Gold and Silver – Page 288 – Republic of Mining

Investigation continues into attack on Eldorado Gold mine in Greece – by The Canadian Press (Globe and Mail – February 18, 2013)

February 18, 2013

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.

A Greek prosecutor ordered the release Monday of a 54-year-old man hours after he was arrested in connection with an attack on a Canadian-owned gold mining operation in which about 40 masked intruders torched machinery and vehicles.

Police had arrested the man for “moral instigation” of the attack due to his contributions to an anti-mining blog. The prosecutor later ordered him released without officially charging him, while also ordering the investigation to continue.

Opposition to the Skouries mining project in northern Greece’s Halkidiki peninsula runs deep and the area has seen numerous protests in recent months, some of which have turned violent.

The mining company, Hellas Gold, which is 95 per cent owned by Vancouver-based Eldorado Gold Inc., is planning a gold mine and processing plant in the area.

Residents are divided between those who fear environmental destruction and those who support the mine for its job prospects at a time of severe financial crisis and spiralling unemployment.

Barrick Gold Bets Once More on Nevada After Zambian Flop – by Liezel Hill (Bloomberg.com – February 15, 2013)

February 18, 2013

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Barrick Gold Corp. is betting growth will come from Nevada, where the world’s largest producer scored its first big success three decades ago, after more than $9 billion in writedowns and cost overruns in the past two years on projects from the Andes to Zambia.

Chief Executive Officer Jamie Sokalsky said yesterday the Toronto-based company doubled the estimated resources at the Goldrush deposit in Nevada last year, even as it sells assets and cuts spending elsewhere to revive shares that slumped 24 percent. Barrick is also pushing ahead with Pascua-Lama, a gold and silver mine on the Chile-Argentina border it expects to open next year.

“The priorities for the company, once we finish Pascua- Lama, really are focused on Nevada,” Sokalsky said yesterday on the company’s earnings call. “We have one of the most exciting exploration finds in recent memory, the Goldrush discovery, to ultimately add to this Nevada production in the future.”

Sokalsky’s mantra yesterday was steady and safe. The CEO, who took the job June 6, said the company has no plans to build more new mines and is looking to sell lower-return assets including its energy unit and the 50 percent it owns in a nickel project in Tanzania.

Shareholders reacted positively to Sokalsky’s moves to do “anything that will increase shareholder value” yesterday, lifting the stock 2.3 percent in Toronto.

Barrick’s overpriced Equinox acquisition comes back to bite in US$4.2B writedown – by Peter Koven (National Post – February 15, 2013)

February 15, 2013

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

TORONTO – Like many of its mining peers, Barrick Gold Corp. has received its comeuppance for a badly overpriced acquisition.

The world’s biggest gold miner took a humiliating US$4.2-billion writedown on Thursday, mostly tied to its struggling Lumwana copper mine in Zambia. The move acknowledged what investors already knew: Barrick paid far too much when it agreed to buy Equinox Minerals Ltd. (Lumwana’s former owner) for $7.3-billion in 2011.

“The operating results at Lumwana have been disappointing since we acquired Equinox,” chief executive Jamie Sokalsky told investors. “They’ve been unacceptable, actually.”

Barrick’s move is the latest in a string of massive asset writedowns that have scarred the mining industry in the past year. It comes one day after Kinross Gold Corp. announced a US$3.1-billion charge on the Tasiast mine, another asset that was acquired for too much money.

The Barrick impairment is typical of the ones seen across the industry. The company made a huge acquisition at the top of an overheated market. When costs rose more than expected and metal prices cooled off, the carrying value of the asset on its balance sheet had to be reduced. Last month, Rio Tinto Ltd. and Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. took writedowns under similar circumstances.

Despite writedown, Barrick digs in on Zambia copper play – by Pav Jordan (Globe and Mail – February 15, 2013)

February 15, 2013

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. says it can still make its African copper business pay off, despite a multibillion-dollar writedown on Zambian mines hit by skyrocketing costs.

Toronto-based Barrick said on Thursday it took a $3.8-billion charge on its copper business in the fourth quarter, marking the second Canadian miner to be shaken this week by bets made two years ago, when commodity prices were soaring.

The charge stoked some of the worst fears of investors who have long fretted that buying the assets in 2011 under the $7.3-billion acquisition of Equinox Minerals Ltd. was a mistake.

“Obviously I’m disappointed that we’ve had to take this impairment, and it’s a sizable impairment, in hindsight, in terms of what we paid for it,” Barrick chief executive officer Jaime Sokalsky said in an interview Thursday with The Globe and Mail.

