Republic of Mining

Bank of England checks commodity exposures of financial institutions – by Neil Hume, Martin Arnold and David Sheppard (Financial Times – October 8, 2015)

October 9, 2015

http://www.ft.com/

The Bank of England has asked British financial institutions to reveal their full exposure to commodity traders and falling prices of raw materials amid concerns over the impact of the oil and metals slump.

The Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority, which was set up in 2012 to ensure the “safety and soundness” of banks in the wake of the financial crisis, sent the requests to the UK’s big banks in the past week, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The PRA move that mirrors similar inquiries it made earlier this year about the banks’ exposure to Greece and to China, was prompted by a sharp drop in the shares of Glencore, the biggest publicly listed trading-house-cum-miner at the start of last week.

It was not provoked by any immediate concerns of a default, a person familiar with the matter said, but it was checking that banks knew what their exposures were to individual commodity houses and that they had examined the wider knock-on effects if a large commodity trader was to collapse.

[Alaska] Polls show concern over transboundary mining, desire for action – by (Juneau Empire – October 9, 2015)

October 9, 2015

http://juneauempire.com/

Salmon Beyond Borders and SkeenaWild, groups from Alaska and British Columbia that have opposed mining in BC and Alaska’s transboundary river watersheds, recently received the results of two polls they say show a clear desire for action on both sides of the border.

The two polls, one in Alaska and one in B.C., were commissioned by the groups and conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research. Some highlights from a press release include:

• Nearly three-quarters of Alaska respondents expressed concern about a mining waste spill in B.C. affecting shared watersheds that drain into Alaska, with the number jumping to 86 percent for Southeast Alaska respondents.

• Seventy-six percent of Alaska respondents want Alaska to have a seat at an international table to address concerns about upstream B.C. mining in shared transboundary watersheds. Forty-five percent said their vote for a member of Congress hinges on elected officials pushing for this seat at the table.

Russia prepares for large-scale rare earth metals production – by Eugene Gerden (Investorintel.com – October 8, 2015)

October 9, 2015

http://investorintel.com/

The government of Russia’s Murmansk region, a region, located in the northwestern part of Russia, has started a search of an investor for the development of the local Afrikandovsky field of rare-earth metals, according to Alexei Tyukavin, first deputy-governor of the region.

According to Murmansk regional government, successfull development of the field will allow to establish a full-scale production of titanium dioxide, as well as rare-earth metals.

Estimated volume of investments in the project is 8 billion rubles (US$200 million). Ore reserves of the field will ensure continous operation of a mine and processing complex, that will be built later during the next 100 years.

The tender is expected to be completed by the end October of the current year. The license for an investor will be granted for 25 years. In addition to rare earth metals, titanium, iron, tantalum, niobium and other metals.

The Russian government puts big hopes on the implementation of the project, considering the Murmansk region as a new center of Russia’s rare-earth metals production.

Timmins Museum marks 40 years of its own history – by Sarah Moore (Timmins Daily Press – October 7, 2015)

October 9, 2015

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – There’s been scandal, engineering marvels and, of course, there has been gold — and the Timmins Museum has brought that rich history to life for the last 40 years.

The museum, which is now located on Second Avenue in the city’s downtown, has been operating since 1975. It was initially opened as a National Exhibition Centre in South Porcupine, one of only 23 in Canada, to house travelling exhibitions from across the country.

Four years after the centre was created, a community museum component was also added to showcase permanent collections spotlighting artifacts that told the story of the City of Timmins, specifically.

“The community had been looking for a museum since the early 1950s,” said Karen Bachmann, the director/curator of the Timmins Museum. “Pieces had already been collected by the chamber of commerce that at the time were being stored at the chamber, the fire hall in Porcupine, the vaults at city hall and in some people’s homes, so it brought together a lot of this stuff.”

NEWS RELEASE: Eastmain Receives “Discovery of the Year” Award for Its Eau Claire Gold Deposit

October 9, 2015

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – Oct. 8, 2015) – Eastmain Resources Inc. (“Eastmain”) (TSX:ER) is pleased to announce that it was awarded the “Discovery of the Year 2015” by the Association de L’Exploration Minière du Quebec (“AEMQ”) in a ceremony held last evening in Montreal, Quebec. This award recognizes the importance of Eastmain’s recent discoveries, which have significantly led to the expansion and delineation of its Eau Claire gold deposit and to new prospects discovered along the Eau Claire trend.

Each year the AEMQ recognizes and honours those entrepreneurs who make notable contributions to the development of Quebec’s mining exploration industry. The Discovery of the Year award is given to highlight the importance of a discovery that produced a significant ripple effect on exploration activities within a property and its surrounding area.

The Clearwater project, which hosts the Eau Claire gold deposit, is located in the James Bay region of the Province of Quebec, 350 kilometres north of Chibougamau and 15 kilometres east of Hydro Quebec’s EM-1 power installation. Eau Claire is the 2nd highest grade open pit undeveloped gold resource in North America, within a short list of development-track open pit projects containing more than 500,000 ounces of Measured and Indicated (“M&I”) resources at greater than 1.5 g/t.

