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Nevada Mining

America’s electric cars need lithium so badly it may wipe out this species – by Matt McFarland (CNN Business – May 10, 2021)

https://www.cnn.com/

Washington, DC (CNN)Fewer than 40 years after humans discovered Tiehm’s buckwheat, a Nevada plant with yellow flowers, they may drive it to extinction in pursuit of electric vehicles, a technology widely hailed as being environmentally friendly.

Environmentalists say the benefits of Tiehm’s buckwheat could be vast, but its full significance is unknown. What’s certain, they say, is that guarding Tiehm’s buckwheat is important for preserving biodiversity on Earth.

The flower is so newly discovered that it hasn’t been studied thoroughly, they say. But botanists say they’re impressed with Tiehm’s buckwheat’s ability to thrive where few species can — poor soil that’s full of boron and lithium.

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Sudbury mining supply group stakes its claim in Nevada – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – February 4, 2021)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

MineConnect to establish incubator space for Northern Ontario companies to dive into southwestern U.S.

The mining industry in northern Nevada will have access to Canada’s largest concentration of hard rock mining expertise when MineConnect, Sudbury’s mining supply and service organization, sets up shop in Elko later this year.

The Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development and the Northeastern Nevada Regional Development Authority announced the signing of a three-year partnership with MineConnect to establish a business incubator space this summer to support the state’s mining industry.

The move maintains the momentum in relationship building between the two mining jurisdictions and this country’s expanding investment in Nevada’s robust mining industry, ranging from equipment manufacturing to gold mining.

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Tesla aims to mine its own lithium after dropping M&A plan – by Yvonne Yue Li and David Stringer (Bloomberg News – September 28, 2020)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

Tesla Inc. secured its own lithium mining rights in Nevada after dropping a plan to buy a company there, according to people familiar with the matter.

The automaker held discussions in recent months with Cypress Development Corp., which is seeking to extract lithium from clay deposits in southwest Nevada, but the parties didn’t reach a deal, the people said, asking not to be named because the information isn’t public.

The electric carmaker, which has vowed to slash its battery costs by 50 per cent, instead focused on the plan that Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk outlined last week to dig for lithium on its own in the state.

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Newmont CEO Sees Gold ‘Elevated,’ But Will Keep Plans Grounded – by Steven Frank (Bloomberg News – September 16, 2020)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — The world’s biggest gold producer sees the price of the precious metal remaining “elevated” as governments continue pandemic stimulus spending, but don’t expect that to change Newmont Corp.’s focus on fiscal “discipline” any time soon.

Gold skyrocketed to record heights above $2,000 an ounce in August, helping lift miners’ cash flow, stock prices and likely the hopes of shareholders expecting higher returns. Spot gold has since dipped a bit, but the haven metal is still trading in record territory above $1,900.

“There are a lot of signals that point to gold staying at these elevated levels — with I think a lot of volatility around it — for some time to come,” Newmont Chief Executive Officer Tom Palmer said by phone.

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Nevada’s “Lithium Valley” – by Charles Morris (Clean Technica – May 13, 2020)

https://cleantechnica.com/

No, lithium isn’t going to become “the new oil,” regardless of what the pandering pundits of the popular press say (it’s a raw material, not a fuel, and it’s one of the most abundant elements on Earth). However, there’s no question that demand for the light white stuff is growing quickly, and that much of the current supply comes from outside the US.

Tesla is believed to import much of the lithium it uses from Australia and South America. There are strong economic and environmental reasons to develop more domestic sources.

Fortunately, just a couple hundred miles north of Gigafactory 1, near the Oregon/Nevada border, there’s an area that some are calling Lithium Valley, which could contain a huge and easily exploitable trove of lithium. (This isn’t mere serendipity — one of the reasons Tesla chose Nevada as the site of the Gigafactory was the proximity to potential sources of lithium and other minerals.)

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Is a Proposed Lithium Mine in Nevada the Future of Renewable Energy? – by Chase Cain (NECN.com – April 22, 2020)

https://www.necn.com/

Do you think driving a Tesla or plugging-in to solar power are environmentally-conscious choices? Then you should know it’s almost certain the batteries in those systems traveled around the world two or three times before they were ever installed. That’s not very “green,” is it?