“But it is a big asset in a world-class copper belt and ultimately, if we can get the costs under control and ultimately get a higher copper price down the road – which I think has a good likelihood of happening – this asset could be very very valuable for us.”

Brazil wants more research on Amazon gold mine before Canadian company proceeds – by Tanya Talaga (Toronto Star – February 15, 2013)

February 15, 2013

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.

Brazilian government urges more studies on how Belo Sun Mining Corporation’s Volta Grande venture will affect the environment and indigenous peoples.

The Brazilian government wants to see more research on a massive gold-mining project near the Amazon River before the Canadian firm behind it goes ahead with developments.

Brazil’s Federal Public Ministry has asked state authorities to obtain more information on how the Belo Sun Mining Corporation’s Volta Grande venture, one of the largest gold mining projects near the Amazon, will affect the ecologically sensitive area and the indigenous people living there. It also wants details on any effects the project will have on the nearby Belo Monte dam, the third largest hydroelectric project in the world.

The Amazon River basin is one of the most precious ecosystems in the world. Deforestation and development in the area is a cause of global concern.

The Volta Grande is 60 kilometres southwest of the city of Altamira in the northern Para state. Belo Sun controls the mining and exploration rights covering 1,305 sq. km.

China still unable to surpass Indian gold demand – but getting close – by Lawrence Williams (Mineweb.com – February 14, 2013)

February 15, 2013

http://www.mineweb.com/

Particularly strong demand for gold jewellery, a big jump in Q4 consumption in India and a continuing high level of Central Bank purchases offset a decline in investment during Q4 2012.

LONDON (MINEWEB) – Even the World Gold Council seems a little surprised by its latest gold demand figures for the October to December quarter, showing that Indian gold take-up has been particularly strong with Q4 gold demand rising by a huge 41.2% year on year, thus keeping India ahead of China as the world’s biggest gold consumer. China had been widely expected to surpass India this year, but according to the WGC figures lagged India by 88 tonnes over the full year.

The rise in Indian gold consumption over the quarter though may well not be repeated as it is thought that much of the increase was due to purchases being accelerated ahead of the onset of rises in gold import duty. Overall India consumed 864 tonnes of gold during the year, around 20% of global gold production.

However Indian statistics may well be difficult to analyse as the government tries to curb imports through duty hikes – the more the taxes take effect the more likely that smuggling of gold into the country will increase. Indeed there have been reports that gold smuggling into the country, primarily from the Middle East, has risen very sharply indeed – see Gold smuggling soars in India.

Kinross takes $3.2-billion hit on African mines – by Pav Jordan (Globe and Mail – February 14, 2013)

February 14, 2013

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.

Kinross Gold Corp. is taking another massive charge on its African operations, slashing the value of its flagship growth properties to a fraction of the $7.1-billion it paid to acquire them just two years ago.

The Toronto-based miner said on Wednesday it would take an impairment charge of $3.206-billion (U.S.) on 2012 earnings, most of it attributable to the Tasiast project in Mauritania amid soaring capital and operating costs that have hit the entire mining industry.

That comes on top of a $2.49-billion charge on the assets a year ago. Altogether, Kinross has now cut nearly 80 per cent of the value of its takeover of Red Back Mining in 2011, which included Tasiast and Chirano, another mine in West Africa.

“It’s pretty darn sad that a company can be that wrong on an acquisition,” said George Topping, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus in Toronto. “I think they’re pretty much telling you that they think it [the acquisition] is worth $1.5-billion, between Tasiast and Chirano, the two mines that they bought.”

Tasiast represents the company’s key growth driver.

Barrick has done its best to improve human rights at mine in Papua New Guinea – Globe and Mail Editorial (February 13, 2013)

February 13, 2013

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.

Change hasn’t happened quickly enough in the global mining sector, despite prodding from advocacy groups concerned about environmental sustainability and human rights abuses. But when a mining company responds to pressure and makes changes for the better, that should be acknowledged, not dismissed as an empty public relations gesture.

Recent criticism by Mining Watch of Barrick Gold’s initiative to assist the women who were raped by local employees of its mine in Papua New Guinea is short-sighted. It has accused the company of “rushing” the women through the claims process, and of forcing them to sign away their legal rights.

