Nickel – Page 82 – Republic of Mining

Brazilian mining giant Vale gears up for ‘in-house’ diversification, possible acquisitions (Platts.com – September 6, 2017)

September 6, 2017

http://blogs.platts.com/

Speculation has mounted in recent weeks on possible plans by Brazilian mining company Vale’s new CEO Fabio Schvartsman to diversify and make new acquisitions. New strategic partnerships are in theory ruled out because Vale is big enough “to set its own, even more ambitious goals,” according to the new CEO.

New developments may be known on October 18, the date of Vale’s next general shareholders’ assembly, when a “diagnostic report” on the company’s activities, called for by the new CEO, may be considered by board members.

Indications are that Schvartsman — CEO of a paper and pulp concern before he took over the helm of the Brazilian mining giant in May — is concerned over Vale’s dependence on standard iron ore products, the company’s mainstay.

The battery revolution: balancing progress with supply chain risks (RCS Global – August 2017)

September 6, 2017

http://www.rcsglobal.com/

For the full report: http://www.rcsglobal.com/wp-content/uploads/rcs/pdfs/RCS-Global%20The-Battery-Revolution.pdf

The lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery is set to fuel a revolution in electric vehicles (EV), home energy storage and even the powering of entire cities. Yet, increasing demand for the Li-ion battery is revealing and amplifying a wide spectrum of risks associated with the materials that make up the battery itself.

As new battery technology transforms consumer markets, there is a growing realisation that the transition to electric is not without social and environmental impact in the countries where battery materials – specifically cobalt, lithium, nickel, graphite and manganese – are mined and chemically processed into battery grade materials.

These risks present significant reputational, legal, compliance and commercial concerns for major industries harnessing the battery revolution including automotive, electronics and utilities infrastructure. For local communities, the risks represent impacts that could exacerbate or even cause environmental and social problems ranging from air pollution to child labour to conflict.

Rise of copper and nickel has miners reaching for shelved plans – by Paul Garvey (The Australian – September 5, 2017)

September 5, 2017

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

The resurgence in nickel and copper prices to their highest levels in years has become the latest boon for Australia’s resources sector, boosting profit margins for miners and prompting others to consider dusting off old mines and forgotten exploration projects.

Nickel, which has for so long had been the exception to the broader post-downturn recovery in metals prices, this week touched its highest level in two years while the copper price has climbed to heights not seen since 2014.

The price of both metals has been helped along by a combination of a weaker US dollar, supply outages and healthy demand, as well as longer-term expectations of a substantial boost in demand from the rapidly expanding electric vehicles market.

Nickel Prices Leap to Highest Level in Over Two Years – by Thomas Biesheuvel (Bloomberg News – September 3, 2017)

September 5, 2017

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Nickel climbed to a two-year high and copper extended gains to the highest since September 2014 as bets on tighter markets, especially in top user China, buoyed metals after their longest run of weekly gains in a decade.

Nickel advanced as much as 2.9 percent to $12,380 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, its highest since June 2015. Copper climbed as much as 1.3 percent to $6,924 a ton. Most metals rose after the LME Index of six contracts capped an eight-week advance on Friday — one short of a record run in 2006.

Industrial metals have been lifted by sustained demand growth and restrained supply. In China, environmental inspections and planned anti-pollution curbs on steel and aluminum have also stoked expectations of shortages. Gains are also being fueled by a weaker dollar and a super-charged steel market in China that’s steering sentiment for other commodities.

In its third year, North American Nickel’s Maniitsoq drill campaign casts a wider net – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – August 30, 2017)

August 31, 2017

http://www.miningweekly.com/

VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Drilling productivity at base metals explorer North American Nickel’s (NAN’s) Maniitsoq project, in south-west Greenland, has been lower than expected, prompting the company to add another drill rig and extend the drilling programme by two weeks to late September, to achieve as many metres as possible.

The TSX-V-listed junior is entering its third year of a strategic drilling campaign at its flagship nickel/copper/cobalt/platinum group metals project, focusing on step-out drilling at the Imiak Hill Complex (IHC), Fossilik and P-013SE.

The programme makes use of borehole electromagnetic surveys, surface induced polarisation geophysical surveys, mapping, structural geological studies and three-dimensional modelling.