Lithium-ion batteries, found in laptops, mobile phones and many other things we use every day, often have a rather costly carbon footprint. But a tiny town in the American West called Orovada could play a big role in making green energy more green.

Northern Nevada could soon explode into America’s “Lithium Valley,” playing an even more critical role in our country’s future than Silicon Valley did with technology.

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Lithium Americas moves closer to Nevada mine approval – by Ernest Scheyder (Reuters U.S. – January 20, 2020)

https://www.reuters.com/

(Reuters) – U.S. regulators have moved a step closer toward approving Lithium Americas Corp’s Nevada mine for the white metal, launching a review process that could result in final permits to build by 2021.

The step comes as U.S. politicians have been pushing for increased domestic mining of specialized minerals. Lithium is used to make lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. Albemarle Corp is the only current U.S. producer of lithium.

The U.S. Department of the Interior filed paperwork to ask for public comment over the next year on the Thacker Pass project’s environmental impact statement, according to a post on a government website dated Jan. 21. The post appeared to be filed automatically as the department was closed on Monday for a holiday.

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Barrick misses quarterly gold output estimates on Tanzania curbs (Reuters Canada – October 17, 2019)

https://ca.reuters.com/

(Reuters) – Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO), (GOLD.N) fell short of analysts’ estimates for third-quarter gold production on Thursday, as lower output at its North Mara mine in Tanzania offset gains from its Randgold buy and the Nevada Gold Mines joint venture.

Operations at the Canadian company’s North Mara mine were hit by tax and environmental disputes, and restrictions were lifted in September after Barrick addressed concerns about seepage at the project’s tailings storage facility.

North Mara was operated by Acacia Mining and Barrick took full control of the miner after a British court approved its $1.2 billion takeover.

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Joining forces: What does the Newmont-Barrick Gold mega merger mean for Nevada’s mining future? – by Rob Sabo (Northern Nevada Business View – August 26, 2019)

Northern Nevada Business View

ELKO, Nev. — After years of discussion, Nevada’s two largest mining companies struck a deal this summer to join forces and combine operations in the world’s largest gold-producing complex.

The joint venture between Barrick Gold Corporation and Newmont Goldcorp Corporation ushers in a new era in Nevada hard rock mining. Barrick owns and operates 61.5 percent of the newly formed Nevada Gold Mines, while Newmont owns 38.5 percent of the company. By sharing assets and access to each other’s facilities, Nevada Gold Mines expects to save close to a half-billion a year.

NGM Executive Managing Director Greg Walker, who started with Barrick in 2002, has seen his share of failed merger discussions over the years. Just this year, Barrick tendered an $18 billion stock offer to acquire Newmont outright.

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Barrick Gold eyeing sale of 50-per-cent share in Australian mine – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – August 12, 2019)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Barrick Gold Corp. is planning to sell its 50-per-cent share in the Kalgoorlie mine in Australia and has identified two Australian companies as possible buyers.

“There’s a lot of very interested parties in that asset, whether it’s Northern Star or Evolution [Mining]. Those mid-cap Aussie guys are doing extremely well,” Barrick CEO Mark Bristow said in an interview after the release of the company’s second-quarter results on Monday. Neither Northern Star nor Evolution responded to a request for comment.

After Barrick bought Randgold Resources Ltd. for US$6-billion earlier this year, the company said it intended to divest about US$1.5-billion in assets to concentrate on its highest-returning assets, such as its mines in Nevada and its massive Pueblo Viejo mine in the Dominican Republic, which needs about US$1-billion in capital expenditure over the next few years.

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Barrick and Newmont Goldcorp launch Nevada Gold Mines (Mining Technology – July 2, 2019)

https://www.mining-technology.com/

Barrick Gold and Newmont Goldcorp have concluded a transaction establishing Nevada Gold Mines. Canadian mining company Barrick Gold will own 61.5% of the new company, while Newmont takes the remaining 38.5%.