That is stretching the truth. In fact, Barrick, the world’s largest gold-mining company, has done its best to clean up the mess at the Porgera gold mine. Since 2011, it has spent 18 months consulting with human-rights advocates and developed an opt-in program of remediation for the victims, offering them counselling, access to micro-credit and medical care. The program is administered by an independent team, including the former chief magistrate of Papua New Guinea.

The women are free to pursue action against any individuals involved but once they settle the grievance procedure with the company, they cannot make further legal claims against it. This seems fair.

Goldcorp awaits open pit permit – by Benjamin Aubé (Timmins Daily Press – February 13, 2013)

February 13, 2013

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – One of the most ambitious mining projects in Timmins history is off to a good start. Though major work and blasting has yet to begin on the Hollinger Mine open pit near the centre of town, Goldcorp is happy with progress and community response after closing the books on the first quarter of the project.

Construction of a noise-, sound- and dust-reducing berm has progressed as Goldcorp awaits environmental air compliance approval from the Ministry of the Environment (MOE). Goldcorp operations superintendent,Paul Miller expects the company will receive news on the permit to come by the end of February.

“Any on-site construction or mining activities, which includes berm construction, related drilling, blasting, hauling and loading activities will commence once the MOE has provided approval and posted the permit to proceed,” Miller said at city council on Monday night.

“Right now in terms of timing, we expect there’s going to be a period after we provide the updated models. We don’t know what that’s going to be, but we don’t think it’ll be before the latter part of March, early April before we see any activity on site based on our current knowledge.”

Difficult public process for Goldcorp’s pit plans – by Liz Cowan (Northern Ontario Business – February 2013)

February 12, 2013

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.

The process to operate an open pit mine adjacent to Timmins’ downtown core has been a long and difficult one. Goldcorp’s Hollinger project involves a 250-acre fenced property housing the former Hollinger Mine, which was shuttered in the late 1960s. It is expected to begin operations this winter.

Its underground workings have created sinkholes and subsidences in the area and millions of dollars have been spent filling them. Creating an open pit operation will remove the underground hazards and the land will be useable once a closure plan is complete.

The company received city council’s unanimous approval late last fall, along with the support of the Hollinger Project Community Advisory Committee (HPCAC).

“We can’t kid ourselves, any project like this is hard,” said Marc Lauzier, Porcupine Gold Mines general manager. “The public process was a difficult one, and we learned a lot throughout that process.”

For the past five years, Goldcorp has been advising the community of its plans for the Hollinger Project through open houses and other activities.

NEWS RELEASE: Detour Gold Announces Start of Production at Detour Lake

February 12, 2013

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Feb. 11, 2013) – Detour Gold Corporation (TSX:DGC) (“Detour Gold” or the “Company”) is pleased to report that the ramp-up of the first production line of the processing plant is advancing at its Detour Lake open pit gold mine in northeastern Ontario.

Ramp-Up Update

The first production line started with low-grade material on January 12, 2013 and was followed by ore grade material. The ramp-up of the first production line is progressing with the SAG mill, the pebble crusher, and the ball mill all in operation. After close to one month of operation, and despite the usual teething issues, the operation team is happy to report that the fundamental parts of the circuits operate well. Next step will be the start-up of the secondary crusher to increase throughput.

The gold inventory (in CIP and electrowinning) has been increasing in the circuit since start-up. It is expected to reach the level required to allow the first gold pour in mid-February.

In parallel, the electrical and instrumentation work on the second production line is progressing well and start-up is expected in March 2013.

Mali turmoil bad for Canadian mining ambitions in West Africa: analysts – by Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press/CTV News – February 8, 2013)

February 8, 2013

http://www.ctvnews.ca/

OTTAWA, Ont. — As Islamist rebels controlled a chunk of Mali the size of France late last month, Toronto-mining analyst Pawel Rajszel honed his advice to investors on a leading Canadian mining company in the country.

Rajszel had previously told investors to “take their money and run.” His note of Jan. 24 concluded with one word: “Sell.”
Even after French and African troops routed al Qaeda terrorists from major cities in Mali’s north this week — and after French President Francois Hollande basked in the euphoria of a liberated Timbuktu — Rajszel was still unmoved.

“We haven’t changed our opinion,” Rajszel, head of the precious metals team at Veritas Investment Research, told The Canadian Press.

The Mali crisis and its spillover into West Africa are a monkey wrench in the Harper government’s ambitions for Canadian firms, especially in the mining sector.

The government is actively promoting Canadian business opportunities in Africa, but has no stomach for contributing troops to the French-led military campaign to drive al Qaeda-linked extremists out of northern Mali. Industry analysts say headlines about terrorists gaining a foothold in West Africa are chilling investors, and casting a pall over future prospects.

