Ontario Mining – Page 266 – Republic of Mining

Ring of Fire is North’s future – Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal Editorial (May 27, 2012)

June 1, 2012

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

There is an amazing opportunity to embrace nation-building and put aside political differences. The Ring of Fire is waiting for us. It is remote and far from the roads and hydro poles that will be required to develop the deposit of chromite said to be the largest in North America and the key ingredient in stainless steel that is in everything from steak knives to prosthetic hip joints.

From the earliest times of our planet as a molten mass, the Ring of Fire has sat patiently waiting to give up its riches.
And all we have to do is get Ottawa, Ontario and First Nations leaders to sit at the same table and recognize this is a turning point for our nation. We have the chance to develop Northwestern Ontario and breathe a new life of prosperity into the entire region. There is plenty of wealth to go around.

Cliffs Natural Resources plans to spend $3.3 billion to launch its Ring of Fire operations. That includes a chromite mine, a transportation corridor and $1.8 billion to build a smelter near Sudbury. If the private sector is ready to put this kind of cash up against the project, it starts to become mind-boggling how large they believe the pay-off will be.

While it cannot be confirmed, and it was not shared with the media in the premier’s daily itinerary, Premier Dalton McGuinty says he spoke with Prime Minister Harper on Tuesday to ask how Ottawa might help with the development of this massive mining project.

NEWS RELEASE: BMO – Let’s Create 4,000 Jobs Together in Sudbury by 2016

May 31, 2012

BMO releases report on outlook for economy, housing and labour market in Sudbury

– Sudbury’s unemployment rate expected to drop to 6 per cent by 2016; back to pre-recession lows

– Strong commodity demand and industry expansion will generate growth in mining sector

– Sudbury Chamber of Commerce: City is on the Move

– BMO offering support to Canadian businesses by making $10 billion in credit available over next three years

For the entire report, click here: http://www.bmonesbittburns.com/economics/reports/20120531/SR120531.pdf

SUDBURY, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – May 31, 2012) – The next four years will bring 4,000 new jobs to Sudbury, according to a new report released today by BMO Capital Markets Economics.

The report on Sudbury is the latest in a series of economic and business overviews for various cities across Canada that will be published by BMO throughout the year.

Boom goes Sudbury – by Mike Whitehouse (Sudbury Star – May 31, 2012)

May 31, 2012

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

The next four years will bring 4,000 new jobs to Sudbury, an economic forecast released Wednesday predicts, but it will not be your grandfather’s economic boom.

The forecast, from the economists at BMO Capital Markets Economics, predicts the kind of rapid, game-changing growth for Sudbury last seen in Alberta — both good and bad — its authors say.

Sustainably strong commodity prices coupled with the maturation of Sudbury’s economy — clearly the centre of Northern Ontario’s booming mining cluster — will lead the way, says Robert Kavcic, an economist at BMO Capital Markets. “Employment in Sudbury has recouped all of the declines suffered during the recession,” he said.

“The city’s small labour pool makes statistics like the jobless rate volatile, but the underlying trend is clearly improving.” Even at 7%, Sudbury’s jobless rate remains below Ontario’s, a feat achieved in 2007, and a stark turnaround from about 15 years of a consistently high local unemployment rate, he said.

Vale looks for some [mining employment] help – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – May 30, 2012)

May 30, 2012

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

Vale Ltd. is embarking on an aggressive campaign to hire more than 40 engineers and hundreds of other employees by “selling” the quality of life in the Nickel City and the opportunities for advancement with the giant miner.

At least 400 new employees will be hired this year, many to work on the $3.4 billion in investments the company is making in its Clean AER project at the Copper Cliff Smelter.

Engineers are also needed to do preliminary work on Vale’s Victor-Capre and Copper Cliff Deep projects.

Vale employs almost 4,000 people at Sudbury in six mines, a mill, a smelter and a refinery. Kelly Strong, general manager of Vale’s Ontario operations, says his company is in stiff competition with mining companies, such as BHP and Rio Tinto — and from other industries such as oil and gas.

Part of the company’s hiring plan is promoting a new image of mining, starting in area high schools, and at colleges and universities.

Coalition wants [Wolf Lake mining] lease to lapse – by Star Staff (Sudbury Star – May 29, 2012)

May 29, 2012

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

The Wolf Lake Coalition is once again urging the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines to let a mining lease in the Wolf Lake old-growth forest expire Thursday.

In fact, the coalition argued in a release Monday that regulations in the Mining Act would support such a decision, and that to allow exploration would be “shameful.”

“The Mining Act affirms that if the leaseholder is not in production or on the road to production in that lease, it should expire,” the coalition said. “According to public records, very little activity has occurred on this lease for the past 30 years. Not only is this area not in production — it is not remotely close.

“Under our own legislation, this lease should not be renewed.” Flag Resources, a Calgarybased company, holds mining leases in the reserve. The comp a ny’s president, Murdo McLeod, has said in the past there is potential for gold, copper, cobalt and palladium mines in Wolf Lake, where the company has been since the 1980s.

