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Saskatchewan Mining

Sask. could be crucial in the nation’s electric vehicle industry — if Canada acts, report says – by Dayne Patterson (CBC News Saskatoon – September 14, 2022)

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

Province is home to 2 rare earth processing plants

If Canada acts now, it could be a competitor in the electric vehicle battery supply chain, boosting the economy and adding jobs — and Saskatchewan could play a pivotal role.

That’s according to a report released Wednesday by Clean Energy Canada alongside the non-profit Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing, looking at Canada’s potential in the electric vehicle sector. The report says that sector could add up to 250,000 jobs by 2030 and $48 billion to the economy each year.

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Sask. projecting $1.04B surplus amid rising resource revenues – by Stefanie Davis and Brendan Ellis (CTV News Saskatchewan – August 23, 2022)

https://regina.ctvnews.ca/

Saskatchewan is projecting a $1.04 billion surplus for 2022-23, with a large bump from non-renewable resource revenues projected. That figure is a $1.51 billion improvement from budget forecasts, which projected a $463 million deficit for the year.

“A strong economy and higher resource prices have meant a significant improvement in the province’s finances. That means we can balance the budget, pay down debt and help Saskatchewan people with the rising cost of living,” Finance Minister Donna Harpauer said.

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Bidding war for Canadian uranium explorer UEX hots up – by Mariaan Webb (MiningWeekly.com – August 10, 2022)

https://www.miningweekly.com/

The bidding war for that has erupted for Canadian uranium exploration junior UEX is heating up, with Denison Mines improving its offer, leaving fellow-suitor Uranium Energy Company (UEC) disappointed with UEX delaying its shareholder vote. UEX shareholders would have voted on UEC’s bid on Tuesday, but the company’s board had moved that meeting to August 15, following Denison’s amended offer.

Denison has offered to acquire UEX for 0.32 shares for every UEX share held, representing an implied purchase price of C$0.51 a share. Denison states that the acquisition proposal represents a 7% premium to the price implied by the amended agreement between UEX and UEC, and a 9% premium to the 20-day volume weighted average price implied by the amended UEC agreement.

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Trudeau doesn’t like the opposition to his fertilizer plan – by Brian Lilley (Toronto Sun – August 9, 2022)

https://torontosun.com/

It’s always interesting to hear Liberals accuse others of stoking division when that seems to be their bread and butter. This week it was Liberal MP Lloyd Longfield, a backbencher from Guelph, who was chosen to be the face of a column on fertilizer that accused opponents of the Trudeau government’s plan of stoking division for political gain.

He, and the government he serves, might want to look in the mirror. If you haven’t heard, the Trudeau Liberals want Canadian farmers to reduce their emissions from fertilizer, specifically nitrous oxide emissions, to 30% below 2020 levels by 2030.

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Uranium developer Denison says Phoenix feasibility field test is fully permitted – by Vladimir Basov (Kitco News – August 8, 2022)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – Denison Mines (TSX: DML) announced today it has received a License to Possess, Use, Store and Transfer a Nuclear Substance from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission for the In-Situ Recovery Feasibility Field Test planned for the Phoenix uranium deposit at the company’s 95% owned Wheeler River project.

Denison Mines said that the receipt of this license, together with the previously announced approval from the Saskatchewan Minister of Environment, means that the Feasibility Field Test (FFT) is fully permitted to proceed as per the company’s plans.

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Nutrien makes Ken Seitz its third chief executive in less than three years – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – August 8, 2022)

https://financialpost.com/

Seitz takes the helm while Nutrien is benefiting from the tailwind of some of the most favourable market conditions in years

Nutrien Ltd. named Ken Seitz as its next chief executive — the third person to hold the position since April 2021. Seitz had been acting on an interim basis since January, when the Saskatoon, Sask.-based fertilizer giant abruptly announced the termination of its second chief executive in less than a year without providing any context for either exit.

Unlike his predecessors, Seitz takes the helm while Nutrien is benefiting from the tailwind of some of the most favourable market conditions in years, as potash and other fertilizer prices are highly elevated as a result of supply constraints primarily caused by the fallout from the conflict in Ukraine.

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Nutrien CEO says Ukraine war will drive product demand for years – by Amanda Stephenson (Canadian Press/Global News – August 4, 2022)

https://globalnews.ca/

Saskatoon-based fertilizer giant Nutrien Ltd. surged to all-time high profits in the first six months of 2022 as the war in Ukraine destabilized agriculture markets and heightened global food security fears.

The Canadian company, which is the largest fertilizer producer in the world, raked in US$5 billion in profits in the first half of the year as crop input prices soared to multi-year highs.

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Cameco forecasts new jobs, production at Saskatchewan mines (CBC Saskatchewan – July 27, 2022)

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

Quarterly earnings report touts new contracts, more jobs at McArthur River/Key Lake facilities

Saskatchewan’s uranium giant is expecting to add more northern Saskatchewan jobs and more cash to its bottom line this year.

