Newfoundland and Labrador Mining – Page 10

NEWS RELEASE: [Newfoundland and Labrador] Government Secures Commitment from Vale for Underground Mine

April 3, 2013

Executive Council
Natural Resources
March 28, 2013

A commitment to an underground mine at Voisey’s Bay is the centerpiece of amendments to the Voisey’s Bay Development Agreement announced today by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and Vale Newfoundland & Labrador Limited (Vale).

“The commitment secured by our government with Vale will ensure more jobs and benefits are created right here in Newfoundland and Labrador for our people,” said the Honourable Kathy Dunderdale, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador. “The new mine will provide many hundreds of construction jobs after sanction in 2015, and even more operational employment than the current mine after first ore is achieved in 2019. This is another example of this government’s continued commitment to ensuring that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians benefit from the development of our natural resources.”

The Provincial Government extracted extra value with other improvements including enhanced industrial and employment benefits and additional revenue to the Provincial Government of approximately $100 million over three years.

Voisey’s Bay underground mining deal reached – CBC News North (March 28, 2013)

March 28, 2013

http://www.cbc.ca/north/

Vale, Dunderdale reveal details on extending life of massive Labrador nickel find

In return, the government will allow Vale to export more Voisey’s Bay ore for the next three years without it being processed inside the province.

The government will get financial compensation of $100 million for the exemption involving nickel extracted from the mine on Labrador’s northern coast.

The agreement significantly extends the commercial life of the Voisey’s Bay mine, which is considered one of the world’s largest nickel finds. Former owner Inco shipped its first concentrate from the Voisey’s Bay mine in 2005. Two freelance prospectors working for Vancouver-based Diamond Fields Resources discovered the massive deposit of nickel, cobalt and copper in 1993.

Until now, production has focused solely on the surface of the mine. Vale had estimated that it can run the surface phase of the mine for about 14 years. The agreement on opening the underground mine effectively extends the life of Voisey’s Bay by another 15 years.

Applications flood in to Vale for long-term jobs – by Ashley Fitzpatrick (St. John’s Telegram – January 9, 2013)

January 12, 2013

http://www.thetelegram.com/

Vale is looking to fill long-term jobs for the operation of its new nickel-processing plant in Long Harbour. Coming out of construction over the next nine months, the mining company expects to have first nickel from the plant in the fourth quarter of this year.

There are an estimated 500 long-term jobs for the operation of the plant and about 350 people are expected to be hired by the end of the year.

The jobs include about 300 “technician” positions, advertised throughout the fall of 2012. “We’ve had quite a significant response,” said Bob Carter, a spokesman for Vale in Newfoundland and Labrador, in a recent interview with The Telegram.

Carter said the call for applications for the jobs has led to upwards of a couple thousand submissions, the vast majority being people from this province. The applications are being assessed and a first round of offers, though not the last, will be going out before the end of the month.

Carter said some of the applications submitted mistook the positions as construction jobs, rather than maintenance and the oversight of plant processes.

However, even after sorting out inappropriate submissions, he said, there is real competition for the plant jobs. Interviews and testing are meant to give recruiters a better sense of who is best suited to the positions.

Bay Street: Steel slump puts crimp in Labrador Trough – Julie Gordon (Reuters Canada – December 3, 2012)

December 3, 2012

http://ca.reuters.com/

TORONTO (Reuters) – “Strike while the iron is hot,” the old saying goes, and a legion of iron ore miners setting up in Canada’s remote Labrador Trough want to do just that. But, for now, they have to wait.

Iron ore, the main component of steel, has turned ice cold in recent months, with the benchmark price .IO62-CNI=SI plunging to $86.70 a tonne in September from $149.40 in April. It has since recovered to about $116 a tonne.

The downward spiral has jeopardized the viability of the sub-Arctic region’s vast iron ore deposits just as the first new mines in decades were opening. Some projects are being put on hold.

As a consequence, shares of junior miners such as Alderon Iron Ore Corp (ADV.TO: Quote), Champion Iron Mines Ltd (CHM.TO: Quote) and Century Iron Mines Corp FER.TO, have tumbled as projects that looked rich at $150 a tonne suddenly lost their luster.

Still, analysts say the region’s potential remains compelling. They caution, though, that investors must look closely at the contenders to judge which are best placed to ride out the bad times and prosper over the long term.

Labrador City’s huge worker shortage threatens small businesses – by John Shmuel (National Post – December 3, 2012)

December 3, 2012

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

Finding employees is one of the biggest issues businesses here have

When construction began on a new hotel in Labrador City this year, the developers didn’t even have to finish building it before every room was booked for the next three years.