Rain brings relief [Timmins fire]- by Kyle Gennings (Timmins Daily Press – May 28, 2012)

May 28, 2012

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

Size of blaze smaller than originally projected

Sunday brought a welcome sigh of relief for Timmins residents as rain and cooler tempertures helped to reduce the size of the Timmins 9 forest fire. The blaze, just 30 kilometres outside the city centre, is 70 kilometres long and has consumed thousands of hectares of forest west of Timmins.

Despite the positive outlook today, Timmins Mayor Tom Laughren offered some grounding words at Sunday’s press conference.

“Yes, the fire has shrunk in size, from a community perspective this is a relief,” he said. “But we need to remember the size of this fire, remember that it will take more than a days water bombing and a days rainfall to control it.”

With the addition of 20 new four-man crews from British Columbia working the southern flank of the fire, just north of Gogama, the Ontario fire rangers have been able to concentrate their efforts on the northeastern flank on the Kenogamissi and Cache areas, saving every residence and cottage in the area, only losing a couple of sheds and a vehicle.

Beyond the Ring [Northwestern Ontario mining] – by Jamie Smith (tbnewswatch.com – May 26, 2012)

May 26, 2012

http://www.tbnewswatch.com/

There are 25 million ounces of gold under the region’s feet ready to be taken out in the next five years.

Even without major discoveries in the Ring of Fire, the region will have a mining boom industry experts say. There are 11 mining projects outside of the highly publicized Ring of Fire that are expected to be operational by 2017 with an expected total life of more than 100 years.

Rubicon Minerals, which is mining for gold under Red Lake, is expected to start late next year and hit 2.8 million ounces of gold in its high-grade deposit over a dozen years. A lower grade deposit, which in industry terms is about a gram of gold for every tonne of rock mined, like Rainy River Resources’ 5.72 million ounces will run for 13 years.

Those two projects alone represent almost a billion dollars in capital costs with more than 700 construction jobs and nearly 900 operations jobs.

As of May 15, the Thunder Bay Community Economic Development Commission estimates the mining projects ready to go will create at least 4,000 new jobs.

McGuinty calls on Ottawa to help him open up the North – by Karen Howlett and Shawn McCarthy (Globe and Mail – May 26, 2012)

May 26, 2012

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

TORONTO AND OTTAWA— Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is pledging to work closely with the federal government on its controversial overhaul of environmental assessments as he calls on Ottawa to play an active role in exploiting the untapped potential of the Ring of Fire.

Mr. McGuinty is counting on mining exploration in the northern wilderness to lead to a new generation of prosperity for Ontario. Emerging economies in India and China have an “insatiable hunger” for the province’s resource riches, he said on Friday in urging Prime Minister Stephen Harper to help him open up the North.

“Failure is not an option,” Mr. McGuinty told reporters. “Success is mandatory.”

The mining exploration area in the James Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario is one of the most significant mineral regions in the province, and includes the largest deposit of chromite ever discovered in North America.

The mining onslaught in native communities – by Saul Chernos (Now Magazine – May 24-31, 2012)

May 25, 2012

http://www.nowtoronto.com/

The Liberal government may be buoyant about the mining boom it hopes will juice up the economy, but recent events have many wondering if mining firms are capable of delivering fair treatment to First Nations living over or near those subterranean resources.

A few weeks back, the Libs wrapped up the feedback process for their long-awaited revamp of the Ontario Mining Act, a target of native groups and mining watchdogs. The act enshrines the right of prospectors to subsurface minerals on land owned by others, and activists want changes allowing communities the right to refuse.

Alas, the province released its draft amendments earlier this year, and the fine print reveals major loopholes. Exploration firms would still be able to stake and sample claims without notifying First Nations; consultations would only be required for high-level prospecting.

Most striking, however, is the absence of any reference to the right of refusal. “We want to have the authority to say no, and I think we have that authority,” says Chief Donny Morris of northwestern Ontario’s Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI), which has had mining run-ins with the Libs.

Premier Dalton McGuinty reaches out to Prime Minister Harper on Ring of Fire – by James Murray (Netnewsledger.com – May 25, 2012.

May 25, 2012

http://netnewsledger.com/

THUNDER BAY – Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty’s reach out to Prime Minister Harper on the Ring of Fire started early in May. The Premier wrote the Prime Minister on May 8th seeking federal goverment assistance. The Premier stated, “The Ring of Fire, located 540 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, is one of the most promising mineral development opportunities in Canada in almost a century”.

The May 8th letter continues, “Tomorrow morning, Cliffs Natural Resources management plans to announce the Ontario location of their ferrochrome processing facility, and Ontario Ministers will announce the province’s plans to engage First Nations in the region to help those communities benefit from this historic opportunity”.

“I am writing to invite your government to take a more active role in supporting the tremendous economic development opportunity associated with the Ring of Fire”.

The Premier adds, “Canada needs to deal with the acknowledged and widespread problems of inadequate First Nation’s social and community infrastructure.

McGuinty wants PM’s help to develop Ring of Fire – by Jonathan Jenkins (Sudbury Star – May 25, 2012)

May 25, 2012

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

TORONTO — Pulling stuff out of the ground is catching on with Premier Dalton McGuinty. “His curiosity was piqued,” McGuinty said Thursday of a meeting he had with Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday regarding development of the so-called Ring of Fire area of Northern Ontario.

