Archive | Saskatchewan Mining

BHP defers decision on Jansen potash mine – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – August 18, 2020)

August 18, 2020 in BHP Billiton, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Potash/Phosphate, Saskatchewan Mining

https://www.mining.com/

BHP (ASX, NYSE: BHP), the world’s largest miner, will decide whether to go ahead with its long-delayed $17 billion Jansen potash project in Canada by mid-2021, about a decade after completing the feasibility study for the operation.

The company had planned to make an investment decision in February 2021, but delays relating to the completion of shafts have pushed out the date by a few months.

BHP said initial challenges with placement of shaft lining, rectified since, as well as the group’s covid-19 response plan impacted Jansen’s progress during the quarter ended June 30. Continue Reading →

Star Diamond and Rio Tinto to face off in court – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – August 12, 2020)

August 13, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Diamond Mining, Rio Tinto, Saskatchewan Mining

https://www.mining.com/

A Canadian court has ruled that Star Diamond (TSX: DIAM) has grounds to take its legal fight with Rio Tinto (ASX, LON, NYSE: RIO) to court over their joint Star-Orion South project in north-central Saskatchewan, but said the junior faces an “uphill battle.”

Judge Grant Currie said the Saskatoon-based company may struggle to prove that Rio Tinto Exploration Canada (RTEC) improperly exercised its options to obtain a majority ownership stake in the proposed diamond mine.

The legal row involves a 2017 agreement under which Rio Tinto’s subsidiary would spend $75 million in phases to acquire 60% of the Star-Orion South diamond project. Continue Reading →

This lithium exploration project could revitalize the Sask. oil industry – by Taylor Rattray (CTV News Regina – August 4, 2020)

August 5, 2020 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Lithium, Saskatchewan Mining

https://regina.ctvnews.ca/

REGINA — A new project is bringing lithium exploration to Saskatchewan, and it could have major implications for the province’s oil industry.

Prairie Lithium Corp. is part of a project that will take oilfield brine water, and extract lithium through a series of chemical reactions.

“The lithium-free brine water is then sent back down hole for disposal, and the extracted lithium can be sent for further refining into battery-grade materials,” said Zach Maurer, president and CEO of Prairie Lithium Corp. Continue Reading →

Cameco’s uranium production on hold but hopeful for steadying market – by Nykole King (Saskatoon StarPhoenix – July 26, 2020)

July 28, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://thestarphoenix.com/

Reduced uranium production worldwide has sparked optimism that the market may be steadying.

Mining projects in Saskatchewan will operate to regular capacity this summer, except for Cameco Corp.’s uranium mine.

Cameco’s Cigar Lake uranium mine and SSR Mining Inc.’s Seabee gold operation opted to go into care and maintenance mode in March. A spokesperson for Cameco said the decision was made to protect workers and northern communities against the spread of COVID-19.

“Above all, we would need to have a sufficient degree of comfort that we could restart the mine, maintain production and bring more personnel back to site while still protecting the safety of our workplace, workforce and surrounding communities,” Jeff Hryhoriw said in an email. Continue Reading →

Saskatchewan sets up nuclear secretariat to plan for reactors – by Michael Bramadat-Willcock (National Observer – June 24, 2020)

June 25, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://www.nationalobserver.com/

La Ronge, Saskatchewan – The provincial government unveiled its plans Wednesday to establish an office to co-ordinate nuclear policy and program work within the Climate Change and Adaptation Division of the Ministry of Environment.

The new nuclear secretariat is mandated to develop and execute a strategic plan for the deployment of “clean-energy small modular reactors” in the province. No timeframe commitments were made in the announcement, which also did not provide sites in Saskatchewan where new reactors will be installed.

“The deployment of small modular reactors in Saskatchewan will require collaboration with several partners to fully encompass the benefits Saskatchewan could see in way of jobs, enhanced value chains for Saskatchewan’s uranium, and our made-in-Saskatchewan climate policy,” Environment Minister Dustin Duncan said. Continue Reading →

South Sask. governments eye tenuous coal-free economic future – by Evan Radford (Regina Leader-Post – June 9, 2020)

June 9, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Coal, Saskatchewan Mining

https://leaderpost.com/

CORONACH — As several local governments in south Saskatchewan eye an economic future without coal, a veteran of the industry is looking back on its history, uncertain what type of future development in the area is sustainable.

