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Quebec Mining

CN shelves study of $5-billion Quebec iron ore railway line – by Bertrand Marotte (Globe and Mail – February 12, 2013)

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.

Canadian National Railway Co. has shelved a study into a $5-billion project to build a major new railway line in northern Quebec to ship iron ore.

Montreal-based CN said on Tuesday it is suspending a feasibility study for the construction of the proposed 800-kilometre line that would run from Sept Iles on the Lower North Shore to Schefferville and then further on to the iron mines being developed in the Labrador Trough.

CN says the timing is wrong because of uncertainties regarding the completion of the various mining projects. The railway had teamed up with pension fund giant Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, with the backing of six mining companies, to fund the feasibility study.

CN said last week it is suspending preliminary planning work on the railway to give it time to evaluate the mining companies’ timetables on their respective iron ore projects. The initial deadline of June 2013 for completion of the feasibility study was pushed back. But now, CN says it’s putting the study – a key element of the project – on ice as well.

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The Downside of Plan Nord: Environmental Concerns Plague Northern Quebec Development Project – by Jane Gatensby (The Link – February 12, 2013)

The Link is Concordia University’s independent newspaper since 1980. http://thelinknewspaper.ca/

On May 9, 2011, then-premier Jean Charest launched the Plan Nord, an ambitious $80 billion development project aiming to build infrastructure in Quebec’s northern regions. Nearly two years later, the project’s still a magnet for controversy.

The plan proposed to find and extract mineral resource deposits, and to develop tourism, energy, forestry, wildlife and bio-food industries north of the 49th parallel.

The Plan Nord promises to generate $14 billion in revenue over the next 25 years, according to government estimates, during which time it will create or consolidate an average of 20,000 jobs a year.

The project has attracted significant backlash since it was announced, however. Last April, a protest at the first Salon du Plan Nord caused general mayhem in and around the Palais des congrès de Montréal, with close to 100 protesters arrested.

Since then, the project has managed to cause outcry among environmentalists and anti-capitalists—and everyone in between. “Northern Quebec is a fragile place,” said Greenpeace Quebec director Nicolas Mainville in an April 2012 press release.

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The Upside of Plan Nord: Spokespeople Defend Quebec Mining Industry at Employment Fair – by Michael Wrobel (The Link – February 12, 2013)

The Link is Concordia University’s independent newspaper since 1980. http://thelinknewspaper.ca/

While protesters rallied passionately outside Montreal’s convention centre in opposition, business leaders inside the Salon des ressources naturelles defended the mining industry’s practices and protocol in northern Quebec.

The convention—held Feb. 8 and Feb. 9 at the Palais des congrès de Montréal—was met with two days of rowdy demonstrations that saw hundreds speak out against Plan Nord.

The View From Inside

“Of course, in Quebec, we have freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, and this is an interesting opportunity for those who are concerned about social causes to come out and make their points of view known,” said Jean Carrier, president and CEO of the Institut national des mines, a government agency that oversees mining education and training programs in the province.

“[But] often, the people who are demonstrating against the mining industry or the principle of royalties don’t perhaps have all the information needed to arrive at conclusions that are objective.”

The mining industry has come a long way in terms of environmental restoration and sustainability, according to Guylaine Beaupré, the communications manager at the Comité sectoriel de main-d’oeuvre de l’industrie des mines, an organization that brings together business leaders and workers’ associations.

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Quebec needs to develop its natural resources – Montreal Gazette Editorial (February 11, 2013)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

MONTREAL – There were demonstrations Friday and Saturday outside the Palais des Congrès where the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal was hosting a job fair focused on opportunities in Quebec’s natural-resources sector.

The demonstrators were there to protest the Plan Nord, Quebec’s 25-year project for resource development in the province’s northern regions. Violence broke out on both days, and several dozen arrests were made.

Conceived and launched by the previous Liberal government, the plan calls for increased resource extraction in the area above the 49th parallel. It is projected to be carried out over a period of 25 years and expected to generate $80 billion in energy, mining and forestry investment, and create or consolidate 20,000 jobs a year for the duration.

Protests against the Plan Nord have been recurrent, with participants denouncing the presumed environmental damage that the development will entail. Yet, many of these same demonstrators have also active in the fight for a continued freeze on university tuition, if not abolition of tuition altogether, along with improved health care and expanded $7 daycare for all Quebec toddlers.

While it is undeniable that environmental concerns must be seriously taken into account when it comes to resource development, it is equally undeniable that Quebec’s prosperity and ability to provide the services to which its population is accustomed — and to which it widely feels entitled — is heavily reliant on development of its natural resources.

