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Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications

Better linking Canada’s grid – by Nicholas Fedorkiw (Prince George Citizen – January 7, 2014)

http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/section/princegeorge

One theme I have written about before is the need for more interprovincial trade in electricity. The benefits of free trade in general are embraced by most these days. However, for a variety of reasons, electricity is the one sector of the economy that has least benefited from free trade, even within Canada.

Hopefully that’s about to change. There is a movement afoot in central Canada to use Manitoba’s clean hydro power to supply industrial mining and oil and gas development in northern Ontario, Saskatchewan, and even Alberta. There are some definite lessons for B.C. here, as well as the whole country.

Like B.C., Manitoba is powered by large scale hydroelectric power. Also, like B.C., they are surrounded by areas that need a lot of electricity to fuel their economy. Ontario’s “Ring of Fire”; an area of proposed mining development is probably most significant. Not only do mines consume a lot of electricity, but the mines of northern Ontario are actually closer to the power generation centres of Manitoba than of Ontario’s which are focused in southern Ontario.

Looking west, the oil and gas growth in Alberta and Saskatchewan is another target market for Manitoba’s power. In this case, its the carbon free nature of Manitoba’s power that has value in the otherwise carbon intensive economies of these western provinces.

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[Ontario] Mines minister confident Ring talks making headway – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – January 6, 2014)

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

Michael Gravelle wasn’t sharing insider information about how talks are progressing between the government of Ontario and First Nations closest to the Ring of Fire.

But he telegraphed some heavy hints in an end-of-year conversation about the development of the rich chromite deposits located 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay.

Consultations being led by retired supreme court justice Frank Iacobucci for the province and former Ontario New Democrat premier and federal Liberal leader Bob Rae representing the Matawa Tribal Council are vital part to moving the Ring of Fire forward, said Gravelle.

They are progressing well, the minister of Northern Development and Mines said several times during a telephone interview with The Sudbury Star.

And while didn’t want to “presume the end of the discussions” between the first nations and the province, Gravelle said he hopes his government will be in a position “very soon” to announce a framework agreement between the two parties.

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[Vale, Glencore Sudbury] Merger wouldn’t result in plant closures, mine analysts say – by Harold Carmichael (Sudbury Star – January 6, 2014)

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

If ongoing Vale and Glencore Xstrata discussions produce an agreement in 2014 on how to mine nickel and copper in the Greater Sudbury area more cost-effectively, there might be some short-term job cuts, but no big plant closures, says a man who runs a website devoted to mining.

“Absolutely not,” said former Greater Sudbury resident Stan Sudol, who now works in Toronto and operates The Republic of Mining website. “The two operations – the Clarabelle Mill and the Strathcona Mill – process different types of ore. On the north slope (of the Sudbury Basin), the ore is heavy in copper and PGMs (platinum-group metals). The Clarabelle Mill, meanwhile, deals with ore from the south side which is more nickel heavy. I would be very surprised if either of the mills gets closed.”

Sudol added that the Falconbridge Smelter, which he understands is operating under capacity, is processing ore from Australia and the Raglan project in Quebec, in addition to local ore. “The operation is a part of a global industry,” he noted.

On. Dec. 18, Reuters reported Vale’s chief executive officer Murilo Ferreira said he expects Vale’s “consortium” with Glencore Xsrata in Greater Sudbury nickel projects to be defined by the first quarter of 2014 and for the venture to operate as a single unit.

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Advocates want Canada to protect even more of its boreal forest – by Bob Weber (Canadian Press/Waterloo Record – January 6, 2014)

http://www.therecord.com/waterlooregion/

Canada has made significant strides in protecting the vast boreal forest that stretches across most of its provinces and territories, but the world’s largest intact forest ecosystem still faces threats, says an environmental group.

The amount of boreal forest under some form of government protection has doubled since 2007 to about 12 per cent of the total area, biologist Jeff Wells of the Canadian Boreal Initiative said recently. “That’s a big rate of increase in a short time and we’re hoping that’s going to continue,” he said.

