political narrative that brooks neither dissent nor balance

Damaging weather events inevitably lead to climate evangelists making apocalyptic claims of imminent disaster. UN Secretary General António Guterres led the most recent chorus, talking about “global boiling” and raising alarmism to a fever pitch.

Yet, more than 1,600 scientists, including two Nobel physics laureates, have signed a declaration stating that, “There is no climate emergency.” That poses a serious political problem for any government that has been arguing the contrary.

Opinion: China needs to pay a higher price for its coal plants – by Gwyn Morgan (Financial Post – September 26, 2023)

September 28, 2023September 28, 2023

https://financialpost.com/

Take the carbon taxes off the shoulders of Canadians and transfer them to carbon-spewing Chinese imports

In my last column, in early July, I wrote about the irony that a self-described “progressive” Liberal government kept in power by a deeply socialist NDP, both supposedly dedicated to protecting the poor, was fighting a war on carbon emissions whose costs, the Parliamentary Budget Officer has calculated, fall disproportionately on lower-income Canadians.

Since then we’ve had a devastating wildfire season, so it’s understandable that Canadians may be wondering if high and rising carbon taxes are a sacrifice we simply must make in order to fight climate change.

Coal mining company applies for new drilling permit in Grassy Mountain deposit – by Elise von Scheel (CBC News Calgary – September 21, 2023)

September 21, 2023

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

Company’s previously proposed project was rejected 2 years ago

The company that had a coal mining project at Grassy Mountain rejected two years ago has submitted a new proposal for drilling and exploration in that southwestern corner of Alberta.

Northback Holdings Corporation, previously called Benga Mining Limited, has submitted three fresh applications to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) for work in the area. One asking for authorization to run a coal exploration program, one for temporary water diversion, and one for a deep drilling permit.

OPINION: The Springhill Mine disaster is a cautionary tale the world would do well to remember – by Ken Cuthbertson (Globe and Mail – September 16, 2023)

September 18, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Ken Cuthbertson’s latest book is Blood on the Coal: The True Story of the Great Springhill Mine Disaster.

Mark Twain once quipped, “Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt.” Twain was right about that. The urge to deny inconvenient truths is as widespread as it is timeless. We’ve had yet another vivid reminder of that in our summer of wildfires, droughts and monster storms.

Despite the cacophony of alarm bells warning us that if we continue doing what we’re doing, our addiction to fossil fuels won’t end well for us or for our planet, climate-change skeptics and energy-industry lobbyists insist that, at least for now, there’s no realistic option.

OPINION: Pennsylvania can help our country meet the growing demand for rare-earth minerals – by Mike Armanini (Penn Live Patriot News – September 2023)

September 13, 2023

https://www.pennlive.com/

Historically known as a hub of industrial innovation, Pennsylvania is now poised to enter a new era of economic prosperity through the mining and refinement of rare-earth minerals. As global demand for these critical elements skyrockets, the Commonwealth has a unique opportunity to leverage its rich geological endowment to not only boost its economy but also contribute significantly to technological advancements and our nation’s security.

Rare-earth minerals, a group of 17 elements, play a pivotal role in modern technology. They are crucial to manufacturing consumer electronics, renewable energy systems, and advanced defense technologies.

The baptism by fire of Teck’s new boss, Jonathan Price, who wants to put Canada on the critical metals map – by Eric Reguly (Globe and Mail – September 9, 2023)

September 11, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

On a warm afternoon in early September in London, Bernard Looney, the boss of BP, one of the world’s top oil companies, and a colleague sat down on wooden bench in St. James’s Square park, a patch of green Georgian loveliness near Buckingham Palace. They were enjoying the sunshine.

Moments later, another chief executive, Jonathan Price of Teck Resources Ltd. Canada’s biggest diversified mining company, strolled into the small park, where a Globe and Mail photographer was waiting to take photos of him, and found himself next to Mr. Looney. The two men, who both have offices overlooking the park, greeted each other and shook hands for the first time.

No quick end for sale of Teck’s coal unit as mining giant weighs more bids than expected – by Eric Reguly (Globe and Mail – September 5, 2023)

September 7, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canada’s Teck Resources Ltd. is surprised by the global interest in its coal business, suggesting that bidders such as Switzerland’s Glencore PLC will face a highly competitive bidding process whose outcome will not be known quickly.

In an interview in London, Teck chief executive Jonathan Price said the range of possible bidders for the coal division, known as Elk Valley Resources (EVR), includes mining companies, steelmakers and resources funds. EVR is the world’s second-biggest exporter of seaborne metallurgical coal, which is used to make steel.

Major shareholder voted against Glencore’s climate report as miner eyes Teck’s coal unit – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – September 7, 2023)

September 7, 2023

https://financialpost.com/

BlackRock concerned about ‘inconsistencies’ in strategy

BlackRock Inc. has revealed it didn’t support Glencore PLC‘s climate-resolution proposal at the miner’s annual general meeting in May.

In a report published late last month, BlackRock, a major Glencore shareholder, said that although Glencore improved its disclosure of climate-related risks and opportunities, it is “concerned” that aspects of the mining giant’s climate proposals and “recent developments have pointed to inconsistencies in the company’s stated strategy.”

China says its coal emissions are no big deal — over to you, Steven Guilbeault – by Lorrie Goldstein (Toronto Sun – August 30, 2023)

August 31, 2023

https://torontosun.com/

While Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault was in Beijing this week to discuss ways China and Canada can reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, one of China’s major state-run media organizations wrote an editorial headlined “Western concerns about China’s coal power growth unnecessary.”

Global Times, which operates under the auspices of the Chinese Communist Party’s flagship newspaper, the People’s Daily, said while “China’s decision to build more new coal-fired power plants has raised questions in the West as to whether the country will meet its 2030 carbon pledge … the concern is unnecessary as China’s pursuit of carbon goals is on par with its focus on economic development.”