“I pressed upon the prime minister that we’ve got a great natural resource in our own province right here in our backyard that we need to develop together,” McGuinty said.

The Ring of Fire, about 250 km west of James Bay, holds North America’s largest deposit of chromite. Chromite is an important building block of stainless steel and the find could mean billions of dollars if it’s developed.

“We need to put a road up there, we need to extend electricity transmission up there, we need to invest the skills and training levels of our First Nations communities,” McGuinty said.

[Ring of Fire] Industry game-changer – by Julie Gordon and Bhaswati Mukhopadhyay (Sudbury Star – May 25, 2012)

May 25, 2012

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

A $3.3-billion plan to build North America’s first major chromite mine deep in the Canadian wi lderness promises to usher in an era of prosperity for the region’s aboriginals and generate millions of tax dollars over its lifetime.

Tucked deep into Northern Ontario, the Ring of Fire contains rich mineral deposits that could transform the region, much as the oilsands have transformed Alberta. Much like the oilsands, it has raised deep environmental and social concerns.

But the Ring of Fire stands apart from other resource mega-developments around the world in one important respect. Rather than oil, gold or iron ore, its main attraction is a relatively minor ore — chromite — which is refined into ferrochrome to make stainless steel.

The region contains North America’s only known large-scale chromite deposit. If Cleveland-based Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. develops the Black Thor project, it will likely revolutionize the stainless steel industry on the continent, which now relies on imports from South Africa and Kazakhstan. It would make Canada the world’s four thlargest chromite producer.

Ontario’s Ring of Fire Will Fuel Our Economy – by Tim Hudak (May 22, 2012)

May 24, 2012

Tim Hudak is the opposition leader of the Ontario PC Party

Ontario once enjoyed bountiful supplies of affordable energy — and used it over more than a century to build our province into an industrial powerhouse and resource development dynamo. But times have changed.

You may have seen a news article a week ago, for example, about how high electricity prices, along with a burdensome approvals process, add up to obstacles to investment in Northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire region. My caucus colleague, and Ontario PC energy critic, Vic Fedeli used a recent provincial parliamentary committee meeting to press the government for some answers about this critical issue.

Because it’s been in the news lately, I want to use the Ring of Fire to illustrate a broader point, to show how heavily energy costs can weigh on economic sectors like mining, forestry and manufacturing — where Ontario most urgently needs to kick-start job creation with more than half a million people unemployed.

The Ring of Fire should be a cause for optimism with the ongoing jobs crisis in Ontario. According to Richard Nemis, the entrepreneur who gave the Ring of Fire its name, the “economic impact of this discovery on the Ontario economy will probably run into the hundreds of billions of dollars over time.”

Neskantaga chief demands real consultation on Ring of Fire – by Rick Garrick (Wawatay News – May 22, 2012)

May 23, 2012

http://www.wawataynews.ca/

Neskantaga Chief Peter Moonias has raised further issues over the Cliffs Natural Resources chromite mine project in the Ring of Fire.

Moonias sent a letter to Michael Gravelle, minister of Natural Resources, on May 17 stating he has learned that Cliffs and/or its wholly owned subsidiary Cliffs Chromite Ontario Inc. has applied for land use and other permits on provincial crown land to begin mobilizing for infrastructure development and commencement of construction, including the north-south access corridor to the Ring of Fire.

Moonias stated in the letter that Ontario cannot lawfully consider these applications without fulfilling its constitutional duty of consultation. The chief said that the granting of an easement, issuance of any kind of land use or other permits to Cliffs in support of its proposed developments would be a further breach of Ontario’s duty to consult.

Moonias had earlier stated in a May 11 letter to Rick Bartolucci, minister of Northern Development and Mines, that Ontario is in breach of its constitutional duty to consult with Neskantaga and other Aboriginal peoples regarding the Cliffs mine and infrastructure development in and to the Ring of Fire.

[Ring of Fire] Ontario needs better energy infrastructure – by George Smitherman (Sudbury Star – May 23, 2012)

May 23, 2012

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

George Smitherman former deputy premier and Energy minister of Ontario

By the sounds of the name it’s been given, the Ring of Fire is the last place on Earth where you’d think you have to worry about how to supply power. However, when you are proposing mining activity 300 km north of any paved road, things get complicated quickly.

Maybe that’s why Ontario is actually allowing a giant American mining company, and at least one smaller Canadian one, to propose that diesel generation be used to provide electricity. Problem is, their needs are projected to start at 30 mw and grow to 70 mw. That would take about 10 million litres of diesel fuel each month. Diesel fuel that would presumably be trucked 300 km along a road that will be carved out of environmentally sensitive lands.

This Ring of Fire mining activity will be taking place in the James Bay Lowlands on the traditional territories of several First Nation communities. It’s ironic that a pressing need of these same communities is a more reliable, healthy and cost effective means of generating electricity than the small diesel generators they currently use.

First Nations communities have experienced the limitations of electricity from diesel for far too long.