“I have no problem with wind- and sun-power. But if the wind don’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine, I don’t know what you’re going to do — put a crank on it?” scoffs 93-year-old Harold Siggelkow.

The longtime Coronach resident owned the local mine on the southeast side of town for two years, 1946 and 1947. He kept working in the industry several years thereafter, in Crowsnest Pass, Alta. and at the Coronach-area’s Poplar River power plant, which uses coal from nearby surface strip-mining, in the 1970s. Continue Reading →

Saskatchewan launches new lithium production project – by Jonathan Guignard (Global News – June 3, 2020)

June 4, 2020 in Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Lithium, Saskatchewan Mining

https://globalnews.ca/

Saskatchewan will soon be home to a new lithium production project. The Prairie-LiEP Critical Mineral (PLCM) joint venture is being undertaken by Prairie Lithium Corp. and LiEP Energy Ltd.

Their two-stage pilot project will produce lithium hydroxide from some of the province’s oilfield brines. “This is another exciting development that promotes economic diversification in Saskatchewan,” Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre said.

“Lithium has great potential, due to increasing worldwide demand, which is why supporting extraction technologies and a viable lithium sector are included in Saskatchewan’s growth plan.” Continue Reading →

COPPER-SILVER: Rio Tinto preps plans for 2020 at Janice Lake – by Staff (Canadian Mining Journal – May 20, 2020)

May 22, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Copper, Rio Tinto, Saskatchewan Mining

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

SASKATCHEWAN – Following up on a positive 2019 exploration program, Rio Tinto is planning 2,000 metres of drilling, plus mapping, prospecting and geophysical surveys this year at the Janice Lake copper-silver project in northern Saskatchewan.

The major is earning up to an 80% interest in the project from Forum Energy Metals, which has optioned the property from Transition Metals.

Last year’s program at the sedimentary copper-silver project, located 55 km southeast of Key Lake, included 21 drill holes totalling 5,209 metres. Continue Reading →

NexGen Energy lines up US$30M financing with Queen’s Road Capital – by Carl A. Williams (Northern Miner – May 12, 2020)

May 14, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

Global mining news

NexGen Energy (TSX: NXE; NYSE: NXE) has signed a US$30 million financing agreement with Queen’s Road Capital Investment (TSXV: QRC) and plans to use the funds to advance work at its flagship Arrow deposit, part of the company’s Rook 1 project in Saskatchewan.

“Warren Gilman, chairman and chief executive officer of Queen’s Road Capital, is a long-time shareholder and supporter of NexGen and also joined our board in 2017,” Leigh Curyer, NexGen’s CEO, said in an interview.

“Warren came to us and wanted to invest in uranium, but only wanted to invest in world-class projects and world-class management teams. We met both those criteria.” Continue Reading →

Uranium workers in northern Sask. facing 25 per cent pay cut – by Michael Bramadat-Willcock (National Observer – April 22, 2020)

April 27, 2020 in Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://www.nationalobserver.com/

Hundreds of workers in northern Saskatchewan will be hit with a 25 per cent pay cut in May, as Cameco Corporation’s Cigar Lake mine and Orano Canada Inc.’s McClean Lake mill extend their production suspension past the four week period that was announced on March 23.

“The global challenges posed by this pandemic are not abating — in fact, they are deepening,” Cameco’s president and CEO Tim Gitzel said in a written statement.

Cameco Corporation is the world’s largest publicly traded producer of uranium and Orano Canada Inc. operates the mill where ore from Cigar Lake mine is processed. Continue Reading →

Cameco suspends Cigar Lake uranium operations to reduce threat of COVID-19 spread – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – March 25, 2020)

March 25, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Cameco Corp. has suspended operations at its massive Cigar Lake uranium mine in Saskatchewan to reduce the threat of spreading the novel coronavirus into remote communities in northern parts of the province.

One of the biggest uranium mines in the world, Cigar Lake is located about 650 kilometers north of Saskatoon, and is a fly-in/fly-out operation.