The boreal forest is the huge swath of green that stretches from Newfoundland to the Yukon. It’s home to millions of migratory birds, harbours endangered wildlife such as caribou and shelters hundreds of wetlands that clean water and store carbon.

A total of 708,000 square kilometres is now protected by government. Another 460,000 square kilometres are being harvested through sustainable practices such as those outlined by the Forest Stewardship Council, an organization that promotes responsible management of the world’s forests by setting standards, and certifying and labelling wood products.

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MTO in midst of pan-northern transportation strategy – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – December 30, 2013)

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. Ian Ross is the editor of Northern Ontario Business ianross@nob.on.ca.

A provincial plan to access the Ring of Fire may be lacking, but for almost three years the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) has been quietly working on a major pan-northern planning exercise to support future regional economic development.

Known as the Northern Ontario Multimodal Transportation Strategy, the multi-year study is directly tied into the Liberal government’s implementation of the Northern Growth Plan.

“It’s definitely a first for the MTO in Northern Ontario,” said Tija Dirks, the ministry’s director of transportation planning, of the comprehensive process which began in 2011.

“The scope of the issues that we’re looking at is much broader. We’re truly looking at the transportation system and not just the highway network.”

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2013 News Story: Bittersweet victory for mine safety – by Harold Carmichael (Sudbury Star – December 31, 2013)

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

The $1-million fine against Vale the largest occupational health and safety related fine issued by an Ontario court and the province’s decision to conduct a mining review together constitute The Sudbury Star’s top news story of 2013. Both stand to have a significant impact on the city’s defining industry.

On June 8, 2011, Jason Chenier, 35, and Jordan Fram, 26, were working on the 3,000-foot level of Stobie Mine when they were overcome by a 350-tonne run of muck consisting of rock and water.

Vale pleaded guilty to three charges admitting to failure to take reasonable precautions to prevent water accumulation in the mine, which was determined to have played a role in the run of muck.

“The fine and the announcement of a review are the most significant legal developments relating to mine safety we’ve seen in this province for decades,” said Sudbury Star Managing Editor Brian MacLeod. “The persistent efforts of people in the community undoubtedly played a role in forcing the labour ministry to proceed with a review of mining practices.”

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Potash dims economic glow in Saskatchewan, but premier says it’s still good – by Jennifer Graham (Canadian Press/Brandon Sun – December 23, 2013)

 http://www.brandonsun.com/

REGINA – Slumping demand for the pink mineral potash dimmed Saskatchewan’s economic glow at the end of this year.
But Premier Brad Wall says the outlook is positive for the year ahead, despite pressures in the potash industry and a report that Saskatchewan’s boom could be cooling.

“We have to take a look at the whole economy,” Wall said in a year-end interview with The Canadian Press.

“Our economy is diversified. We’re more than just one sector. We have a lot of … cylinders that are firing in this economic engine … so when the natural resource sector is down, we’re still creating net thousands of jobs year over year.” Saskatchewan’s economy took off in 2007, based largely on revenue from natural resources, such as oil and gas and potash, which is used in fertilizer.

But potash and the companies that produce it were hit hard this year when Russian-based Uralkali, one of the world’s largest potash producers, quit an export partnership. China and India, key markets for fertilizer, then delayed purchases in expectation of lower prices. That sent shipments plunging.

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NORCAT lands ‘exciting’ new tenant – by Laura Stricker (Sudbury Star – December 23, 2013)

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

A British Columbia-based company is moving one of its projects to Sudbury. Sky Vertical Technologies Inc., a subsidiary of Sky Harvest Energy Corp., is setting up its vertical wind axis turbine testing and manufacturing facilities to space owned by the Northern Centre for Advanced Technologies (NORCAT), it announced in a release earlier this month.

