Twitter

Ontario Mining

Municipal leaders talk future ‘billion-dollar’ lithium industry in Thunder Bay, Ont., at AMO conference – by Sarah Law (CBC News Thunder Bay – August 24, 2023)

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

Leaders in Thunder Bay, Ont., voiced some of the city’s top priorities at the Association of Municipalities Ontario’s (AMO) annual general meeting and conference this week. The conference gives municipal leaders the chance to meet with provincial ministers and raise local concerns at a larger level in the hopes of getting more support.

The city sent Coun. Kristen Oliver and Coun. Shelby Ch’ng — chair and vice-chair, respectively, of the intergovernmental affairs committee — along with mayor Ken Boshcoff and city manager Norm Gale to London, Ont., to participate in a marathon of meetings.

Read more

Laurentian formalizes agreement for innovation cluster – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – August 25, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Sudbury university joins Lakehead, Nipissing and Trent in singing MOU

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been struck between four Ontario universities to lead innovation in the commercialization of critical minerals, cleantech, and battery electric technologies.

Announced in May, the innovation cluster is being led by Laurentian University in Sudbury, in partnership with Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Nipissing University in North Bay, and Trent University in Peterborough. The cluster is designed to help mining entrepreneurs move their products more easily from R&D to commercialization.

Read more

Electra presses ‘pause’ on Temiskaming refinery construction – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 21, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Processing company calls on government and industry to come to the table with funding

Electra Battery Materials will looking to its industry partners and government funders for help in finishing the construction of its Temiskaming cobalt refinery. Trent Mell, CEO of the fledgling Toronto mineral processing company said it’s going to “pause or slow down” the project until there’s a clearer “capital solution” in place to complete the project.

The cost to finish the cobalt sulfate refinery is $161 million. More than $81 million has been spent to date, as Electra posted in its second quarter results in a conference call late last week.

Read more

Marten Falls chief wants housing and water issues fixed ahead of Ring of Fire mining – by Angela Gemmill (Northern Ontario Business – August 22, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Bruce Achneepineskum and community won’t be satisfied with the ‘bare minimum’ in consenting to James Bay development

The chief of Marten Falls First Nation isn’t opposed to mine development, he’s just cautious about what should be included in any future agreement connected to the Ring of Fire.

Bruce Achneepineskum wants to ensure the provincial and federal governments uphold their side of the bargain and that his remote community in the James Bay region thrives because of its potential involvement. “We’re not against development, but there are issues that the government has to address.”

Read more

Mining the Northwest: West Red Lake Gold Mines taking a deep dive at the Madsen Mine – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 18, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Frank Giustra-backed upstart company more than a year away from Red Lake mine restart

Shane Williams and West Red Lake Gold Mines are in no big rush to put the dormant Madsen Mine back into production. The Vancouver gold company intends to take a methodical approach to set things right and deep dive into the deposit before resuming production at the shuttered underground mine, southwest of the town of Red Lake.

Months and months of underground drilling is on the docket to get a more accurate picture of the ore body and a better impression of the area’s geology, before they’ll even entertain the thought of a restart.

Read more

Wyloo will be mining more than nickel at Eagle’s Nest – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 17, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Underground aggregate extraction for Ring of Fire road will deliver both practical and environmental solutions

The proposed Eagle’s Nest mine will “set a new benchmark for what mining could look like” in the Ring of Fire, said its Australian developer.

Luca Giacovazzi, CEO of Wyloo Metals and a director with Ring of Fire Metals (formerly Noront Resources), revealed some of their innovative engineering solutions last week at the Diggers and Dealers Mining Forum, a leading industry bash held at Kalgoorlie in Western Australia.

Read more

Sudbury researchers land funding for green mining initiative – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – August 15,2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

MIRARCO Mining Innovation receive $280,000 from industry innovation network

Sudbury’s MIRARCO Mining Innovation has received $280,000 in grant money from the Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator (MICA) Network.

The funding is earmarked to help develop a pilot plant in Sudbury that uses a biotechnology process to extract valuable metals out of waste piles at mine sites while simultaneously cleaning up the environment. MIRARCO’s industry partner, BacTech Environment Corp. announced the news on Aug. 14.

Read more

Canada’s newest mine is ready to rock in Dubreuilville – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 14, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Job openings available Argonaut Gold’s Magino Mine starts early production

Construction of the Magino open-pit mine, outside Dubreuilville, is completed and the operational ramp-up is underway. Argonaut Gold delivered that news in releasing its fiscal 2023 second quarter results on Aug. 11.

