South Africa drops out of top 10 in Africa for mining investment – by Frik Els (Mining.com – February 24, 2015)

http://www.mining.com/

According to the latest annual global survey released Tuesday by Canadian think tank the Fraser Institute, South Africa has fallen out of the top ten mining investment destinations on the continent and dropped 11 places to 67th globally.

The institute’s Annual Survey of Mining Companies 2014, rates 122 jurisdictions around the world based on their geologic appeal and the extent to which government policies encourage exploration and investment.

“While it is useful to measure the attractiveness of a jurisdiction based on policy factors such as onerous regulations, taxation levels, the quality of infrastructure and so forth, investment decisions are often based on the pure mineral potential of a jurisdiction. Indeed respondents consistently indicate that roughly only 40% of their investment decision is determined by policy factors,” according to the report.

The survey covers Central African Republic, Egypt, Lesotho, Mauritania, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, and Uganda for the first time, but it’s at the top of the rankings that trends are most visible. And it’s not encouraging for the continent’s long-time stalwart.

South Africa is ranked the 11th most attractive African destination for investment in the resources sector behind the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Read more

My Turn: Mining disasters must end with Mount Polley – by Bill Bennett (Juneau Empire – February 24, 2015)

http://juneauempire.com/

Bill Bennett is the Minister of Energy and Mines for the province of British Columbia.

It’s unfortunate your editorial has seized upon the Mount Polley mine tailings storage facility failure to undermine the long tradition of respectful relations and co-operation between British Columbia and Alaska on mining development and environmental protection.

A breach of this magnitude is unprecedented in British Columbia in over 160 years of mining. Major breaches of tailings storage facilities have happened all over the world, including in many U.S. states. Your suggestion, based on the Mount Polley failure, that in B.C. we are somehow less responsible in developing our mining industry than you are in Alaska, or that we’re charging forward without due care for environmental protection is based on a misrepresentation of the facts. Let me set the record straight on a few things.

The independent panel traced the cause of the failure at Mount Polley to the original design of the tailings storage facility, and concluded that government inspectors could not have detected the issue.

The panel also noted that it considered the technical qualifications of British Columbia government inspectors as among the best that it has encountered among agencies with similar duties.

Most importantly, it is most certainly not “business as usual” in British Columbia regarding mine tailings storage facilities.

Read more

NEWS RELEASE: The Fraser Institute: Quebec’s Mining Reputation Rebounds in International Mining Survey

www.fraserinstitute.org

Click here for full report: http://www.fraserinstitute.org/uploadedFiles/fraser-ca/Content/research-news/research/publications/survey-of-mining-companies-2014.pdf

CALGARY, ALBERTA–(Marketwired – Feb. 24, 2015) – Quebec is re-establishing itself as one of Canada’s – and one of the world’s – most attractive jurisdictions for mining investment, according to an annual global survey of mining executives released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian policy think-tank.

The Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies, 2014, rates 122 jurisdictions around the world based on their geologic attractiveness and the extent to which government policies encourage exploration and investment. In this year’s survey, Quebec jumps up six spots and now ranks as the number three jurisdiction for mining investment in Canada and sixth worldwide.

“Quebec was atop the national and international rankings from 2007 to 2010 but tumbled down the list in recent years as a result of increased red tape, royalty hikes and uncertainty around new regulations,” said Kenneth Green, Fraser Institute senior director of energy and natural resources.

“The confidence mining executives now have in Quebec is due in part to the province’s proactive approach to mining policy and its Plan Nord strategy to encourage investment and mineral exploration in northern Quebec.”

Read more

NEWS RELEASE: Could New Geophysics Technology Spark Exploration?

http://www.ageophysics.com/

Val-d’Or, Quebec, Canada, February 9, 2015

Abitibi Geophysics, a mining exploration services company, reported that its new induced-polarization survey technology recently documented the existence of mineral deposits as deep as 450 metres under the bed of Quebec’s frozen Lake Pusticamica.

Under contract to Cartier Resources Inc., a Quebec junior gold-mining company, Abitibi Geophysics deployed its proprietary OreVision-IP system of electrical probes and sensors to map deposits on Cartier’s Benoist Property between the Bachelor and Langlois Mines.