“Our CEO (of Sky Vertical) Kyle Loney lives in Sudbury. He is very integrated in the mining business himself and he knew of NORCAT and approached them. That’s how we came to learn of them,” William Iny, Sky Harvest’s president, told The Star this week.

What partially distinguished NORCAT, Iny said, was its 70,000-square-foot development facility.

“They’re not just involved in the mining sector, which we’re very interested in, because our vertical turbines have application for the mining ventilation shaft. Their high-tech facilities for … research and development and for manufacturing, their intellectual contacts within the technology field, were really impressive.

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Work begins on open pit – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – December 20, 2013)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – Excavators and trucks have started moving earth and rocks around as construction begins on the Hollinger open-pit mine.

“We finally got our permits a couple of weeks ago, so construction is slowly beginning,” Marc Lauzier, general manager of Goldcorp Porcupine Gold Mines, told The Daily Press Thursday. “We’re actually just finishing up the roads now and the contractor who will be doing the overburden stripping is starting to mobilize.

“There may be a couple of drills drilling. We don’t expect to be blasting before mid to end of January. Initially, all we’re going to do is move some earth around … For the most part, it will look like a pretty regular construction project.”

The open-pit operation is expected to create about 60 new jobs. “We’re on a slow ramp-up. Right now we have the people we need, but over the next two or three months, I definitely expect we will start hiring people,” said Lauzier.

“We have about 120 who are already here and we will eventually have a total workforce of about 180. Certainly, over the next year, we will create probably 60 new positions but they won’t all happen in the first couple of months of the year. We will gradually build this up.

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Canada: Québec Finally Adopts Its Reform Of The Mining Act – by François Paradis, Hugo-Pierre Gagnon and Sophie Amyot Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP (Mondaq.com – December 19, 2013)

http://www.mondaq.com/

On December 10, 2013, Bill 70 – An Act to amend the Mining Act (Bill 70), tabled by the Minister of Natural Resources (the Minister) on December 5, 2013, was adopted by the Québec National Assembly. Bill 70 is the current government’s second attempt to reform Québec’s mining legislation after Bill 43, tabled in June and which sought to replace the existing Mining Act, was blocked by the opposition on October 30.

Bill 70 includes most of the changes proposed by Bill 43 (see our Osler Update of June 14, 2013, Plan Nord – Parti Québécois Advances Reform of Québec’s Mining Act) for the main provisions of Bill 43); however, in order to obtain the opposition parties’ support, the government had to make certain concessions, discussed below, on important aspects of the bill.

Conditions for granting a mining lease

First, with respect to the conditions for granting a mining lease, the ore processing feasibility study proposed in Bill 43 and which mining investors viewed as a major irritant, has been replaced by a scoping and market study, expected to be both less costly and less time consuming.

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Vale CEO talks ‘consortium’ with Glencore – by Staff (Sudbury Star – December 19, 2013)

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

A comment by Vale chief executive officer Murilo Ferrira, reported by Reuters on Wednesday, will have people talking again about a potential merger, or partial merger, between Vale and Glencore Xstrata operations in Sudbury.

Reuters reported Ferreira as saying he expects Vale’s “consortium” with Glencore in Sudbury nickel projects to be defined by the first quarter of 2014 and for the venture to operate as a single unit.

Vale spokesman Cory McPhee said Ferreira’s statement was made at an end-of-the-year luncheon with reporters in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday at which Ferreira answered several questions.

His answer to the one about a Sudbury merger was a repetition of what he said during Vale Days at the New York and London Stock Exchanges a few weeks ago when he told reporters he expected to conclude the discussions in the first quarter of 2014, said McPhee.

“He’s speaking very broadly to potential outcomes,” said McPhee.

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ONTC needs change: Gravelle – by Michael Gravelle (Sudbury Star – November 18, 2013)

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

Michael Gravelle is Ontario’s minister of Northern Development and Mines.

The transformation of the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission is, expectedly, of considerable interest to northerners. That is why, as minister of Northern Development and Mines, I continue to work alongside a dedicated group of Northerners that include members of my ONTC advisory committee, ONTC management and union representatives to transform the ONTC. We share a goal of sustainable telecommunication and transportation services and we certainly share the goal of a prosperous North.

