Newfoundland and Labrador Mining

Eric Sprott makes his biggest bet yet on what he believes could be ‘the greatest gold discovery in the history of Canada’ – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – April 19, 2022)

April 20, 2022

The billionaire, who was an early backer of what became one of the world’s largest gold miners, says this one is even bigger

Bay Street legend Eric Sprott, who became a billionaire betting on gold and silver, just made his biggest investment yet in a precious metals exploration company.

Last week, Sprott, the founder of asset manager Sprott Inc., announced that he had purchased $125.9 million of shares in New Found Gold Corp., an early stage exploration company that holds exclusive rights to a project in Newfoundland and Labrador that has yielded promising initial drill results but has no official mineral resource.

As mining plans ramp up, Millertown hopes to grow with its new, golden neighbours – by Garrett Barry (CBC News Newfoundland Labrador – April 5, 2022)

April 6, 2022

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

Communities around Marathon Gold’s Valentine Lake project are preparing — and praying — for big changes in their region as the mining company takes the next steps toward construction of its open-pit mines.

The project passed a major environmental assessment process with the Newfoundland and Labrador government last month and hopes to bring contractors to the site to start building the mine’s infrastructure this summer.

It’s a gold mine: Toronto company gets green light for central Newfoundland mining project – by Mike Moore (CBC Newfoundland Labrador – March 18, 2022)

March 18, 2022

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

Valentine gold project has been released from environmental assessment

The provincial government is giving the go-ahead to a proposed gold mine in central Newfoundland that is being touted as potentially the largest in Atlantic Canada and a “significant contributor” to the province’s economy.

Industry Minister Andrew Parsons made the announcement Thursday in the House of Assembly. “The Valentine gold project in central Newfoundland has been released from the provincial government’s environmental assessment and the project is approved to proceed,” Parsons said.

How industry, Indigenous nations and provincial leaders forged a consensus in Labrador – by Jacques Poitras (CBC News New Brunswick – December 9, 2021)

December 14, 2021

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/

Former premier, Innu and Inuit officials say negotiating a deal is better than legal showdown

As the New Brunswick government and the Wolastoqey Nation prepare for what could be a decade-long legal battle over Aboriginal title, an alternative approach is continuing to unfold on the eastern edge of Atlantic Canada.

In Labrador this week, the owners of the Voisey’s Bay nickel mine have halted marine shipping to and from the mine, just as they do every year on Dec. 6. It’s part of an agreement to minimize the breaking up of winter ice by ships so that Inuit and Innu hunters can cross that ice to harvest in their traditional territories.

Voisey’s Bay mine wins Miner of the Year – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – Noember 29, 2021)

November 30, 2021

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

The Newfoundland and Labrador Branch of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) has awarded Vale (NYSE: VALE) its Miner of the Year designation for Vale’s Voisey’s Bay nickel operation 30 km southwest of Nain, Labrador. The award was announced at the annual Mineral Resources Review on Nov. 25.

The Voisey’s Bay team has been working on the simultaneous development of two underground mines – Reid Brook and Eastern Deeps – while it continues to mine the Ovoid deposit with open pit methods.

Vale shopping low-carbon N.L. nickel to burgeoning EV sector; with pledges to get greener – by Terry Roberts (CBC News Newfoundland-Labrador – November 8, 2021)

November 9, 2021

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

Company confirms it’s in talks with suppliers to electric vehicle market in effort to ‘grow our exposure’

Vale is aggressively promoting the low-carbon footprint of its mining and processing operations in Newfoundland and Labrador, with hopes of positioning its eastern Canadian operations as a preferred supplier to the burgeoning battery electric vehicle market.

The company is touting a third-party assessment of its N.L. operations that revealed nickel rounds produced in the province go to market at a substantially lower environmental cost than the industry standard.

Friedland-backed Ivanhoe Electric funds South Voisey’s Bay survey – by Henry Lazenby (Nothern Miner – October 6, 2021)

October 7, 2021

Global mining news

Mining magnate Robert Friedland is looking to make another potentially massive base metals discovery about 80 kilometres south of his famous Voisey’s Bay find from 1993.

Friedland’s privately held US-based firm Ivanhoe Electric Inc. (IVNE) has put up funding to conduct a low-temperature superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) moving loop transient electromagnetic survey on the South Voisey’s Bay (SVB) nickel-copper-cobalt project in Labrador, Canada.

Newfoundland and Labrador’s notable mining history carries on – by David Duval (Resource World – August 31, 2021)

September 7, 2021

https://resourceworld.com/

For an island that’s commonly referred to as “The Rock” it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that mining has played an important if sporadic role in the economic, social, and cultural history of the eastern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Mining is one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest and oldest industries, and a major contributor to the economy of the province, especially in rural areas. More than 15 mineral commodities have been produced or mined in the province.

Vale unlocks the next phase of Voisey’s Bay – by David Keating (Canadian Mining Journal – August 16, 2021)

August 17, 2021

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

The Labrador Aboriginal Training Partnership (LATP), an agreement between
Vale and the Labrador Inuit and Innu of Nunatsiavut, Nunatukavut and Innu
Nation has been instrumental for recruiting and training Aboriginal workers
from the region. Employment numbers from these Aboriginal groups at Voisey’s
Bay is touted as being 50% of the overall workforce.