“CEO says technique’s “convincing clarity” could boost investor confidence in projects where OreVision IP is used”

“Having the ability to detect mineralization to these new depths could be a game changer for the Benoist project” commented Philippe Cloutier, President and CEO, adding “since this new method offers depth of investigation unparalleled by other technologies while keeping optimal resolution from surface to depth, it could help us find more mineralization faster for a reasonable investment”.

Read more

Vale’s nickel unit a good target for X2 but higher price needed – by STEPHEN EISENHAMMER AND SILVIA ANTONIOLI (Reuters – January 14, 2015)

http://www.reuters.com/

RIO DE JANEIRO/LONDON – Jan 14 (Reuters) – Vale’s nickel business is a good target for former Xstrata CEO Mick Davis, but his reported offer price is probably too low, considering the Brazilian miner’s stated interest in only selling a minority stake, analysts and banking sources said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Bloomberg reported that Davis, who runs London-based mining startup X2 Resources, is considering a $5 billion to $7 billion offer for Vale’s nickel assets. A spokesperson for Vale, the world’s second-largest producer of nickel, told Reuters on Tuesday no offer had been received and no talks held.

A spokesman for X2 also declined to comment. “Any offer at this level… would be far too low for Vale to consider, in our view,” Citigroup analyst Alex Hacking said in a client note.

Hacking valued the business at around $20-25 billion, given an average expected EBITDA, a measure of profit from operations, of as much as $4 billion.

Vale valued its base metals business (nickel and copper) at $30-35 billion in December when it said it was considering listing 30 to 40 percent of the division in Toronto as a separate company.

Read more

MY SONG FOR THE MINER VIDEO – by Wild Spirit Films ( Junie Boudreau)

http://www.wild-spirit-films.ca/ Tribute video dedicated to Canadian miners from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia and across Canada. Music courtesy of Fred White. Pictures courtesy of Cape Breton coal miners and Nova Scotia archives. Video made by filmmaker Junie Boudreau of Wild Spirit Films. This video is dedicated to my grandfather who died of “Black Lung” which is …

Read more

Sherritt International stock soars on U.S.-Cuba deal, but still business as usual for Canadian firms in Cuba – by Peter Koven (National Post – December 18, 2014)

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

TORONTO – In the short-term, the diplomatic breakthrough between the United States and Cuba changes very little for Sherritt International Corp. and the dozens of other Canadian companies active in Cuba. But a potential lifting of the U.S. embargo would have a transformative impact on them.

Sherritt’s stock jumped more than 26% on Wednesday as the two countries re-established diplomatic ties. The reaction was not surprising, as the Toronto-based miner has always had a “Cuban discount” baked into its stock. Sherritt is the biggest foreign investor in the Communist state by a huge margin. Its shares closed at $2.87, up 60¢ in Toronto.

“There’s always been this uncertainty around political risk in Cuba as a result of the Cuba-America relationship,” chief executive David Pathe said in an interview. “And if this can help alleviate that, we think it’s a positive development for Cuba and for us.”

Nonetheless, it is largely irrelevant to the company’s business interests. The U.S embargo, which remains in place, prevents Sherritt from having any business dealings with companies inside the U.S., including banks. And the U.S. Helms-Burton Act prevents some of Sherritt’s directors and officers from entering the country.

Many experts see Wednesday’s news as the first step towards scrapping those policies.

Read more

Nickel boss: ‘Economic benefits of CETA outweigh the criticism’ (EurActiv Germany – December 18, 2014)

http://www.euractiv.com/

The free trade agreement between the EU and Canada (CETA) will provide European companies with long-term access to essential raw materials, Nickel Institute President Tim Aiken says, hoping to create more pro-business EU laws with CETA. EurActiv Germany reports.

Tim Aiken is President of the Nickel Institute, the global association of the world’s primary nickel producers. Aiken took part in the EurActiv Workshop “Europe+Canada”.

He spoke with EurActiv Germany’s Dario Sarmadi.