I would, however, like to take this opportunity to clarify a few points. 
Last week, Ontario’s Auditor General published a special report on the ONTC. The report clearly acknowledged the significant challenges and complexity of transforming the ONTC. At the same time, she specifically notes that, “There is little doubt that without change, the operation of the ONTC in its current structure will require taxpayers to subsidize its operations on an annual basis.”

This is a subsidy that is only projected to grow into the future.
Our discussions with northern leaders show a clear consensus that the current state of the organization is not sustainable and change is needed. It is also clear that the services provided by the ONTC are vital to Northern communities. Transformation of the ONTC is intended to save taxpayers money in the long run, while ensuring vital transportation and communications services continue to be provided to northerners.

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Sudbury firm eyes role in lunar mining mission – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – December 17, 2013)

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

INNOVATION: Deltion partners with NASA contractor

A city once described as a moonscape now boasts expertise to mine the real lunar surface. Sudbury’s Deltion Innovations Ltd., formerly affiliated with the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology, has been developing space mining systems for over a dozen years and is now a step closer to putting its high-tech drilling and excavating equipment into orbit.

Last week, the company announced a new partnership with Neptec Design Group Ltd. of Kanata to collaborate on projects involving space flight systems.

The two companies have worked together in the past, but now have what Deltion CEO Dale Boucher describes as a “strategic alliance.”

The Kanata enterprise has been a prime contractor for Canadian Space Agency and National Aeronautics and Space Administration projects, providing flight machine vision systems and supporting shuttle missions. “They built a laser system to inspect the shuttle before coming down,” notes Boucher.

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Nickel market may be missing the bigger picture – by Roskill Information Services (Mining.com – December 16, 2013)

http://www.mining.com/

With 2014 quickly approaching, all eyes in the market appear to be turned east to Indonesia.

As of the beginning of December, the Indonesian government has signalled that it would proceed with putting into effect a ban on unprocessed mineral ores.

Roskill’s nickel analyst, Thomas Hohne, answers some of the major questions related to the ban and its effect on the nickel market, and shares some of Roskill’s views of what other factors will be driving the nickel market in the years to come. What should we expect to happen come January 2014?

Shipments are set to be barred from January 12th onwards as proposals for a phased introduction of the ban have been discussed, but not adopted, as of yet. With Indonesia’s earnings from ore exports in the range of US$10 billion in 2013, much of which would evaporate overnight, pressure for some intermediate solution will remain. Because of this, however, any temporary solution is likely to be reached after the imposition of the ban, rather than before. Moreover, Indonesian officials have already indicated that even as the legislation will go ahead, implementation of the ban may allow for some amendments in practice.

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Slow, downsize Ring of Fire project – by Patricia McCormick (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal – December 14, 2013)

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

In response to Don Watson’s question “Why the Ring rush?” (letter, Dec. 4) and Kaleigh Bahlieda’s answer, “If you can’t grow it, it has to be mined!” (letter, Dec. 5) I’d like to agree with both of them and add my own question: When would be a good time to practise sustainability for minerals supply via recycling, totally?

I ask this because eventually we will exhaust our Earth’s deposits of minerals. We must ask ourselves how much or how many of our other precious resources, for example clean watersheds and boreal forest, are we willing to give up for a new versus a recycled supply of minerals?

How much of these new minerals do we really need? How much are destined solely to make money for shareholders and executives of large corporations via creation of consumer ‘need’ for, for example, stainless steel kitchen appliance replacements for the previous ‘must have’ white fridge, green fridge, gold fridge, back to the white fridge . . . and now stainless steel fridge?

I take issue also with Gary Laine’s article, Ontario’s Ring of Failure (Viewpoint, Dec. 2). “Our provincial leadership is badly stricken by analysis paralysis” Laine says.

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