In a statement, Cameco said the decision to idle Cigar Lake for four weeks was motivated by the “restrictions enacted by the federal and provincial governments, the significant degree of concern among leaders in remote isolated communities of northern Saskatchewan, and the increased challenges of maintaining the recommended physical distancing.” Continue Reading →

How COVID-19 is affecting the bottom line in Sask.’s biggest industries – by Chelsea Laskowski (CBC News Saskatchewan – March 17, 2020)

March 18, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Oil and Gas Sector-Politics and Image, Potash/Phosphate, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

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

Saskatchewan’s biggest industries are forging ahead with limited impact in the face of COVID-19, but are paying keen attention to its long-term effects. Potash and uranium mines are taking precautions with staff, but spokespeople with Nutrien and Cameco, the biggest players in both industries in the province, say there have been no disruptions to production.

Spring seeding hasn’t started in agriculture yet, but there are long-term repercussions that could hit next month. In the short term, oil has been the hardest hit.

Oil

Oil prices plummeted early last week. There were other factors causing the dip that were unrelated to coronavirus, but as the disease has spread there are new major pressures on the industry. Continue Reading →

ALX encouraged by nickel, copper mineralization at Falcon project in Saskatchewan – by Valentina Ruiz Leotaud (Mining.com – March 17, 2020)

March 17, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Junior Exploration Sector, Nickel, Saskatchewan Mining

https://www.mining.com/

ALX Resources (TSXV: AL) intersected nickel and copper mineralization in the second hole of the 2020 drilling program at its Falcon nickel project located in the northern Athabasca region of Saskatchewan, Canada.

In a media statement, ALX explained that its second drill hole on the V-1 conductive target proximal to the historical Currie Lake deposit area completed to a depth of 108 metres intersected sulphide mineralization beginning at a depth of 47.03 metres continuing to 67.89 metres.

“The presence of nickel and copper mineralization in hole FN20-002 has been confirmed by the use of a portable X-ray fluorescence device on the drill core, which is currently being logged and sampled,” the media brief reads. Continue Reading →

Feds bullish on nuclear: Minister visits Sask. north – by Glenn Hicks (LaRongeNow.com – March 10, 2020)

March 11, 2020 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://larongenow.com/

“Show me a credible plan that doesn’t involve nuclear.” That’s the strong endorsement for Saskatchewan’s uranium sector from federal Minister of Natural Resources Seamus O’Regan who has just wrapped a visit to the North.

O’Regan, who has been minister for a few months, said he wanted to acquaint himself with the world’s richest uranium mine at Cigar Lake and also visit the various northern communities who rely on mining jobs, such as Hatchet Lake, Black Lake and Fond du Lac. But he also carried with him an unequivocal message about Ottawa’s stance on nuclear as part of the route toward net-zero emissions by 2050.

“There is no way that we can reach net-zero without nuclear energy, and there is no way we can reach net-zero without the mining industry,” he told paNOW. “When we talk of a carbon-free future we often point to things like electric cars. Well, they’re built of something: they’re built with metals and minerals.” Continue Reading →

Northern mine cleanups continue; province, feds still divided on cost – by Alex MacPherson (Saskatoon StarPhoenix – February 24, 2020)

February 25, 2020 in Canadian Media Resource Articles, Mining Environmental Accidents, Pollution, Tailing Dams and Abandoned Mines, Saskatchewan Mining, Uranium and Nuclear Power Industry

https://thestarphoenix.com/

Crews are expected to start assessing Saskatchewan’s first uranium mine, which was staked 100 years ago, this summer.

Saskatchewan’s first uranium discovery was staked a century ago, but it took almost three decades before prospectors gave up attempting to extract iron, copper and gold from the site and turned their attention to its last remaining mineral resource.

Named for the former Royal North-West Mounted Police officer who re-staked the site on the north shore of Lake Athabasca in 1929, the Nicholson mine underwent development in 1949 and sent out its first uranium shipments five years later.

Production halted in 1956 after Consolidated Nicholson Mines Ltd.’s supply contract ended in the face of falling prices. Subsequent efforts to resume mining failed and the remote site was abandoned with little cleanup effort a few years later. Continue Reading →