Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications – Page 176

Lake Shore Gold wins bid for Temex Resources (Timmins Daily Press – August 6, 2015)

August 6, 2015

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

It looks like Lake Shore Gold in Timmins is able to expand local operations by taking over Temex Resources, a junior mining company that has been working historic mining properties in the East End of Timmins.

LSG is a mid-level gold producer with all its mining operations in Timmins, sees the Temex takeover as a ways to contribute more gold to the newly rejuvenated LSG Bell Creek milling complex in Porcupine, according to a company news release issued last month.

The new deal is based on terms agreed to in June. Under those terms of proposal, as outlined in an earlier news release, Temex shareholders would receive, for each Temex share, 0.105 of a Lake Shore Gold share, having a value of $0.13 based on the closing price of Lake Shore Gold’s shares on the TSX on July 15, 2015.

The Lake Shore deal was made at the end of June, in the midst of a pending deal Temex had with Oban Mining Corporation. As part of the new deal, Temex is now required to provide a termination payment to Oban of $691,896.

[Canada] CRA targeting mining-sector tax havens – by Nelson Bennett (Business Vancouver – August 5, 2015)

August 5, 2015

https://www.biv.com/

Tax evasion by Canadian companies using offshore havens promises to become election issue

Canadian corporations that use tax havens like Switzerland and the Cayman Islands to reduce the taxes they pay at home have good reason to worry.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has been stepping up its scrutiny of Canadian companies with offshore subsidiaries, as evidenced earlier this month when it was announced that Vancouver streaming company Silver Wheaton (TSX:SLW) is facing a potential reassessment that could cost the company more than $600 million.

It’s an issue that the Canadians for Tax Fairness and the Liberal Party of Canada appear to be hoping to make a federal election issue.

Tackling corporate tax evasion is one of the planks in the Liberal Party’s platform and has been raised in Parliament by Liberal national revenue critic Emmanuel Dubourg.

“It is unacceptable and unfair that CRA frightens and poorly serves honest Canadian taxpayers and it harasses charities for political reasons while leaving billions uncollected in tax havens,” Dubourg told Business in Vancouver by email.

Approving uranium project will only alienate Nunavut Inuit: Mining Watch (Nunatsiaq News – August 5, 2015)

August 5, 2015

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

“Inuit would rightfully feel like their voice does not matter”

Mining Watch Canada is urging the federal government to take the advice of the Nunavut Impact Review Board, which advised that a Nunavut uranium project should not move forward for now.

The mining watchdog group sent a July 28 letter to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister Bernard Valcourt, asking him to uphold the NIRB’s decision on Areva Resources Canada’s Kiggavik mine proposal.

Mining Watch’s letter comes just weeks after Areva asked the federal government to reject the NIRB’s report, which recommends the proposed uranium project not go ahead because of the company’s lack of firm start date.

“It is entirely inappropriate for a proponent to propose a major mining project without any start date, let alone wait until after a review has concluded to bring forward vital arguments and information related to substantial community concerns,” said Ugo Lapointe, Canadian program co-ordinator at Mining Watch Canada, said in a news release.

More trouble for snakebit Sudbury mine – by Jonathan Migneault (Northern Ontario Business – August 4, 2015)

August 5, 2015

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North.

A weekend underground explosion at First Nickel’s Lockerby Mine in Sudbury on Aug. 2 resulted in minor injuries and smoke inhalation for one worker, confirmed the company’s president and CEO.

“There was an explosion this morning (Aug. 2) that resulted in a worker requiring a medical aid – nothing serious,” said First Nickel president and CEO Thomas Boehlert in an email to Northern Ontario Business. “As we do not run a shift on Sunday, we will be assessing the situation underground tomorrow.”

In a later release, the company reported that three other workers were checked for smoke inhalation and released without medical treatment.

The company said it is investigating the cause of the incident and planned to resume operations the following day. It’s unknown if the Ministry of Labour is investigating.

Rob McEwen Interview: “This is Hurting Junior Miners More than the Gold Price” – by Angela Harmantas (Small Cap Power.com – July 28, 2015)

August 4, 2015

http://www.smallcappower.com/

Mining executive Rob McEwen spoke with SmallCapPower correspondent Angela Harmantas recently, with the former Goldcorp CEO talking about his company McEwen Mining bouncing back from a robbery, explaining how junior gold miners can remain profitable in this environment and what is driving his belief that the gold price will bounce back in a big way.

Rob McEwen is one of the more vocal members of a diminishing minority of gold bugs. He certainly has the experience to back his claim that gold will hit US$5000 an ounce in the not-too-distant future: over his 25-year mining career, he grew Goldcorp into a multi-billion dollar company that ranks as one of the world’s largest producers of precious metals. Today, as the Chairman and Chief Owner of McEwen Mining (TSX: MUX), he is hoping to achieve the rarified status of becoming one of only two gold companies on the S&P 500 (the other being Newmont Mining).