Saskatoon-based Cameco, one of the largest uranium producers in the world, has issued its second quarter earnings report. It shows the company brought in $84 million in net earnings over a three-month period. According to president and CEO Tim Gitzel, the market has been positive in 2022.

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Trudeau pushes ahead on fertilizer reduction as provinces and farmers cry foul – by Brian Lilley (Toronto Sun – July 22, 2022)

https://torontosun.com/

Provincial agriculture ministers are expressing frustration with the Trudeau government over plans to effectively reduce fertilizer use by Canada’s farmers in the name of fighting climate change.A meeting of federal and provincial ministers wrapped up in Saskatoon on Friday with several provinces saying they are disappointed.

The federal government is looking to impose a requirement to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from fertilizers saying it is a greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. While the Trudeau government says they want a 30% reduction in emissions, not fertilizer, farm producer groups say that at this point, reducing nitrous oxide emissions can’t be done without reducing fertilizer use.

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BHP accelerates work on its Saskatchewan potash mine as prices soar – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – July 19, 2022)

https://financialpost.com/

Mining giant aims to start production year early in 2026

BHP Group Ltd. has gone from lukewarm to hot on its Jansen potash mine in Saskatchewan, announcing Tuesday that it is working to accelerate first production by a year to 2026, and that it intends to speed up future expansions as potash prices continue to soar.

The Australian mining giant also reported in its year-end operational review that work on Jansen’s shaft, which already runs one-kilometre deep, was completed in June at a total cost of US$2.97 billion.

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Nutrien to acquire Brazilian fertilizer company Casa do Adubo in continued push into Latin America – Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – July 20, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Nutrien Ltd. is buying Brazilian retail fertilizer company Casa do Adubo S.A. as it forges ahead on an expansion into Latin America despite a difficult global economic environment.

Saskatoon-based Nutrien, the world’s biggest fertilizer company, did not disclose financial terms for the deal, but said it would add roughly US$400-million in sales and expand its reach in Brazil to 13 states from five.

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BHP pivots toward ‘future-facing’ commodities with Saskatchewan potash project – by Andrew Willis (Globe and Mail – June 20, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

In building the world’s largest potash mine in Saskatchewan, BHP CEO Mike Henry looks to heal old wounds and pivot the global giant away from oil and gas

Chief Bryon Bitternose was driving north across the Saskatchewan prairie this week toward two white towers that pierce the landscape – twin elevator shafts that mark the site of what will soon be the world’s largest potash mine. He took a phone call and started laughing.

The source of his amusement? Being asked to sketch the George Gordon First Nation’s history with Melbourne-based global commodities giant BHP Group Ltd. BHP-N, owner of the Jansen mine taking shape near his reserve. Mr. Bitternose chuckled as he said, “The relationship didn’t start real well. We first met in court.”

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Feds give up to $100 million to BHP to reduce emissions at Jansen potash mine – by Zak Vescera (Saskatoon Star Phoenix – June 13, 2022)

https://thestarphoenix.com/

The company claims the Saskatchewan mine will be the biggest and most sustainable in the world when it starts production in 2026.

The Canadian government will partner with Australian mining giant BHP Group Ltd. on a Saskatchewan mega-project they claim will be the biggest and most environmentally sustainable potash mine in the world.

Federal minister François-Philippe Champagne says Canada will give up to $100 million to BHP to cut emissions, reduce water use and diversify hiring at its Jansen project, a long-awaited mine about 140 kilometres east of Saskatoon that officials say will create thousands of jobs and further Saskatchewan’s position as a potash producer at a time of soaring global demand for the vital fertilizer ingredient.

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Nutrien plans major potash production hike as war in Ukraine exerts relentless pressure on global supplies – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – June 9, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Nutrien Ltd. is planning a major ramp up in potash production, as the war in Ukraine exerts relentless pressure on global supplies of the key fertilizer.

The world’s biggest fertilizer producer, based in Saskatoon, said on Thursday that it intends to boost its annual potash production to 18 million tonnes by 2025 – about 21.5 per cent higher than current levels. This year, Nutrien expects to produce about 14.8 million tonnes, a figure that had already been revised upward.

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Sask. could be ‘major producer’ of rare earth minerals – by Tyler Barrow (CTV News Saskatoon – May 31, 2022)

https://saskatoon.ctvnews.ca/

Mike Crabtree hopes Saskatchewan will serve as a catalyst for the rare earth elements industry. “The actual demand for rare earths is going to hockey stick literally over the next 10 years and Saskatchewan has the opportunity to be a major producer,” said Crabtree, president and CEO of the Saskatchewan Research Council.

Crabtree made his comments at Nutrien Tower in Saskatoon on a panel for Saskatchewan Mining Week. He said all 17 rare earth elements can be found in Saskatchewan. They are used in products such as cell phones, televisions, computers, vehicles and wind turbines.

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