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BASF, Canada in early talks on EV battery production – source – by Steve Scherer and Christoph Steitz (Financial Post/Reuters – May 20, 2021)

https://financialpost.com/

OTTAWA — Several companies, including Germany’s BASF SE, are in preliminary talks about tapping a federal clean tech fund to set up production for electric vehicle batteries in Canada, a government official with knowledge of the discussions said.

The talks are centered on understanding whether the goals of BASF and others fit with the aim of the C$8 billion ($6.6 billion) “Net Zero Accelerator” (NZA) fund, the source said. Canada has set a goal to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

BASF is a key supplier of cathode active materials (CAM) needed for the production of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles (EV), and is the world’s largest chemicals and plastics producer by sales.

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Sudbury Local 6500 rejects latest offer from Vale – by Staff (Sudbury Star – June 15, 2021)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

A new contract offer from Vale to its striking workers was rejected by a strong margin Monday. Eighty-four per cent of USW Local 6500 members participated in a vote Monday evening, with 87 per cent opposing the revised deal.

The union’s own bargaining team had called the offer “concessionary” and did not recommend it to members. In a release, Vale expressed disappointment that the union had taken this stance.

“The company was in active negotiations with Local 6500 when it was informed of this position,” the miner said. “Vale’s second offer addresses issues of concern that we heard from our employees, including wages, pensions and post-retiree benefits for new hires.”

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

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Column: A nickel refinery tops U.S. battery metals wish list – by Andy Home (Fiancial Post/Reuters – June 14, 2021)

https://financialpost.com/

LONDON (Reuters) – The United States government should invest in nickel refining capacity in coordination with its allies, according to the Biden Administration’s 100-day review of critical supply chains.

“If there are opportunities for the U.S. to target one part of the battery supply chain, this would likely be the most critical to provide short- and medium-term supply chain stability,” the report said.

It’s an unexpected priority. Nickel isn’t on the U.S. list of critical minerals. Although the country depends on imports, 68% of supplies come from what the report calls “allied nations” such as Canada, Australia, Norway and Finland.

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Vale’s Otranto says it’s ‘disappointing’ bargaining committee recommends rejecting second offer – by Staff (Sudbury.com – June 14, 2021)

https://www.sudbury.com/

The head of Vale’s North Atlantic Operations said today he’s disappointed the Steelworkers Local 6500 bargaining committee is unanimously recommending striking members reject a second offer from the company.

The union’s bargaining committee announced today it is recommending to its 2,500 members that the new offer be rejected, as it includes “similar take-aways with minimal improvements” over the initial offer.

On June 1, Local 6500 overwhelmingly rejected an initial contract offer, with 70 per cent of members voting against the offer on a voter turnout of 87 per cent.

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Sparking up the Ring of Fire – by D’Arcy Jenish (Canadian Mining Journal – June 8, 2021)

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Progress on infrastructure in remote region offset by opposition from several First Nations, environmental groups

Once there were many. Now there are just two. The discovery in 2008 of vast deposits of nickel, copper, chromite, platinum and palladium in the Ring of Fire, in Ontario’s remote Far North, fuelled dreams of fabulous wealth and unleashed a predictable stampede to stake claims.

More than 35 junior mining companies laid claim to a piece of this crescent-shaped, mineral-rich formation, which, by some estimates, spans 5,000 sq. km. Even once mighty Cliffs Natural Resources of Cleveland jumped in with grand plans to invest $3.3 billion to a build a mine, a processing facility and a transportation corridor of 300-plus km to the CN rail line at Nakina.

But Cliffs was later forced to file for bankruptcy protection. Exploration money dried up. The dreams of future wealth evaporated as the prospects of production receded ever further into the future. And one by one, all those juniors exited, leaving just two Toronto-based companies still standing – Noront Resources and KWG Resources.

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First real green spring comes to Nikel – by Thomas Nilsen (The Barents Observer – June 8, 2021)

https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/

“We, ordinary people living in Nikel, are very happy. The air is fresh, leaves are green,” says Tatiana Bazanova who has lived most of her adult life in what used to be one of Europe’s most polluted towns.

The infamous nickel-smelter shut down its last furnace in late December, ending 75 years of severe industrial air pollution.

Now, locals in the town for the first time experience a real green spring with clear blue skies under the midnight sun. “I love Nikel,” states Tatiana Bazanov who has lived and worked for the local municipality most of her adult life.

“Seeing the town without pollution pleases me,” she tells in a phone interview with the Barents Observer. Today, Tatiana has been in the hills above the town, taking photos of birch trees with green leaves.

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Wyloo Metals would put proposed Sault ferrochrome plant under the microscope, if successful in bid for Noront Resources – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – June 7, 2021)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/ Australian mining investor focused on mining, processing nickel for Ontario’s electrical vehicle manufacturers The prospective Australian buyer for Noront Resources won’t make any immediate shifts in strategy in the Far North mineral exploration camp should it acquire the Toronto junior mining company. But it will reassess the location of a proposed ferrochrome processing plant …

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Nickel: No longer a forgotten battery metal – by Gerard Peter (Mining Review Africa – June 7, 2021)

https://www.miningreview.com/

Nickel will be the key beneficiary of electric vehicle (EV) adoption against the backdrop of other battery metals such as lithium and cobalt, supported by its dominant long-range capabilities. Furthermore, a wealth of nickel deposits will position Africa to benefit from an uptrend in prices in the coming years writes GERARD PETER.