Though not yet in full commercial production, Magino produced 3,295 ounces during the quarter ending June 30. In a web conference call, the company said the focus is on commissioning activities as they fine-tune the processing mill to a “steady state,” said Marc Leduc, Argonaut’s chief operating officer.

Read more

Former Sudbury mining school lead has died – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – August 11, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Bruce Jago was the founding executive director at Laurentian University’s Goodman School of Mines

Bruce Jago, the founding executive director of Laurentian University’s renowned Goodman School of Mines in Sudbury, has died at the age of 66. Jago died on Aug. 5, 2023, following “a heroic battle with young onset Alzheimer’s disease,” according to his obituary.

The respected exploration geologist had more than 30 years of experience in the mining industry. He was announced as executive director of the newly minted Goodman School of Mines in January 2013, a position he maintained for six years.

Read more

Conference Board forecasts nickel demand will lift all sectors of Sudbury’s economy – by Kate Rutherford (CBC News Sudbury – August 9, 2023)

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

An economist says Sudbury’s recovery is on the way but won’t reach pre-pandemic levels until 2026

Nickel prices and rising demand for the mineral will help Sudbury’s local economy ride out a slowing national economy and carry it to pre-pandemic prosperity by 2026. In its most recent report, the Conference Board of Canada says nickel prices jumped nearly 72 percent between 2020 and 2022 buoyed by the war in Ukraine and strengthening nickel demand.

Senior economist Rob Wiebe says it’s precisely that demand and heightened exploration for nickel to produce batteries for electric cars that will fuel investment across different sectors in the city.

Read more

Magna Mining planning to reopen Crean Hill mine near Sudbury (CBC News Sudbury – August 8, 2023)

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

The former Crean Hill mine operated from 1900 to 2002 before being closed

A Sudbury, Ont. mining company is setting its sights on reviving the Crean Hill mine for further exploration. Magna Mining Inc. acquired the mine in 2022. It recently completed a preliminary economic assessment on the mine, and the results of the study indicated the potential for more mineral production.

“What has been shown by the drilling that was done prior to Magna is there’s still a lot of resources left in the ground, a lot of nickel, a lot of copper, a lot of precious metals,” said Jason Jessup, CEO of Magna Mining.

Read more

Kinross picks up the pace to build Red Lake’s next gold mine – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 3, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Gold company making camp construction preparations while renewing partnership with area First Nations

Kinross Gold is wasting little time in advancing its Great Bear project, outside Red Lake, toward production. In posting its second quarter earnings and production results, the Toronto gold miner is ramping up its exploration efforts in the northwestern Ontario mining camp.

The company is making plans to go underground by carving out a decline at Great Bear to grab a bulk sample for metallurgical analysis while also probing deeper around its high-grade deposit, known as the LP Fault Zone. to look for gold extensions.

Read more

Indigenous resistance challenges Ontario’s ‘mining boom’ – by Owen Schalk (Canadian Dimension – August 3, 2023)

https://canadiandimension.com/

Ring of Fire has become one of the most active regions in the world for lithium exploration

As Canada’s governments hungrily scour domestic and foreign territory in search of critical minerals—an essential part of Ottawa’s new Cold War on China—Ontario Premier Doug Ford is attempting to spin demand into a provincial mining boom.

Ontario’s first-ever Critical Minerals Strategy (CMS), announced alongside a federal initiative of the same name, proclaims that the province is “incredibly fortunate” and “blessed with exquisite deposits of nickel, lithium, platinum, cobalt and dozens of other strategically important raw materials.”

Read more

Gold production grinds to a halt at White River mine – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 1, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Silver Lake Resources shuttering operations to ‘reset’ mine plan and figure out the area geology

The Australian owners of the Sugar Zone Mine at White River said it’s halting mining operations and hitting the “reset” button.

In its quarterly activities report, Silver Lake Resources announced the mine will be shuttered for the current 2024 fiscal year in order to get a better handle on the geology, to fix a raft of inefficiencies, and come up with a new operating model. The company’s fiscal 2024 year ends next June 30.

Read more

Magna Mining sees 15-year mine life in reviving former Inco mine – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – July 31, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Sudbury nickel junior miner posts preliminary economic assessment for pit and underground operation

Sudbury’s Magna Mining has tabled an economic and technical report to bring a former Inco nickel mine back into production. The exploration outfit and would-be mine developers released a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) showing strong mineable economics on its Crean Hill Project located in the southwest corner of the Sudbury Basin. A PEA is an initial report on what a mine operation could look like.

In the company’s evaluation of the property, Crean Hill has the potential for a 15 to 19-year mine life depending upon the mineral processing scenario they eventually choose, and bring it online at a “modest” cost.

Read more