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NEWS RELEASE: Release of the study Metal Processing and Greater Montréal: A Sustainable and Promising Alliance by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal

Montréal, February 7, 2013 ‒ Today the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal is releasing the results of its study Metal Processing and Greater Montréal: A Sustainable and Promising Alliance. The study shows that the economic spinoffs of metal processing for the Montréal metropolitan area are in the order of $1.8 billion per year, maintaining 19,000 direct and indirect jobs.

“The study we are releasing today furthers the analysis that began in 2012 about the spinoffs of natural resource exploitation for the metropolitan area,” said Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal. “The Government of Quebec announced its intention to hold consultations on the royalty regime and will soon propose new legislation on mining. Given this, it is important that we base our debate on facts and dispel any myths. The Board of Trade study clearly shows that Quebec already processes a significant portion of the metal extracted in the province, contrary to what is widely believed. This is in addition to processing ore from abroad.”

“The fact that we process a significant share of metals doesn’t mean there’s no room for improvement,” Michel Leblanc said. “To take full advantage of business opportunities in natural resource exploitation, we can increase the spill-over effects upstream and downstream in the value chain. That said, we have to do it intelligently, based on the particularities and challenges of each sector, from extraction to tertiary processing. The situation changes dramatically, depending on whether we’re dealing with iron, copper, nickel, gold or titanium.”

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Metals processing in Montreal worth about C$1.8bn to metropolitan economy – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – February 8, 2013)

http://www.miningweekly.com/page/americas-home

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – The economic spinoffs of metals processing in the Montreal metropolitan area are worth about C$1.8-billion a year and maintain about 19 000 direct and indirect jobs, a study by the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal said on Thursday.

The report, titled ‘Metal processing and Greater Montreal: A sustainable and promising alliance’ found 46% of Quebec’s primary processing businesses and 42% of its secondary processing businesses were located in the metropolitan area, and an increase in activity in this sector would benefit the city’s manufacturing industry.

“The study we are releasing today furthers the analysis that began in 2012 about the spinoffs of natural resource exploitation for the metropolitan area. The Government of Quebec announced its intention to hold consultations on the royalty regime and will soon propose new legislation on mining.

“Given this, it is important that we base our debate on facts and dispel any myths. The Board of Trade study clearly shows that Quebec already processes a significant portion of the metal extracted in the province, contrary to what is widely believed. This is in addition to processing ore from abroad,” Board of Trade CEO Michel Leblanc said. He added that the fact that Montreal processes a significant share of metals did not mean there was no room for improvement.

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NEWS RELEASE: Lithium is Driver of Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Growth – by Jean-Sébastien Lavallée (February 8, 2012)

Access to Supply in Regions minus Geopolitical Strife Crucial

Jean-Sébastien Lavallée, P.Geo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Critical Elements Corporation, www.cecorp.ca, represents the third generation of an established Canadian mining family. Mr. Lavallée joined Critical Elements Corporation in 2009. In 2010, Mr. Lavallée made the discovery of the Company’s 100% owned-Rose Tantalum-Lithium Project in James Bay, Quebec.

Lithium is a key component of lithium-ion battery packs that power electric vehicles (Evs) and hybrid vehicles. A recent report from Pike Research forecast global sales of EV charging equipment will grow from 200,000 units sold in 2012 to nearly 2.4 million in 2020, representing a compound annual growth rate of 37%. With lithium a key component to the electric vehicle market, it is crucial that North America has adequate supply to this critical element minus any geopolitical conflicts.

Credit Suisse has forecast a 10.3 percent annual growth in demand for lithium between 2009 and 2020. Global lithium demand has tripled over the past decade, and the global market price of lithium carbonate has tripled since 2001 to its current level of around $6,500 per ton. An industrial research report by David & Company forecasts that the global market for lithium-ion batteries will increase to $43 billion by 2020 compared to an $11 billion levels in 2010 with the primary catalyst the increased demand for electric cars.

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Rio Tinto drops $4-billion plan for new plant in Bécancour – by Jan Ravensbergen (Montreal Gazette – February 5, 2013)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

Low titanium prices, belt-tightening torpedo 400-job facility

MONTREAL – Rio Tinto Fer et Titane, a wholly owned subsidiary of global giant Rio Tinto Group, has abandoned plans for a large new plant in Bécancour, the company said Tuesday.

Rio Tinto had been developing a plan to double the capacity of its Sorel-Tracy metallurgical plant, between Montreal and Quebec City, with a “greenfields” project in Bécancour Industrial Park.