These are the key findings of a recent Fitch Solutions report that looks at the opportunities and risks for nickel in the battery revolution.

The basis of the report has been founded on a recent Mining Review Africa webinar titled, Nickel: The Forgotten Battery Metal where Fitch Solutions, Carly Cassidy was a participant.

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Cash-strapped Noront Resources rebuffs Wyloo Metals’ loan offer in Ring of Fire takeover bid – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – June 4, 2021)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Wyloo owner Andrew Forrest sends a “big hug” to Matawa First Nation chiefs

Noront Resources is rejecting the offer of a $5-million loan from Australia’s Wyloo Metals, which is seeking to take over the Ring of Fire mine developer.

In a June 4 news release, Noront admitted it “has an immediate need for funding” but intends to go the private placement financing route to raise $6.1 million to keep the company running and to work on its exploration properties in the remote James Bay region.

Perth-headquartered and privately owned Wyloo, a major mining investor and explorer in Australia with global ambitions, came aboard last October to become Noront’s largest shareholder at 23 per cent. BaoSteel of China is Noront’s next largest shareholder at 5.4 per cent.

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China’s Journey To The Center Of The Earth – For Rare Minerals – by Ariel Cohen (Forbes Magazine – June 2, 2021)

https://www.forbes.com/

The recent $3 billion sale of Chile’s Compañía General de Electricidad to China’s State Grid Corporation brought total Chinese control of electricity transmission in Chile up to 57%.

Similar PRC acquisitions and projects are currently being advanced in Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, Honduras, Peru, and Columbia, where corporations are building hydropower, wind, and solar power stations. But China’s energy push into Latin America is not limited to infrastructure.

This is fast becoming a multi-pronged approach that also includes the securing of critical minerals, particularly rare earth elements (REEs). The United States, meanwhile, is mum.

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Timmins mine aims to cash in on global demand for nickel – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – June 4, 2021)

https://www.timminspress.com/

Timmins is and will probably always be known for its gold mining. But on the closing day of the virtual Canadian Mining Expo Thursday, several speakers were revving about the large deposits of nickel and other raw minerals will be in demand as the development of electric-powered cars grows.

“Historically, the Abitibi belt has been known for its gold exploration potential, but as recent years have shown, there is the potential for much more to be found” including cobalt, lithium, graphite, and nickel, said Zeinab Azadbakht, regional resident geologist with the Ministry of Energy, Northern Development and Mines in Timmins.

Timmins Mayor George Pirie, who was the introductory speaker on the last day of the two-day conference, credited Azadbakht for expanding the focus of local mineral extractions and placing more emphasis on rare-earth elements.

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The future of Canada’s nickel supply is NOT Indonesia – by Richard (Rick) Mills (A Head Of The Herd.com – June 2, 2021)

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China says it has found a way to make “green” nickel chemical for EV batteries from nickel laterite deposits in Indonesia that could help to alleviate the coming supply deficit in the metal that is essential to electric vehicle batteries.

Don’t be fooled. The process itself is extremely polluting, and ‘ocean tailings ponds’ are anything but green. Thankfully car companies aren’t buying it. Future nickel supply for battery-making is therefore unlikely to come from Indonesia or anywhere else where nickel laterites are mined.

EVs coming to Canada

Canada is in the beginning stages of developing an electric vehicle supply chain that capitalizes on the country’s rich battery metals endowment and cheap hydro-electric power particularly in Quebec and British Columbia.

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Canada Nickel’s Crawford project to produce 93% less CO2 emissions than industry average – Staff (Mining.com – June 2, 2021)

https://www.mining.com/

A study commissioned by Canada Nickel Company (TSXV: CNC) revealed that its Crawford project in Ontario, Canada, is set to produce 2.05 tonnes of carbon dioxide per tonne of nickel-equivalent production over its 25-year mine life —93% lower than the industry average of 29 tonnes of CO2.

The study was conducted by Skarn Associates, a metals and mining ESG research company, applying data from Canada Nickel’s preliminary economic assessment.

According to the report, the CO2 footprint estimate does not include the carbon offset expected to be provided from the process of spontaneous mineral carbonation from the operation’s tailings and waste rock, largely composed of serpentine rock which naturally absorbs CO2 when exposed to air.

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Copper roars past $4.60 as resource nationalism grips market – by Richard (Rick) Mills – Kitco News – June 1, 2021)

https://www.kitco.com/

A number of happenings in the copper market conspired to elevate the spot price beyond $4.60 a pound on Thursday, confirming Ahead of the Herd’s suspicions that a new wave of resource nationalism in some of the largest copper-producing nations is washing over the sector.

Resource nationalism is the tendency of governments to assert control, for strategic and economic reasons, over natural resources located on their territories. It has been identified as one of the key risks for investors in the natural resources space.

With the copper price soaring on tight supply and heavy demand, as the world’s biggest economies revive following a year of coronavirus-related restrictions, the temptation for producer nations to cash in on more valuable copper reserves to pay for social programs is proving hard to resist.

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