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Ontario Mining

First Nation calls mining stakes ‘unlawful, invalid’ as it challenges Ontario’s free-entry system – by Sarah Law (CBC News Thunder Bay – August 3, 2023)

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

Chief warns of legal action if community’s concerns aren’t addressed by province, Ottawa

A First Nation in northwestern Ontario has issued a public notice to warn mining prospectors away from its traditional territory, and says the province’s free mine staking system is putting a potential treaty settlement at risk.

The notice by Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek (KZA), also known as Gull Bay First Nation, says it opposes recent mining claims made in its vicinity, and will “take all measures necessary to ensure that our interests in these lands are respected and protected,” which could include legal action. Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek is an Anishinaabe community situated on the western shores of Lake Nipigon, about 175 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, and has about 1,500 members.

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Massive deal with Saudis will help Vale fund nickel, other mining projects – by Darren MacDonald (CTV News Northern Ontairo – July 31, 2023)

https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/

Vale Base Metals (VBM) Ltd. has signed deals worth $3.4 billion with two Saudi Arabian-owned entities as the company works to develop its base metals operations as a separate entity. The agreement will help Vale fund billions of capital projects in the base metals unit planned across its global holdings. The base metals unit is focused on increasing production of minerals needed for the conversion of the auto industry from gas-powered to electric vehicles.

“This strategic partnership will fast-track VBM’s expected US $25-$30 billion capital program over the next decade,” Vale said on its website in announcing the agreement.

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Vale Base Metals confirms partial sell-off to Saudis and the US – by Len Gillis (Sudbury.com – July 29, 2023)

https://www.sudbury.com/

Analysts say deal is part of a Vale strategy to grow value of its nickel and copper holdings ahead of electric vehicle demand .

Vale has confirmed it is selling off part of its newly formed Vale Base Metals unit in two separate agreements.

Ten per cent of the company going to Saudi Arabia’s Mining Co (Ma’aden) and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), and three per cent being sold to U.S. investment firm Engine No. 1. The entire deal is valued at $3.4 billion according to a report from Reuters.

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Agnico Eagle touts exploration success at Detour and Kirkland Lake – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – July 28, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Toronto company sets record gold production in second quarter results

The Abitibi Gold Belt of northeastern Ontario and western Quebec continue to be the happy, high grade hunting grounds for Agnico Eagle. The seemingly never-ending gold potential of the Toronto miner’s Detour and Kirkland Lake operations were among the highlighted items in the company’s second quarter results released this week.

Agnico Eagle reported an adjusted profit of $322.4 million this week, up 11 per cent from a year earlier, on the back of record gold production of 873,204 ounces from its mines in Ontario, Quebec, Nunavut Territory, Mexico and Finland. Its all-in-sustaining cost is US$1.150 per ounce.

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Vale Base Metals preparing to sell part of the company to Saudis – by Len Gillis (Northern Ontario Business – July 26, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Reports say Vale poised to sell 10 per cent stake with nickel and copper production on the rise

International and Sudbury nickel miner Vale is ready to sell off 10 per cent of its base metals division to Saudi Arabia, according to reports in the business media.

The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and BNN Bloomberg have reported that the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund (PIF) is regarded as the leading bidder to acquire a stake in Vale SA’s multibillion-dollar nickel and copper operations. Vale Base Metals is headquartered in Toronto, and is one of the world’s largest producers of responsibly sourced nickel, copper, cobalt and platinum group metals, said the company website.

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Exploring the rise of ‘economic reconciliation’ in Canada – by Brett Forester (CBC News Indigenous – July 2023)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/

Canadian institutions are adding a new buzzword to their Indigenous agenda. But what does it really mean?

As the luminaries of the Indigenous finance world met for a luncheon on “economic reconciliation” last month, they found themselves seated in a building honouring a man who helped ensure their peoples’ exclusion from the Canadian economy for more than a century.

Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister, now lends his name to a former bank building across from Parliament Hill, an imposing granite and limestone structure with marble-panelled walls, ornate stone carvings and bronze banisters. For many gathered there, it represented precisely the sort of wealth they say Indigenous lands have yielded Canada, but which the country’s early leaders guaranteed Indigenous peoples wouldn’t see.

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Leaders of northern First Nations rally at Queen’s Park against Ontario’s mining push – by Kris Ketonen (CBC News Thunder Bay – July 20, 2023)

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

First Nations Land Defence Alliance urges halt to mining exploration on traditional lands

People from five northern First Nations rallied outside Queen’s Park on Thursday to call for a halt to provincial mining explorations on traditional lands, saying the Ontario government has not fulfilled its obligation to consult.

Leaders of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, Wapekeka, Neskantaga, Grassy Narrows and Muskrat Dam First Nations — members of the First Nations Land Defence Alliance — were among those who gathered outside the Ministry of Mines building in Toronto.

