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Junior Exploration Sector

Chinese investor steps in to block Paladin’s Fission buy – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – September 16, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Australia’s Paladin Energy (ASX: PDN) has hit a roadblock in its proposed acquisition of Canada’s Fission Uranium (TSX: FCU) after a Chinese investor in the takeover target opposed the tie-up.

The Western Australia-based miner revealed on Monday that CGN Mining Company, a subsidiary of China General Nuclear Power with a 11.26% stake in Fission, is opposing the tie-up. Paladin moved in June to buy the Canadian miner for C$1.14 billion ($845 million), contingent on at least two-thirds of Fission shareholders voting in favour of the transaction by Aug. 26.

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Mining exploration mess finally slated to be cleaned up in northern Quebec – by Susan Bell (CBC News North – September 16, 2024)

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

Abandoned exploration camp on John Rupert’s trapline one of almost 500 such sites in Cree territory

After many, many years of asking, John Rupert’s trapline is finally scheduled to be cleaned up. The Whapmagoostui elder knows it’s likely too late for him to return to hunt there, but maybe not for his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

“Because of my age, I might not be able to go back there,” said Rupert, 71, whose trapline, as traditional hunting grounds are called in northern Quebec, is 60 kilometres southeast of the community. It’s a place he knows so deep and so well that he and his father used to travel there in the dark, in a time before flashlights.

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Canada Nickel may net $500m Ottawa loan for giant Crawford project – by Colin McClelland (Mining.com – September 6, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Canada Nickel (TSXV: CNC) says a Canadian government agency might loan it $500 million for its Crawford project in northern Ontario, which could become the world’s largest nickel-cobalt sulphide development. Its shares rose.

Export Development Canada (EDC), which finances and offers other help to domestic companies, sent a letter of intent to Canada Nickel in late August, it said on Friday. It would be combined with $600 million in tax credits expected from Ottawa to help build the C$3.5 billion capex project near Timmins over two stages, the company said.

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Katoro Gold expands into uranium exploration through Ontario acquisition – by Darren Parker (Mining Weekly – September 9, 2024)

https://www.miningweekly.com/

Aim-listed Katoro Gold has expanded into uranium exploration with the acquisition of the White Pine uranium project in Ontario, Canada. The acquisition was made through its subsidiary, Katoro Canada, which now holds a 100% interest in the project.White Pine covers an area of 8 036 ha and is located close to the Trans-Canada Highway, about 75 km southeast of the town of Dryden, in the Kenora district of north-west Ontario.

While the project is still in the early stages of exploration, public domain data has indicated the potential for significant uranium discovery at White Pine. Early results include highly anomalous uranium levels in lake sediments collected from the project area.

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Canadian miner moves to UAE as Ottawa raises bar for foreign investment – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – July 30, 2024)

https://financialpost.com/

‘The equity markets in Canada are tough at the moment,’ says CEO of Falcon Energy Materials

A Canadian graphite miner has moved its headquarters outside the country to attract new investment as the federal government raises the bar for certain foreign companies to buy into Canada’s critical minerals sector.

Falcon Energy Materials PLC — formerly known as SRG Mining Inc. — completed its move to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in early July, but it will continue to be listed on the TSX Venture Exchange.

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Paladin CEO bullish on clearing national security test on Fission deal, as Ottawa inquires about state-owned China shareholder – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – July 18, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Australia’s Paladin Energy Ltd.is confident its proposed acquisition of Canada’s Fission Uranium Corp. will clear a national security probe, as Ottawa makes enquiries about CGN Mining Co. Ltd., a China-based state-owned deal stakeholder.

Perth-based Paladin last month said it had reached a friendly agreement to buy Kelowna, B.C.-based Fission in an all-stock transaction worth $1.14-billion. Fission is developing the Patterson Lake South (PLS) uranium project in the Athabasca Basin region of Saskatchewan and hopes it will be in production by the end of the decade.

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Grassy Narrows First Nation to launch legal action against Ontario to mandate consultation on mining claims – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – July 11, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A Northern Ontario First Nation plans to launch a legal action against the province later this week aimed at requiring the mining industry to consult with the Indigenous people before staking claims.

Ontario’s free-entry system makes it easy for individuals and companies to file a claim online in return for a nominal fee. On Friday, Grassy Narrows will hold a press conference at Queen’s Park, announcing that it has served the province in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

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GoviEx Uranium has mining licence in Niger revoked, shares plummet – by Staff (Mining.com – July 4, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

GoviEx Uranium (TSXV: GXU) no longer has rights over the perimeter of the Madaouela mining permit following the Niger government’s decision on Thursday to withdraw its licence, dealing a big blow to the development of one of the world’s largest uranium projects.