BHP Billiton still plans to ‘ultimately’ sell its nickel division – by Marcus Leroux (The Australian – August 29, 2017)

August 29, 2017August 29, 2017

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

BHP Billiton intends to sell its nickel division despite its decision to invest $US43 million in boosting its capacity to meet demand created by the boom in electric vehicles.

In revealing that in the long term it will probably sell Nickel West, which operates in Western Australia, BHP is signalling that it is content to rely on its copper business for giving exposure to the increased demand for the materials that make batteries for green technologies such as electric vehicles.

BHP appears to be taking a more sober view of the looming battery rush than many of its rivals. Nickel West was stranded as an orphan asset after it was not included in BHP’s spin-off of South32. However, the company subsequently committed to it by boosting its processing capacity to meet the anticipated demand from the take-up of electric vehicles.

The dam debate: PolyMet tailings basin dams are key point in upcoming permits – by John Myers (Duluth News Tribune – August 28, 2017)

August 28, 2017

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/

HOYT LAKES — Of the bad things that could happen once PolyMet starts running Minnesota’s first-ever copper mine, critics say, among the worst would be a catastrophic breach of the tailings basin dam.

A hulking, man-made earthen dike that will stretch for miles and reach 252 feet high when finished, the dam will hold back millions of gallons of water mixed in a slurry with finely ground rock left over after crushing and processing — after the copper, nickel and other valuable metals are extracted.

Much of that waste rock will be as small as grains of beach sand. In theory, the stuff will settle into the basin, and as more is pumped in, the dams will be raised in steps, 20 feet at a time, over the 20-year life of the mine.

Wynne’s Ring of Fire road announcement ‘premature’ say 2 area First Nations (CBC News Thunder Bay – August 25, 2017)

August 25, 2017

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/

Eabametoong and Neskantaga not included in Aug. 21 announcement, say jurisdictional issues not settled

Two northwestern Ontario First Nations near the Ring of Fire say an announcement by the provincial government that it has a deal in place to construct all-season roads into the mineral-rich area is “premature.”

On Monday, Premier Kathleen Wynne was in Thunder Bay to announce that the province had reached a deal with three Matawa First Nations — Webequie, Nibinamik and Marten Falls — that would see roads linking their communities to the provincial highway system and continuing into the Ring of Fire.

But in a joint statement issued late Thursday afternoon, two other communities not included in that deal — Eabametoong and Neskantaga — said those projects will “hit a dead end,” if there is no “real and concrete jurisdiction agreement with First Nations.” “”The reality is that all the roads to the Ring of Fire traverse the territory of our Nations, and nothing is happening without the free, prior and informed consent of our First Nations,” Neskantaga Chief Wayne Moonias was quoted as saying in a written release.

Indigenous workers at Voisey’s Bay anxious about Vale review of nickel operations (Canadian Press – August 23, 2017)

August 24, 2017

http://nationalpost.com/

MONTREAL — Global mining giant Vale’s decision to review its global operations in light of depressed nickel prices is causing anxiety among Indigenous workers at its Voisey’s Bay mine in Labrador.

As part of its 60-day audit, the Brazilian miner (NYSE:VALE) has put on hold a decision about an underground expansion project at the Atlantic mine that would create more than 400 jobs and extend its life for 15 years.

“These are some of the higher paying jobs you find in our communities,” said Darryl Shiwak, Lands and Natural Resources Minister for the Inuit people of Nunatsiavut. “So with the high unemployment rate and the amount of seasonal work, these jobs are extremely important.”

Sudbury to get first crack at Ring of Fire nickel (CBC News Sudbury – August 22, 2017)

August 23, 2017

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/

Bruce Jago, director of Goodman School of Mines, weighs in on Noront’s decision to start

Four northern Ontario cities — Sudbury, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay — are in the running to be home to a ferrochrome smelter which will process chromite from the Ring of Fire mineral deposit. But Noront Resources Ltd. CEO Alan Coutts says the first minerals out of the ground will be nickel concentrate, to be processed in Sudbury.

Now that the provincial government has committed to funding the road infrastructure to the Ring of Fire, Coutts told CBC’s Morning North that his company plans to develop a mine at its Eagle’s Nest project first. The site — 530 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay — is rich in high-grade nickel, copper, platinum and palladium.