One of the largest nickel deposits in the world has been given a new lease on life. Vale’s Voisey’s Bay property in northern Labrador, operating as an open pit mine since 2005, was nearing the end of its production life.

Instead, innovations in partnerships and technology will allow Vale to go underground and develop two new orebodies that will extend the life of Voisey’s Bay to 2034.

First ore production on the new underground phase of Vale’s Voisey’s Bay project was announced on June 11, with full production capacity slated to be reached by August.

Voisey’s Bay underground expansion delivers first ore – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – June 14, 2021)

June 15, 2021

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

June 11 marked the milestone first production of ore from the underground expansion project at the Voisey’s Bay nickel-cobalt mine owned by Vale SA (NYSE: VALE). The mine is located on the north cost of Labrador, about 35 km south of Nain, Nfld.

Underground production is expected to extend the life of the mine until at least 2032. Two separate deposits – Reid Brook and Eastern Deeps – have been developed. At peak production, they will produce 40,000 tonnes of nickel in concentrate yearly, or a processing rate of 2.6 million t/y.

The expansion also increases economic participation by the local Innu and Nunatsiavut Inuit communities. Indigenous employment has more than doubled to about 500 people. Sixty-five per cent of all procurement contract were awarded to indigenous-owned businesses.

An Australian iron ore company is shifting to green energy, and Labrador is in its sights – by Rob Antle (CBC News Newfoundland-Labrador – June 11, 2021)

June 11, 2021

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

Fortescue has ambitious plans to become carbon-neutral through renewable and hydrogen projects

It may seem like an incongruous initiative: a major Australian company built on iron ore, sending top officials on an around-the-world hunt for green energy opportunities.

They have visited nearly 50 countries, in the midst of a roiling global pandemic. The aim? To lead the global energy transition away from carbon to greener options.

The company has already signed a number of deals to do feasibility studies in other countries, including Brazil, Indonesia and Afghanistan. And that company from Down Under is now eyeing potential opportunities in Labrador.

[Sponsored] The Gold Rush in Newfoundland (Investing News Network – March 31, 2021)

April 1, 2021

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Canada is one of the world’s leading mining nations, ranking among the top five global producers for minerals such as gold, potash, cadmium, cobalt, graphite, nickel and many others.

In 2019, the country’s total mineral production reached C$48.2 billion. While Ontario and Quebec represent two key mineral exploration jurisdictions within Canada, one major province is often overlooked by investors looking to gain a share of the country’s precious metals sector: Atlantic Canada’s Newfoundland and Labrador.

The discussion around mining in Eastern Canada is often overshadowed by the prolific Abitibi greenstone belt that spans across the border between Ontario and Quebec, but Newfoundland offers one of the most extensive mining histories in Canada, with small-scale mining dating back to the 1770s, expanding into a major industry by the 1860s.

A low-carbon future means a big demand for key minerals. Can N.L.’s mines cash in? – by Lindsay Bird (CBC News Newfoundland & Labrador – December 6, 2020)

December 7, 2020

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

As automakers unveil electric vehicle after electric vehicle, and innovation surges around solar panels and other renewable energies, an industry with a long history in Newfoundland and Labrador hopes to position itself to supply more of the materials needed for the green transition.

“It’s a very opportune time for the province. Mining is essential for a low-carbon future,” said Ed Moriarity, the executive director of Mining Industry NL, the province’s industry association.

Not every ore is created equal in the eyes of innovators, as demand focuses on extracting what are sometimes termed “critical minerals,” sometimes labelled “strategic” ones.

New hope for Kami iron ore project, with Labrador MHA cautiously optimistic – by Terry Roberts (CBC News Newfoundland-Labrador – November 18, 2020)

November 18, 2020

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/

An agreement that will see the Kami proposed mining site in Labrador sold to a company with an operational mine across the border could see raw ore head to Quebec for processing, says MHA Jordan Brown.

Brown, a New Democrat who represents Labrador West in the House of Assembly, said he is cautiously optimistic but worried that economic benefits from what mining experts call a world class iron ore project may not stay in the region.

“This close proximity does bring some concern that some benefits will not come back to the people of Labrador, and may potentially benefit Quebec workers over Labrador workers,” Brown said.

Newfoundland: An Unexpected Gold Exploration Destination – by Phil Gracin (The Deep Dive – October 4, 2020)

October 5, 2020

https://thedeepdive.ca/

Newfoundland is often overlooked by investors when searching for investment opportunities in the gold sector. The prolific Abitibi Greenstone Belt that runs through Northern Ontario and Quebec understandably attracts major interest, as does the Golden Triangle region of British Columbia with its many gold mines. Regions such as Newfoundland are off to the side of people’s vision.

Although not often on investor’s radar screens, Newfoundland has an extensive mining history. Small-scale mining dates back to the 1770’s, but it became a major industry only in the 1860’s, with the discovery of major copper at Notre Dame Bay and the Wabana iron ore deposits on Bell’s Island.

In 1905 a major lead-zinc-copper deposit was discovered near the town of Buchans in central Newfoundland. It was difficult to mine because there were no known milling processes that could adequately separate the mineral sulphides.