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Ontario First Nations group protests against Doug Ford’s mining policies, alleging shoddy consultation – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – July 21, 2023)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A group of five Ontario First Nations staged a rally in Toronto on Thursday, protesting Premier Doug Ford’s mining policies as detrimental to the land they depend upon for sustenance, and accusing him of failing to adequately consult with them on development.

Attended by several hundred people, the rally follows a much smaller protest at the Ontario Legislature in the spring, and comes before a much bigger march planned for September that is aimed at marshalling broad-based public support for First Nations opposed to the Ontario government’s pro-development stance.

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Homegrown junior miner finds its footing in the Dryden gold camp – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – July 19, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Dryden Gold takes to the field to probe former mining camp for high-grade mineralization

The search is on for high-grade gold in the Dryden area by a new exploration player in the northwest. Dryden Gold, a privately-held company, plans to enter the market this fall with an initial public offering to raise money to drill a substantial land package, 30 kilometres east of the city near Dinorwic.

The Dryden-based junior miner holds a property package of almost 40,000 hectares on a promising greenstone belt with the potential to harbour high-grade gold. “We have the same kind of rocks you see in the Red Lake camp two hours away,” said company president Maura Kolb in a recent interview with Crux Investor.

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Ottawa Valley graphite developer spies Quebec for processing plant – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – July 17, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Northern Graphite signs land deal for Baie Comeau port property

An Ottawa-based graphite company, with a deposit between North Bay and Ottawa, is purchasing land on the St. Lawrence River to build a battery anode manufacturing plant. Northern Graphite, which holds with Bissett Creek deposit located off Highway 17, signed a letter of intent with the city of Baie Comeau, Que. to purchase a 300-acre brownfield property for US$1.2 million.

Subject to securing financing and government approvals, the company wants to build a hub processing capable of processing 200,000 tonnes a year for its three graphite properties in Ontario, Quebec and Namibia. The intent is to supply anode material to lithium-ion battery manufacturing plants throughout North America.

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Ring of Fire development stalled due to lack of dialogue with First Nations, Guilbeault says – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – July 17, 2023)

https://financialpost.com/

‘We haven’t been able to agree yet’

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault says the lack of progress in mining projects in the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region in Northern Ontario can likely be attributed to a lack of discussions with Indigenous nations.

Both the federal government and province of Ontario believe the Ring of Fire, located about 500 kilometres from Thunder Bay, has the potential to produce minerals — such as nickel and copper — currently in high demand as countries look to accelerate the shift away from fossil fuels.

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[Ontario Ring of Fire] The natural resources project that the Liberals can’t be allowed to fumble – by Conrad Black (National Post – July 15, 2023)

https://nationalpost.com/

One of the world’s largest chromium deposits gives the Western Alliance a tremendous advantage

Regular readers will recall that from time to time I inveigh in this space against the uncompetitive economic performance of this country as we slip steadily down the list of the world’s most prosperous per capita incomes and we suffer every year from negative capital flows: more Canadian capital invested outside Canada than Canada attracts from foreigners.

The present federal government seems to wish to discourage our primary industry sector, that is all natural resources, though particularly the oil and gas industries. What the world envies about and most needs from Canada is that it is a treasure house of almost all forms of energy, forest products, base and precious metals and non-tropical agriculture.

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The flame bearer: Kristan Straub, chief executive officer, Ring of Fire Metals – by Mehanaz Yakub (CIM Magazine – July 04, 2023)

https://magazine.cim.org/en/

Kristan Straub’s path to becoming the newly appointed CEO of Ring of Fire Metals was influenced by both nature and nurture.

With both his maternal and paternal grandfathers working in the mining industry and living in Falconbridge in Greater Sudbury, the allure of the local mine, mill and smelter naturally captivated his interest as a boy.

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The lure of lithium creates an exploration boom in the Northwest – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business -July 12, 2023)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Developers with lithium deposits edge closer to construction while new explorers make inroads into the region

Northwestern Ontario is one of the one of the most active areas for lithium exploration in the world. Entering the height of the summer field season, the news flow emanating from junior mining firms is fast and furious. The projects range in progress from early-stage prospecting to more advanced mine-ready developments.

Lithium prices began booming in 2021, crashed through the first four months of this year, then finally stabilized in June. There are no lithium mines in Ontario.

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First Nation takes Ontario to court over Ring of Fire road – by Matteo Cimellaro (National Observer – July 14, 2023)

https://www.nationalobserver.com/

On Thursday and Friday, Neskantaga First Nation will face off in court against the Ontario government over what the nation argues was a flawed consultation on a road that will link the province’s road infrastructure with the Ring of Fire mining region.

Neskantaga First Nation, a remote, fly-in community located over 400 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, maintains the provincial government’s consultation process for the project’s environmental assessment was inadequate.

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