Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications – Page 164

Mine idea explored – by Carl Clutchey (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal – February 12, 2016)

February 12, 2016

http://www.chroniclejournal.com/

A large iron-ore deposit near Sioux Lookout that’s been known for decades is about to undergo a significant fine-tuning, possibly leading to an operating mine as early as four years from now.

Thunder Bay-based Rockex Mining Corp. said Thursday it’s on the cusp of securing $30 million from a New York investment firm to conduct a feasibility study and environment assessment on the property located about 100 kilometres northeast of Sioux Lookout.

The financing from Diversified Innovative Marketing Enterprises (DIME) is expected to be firmed up by April 11, said a Rockex news release.

If the Lake St. Joseph deposit is deemed to be economically viable, it could support an operation for 30 years, creating a combined total of 700 mine-site and processing plant jobs.

AEM ups estimate for Nunavut’s Amaruq to 3.3 million ounces (Nunatsiaq News – February 11, 2016)

February 11, 2016

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd.‘s Amaruq deposit may now hold at least 3.3 million ounces of gold, an estimate that’s 67 per cent higher than last year’s, the company announced Feb. 10.

That means the Amaruq deposit, located about 50 kilometres from the company’s existing mine and mill at Meadowbank in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut, still holds the potential to serve as a satellite operation for Meadowbank after about 2019 or 2020.

“The company expects to ultimately develop Amaruq as a satellite operation to Meadowbank, with the potential to begin production in 2019,” Agnico Eagle said in its latest financial report..

Feds won’t change Harper-era mining ethics office – by Peter Mazereeuw (Embassy News – February 10, 2016)

February 11, 2016

http://www.embassynews.ca/

The Trudeau government won’t be making changes to the role of a controversial corporate social responsibility counsellor for the mining sector, according to a government spokesperson.

The Office of the Extractive Sector Corporate Social Responsibility Counsellor has been criticized in the past by advocates for tougher action by Canada on human rights abuses connected to Canadian-owned mines abroad.

The office, created by the Conservative government in 2009, was only able to produce reports on five disputes related to corporate social responsibility that were investigated during the four-year tenure of the first counsellor, Marketa Evans, who resigned from the role in 2013. As well, the mining companies involved in three of those disputes refused to take part in the full review process, according to reports published by the office.

Natural resources remain vital to Canadian prosperity – by Livio Di Matteo (Fraser Institute Website – January 29, 2016)

February 10, 2016

https://www.fraserinstitute.org/

Despite the hardship afflicting Canada’s energy sector, we should remember the long-term importance of Canada’s resource sector and dispel the tendency to write it off. Prime Minister Trudeau’s recent remark at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland that, “My predecessor wanted you to know Canada for its resources. I want you to know Canadians for our resourcefulness,” unfortunately reflects an attitude of discomfort with Canada’s resource economy.

The last time this attitude came to the fore was the 1990s when the growth of technology and the knowledge economy generated a flood of commentary that the era of rocks and trees was over. Canada was no longer to be a country of “hewers of wood and drawers of water” but was to take its proper place in the fast lanes of the information highway.

The tech sector bust and commodity boom of the early 21st century of course demonstrated that resources were still important. Indeed, the resource sectors of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador with their focus on energy production, were a key reason why Canada weathered the 2009 recession period as well as it did.

[DeBeers diamond mining and Attawapiskat] Negotiation Is Better Than Conflict – by Xavier Kataquapit (NetNewsLedger.com – February 10, 2016)

February 10, 2016

http://www.netnewsledger.com/

Xavier Kataquapit is a First Nations writer and columnist, who is originally from Attawapiskat Ontario on the James Bay coast.

THUNDER BAY – My people have come a long way in obtaining a life with more opportunity and hope. Through education First Nation people all over Canada are moving into leadership roles in government and private enterprise in Native initiatives and non Native as well. We have very intelligent, well educated, strong and capable leaders in politics, law, education, business and every sector of Canadian society.