Welcome to one of northern Canada’s most rapidly growing boom towns. The fuel behind it all are the massive iron ore mines near Labrador City and its twin town, Wabush. The area’s mines have been ramping up in recent years as rising global demand for steel is creating an insatiable appetite for iron.

High pay for working in the mines, which can start at nearly $50 an hour even with minimal experience, has attracted a flood of workers from Atlantic Canada and the rest of the country. It has also, however, created a series of challenges in a region of Canada that is more accustomed to losing workers to other provinces.

“Finding employees is one of the biggest issues businesses here have,” says Jeannot Gamache, of Labrador Rewinding Inc., a motor repair business in Wabush that has been around since 1994.

In gold, iron ore they trust – by Marilyn Scales (Canadian Mining Journal – October 2, 2012)

May 4, 2015October 3, 2012

Marilyn Scales is a field editor for the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication. She is one of Canada’s most senior mining commentators.

Mining companies appear to be having an easier time attracting investors recently – particularly if they have a gold or iron ore project. Both commodities have been hot, hot, hot the past year, and developers are prospering.

Labrador Iron Mines Holdings of Toronto has arranged at $30-million bought deal public equity financing. The company calls itself “Canada’s newest iron ore producer” having begun production at its James direct shipping ore iron mine earlier this year. Now LIM will issue 30 million common share at a price of $1.00 each. The deal is underwritten by Canaccord Genuity that is also entitled to an overallotment of 4.5 million shares. The net proceeds are to used for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Premier Gold Mines of Thunder Bay, ON, has arranged a $58.5 million deal consisting of a bought deal public offering and flow-through shares. The company has a number of active exploration projects in Ontario and Nevada. A syndicate of underwriters led by RBC Capital Markets has agreed to purchase 6.58 million common shares at $6.08 each plus 2.61 million flow-through shares at $7.08 each. The underwriters have been granted an overallotment option of 15%. Premier will use the net proceeds of the flow-through shares on its Canadian projects; the balance could be spent in the United States.

Rail money offered to Quebec miners – by Ashley Fitzpatrick (St. John’s Telegraph – September 19, 2012)

September 19, 2012

http://www.thetelegram.com/

Adriana Resources not the only iron ore company backed by Wuhan Iron and Steel

Eager to get their hands on Canadian iron ore, Chinese backers of the Lac Otelnuk project in Northern Quebec — what Adriana Resources highlights as the country’s largest iron ore deposit — are willing to cover the construction of a new rail line to move the resource to processing and shipping facilities south, in Sept-îles.

President and CEO of Adriana Resources, Allen Palmiere, included the news when he spoke about Lac Otelnuk at an investors’ forum at the Sheraton Hotel in St. John’s Tuesday. He said regardless of the solution, transportation infrastructure is needed to move iron ore from the project across the 850-kilometre span to the coast.

The company is developing plans for a mine at the Lac Otelnuk find, expected to be capable of producing 50 million metric tonnes of iron a year. It hinges on having government approvals, aboriginal agreements, power and — something Palmiere focused on — rail access. “We have some challenges,” Palmiere said. “Mining’s the least of our issues.”

Despite having talked to CN about a rail project, Adriana Resources has not signed a deal with the Canadian railway company.
“We haven’t been in dialogue with CN for many months,” Palmiere said. “The discussions are certainly not closed by any means, but we seem to have hit a bit of a stumbling block.”

The Doer [Robert Friedland – Mining Entrepreneur] – by Peter Koven (National Post – September 4, 2012)

September 4, 2012

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

On paper, Robert Friedland’s influence on the Canadian mining world seems to be waning. The legendary promoter showed a rare sign of weakness this year, losing control of Ivanhoe Mines and its massive Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia to British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto, and Friedland has seemingly disappeared from public view. So why can’t people stop talking about him?

Because love him or hate him, there’s no disputing Friedland’s imprint on the industry. From mastering the art of mining stock promotion in the 1980s and 1990s, to correctly calling the China boom and forging business ties with Asia in the 1990s and early 2000s, Friedland has always been the trailblazer everyone else tries to follow. In the few months the self-made billionaire has spent out of the limelight, investors have speculated wildly about when and where he will pop up next. Such speculation has never been easy where Friedland is concerned.

After a stint as a hippie in the 1970s, during which he befriended Steve Jobs, Friedland embraced the junior mining world and set up shop in Vancouver. He has rarely strayed from the headlines in the years since. He developed a big gold mine in Colorado, which was later shut down after an environmental accident (earning Friedland the “Toxic Bob” nickname that still sticks).

St. John’s refuelled 20 years after the cod died – by John Spears (Toronto Star – May 19, 2012)

May 19, 2012

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.

ST. JOHN’S, NL—Moya Cahill lives in St. John’s but her business takes her half-way round the globe – and she has her eye on the other half. An engineer and naval architect by trade, Cahill owns one firm providing engineering and project management services based in Qatar.