There have been a few setbacks for McEwen Mining this year, however. In April, a brazen robbery occurred at the company’s flagship El Gallo 1 mine in Mexico, a loss of nearly $8.4 million in revenue. And the beating that gold stocks are taking in the market thanks to a depressed gold price has caused MUX shares to fall to levels that threaten its inclusion on the NYSE. In addition to these insular challenges, the entire gold industry is struggling to maintain a positive outlook as gold plummeted recently to less than US$1100 after China dumped nearly 5 tons of bullion and Morgan Stanley analysts predicted gold could soon hit $800.

COMMENTARY: Mount Polley mine disaster’s first anniversary is no reason to celebrate – by Ana Simeon and Ugo Lapointe (The Stright.com – July 31, 2015)

August 4, 2015

http://www.straight.com/

Ana Simeon is with Sierra Club B.C. Ugo Lapointe is with MiningWatch Canada.

On August 4 last year, Quesnel Lake residents and communities along the Fraser River were eagerly anticipating one of the largest sockeye returns in recent history.

What they got instead was a nightmare: over 24 billion litres of mine waste burst through Imperial Metals’ Mount Polley dam into their watershed.

Mount Polley is the largest mining waste spill in Canada’s history. The consequences and overall costs of this disaster concern us all, including a steep cost on the industry’s reputation and public trust.

Yet a year later, the mine is running again under a restricted permit. While both the company and the B.C. government attempt to be reassuring, many questions remain unanswered.

Canadian regulator dismisses Québec uranium report (World Nuclear News – July 30, 2015)

July 30, 2015

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/

The head of the Canadian nuclear regulator has written to Québec’s minister for sustainable development, environment and climate change questioning the recommendations made by a public consultation on uranium mining in the province.

The report by Québec’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE) was published on 17 July by the province’s minister for sustainable development, environment and climate change David Heurtel.

It was the culmination of one year’s work by the commission set up by BAPE in May 2014 to study the environmental and social impacts of uranium exploration and mining, following a moratorium on new uranium exploration and mining permits imposed by the province in April that year.

The 626-page report concludes that uranium mining operations at present in the province are “counterindicated” because of “limitations and uncertainties” in the current state of knowledge over mining technology and environmental management strategies.

Michael Binder, president of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), wrote to Heurtel on 27 July saying BAPE’s report has conclusions and recommendations that “lack scientific basis and rigour”.

Mining: Province looks to feds for Ring money – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – July 29, 2015)

July 29, 2015

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

Ontario has formally asked the federal government to match the $1 billion it has committed to infrastructure for the Ring of Fire with $1 billion from its Building Canada Fund.

Brad Duguid, Ontario’s minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure, nominated the Ring of Fire project under the national infrastructure component (NIC) of the fund.

The $4-billion NIC supports projects of national significance that have broad public benefits and contribute to Canada’s long-term economic growth and prosperity.

Ontario’s Northern Development and Mines Minister, Michael Gravelle, said the Ring of Fire offers tremendous opportunity. By developing a transportation corridor and building hydroelectric systems, many First Nations will be able to “get off diesel,” said Gravelle.

“We can open up all kinds of economic development opportunities and that’s where the contribution from the federal government is so important.”

Essar receives $60 M from governments – by Elaine Della-Mattia (Sault Star – July 27, 2015)

July 27, 2015

http://www.saultstar.com/

It’s being billed as the largest joint funding announcement Northern Ontario has seen in decades and could be the first of its kind since the Second World War.

And its being hailed by Essar Steel Algoma executives as an investment that will take the steelmaker into the next century, increase its output and competitiveness in the global markets, and create jobs.

In more than one year of planning and negotiations, the federal and provincial governments have joined together to provide Essar Steel Algoma with $60 million for its $240 million modernization plan.

The money includes a $30 million interest-free loan from the federal government’s Advanced Manufacturing Fund and a $30 million grant from the province’s Ministry of Northern Development and Mines and Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp. The company has 10 years to repay the loan.

The money will be used namely for three projects defined in the Plant Optimization and Expansion project, said Kaylan Ghosh, CEO of Essar Steel Algoma.

Nunavik nickel firm wants to nearly double Raglan’s lifespan (Nunatsiaq News – July 27, 2015)

July 27, 2015

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

Glencore proposing to dig four new underground mines at Raglan

The operators of Nunavik’s Raglan nickel mine hope to expand its lifespan well beyond 2019, with the addition of five new underground mines across the region’s nickel belt.

Glencore, the corporation that operates Raglan and its four current underground mines, has submitted the project to the Kativik Environmental Quality Commission, which reviews the social and environmental impact of development in the region.