The CETA Free Trade Agreement between EU and Canada has been criticised especially in Germany and France because of the Institutional State Dispute Settlement clause. Do you think the clause should be removed?

The protection of investors is an important building block of the CETA Agreement, which provides both Canadian companies in Europe and European companies in Canada with a safeguard for their investments. Currently, it represents a hurdle for the debate within Europe. However I am convinced that the hurdle will be overcome given that the economic benefits of the CETA agreement for industry and consumers outweigh the criticism.

What opportunities does the CETA agreement offer to the raw materials industry?

Read more

NEWS RELEASE: SNL Metals & Mining 25th Annual Corporate Exploration Study Finds Larger Players Account for 40% of Global Exploration Budgets

As part of the 25th edition of the Corporate Exploration Strategies (CES) study[1], a corporate exploration profile of each company budgeting at least US$50 million for exploration is available on the SNL company briefing books. In 2014, these 39 larger players budgeted a total of US$4.33 billion and accounted for 40% of the US$10.74 billion worldwide exploration total.

The top three explorers in 2014 include one copper producer (Antofagasta), a diversified major (Vale), and a major precious metal producer (Fresnillo). Chile-based Antofagasta has the world’s largest nonferrous exploration budget in 2014; this year’s program is growth-oriented and emphasizes late-stage and feasibility work. A strong grassroots effort includes programs in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Australia.

In second place, Vale is the largest explorer among the diversified majors, also with an emphasis on late-stage work. Vale continues to challenge Norilsk for the title of world’s top nickel producer; its output of 260,200 mt in 2013 was just 25,000 mt short of the 285,000 mt produced by the Russian miner. Vale also considers copper one of its core commodities, although production growth has been more gradual. Significant exploration expenditures are also directed to fertilizers in Brazil and Peru.

Read more

Noront Sixth Annual Ring of Fire Christmas Fund

It is that time of year again! Noront Resources’ employees are running our Sixth Annual Ring of Fire Christmas Fund. Over the past 5 years Noront has raised over $75,000 in donations, and has ensured that each child under the age of 13 living both on and off reserve in the communities of Marten Falls …

Read more

China using weak prices to stockpile iron ore – by Scott Murdoch (The Australian – November 10, 2014)

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business

CHINA is building up its iron ore stockpiles to take advantage of the commodity’s weak prices despite deliberately slowing steel production over the past month.

New figures released by Xinhua-China Iron Ore Price Index showed stockpiles of imported iron ore at 33 major Chinese ports surged 1.44 per cent last week compared with a week earlier due to weak demand.

Iron ore inventories at the 33 ports across China rose by 1.47 million tonnes to 103.44 million tonnes, one of the highest levels in the past year. Most Australian imported iron ore is stored at the Tianjin port, south of Beijing, the largest in China.

The Xinhua report said a slowing economy and mounting environmental pressure was hurting the profit margin of the steel industry, softening demand for iron ore.

China has slowed production and output in the Hebei region, the steel capital of China, in a bid to reduce pollution during the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation leaders’ meeting, which begins today in Beijing.

Read more

Sudbury’s Transition Metals juggles several exploration projects – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – November 08, 2014)

http://www.northernlife.ca/

CEO Scott McLean calls the company a ‘project generator’

The last year was difficult for mining exploration companies, but it was an improvement over 2013, says Scott McLean, president and CEO of Sudbury-based Transition Metals.

“2015, I expect, is going to be better than 2014,” McLean said at the 2014 Ontario Prospectors Association Exploration and Geoscience Symposium. “But realistically speaking, I think we’re a ways out from the good traction in the mining equity markets.”

McLean went on to say the mining sector’s current down-cycle is the worst he has experienced since he started his career in 1985. But with every bust comes a boom, he said, and he expects the rebound to also be the biggest in his career.

To prepare for that rebound, Transition Metals has taken on a more ambitious portfolio of properties than most junior miners. McLean calls the company a “project generator,” because instead of exploring just a few properties, it has 24 across Canada, and one in the United States.

“Generally speaking, it is a pretty niche part of the market,” he said. “Right now is a time when companies are desperate for cash and are forced into raising money at very poor valuations. We don’t have to do that.”

Read more