With business partner Jacques Guigné, she’s also working full time on a second firm that’s developed unique acoustic-imaging technology for offshore industries probing beneath the seafloor.

Cahill’s ventures are one example of the new breed of outward-looking business growing up in a brash new capital that’s reaping the fruits of an unprecedented resource boom.

As Memorial University economist Wade Locke argues, Newfoundland is now Canada’s biggest petro-province, with a high proportion of its provincial revenue coming from oil (about 40 per cent) than Alberta, at about 30 per cent. Newfoundlanders’ personal incomes have shot above the national average.

Labrador’s iron ore goes global (Canadian Mining Journal – April 2012)

May 1, 2012

The Canadian Mining Journal is Canada’s first mining publication providing information on Canadian mining and exploration trends, technologies, operations, and industry events.

*Information for this article provided by the Department of Natural Resources, Geological Survey, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The world-class Labrador Trough iron mining district has long been a bastion of stability in the often uncertain world of mining.

Having produced more than 2 billion tonnes of ore over 50 years of continuous production, “The Trough” can claim a prominent place in the Canadian mining sector.

Currently, with new mine openings, major expansions at existing operations, and key port and rail upgrades, the district is being reinvigorated with investment capital from around the globe. In the current planning cycle, at least $15 billion of new investment in Labrador may be realized if projects advance to development.

At present, there are three iron ore operations located in the Labrador section of “The Trough:” Rio Tinto IOC (Carol Lake), Cliffs Natural Resources (Wabush Mines), and Labrador Iron Mines (Schefferville/Menihek DSO project).

Labrador Trough a promising play in iron ore – by Martin Mittelstaedt (Globe and Mail – March 28, 2012)

March 28, 2012

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.

Canada is a two-bit player when it comes to iron ore production, but that could be in for a dramatic change because of two words: Labrador Trough.

The trough is a little known geographical feature straddling Quebec and Labrador that is causing quite a stir in mining circles. The more than 1,000-kilometre-long, sausage-shaped landform hosts numerous iron ore deposits of a size and grade that suggest they will eventually lead to new mines. Investors should be taking notice because the trough’s ferrous riches, only moderately exploited to date, appear to be on the cusp of rapid development.

“The Labrador Trough has the potential to be a major global area” for iron ore production, contends Jackie Przybylowski, an analyst at Desjardins Securities Inc. who has just issued a 64-page report devoted to the investment prospects of companies active in the region. The firm initiated coverage on five of the area’s pure play iron ore prospects.

Labrador mining boom creates housing crisis – by Sue Bailey (Halifax Chronicle-Herald – March 4, 2012)

March 11, 2012

This article came from the Halifax Chronicle-Herald: http://thechronicleherald.ca/

The Canadian Press

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — If there’s a downside to Labrador’s mining boom, Carrie Cabot and her family are living it. “We’re very stuck,” she said from Wabush, N.L.

Cabot, her husband Damico and their two daughters, aged one and three, are being forced out of their apartment to make way for Labrador mine workers. As expanding iron ore companies pay big money to buy up houses and apartment buildings in small communities closest to the mines, the Cabots are among those struggling to find affordable homes.

Rents have soared in Labrador West since the latest mining boom started four years ago, fuelled by demand for iron ore overseas. Provincial legislation does not restrict yearly increases.

Competition for scarce housing is so intense, it’s not unusual for homeowners in Labrador City and Wabush to live in their summer cabins or basements while contractors pay $5,000 a month or more to rent their places.

The Rock’s hard place: Labour shortage looms in Newfoundland and Labrador – by Shawn McCarthy (Globe and Mail – December 17, 2011)

December 17, 2011

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.

LONG HARBOUR, NFLD.— Rinaldo Stefan has a tough challenge as he manages construction of Vale SA’s sprawling, $3-billion nickel processor on Placentia Bay: finding enough skilled workers to complete the job on time and on budget.

Mr. Stefan must find 1,500 welders, electricians, plumbers and other workers by next summer, on top of the 2,000 already on the job at the site. But due to a shortage of available skilled tradespeople in Newfoundland and Labrador, Mr. Stefan is now in a mad scramble to fill the positions, placing advertisements across Atlantic Canada to entice qualified workers.

“We are working hard to find the people we’ll need,” said the native of Romania, who has lived around the world working as a construction project manager for Vale, the global mining giant. “For the moment, we are looking in Canada, but the contingency plan will be to go offshore to find people.”

Newfoundland and Labrador is in the midst of an unprecedented energy and resources boom that is straining the province’s ability to keep up. Finding enough workers to complete some $43-billion worth of major projects under way and planned is proving to be a monumental challenge.