With current operations scheduled to wind down by 2019, Glencore completed a scoping study last year, the company said, which confirmed viable nickel deposits on the eastern half of the Raglan property. The first phase of the expansion would include two underground mines, called Mine 14 and Donaldson, which would operate from 2019 to 2032.

The exploitation of three new underground mines, Mine 8, Boundary and Boundary West, could extend production from 2023 to 2039, Glencore said in a preliminary information document submitted to the KEQC in 2014.

Sudbury study to examine mental health of miners – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – July 24, 2015)

July 24, 2015

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

A research project on the mental health of workers in the mining industry is exactly the type of study Ontario Labour Minister Kevin Flynn would like to see more of in Ontario.

The three-year, $400,000 study, funded by Vale Ltd., is a partnership among the mining company, United Steelworkers and Laurentian University’s Centre for Research in Occupational Safety and Health (CROSH).

The goal of the study, called Mining Mental Health, is to collect information to develop strategies to promote strong mental health among workers in Vale’s Ontario operations.

Flynn paid his first visit to a mine earlier this year when he went underground at Vale’s Coleman Mine.

Travelling 5,000 feet below surface “was quite the experience for a city kid,” Flynn told about 100 people in the lobby of Laurentian’s Ben Avery building Thursday.

Mining and construction driving Nunavut’s economy: economic report – by David Murphy and Lisa Gregoire (Nunatsiaq News – July 22, 2015)

July 23, 2015

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

Premier supports resource development for job creation

The Conference Board of Canada says Nunavut’s economy is in decent shape this year, and you can thank mining development and construction for that. The not-for-profit board projects Nunavut’s gross domestic product will grow 3.8 per cent in 2015.

That’s the highest rate of GDP growth amongst all territories and provinces, the Conference Board’s Summer 2015 Territorial Outlook said.

In comparison, the Northwest Territories GDP for 2015 is expected to decline by two per cent, and the Yukon’s GDP is expected to decline by 3.4 per cent.

“Led by the construction industry, Nunavut’s outlook is decidedly more promising this year than that of its two territorial counterparts,” the report said.

The independent board, which conducts evidence-based research on behalf of governments and the private sector, twice annually examines the economic and fiscal outlook for the three Canadian territories.

[Canada/Ontario] Mining needs better policy – Editorial (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal – July 22, 2015)

July 22, 2015

Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario.

Provincial and federal governments need to provide more support to the country’s mining sector. The industry is a wealth generator, employing hundreds of people in Northwestern Ontario and across the country, and providing millions of dollars in wages to workers and taxes to government.

Communities like Red Lake and Pickle Lake were created by gold mining booms that continue today. Thunder Bay and other communities in the region supply workers, equipment and expertise to the sector. Very few communities are not receiving some economic spin-offs from mining, a industry that still faces a number of challenges to growth.

As Canada’s energy and mines ministers meet for their 72nd annual conference this week, the country’s exploration and mining industry is asking governments to turn their attention to several areas that are challenging the sector during this period of economic downturn and uncertainty.

A report prepared by the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) and the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) has detailed three policy priorities that will help the industry overcome current challenges and capitalize on the opportunities before it.

Quebec isn’t ready for uranium development: report – by Sarah Rogers (Nunatsiaq News – July 20, 2015)

July 21, 2015

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

Province-wide commission finds lack of reliable information, lack of social acceptability

A new report says it would be “premature” to allow the uranium sector to develop in Quebec, given the lack of both information and social acceptance on the issue.

The Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE), Quebec’s environmental impact review board, released its report on the future of the uranium industry July 17, following a year-long, province-wide commission.

And while the commission found the uranium mining sector has seen major progress in technology and waste management, it found that there are too many unanswered questions about the industry.

The 600-page report also noted significant gaps in scientific knowledge about the impacts of uranium mining on the environment and public health. “Given this situation, the participants at the hearings were almost unanimous in their rejection of uranium sector development,” the French-language report said.

Netolitzky Drills For Wealth Creation Hat-Trick In B.C.’s Golden Triangle – by Tommy Humphreys (Ceo.ca – July 20, 2015)

July 20, 2015

http://ceo.ca/

“In our business, you make it taking shots.”
Ron Netolitzky, 2014 Canadian Mining Hall of Fame inductee

Prospector Ron Netolitzky found his footing exploring for uranium in the northern Saskatchewan muskeg while oil patch consulting on the side, but it was in the mountains of northwestern British Columbia that he found his fortune.

In the late 80s, the geologist discovered the rich Snip and Eskay Creek mines in northwestern B.C.’s Golden Triangle, sparking both a staking rush on the ground and a trading frenzy on the old Vancouver Stock Exchange. Here—through a junior called Delaware Resources—Netolitzky and his partners optioned the Snip property from Cominco, who had held it for around twenty years but had never drilled it.