The joint venture (JV) assets in North-eastern Nevada comprise ten underground and 12 open pit mines, two autoclave facilities and two roasting facilities. It also consists of four oxide mills, a flotation plant and five heap leach facilities.

Barrick Gold president and CEO Mark Bristow said: “The establishment of Nevada Gold Mines was designed to combine arguably the industry’s best assets and people in order to deliver the best value to stakeholders.

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Nevada’s Mackay, Newmont partnership 50 years old – by Adella Harding (Elko Daily Free Press – June 6, 2019)

https://elkodaily.com/

A partnership between the Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno and Newmont Goldcorp is marking its golden anniversary of helping students, the Mackay School, the mining industry and Newmont recruitment all these years.

“Both Newmont and Mackay get something out of the partnership,” said Melissa Harmon, general manager of Newmont’s Twin Creeks Mine in Humboldt County.

Newmont has donated an estimated $8 million to the Mackay School and UNR since 1969, Harmon said. Newmont also was the first mining company to reach the philanthropist level in 2011 for giving $5 million to the university.

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The Lady Muckers take on the 41st Annual International Collegiate Mining Competition – by Jennifer Sande (Nevada Today – March 27, 2019)

https://www.unr.edu/

The Mackay Muckers had enough female recruits for both men’s and a women’s teams for the first time in five years.

When asked if she could think of a more proper term to describe her female team members other than “badass”, Claire Roberts, Captain of the Lady Muckers – the Mackay Muckers women’s team, thought for a minute before answering. “Kickass? That’s not much better, is it?” Roberts asked.

The “kickass” Lady Muckers competed on Friday, March 22nd in the 41st Annual International Collegiate Mining Competition in Virginia City alongside teams from all over the country and the world.

The teams compete in old-school mining techniques such as single jack hand steel (hammering a steel chisel into concrete by hand), jackleg drilling, hand mucking (shoveling “muck” or dirt into a mine cart and running it down and back a length of track), gold panning, track stand (quickly assembling an un-assembling a rail-cart track), and swede saw (sawing through a 4×4″ block of wood).

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Bristow’s masterstroke gives Barrick control of Newmont’s Nevada assets — but now he must deliver – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – March 16, 2019)

https://business.financialpost.com/

Barrick CEO Mark Bristow says investor’s poor reaction to the Newmont-Goldcorp merger created an opportunity and he pounced

One day after announcing a deal to effectively create the world’s third largest gold company, Mark Bristow, chief executive of Barrick Gold Corp., stayed in Elko, Nevada — a dry, rugged city situated near the Carlin Trend, one of the world’s richest gold mining districts — to assemble the team responsible for executing his promises.

For decades, Toronto-based Barrick Gold Corp. and its archrival Colorado-based Newmont Mining Corp., the two biggest gold mining companies in the world, have fuelled a large part of their growth through discoveries along the Carlin Trend, and tried numerous times to reach an accord to work together there.

Now, Bristow, 12 weeks into his tenure at the helm of Barrick, is holding up a joint venture agreement with Newmont to share assets in Nevada, which he claims will save both companies US$500 million per year, and billions of dollars over the long run. What’s more the deal was ramrodded through in a matter of days while Bristow proposed a $17.8 billion hostile offer to takeover all of Newmont.

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Barrick drops $18-billion hostile bid, signs Nevada joint venture with Newmont Mining – by Niall McGee and Rachelle Younglai (Globe and Mail – March 12, 2019)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Barrick Gold Corp. and Newmont Mining Corp. have agreed to team up in a joint venture in Nevada that will see Barrick drop its hostile bid for its biggest rival and unite the world’s two biggest gold miners in one of the richest goldfields on the planet.

The accord means Colorado-based Newmont is far more likely to succeed in its efforts to buy Goldcorp Inc. and bypass Barrick as the world’s biggest gold company. Barrick’s pursuit of Newmont had threatened to derail the US$10-billion deal that was announced in January.

The Barrick-Newmont ownership split announced on Monday will be 61.5 per cent in favour of Barrick with the Toronto-based miner also named as the operator. The agreement will see gigantic mines, including Barrick’s Goldstrike and Cortez operations, along with Newmont’s Carlin, unite under one roof.

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