I have seen much progress in First Nations first hand with the communities that make up Wabun Tribal Council up here in Northeastern Ontario. Over the past 20 years I have watched these First Nations led by their Chiefs and supported by an administration headed by Shawn Batise as they began to lobby government and the private sector resource industries. Over the years Wabun has become internationally known for negotiating all kinds of agreements with government and the private sector that provide benefits to Wabun First Nations.

Wabun is well recognized across Canada for its expertise in this area and Shawn and the Chiefs have shared their knowledge with other Native organizations. For so many years Native people were very much left out of the loop when it came to participating in any development on traditional lands.

Black Swans Circling Canada’s Resource Sector – by Dennis Boyko (Seeking Alpha – February 9, 2016)

February 9, 2016

http://seekingalpha.com/

Ottawa Policies Are Shifting Under The New Leadership of Prime Minister Trudeau

“Times have changed, my friends,” Trudeau told the Calgary Petroleum Club. “Social licence is more important than ever. Government may be able to issue permits. But only communities can grant permission.”
…
The prime minister didn’t help defuse matters last week in Davos when he told international investors that his government wanted them to focus more on Canada’s resourcefulness than its resources.
…
“The fact is the future of our global economy will be low carbon. That is what was agreed in Paris,” he said in an interview with CBC Radio.

New open pit mine in Timmins expected as Lake Shore Gold is merged with Tahoe Resources – by Alan S. Hale (Timmins Daily Press – February 8, 2016)

February 8, 2016

http://www.timminspress.com/

Lake Shore Gold will soon become part of Tahoe Resources. The mining companies announced on Monday that Tahoe intends to buy a 75% stake in Lake Shore by exchanging shares in that company for Tahoe shares.

This announcement comes after trading on Lake Shore Gold’s shares were halted on Friday. It appeared at the time that it was to halt market speculation after positive news from an ongoing exploration project, but it now seems it was in anticipation of announcing the merger.

Under the agreement announced on Monday, each common share of Lake Shore Gold will be exchanged for a 0.1467 share in Tahoe which, when the markets closed on Friday, was worth $1.71. This would mean Lake Shore Gold shareholders would make a 15 cent profit on every share they own.

Trading halted on Lake Shore Gold shares – by Len Gillis (Timmins Daily Press – February 5, 2016)

February 8, 2016

http://www.timminspress.com/

TIMMINS – There was so much excitement and market speculation about a Lake Shore Gold Timmins property that trading in company shares was halted on Friday and the company was asked by regulators to issue a public statement.

This follows the positive news that was released by the company on Thursday revealing the results of 13 drill holes for a high grade gold zone at the “Whitney Project” which describes the area located near the old Hallnor Mine property in Timmins.

The results are from the first surface exploration drilling done on the Whitney property since LSG became the new owners last fall. The Whitney property was a prospect that was owned and explored by Temex Resources Corp. Just last September, Temex shareholders approved a takeover deal by Lake Shore for all outstanding common shares.

Time to step up for steel – by Mike Verdone (Sault Star – February 3, 2016)

February 4, 2016

http://www.saultstar.com/

Sault Ste. Marie MPP David Orazietti urged the federal government Wednesday to adopt a new trade policy to ensure fair trade for Canadian steel workers.

He said the current federal trade remedy system is antiquated and must be changed. “It’s more than 20 years old, it’s outdated. This system does not reflect the global realities of trade today,” Orazietti said.

He called on Ottawa to immediately embrace the Trade Remedy Modernization plan as outlined by the Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA) during a press conference Wednesday afternoon at his constituency office while flanked by local industry stakeholders, including union and company representatives from Essar Steel Algoma and Tenaris Algoma Tubes Algoma, as well as reps from retiree groups.

Magnesium mine promising jobs, diversity in Timmins – by Lindsay Kelly (Northern Ontario Business – February 1, 2016)

February 3, 2016

http://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

A new mining project coming to Timmins has the capacity to create 1,000 local jobs and economically diversify the City With a Heart of Gold.

General Magnesium Corp. is set to start production this spring on a magnesium-talc mine that has an NI 43-101 resource estimate of close to 100 million tonnes, including 54,076,357 tonnes in the measured and indicated category, and 43,000,000 tonnes in the inferred category.