“The reason we selected that to be the first mine is because there is already existing smelting capacities for those minerals in Sudbury,” Coutts said.

Morning North Host Jason Turnbull Interviews Noront CEO Alan Coutes about Ring of Fire Roads (CBC News Sudbury – August 22, 2017)

August 23, 2017

For the interview: http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/1029782083805/ Premier Kathleen Wynne was in Thunder Bay to announce the funding of a road for the Ring of Fire project. We spoke with Al Coutts from Noront Resources about what it means for developing the chromite deposit. Al is the CEO of Noront Resources.

“This is the day we were waiting for”: Ring of Fire road agreement jumpstarts Noront Resources’ development plans – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 22, 2017)

August 22, 2017

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

An agreement in principle to bring permanent access roads to three remote First Nation communities near the Ring of Fire was greeted with relief from the largest mine developer in the region. “This is the day we were waiting for,” said Noront president-CEO Alan Coutts.

He was in Thunder Bay to hear Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Aug. 21 announcement that agreements have been struck with Marten Falls, Nibinamik and Webequie First Nations to build two corridors to connect those communities to the provincial highway system.

One proposed east-west corridor will be shared with the mining industry to reach the rich mineral deposits in the James Bay lowlands. Wynne said the initial preparatory environmental assessment work starts immediately followed by feasibility planning.

‘Ring’ road deal could good for Sudbury – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – August 22, 2017)

August 22, 2017

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

The Ring of Fire moved a rung closer to reality Monday, as the province announced plans to construct a year-round access road to the mineral-rich region. “It’s just what we were looking for,” said Alan Coutts, president and CEO of Noront Resources. “This is the catalyst that was needed, from our point of view.”

A Toronto-based company, Noront is the now chief player in the region, after acquiring the chromite assets from Cliffs Natural Resources a couple of years ago. It plans to develop its Eagle’s Nest deposit — consisting of nickel, copper, platinum and palladium — first, and then mine chromite deposits at several sites in the James Bay lowlands.

“These are bulk and base-metal deposits,” said Coutts. “They’re not gold and diamonds in small volumes; they’re big volumes and you have to move a lot. Without 24/7, 365, all-season infrastructure roads in place, those projects aren’t viable.” The province had been negotiating with nine First Nations in the region and hinting since spring that a deal on road construction was in the offing.

Noront Resources to make decision on Ring of Fire smelter by end of year – by Angela Gemmill (CBC News Sudbury – August 21, 2017)

August 22, 2017

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/

Mining company to work on smelter development while province, First Nations create road infrastructure

Monday’s long-awaited news that the provincial government will help build roads to the Ring of Fire chromite deposit is music to the ears of junior miner Noront Resources Limited.

The provincial government says it’s working with three remote northwestern Ontario First Nations to develop year-round road access that will link the communities to Ontario’s highway system. Noront has a major land position in the Ring of Fire. CEO Alan Coutts said the announcement from Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne was welcome.

“It’s a very important breakthrough. This is exactly what was needed to de-bottleneck the Ring of Fire development,” Coutts said. While in Thunder Bay, Wynne told the media the environmental assessment will begin immediately and should take much of 2018 to complete. Construction on the roads should start in 2019.

“Major step forward,” says Ring of Fire developer: Noront looks to use north-south for chromite shipments – Staff (Northern Ontario Business – August 21, 2017)

August 21, 2017August 21, 2017

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

The lead Ring of Fire mine developer is pleased with the Ontario government tabling a road plan to reach the deposits in the undeveloped James Bay mineral belt. “Today’s announcement by Premier Kathleen Wynne and the Chiefs of Webequie, Marten Falls and Nibinamik First Nations is a major step forward that will re-energize development of the Ring of Fire region,” said Noront Resources president-CEO Alan Coutts in an Aug. 21 news release.

“Construction of all-season industrial and community access roads is one of the key things we’ve been working toward with the government and our First Nation partners. I am very pleased to see it moving forward.”

Noront officials were in Thunder Bay to attend the announcement by Premier Kathleen Wynne and the Chiefs of Marten Falls, Webequie and Nibiminik First Nations, and the government’s commitment to providing funding for two industry and community road proposals to reach the Ring of Fire mineral belt.