The Vancouver-based uranium miner had feared that its licence could be revoked if mining could not start by July 3, 2024, a deadline set by Niger’s military leaders who came into power around this time last year.

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Marathon mine developer eyes 2025 construction start – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – July 4, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Generation Mining focusing on copper amid permitting delays, hunt to secure project financing

Generation Mining president-CEO Jamie Levy wants to assure all that the Marathon palladium-copper mine will get built. Ever since the Toronto junior miner first appeared on the north shore of Lake Superior in 2019, the company has been a press release-generating machine with its ambitious plans for an open-pit operation.

But in recent months, there’s been a lull in news flow that’s prompted a few concerned investors to ask Levy if the project is stalled.

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Friedland, McEwen back Power Nickel’s “oversubscribed” $15m funding – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – June 24, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Canadian explorer Power Nickel (TSX-V: PNPN) has closed its recent C$20 million ($15m) “oversubscribed” financing round, backed by well-known personalities including billionaire investor Robert Friedland and mining veteran Rob McEwen.

The Toronto-based junior said the funds will be use to expand exploration on its 80%-owned NISK property in Quebec, adding it hopes to take advantage of Canada’s federal tax credit for critical mineral exploration.

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Indigenous company lands Sudbury mine project contract – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – June 17, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Aki-eh Dibinwewziwin LP awarded advanced exploration contract for Magna Mining’s Crean Hill Project

Sudbury’s Magna Mining decided to buy local in picking an Indigenous contractor to extract a bulk sample from its emerging Crean Hill nickel and copper mine project.

Aki-eh Dibinwewziwin Limited Partnership (ADLP) has been awarded an advanced exploration contract that involves pulling a 20,000-tonne surface bulk sample that’s part of Magna’s early test mining scheduled for later this year. The sample will be trucked to Glencore’s Strathcona mill in Sudbury for processing.

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‘You’re always a drill hole away from an immense discovery’: Pirie – by Nicole Stoffman (Timmins Daily Press – June 10, 2024)

https://www.timminspress.com/

Ontario Minister of Mines excited by new prospects in the region

Timmins MPP George Pirie, Ontario’s minister of mines was engrossed in conversations with three promising junior mining operations in the Prospector’s Tent at the 2024 Canadian Mining Expo on Thursday, June 6. “That’s what excites me about the mining industry,” Pirie told the Daily Press before heading off to give the Ontario State of Mining Address. “You’re always a drill hole away from an immense discovery.”

According to the Ministry of Mines, the Timmins-Porcupine gold camp is the largest producer of gold in Ontario. Last year Ontario allocated $6 million to support junior minors (who explore mining deposits), bringing the province’s total investment in their junior mining program to $35 million since 2021.

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Don’t underestimate world demand for Nickel, CEO says – by Nicole Stoffman (Timmins Press – June 7, 2024)

https://www.timminspress.com/

Mineral remains a resilient investment for both stainless steel and batteries: Selby

The ever-ebullient CEO of Canada Nickel Company, Mark Selby, is bullish on Nickel, despite Canadian’s growing skepticism about electric vehicles.

According to an April survey from AutoTrader, the number of Canadians interested in buying an EV fell from 68 per cent in 2022 to 46 per cent in 2024. People are concerned about inadequate charging infrastructure, the cars’ limited range, higher cost, and performance in cold weather.

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Gold company, First Nation set the ground rules for Far North exploration – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – May 24, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Eabametoong Chief says agreement with Storm Exploration is a ‘model for others to follow’

Vancouver’s Storm Exploration has signed an exploration agreement with the Eabametoong First Nation (EFN) regarding planned activity around its Fort Hope Projects in the remote James Bay region.

In a May 23 news release, Bruce Counts, Storm’s president-CEO, called the signing a “major milestone” that offers mutual benefits for both the company and community. Storm’s Miminiska, Keezhik and Attwood projects are 350 kilometres north of Thunder Bay within a mineralized geological structure called the Miminiska-Fort Hope greenstone belt.

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Solaris abandons proposed financing with Chinese company after deal stalled in national security review – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – May 22, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canadian critical minerals company Solaris Resources Inc. has called off its financing deal with China’s Zijin Mining Group Co. Ltd. after failing to receive regulatory approval from Ottawa, which had been vetting the transaction on national security grounds. Vancouver-based Solaris in January said that Zijin intended to pay $130-million for a 15-per-cent equity stake in the company.

Solaris had planned to use the funds to advance its early-stage Warintza copper project in Ecuador. If the deal had been approved, Zijin would have been entitled to a seat on Solaris’s board, giving it influence over the strategic direction of the company. Copper, along with nickel, lithium and graphite, is used in electric-vehicle batteries and other low-carbon energy sources.

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