Last fall, following 16 months of due diligence, the company secured a multi-year, $4.9-billion deal with Hunter Douglas Metals, whose parent company manufactures aluminum blinds. Magnesium is a key component used as an alloy in manufacturing aluminum.

Fast-growing mining and oil & gas industries, and the huge number of supply-chain jobs they create – by Joshua Wright (New Geography – September 18, 2013)

February 2, 2016

http://www.newgeography.com/

Please note this is a dated article, but very interesting – Stan Sudol

The fastest-growing industry in the U.S since 2010 isn’t large or well-known. In fact, nearly half of the estimated 5,100 jobs in support activities for metal mining are located in one state: Nevada. Nonetheless, employment in this niche mining industry has ballooned 53% since 2010, and it creates a huge number of supply-chain jobs in other parts of the economy.

Four of the five fastest-growing industries from 2010-2013, based on EMSI’s 2013.2 employment dataset, are related in some form to mining and oil & gas. These industries (e.g., oil & gas pipeline construction and support activities for oil & gas operations) have been carried by the boom in oil and natural gas production in pockets of the U.S., from North Dakota to Pennsylvania to Texas. And their growth has sparked new jobs in other sectors.

‘Resourceful’ reputation must be earned – by William Watson (London Free Press – January 26, 2016)

February 1, 2016

http://www.lfpress.com/

That’s a nice line the prime minister delivered at Davos about how we want the world to know us for our resourcefulness, not just our resources. Nice. Not necessarily wise.

“Resourceful” says, literally, “full of resources.” We still are full of resources. They’re just worth a lot less than they were not long ago. If your resources lose value, then, sure, something other than resources is a useful second best. But when your resources are going for a high price, selling them is not actually cheating.

And, by the way, our resources don’t just show up at the border already packaged for export. We have to be very resourceful to get them there. In fact, a great first resourcefulness test for a new federal government focused on that quality would be to figure out how to get land-locked Alberta energy across pirate provinces hostile to it, and thence to world markets.

Petition calls for Northern Ontario’s separation – by Sarah Moore (Sudbury Star – January 30, 2016)

February 1, 2016

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

A grassroots movement to make Northern Ontario an independent province is gathering steam. An online petition launched this month has collected more than 670 names.

Trevor Holliday, who launched the petition, said his goal is similar to that of the 1970s’ Northern Ontario Heritage Party and other Northern Ontario separatist movements: To divide the province in two and treat Northern and southern Ontario as separate entities.

“I would want Northern Ontario to become its own province. That way it can be run by the people of the North for the people of the North, so that all the money from the North isn’t taken and given to the south and then we’re just left to whittle away.”

Exploration at standstill: prospectors – by Rick Owen (Kirkland Lake Northern News – December 14, 2015)

January 29, 2016

http://www.northernnews.ca/

KIRKLAND LAKE – A Northern Prospectors’ Association member is involved in a process that includes the Wabun Council and the provincial government, in an attempt to coming to some sort of resolution that will allow prospectors back to work in the bush.

John Rapski has mineral claims that fall within Wabum Council’s traditional land, and he has been consulting for an extended period of time, to try and get access to explore his mineral claims. Currently, he is still being held on the sidelines instead of prospecting and exploring for new mineral finds.

Rapski said the problem is the Wabum Council wants prospectors to sign the same agreement that would apply to mining corporations and this doesn’t work for prospectors. He said if a prospector sighns the agreement they are personally libel and the agreement doesn’t look after the individual prospector.

Glencore gets Sudbury extension – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – January 28, 2016)

January 28, 2016

http://www.thesudburystar.com/

Sudbury’s second largest mining company, Glencore’s Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations, has received approval to exceed emission standards while it upgrades its Falconbridge smelter.

Glencore officials are pleased with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change’s recent decision to grant approval of its site-specific standard application for nickel at the smelter, said company spokeswoman Yonaniko Grenon.

“This approval allows us the required time to research, design and implement the technologies and processes required to further reduce nickel emissions from our Sudbury smelter facility while maintaining compliance with Ontario’s Air Quality Regulation,” she said.