Carlin Trend Co-Discoverer Livermore dead at 94 – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – February 8, 2013)

February 8, 2013

http://www.mineweb.com/

Prospector, geologist, rancher and public resource advocate John Sealy Livermore was the last surviving member of three men considered the fathers of the Carlin Trend and “invisible gold” deposits.

RENO (MINEWEB) – John Livermore–the legendary American geologist who believed new gold mines could be developed from “invisible gold”—died in his sleep in his own bed Thursday after a short bout with cancer.

Guided by the ideas of U.S. Geological Survey geologist Ralph J. Roberts, Livermore and fellow Newmont geologist Alan Coope in October 1961 staked the claims that would become of one of world’s richest gold regions—the Carlin Trend. Livermore and Coope’s discovery was believed to contain 4 million ounces of gold. The entire Carlin Trend has produced well over 50 million ounces of gold.

Livermore remained with Newmont until 1970 when he returned to Nevada to form Cordex exploration. By 1970, only one other gold mine had been discovered in Nevada, the Cortez operation. However, Livermore felt a return to basic prospecting might lead to other economic gold discoveries.

He hired mining engineer Whit “Dee” DeLaMare, whose work led to the discovery of the Pinson, Preble, Sterling and Dee gold mines, as well as the development of the Getchell Trend. The Pinson Mine discovery enabled Cordex to get its capital investment back in 13 months, Livermore recalled in an oral history.

The U.S. National Mining Hall of Fame & Museum Profile: John S. Livermore – Co-Discoverer of the Nevada Carlin Trend)

February 8, 2013

The U.S. National Mining Hall of Fame & Museum – located in the famous 1880’s silver mining boomtown of Leadville, Colorado – is a monument to the memory of the men and women who pioneered the discovery, development and processing of our nation’s natural resources. http://www.mininghalloffame.org/

John S. Livermore, an exploration geologist working for Newmont, provided the drive that led to the 1961 discovery of the Carlin Mine in northern Nevada. Carlin became the first large gold mine on what is now known as the Carlin Trend. John subsequently played an energizing role in exploration that has established northern Nevada as one of the world’s premier gold districts.

Carlin-type deposits are characterized by extremely fine-grained gold — gold that cannot be seen by the human eye nor concentrated by panning. Nevertheless, several small Carlin-type deposits were discovered in northern Nevada and worked as mines prior to the discovery of the Carlin orebody. John Livermore examined one such deposit at the Standard Mine near Lovelock, Nevada in the late 1940s and believed that other, possibly richer, fine-grained deposits remained to be found. Where to look was an open question.

Ralph Roberts, a field geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey, provided the answer in a short paper, “Alignment of Mining Districts in North-Central Nevada,” which came to John Livermore’s attention in early 1961. Roberts pointed out that known deposits were associated with windows in the (coincidentally named) Roberts Mountain thrust fault — windows where older, over-riding rocks from the west had been eroded to expose younger rocks below.

Silver Wheaton-Vale deal underscores opportunity amid mining firms’ suffering – by Peter Koven (February 7, 2013)

February 7, 2013

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

As mining companies suffer through rough market conditions, their royalty and streaming counterparts are taking advantage and striking the biggest deals in their history.

“We are busier than we’ve ever been,” said Randy Smallwood, chief executive of Silver Wheaton Corp. “And what’s more important is the quality of the assets that are being brought forward to us is better than I’ve seen in the past.”

This week, Vancouver-based Silver Wheaton announced a US$1.9-billion acquisition of gold streams from mining giant Vale SA of Brazil. It is by far the largest metal streaming deal ever done, surpassing the US$1-billion transaction between Franco-Nevada Corp. and Inmet Mining Corp. that was reached less than six months ago. The Vale deal also includes 10 million Silver Wheaton warrants.

Miners are turning to companies such as Silver Wheaton and Franco-Nevada for financing for a couple of reasons: issuing equity is extremely difficult and dilutive in this market, and capital cost pressures have made it more important than ever to share the financing risk on large projects. The fact that an enormous company such as Vale is giving up future cash flow to secure capital shows how challenging it is for the industry right now.

It wasn’t always this way for Mr. Smallwood. When he took over as CEO in April 2011, Silver Wheaton could not get a deal done with anyone. Precious metal prices were soaring at the time, and companies were demanding far too much money in exchange for their future gold and silver output.