The project would have cost in the ballpark of $4 billion. Up to 400 jobs would have been created by 2016. A collapse in titanium prices is one of the prime elements of the decision.

In a statement, Jean-François Turgeon, the unit’s managing director, cited two factors: “a background of weaker market conditions for our products and the need to manage and reduce our costs.” The project would have expanded the company’s mining and smelting capacities in Canada, Madagascar, South Africa and Mozambique, Turgeon said.

“We were conducting pre-feasibility studies on this project here in Canada and in Africa and this work has been suspended,” company spokesperson Bryan Tucker said.

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Rio Tinto produced, shipped record iron ore in 2012; aluminum drops 10 per cent – by Ross Marowits (The Canadian Press/Victoria Times Colonist (January 15, 2013)

http://www.timescolonist.com/

MONTREAL – Global mining giant Rio Tinto expects to enhance its “competitive edge” by continuing to cut costs this year after achieving record iron ore production and shipments in 2012 while suffering a 10 per cent drop in aluminum output related to its lockout of employees in Alma, Que.

“This was another year of strong operational performance across the group…as our expansion program continues on schedule, delivering industry leading returns for our shareholders,” chief executive Tom Albanese said in a statement accompanying production results for the fourth quarter and full year.

The miner shipped 247 million tonnes of iron ore in 2012 despite weather disruptions and a significant maintenance shutdown during the year. Production increased four per cent to 253 million tonnes. Rio Tinto’s share of production was 199 million tonnes, led by its operations in Australia.

Production in the fourth quarter grew two per cent to 66 million tonnes, with Rio’s share reaching 52 million tonnes. The London-based miner said thermal coal production increased 16 per cent last year, while copper output increased six per cent and bauxite and alumina production grew 11 and 12 per cent respectively.

“Markets remain volatile, but our business continues to perform well. Across the group we are taking action to roll back unsustainable cost increases. This further enhances our resilience and competitive edge as we enter 2013.”

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Review: Le Nord au coeur – by Brendan Kelly (Montreal Gazette – December 6, 2012)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

Louis-Edmond Hamelin shines a northern light

MONTREAL – Louis-Edmond Hamelin is quite the character, and when you have such a great character as your leading man, you usually have a pretty captivating film. Le Nord au coeur is no exception to that rule.

Seasoned documentary filmmaker Serge Giguère has made a brilliant feature about Hamelin, a key intellectual figure in the discussion of northern affairs in Quebec over the past few decades. But this is no dry academic piece; rather, it’s a lively, thought-provoking look at a fascinating man that also serves as a history of Quebec’s forgotten people.

From the development of the iron ore industry in the north in the ’50s to the James Bay mega-project in the late ’60s/early ’70s to the controversial Plan Nord unveiled by the Charest government, those in southern Canada have spent decades plotting the commercialization of the north without worrying about the people who actually live there.

Right at the start of Le Nord au coeur, Hamelin, 89, is seen getting into an Air Inuit plane and then a small seaplane to make his way to the aboriginal community of Mushuau-nipi, a place Hamelin hadn’t been to for 37 years. There he meets with locals, which is when the film moves backwards to look at his life’s work studying the north and its communities.

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Bay Street: Steel slump puts crimp in Labrador Trough – Julie Gordon (Reuters Canada – December 3, 2012)

http://ca.reuters.com/

TORONTO (Reuters) – “Strike while the iron is hot,” the old saying goes, and a legion of iron ore miners setting up in Canada’s remote Labrador Trough want to do just that. But, for now, they have to wait.

Iron ore, the main component of steel, has turned ice cold in recent months, with the benchmark price .IO62-CNI=SI plunging to $86.70 a tonne in September from $149.40 in April. It has since recovered to about $116 a tonne.

The downward spiral has jeopardized the viability of the sub-Arctic region’s vast iron ore deposits just as the first new mines in decades were opening. Some projects are being put on hold.

As a consequence, shares of junior miners such as Alderon Iron Ore Corp (ADV.TO: Quote), Champion Iron Mines Ltd (CHM.TO: Quote) and Century Iron Mines Corp FER.TO, have tumbled as projects that looked rich at $150 a tonne suddenly lost their luster.

Still, analysts say the region’s potential remains compelling. They caution, though, that investors must look closely at the contenders to judge which are best placed to ride out the bad times and prosper over the long term.

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Labrador City’s huge worker shortage threatens small businesses – by John Shmuel (National Post – December 3, 2012)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

Finding employees is one of the biggest issues businesses here have

When construction began on a new hotel in Labrador City this year, the developers didn’t even have to finish building it before every room was booked for the next three years.

Welcome to one of northern Canada’s most rapidly growing boom towns. The fuel behind it all are the massive iron ore mines near Labrador City and its twin town, Wabush. The area’s mines have been ramping up in recent years as rising global demand for steel is creating an insatiable appetite for iron.

High pay for working in the mines, which can start at nearly $50 an hour even with minimal experience, has attracted a flood of workers from Atlantic Canada and the rest of the country. It has also, however, created a series of challenges in a region of Canada that is more accustomed to losing workers to other provinces.

“Finding employees is one of the biggest issues businesses here have,” says Jeannot Gamache, of Labrador Rewinding Inc., a motor repair business in Wabush that has been around since 1994.

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Canadian Royalties aims to start shipments from Nunavik Nickel in 2013 – by Jane George (Nunatsiaq News – November 28, 2012)

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

More than 650 people already working on site

A Chinese-owned mine in Nunavik will soon see huge ice-class vessels sailing through Hudson Strait to bring nickel, copper, platinum and palladium to European markets.

After sinking $735 million into infrastructure, Jien Canada Mining Ltd., the owner of Nunavik’s second soon-to-be operating mine, plans to ramp up production in early 2013 and hire more Nunavik workers.

The mine company, which expects to reach full production by 2014, will produce nickel, copper, palladium and platinum for at least 13 years. Located 20 miles from Xstrata Nickel’s Raglan nickel mine, the Nunavik Nickel mine sits in “one of the most inhospitable places in the world,” said its president, John Caldbick in a recent interview.

But the cold, rocky plateau is rich in minerals, and early in 2013 the mine will start processing ore. More than 650 people are now on site, living in its 428-person main camp and other temporary camps. Some workers are excavating ore from the Expo open pit mine, while others complete essential parts of the mine’s infrastructure.

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NEWS RELEASE: Northern Superior Resources Inc. Named [Quebec] 2012 Prospector of the Year

November 22, 2012 08:00 ET

www.nsuperior.com

SUDBURY, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Nov. 22, 2012) – Northern Superior Resources Inc. (the “Company” or “Northern Superior”) (TSX VENTURE:SUP) is pleased to announce that it has been named the 2012 “Prospector of the Year” by the Association L’Exploration Miniére du Québec (AEMQ). According to its web site, “each year the AEMQ recognizes and honors the dynamism and entrepreneurship of companies and individuals involved in the development of Quebec’s mining and exploration industry.”

Specifically, the AEMQ “Prospector of the Year” award is presented to “highlight the importance of a new discovery that produced a significant ripple effect on exploration activities with regard to both the property itself and the surrounding area” and was awarded to Northern Superior in recognition of the importance of the Croteau Est Gold discovery in the Chapais, Chibougamau and Oujé-Bougoumou regions of Quebec.

Since commencing operations on the Croteau Est property in August of 2011, Northern Superior’s exploration programs have defined and continue to expand a gold-bearing alteration corridor that extends to at least 450 m depth, is at least 1,000 m in length and 50 to 150 m in width. The alteration corridor and associated gold mineralization (75.44 g/ t over 4.80 m; 8.16 g/ t over 19.55 m, as examples) remains open along strike in both directions and at depth (see press releases March 1, June 11, October 8, November 12, November 20, 2012).

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Quebec miners in holding pattern as province finalizes royalty, exploration rules – by Nicolas Van Praet (National Post – November 26, 2012)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

MONTREAL — Companies mining in Quebec are expected to ship $9.6-billion worth of minerals this year, double the amount exported only five years ago. But the boom taking hold is being complicated by political uncertainty and competing visions over just how far taxpayers should go in backing companies digging valuable resources in their midst.

Quebec’s Chambers of Commerce Federation says several companies have told its officials they are currently suspending new natural resource and mining investments in the province until the Parti Québécois government finalizes a royalties regime and further clarifies exploration rules. But even established companies tapping existing mines are experiencing growing pains and finding it’s next to impossible to build definitive societal consensus for their projects.

Two particular events illustrate the difficulty miners are having in keeping Quebecers on side.

On Monday, Osisko Mining Corp., the Montreal-based firm operating Canada’s largest open-pit gold mine in Malartic near Val D’Or, confirmed that the head of the independent citizens committee monitoring the mine through to its eventual closure quit. Bernard Gauthier’s resignation came after another member of the seven-person committee said over the weekend the entire group was poised to quit on Wednesday to protest the alleged heavy-handedness of the company in their affairs.

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