20 Questions with Sudbury Green Candidate David Robinson [Mining/Northern Ontario Initiatives] (Sudbury Star – October 9, 2015)

October 9, 2015

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

The Sudbury Star has sent a 20 Questions form to the four major candidates in the Sudbury and Nickel Belt ridings. Today, we feature David Robinson, who is running for the Green Party in Sudbury.

1. Why did you decide to run for MP? I was and I am outraged at the failure of the mainline parties to present a clear and strong plan for dealing with climate change. We are headed for climate disaster and the prime minister wants to “stay the course.”

2. What drew you to the party? The Green Party had by far the most commitment about climate change and the best policy combination.

3. What is your background?

I have spent 35 years studying and teaching economic policy. I have spent 25 years focusing on Northern Ontario economic development and 15 years contributing to Sudbury’s economy and culture. For example, I Identified the mining supply sector as our key opportunity, initiated our mining supply organization and the mining supply journal, started the new school of architecture, brought some arts organizations to the city and have helped shape the city’s economic plans.

Analysts say major U.S. banks on hook to Glencore – by Kate Kelly (CNBC.com – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.cnbc.com/

A new report estimates that Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Morgan Stanley have lent $350 million apiece to the troubled commodity giant Glencore PLC — meaning they will be on the hook for potential losses if things deteriorate at the trading and mining company.

In a note issued late Wednesday afternoon, analysts at CreditSights used accountings of bank loans prepared by the data firm Dealogic to estimate who had lent what to Glencore as part of its $15.3 billion revolving credit facility.

The analysts deduced that “North American banks accounted for 20 percent” of the revolver, according to the note, with four major U.S. banks taking the lead and four Canadian banks in similar positions. Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo were notably absent.

Of the 60 or so lenders reportedly part of the revolving credit facility, which is broken up in to a one-year and a five-year tranche, about 34 banks are in lead positions, said someone familiar with the credit structure, with equal dollar exposure to Glencore.

Mining stocks surge as end of commodity rout called – by Frik Els (Mining.com – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.mining.com/

Morgan Stanley sees a sharp reversal in commodities with prices rising nearly 20% by 2017 making mining stocks historically attractive

Investors returned to the metals and mining sector in a big way on Wednesday after an analyst report called a bottom in the commodities rout.

On the Comex market in New York copper for delivery in December climbed 1.7% to a three-week high of $2.3960 or $5,280 a tonne before paring some of the gains in afternoon trade. The red metal is up more than 6% from a six-year low hit at the end of September.

The benchmark price of iron ore also advanced on Wednesday to exchange hands for $54.50 extending the steelmaking raw material’s bull run since hitting record lows in July. Iron ore is up 24% from the trough staying above the $50 a tonne level for the last 12 weeks.

Iron ore and copper are seen as bellwethers for the mining sector and today’s rally comes on the back of a positive research note from Morgan Stanley quoted in the Wall Street Journal.

Glencore’s pursuit of Rio Tinto has come full circle – by Peter Kerr (Sydney Morning Herald – October 8, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.smh.com.au/

It was supposed to be the year that advanced Ivan Glasenberg’s plans for global domination of the commodities sector.

But the year since Rio Tinto rebuffed merger overtures from Glasenberg’s Glencore, which was marked on Thursday, has become the South African entrepreneur’s annus horribilis.

Not only did the merger, seen by some as inevitable and by others as unlikely, not come to fruition, but the process prompted the market to compare the two companies thoroughly. That comparison has not flattered Glencore.

The merger approach came amid the peak of the iron ore crisis – prices had fallen by 44 per cent in 12 months, and Glasenberg had whipped up a debate about both Rio Tinto’s reliance on the bulk commodity and its controversial strategy of continuing to expand exports into weak markets.

Glasenberg, on the other hand, portrayed himself as the commodities guru with the better-placed, more-diversified portfolio that had an oil hedge and exposure to the base metals that most predicted would shine in 2015.

Aluminum premium bubble over? Just don’t tell the LME – by Andy Home (Reuters U.S. – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

LONDON – So is the aluminum premium bubble well and truly over? It certainly feels that way.

Japanese buyers have just secured a premium of $90 per metric tons over London Metal Exchange (LME) cash metal for their fourth-quarter shipments.

As recently as the first quarter of this year, Japanese premiums were at a record high of $425 per metric tons (468 tons).

Moreover, these Q4 2015 premiums are the lowest since the third quarter of 2009, marking a return to historical norms.

The scale of the collapse in Japanese premiums is partly down to specific local drivers but even that statement reflects a return to normality, where physical premiums don’t move in global lock-step but rather mirror regional supply-demand dynamics.

U.S. and European premiums are higher at around $155 and $120 per metric tons respectively but have fallen a long, long way since the start of this year.

Paris’s scary climate agenda – by Peter Foster (National Post – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

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

Details of two international agreements were released on Monday. One, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which reduces trade barriers between 12 signatories, including Canada, got lots of ink. The other, which purports to control global weather, end the era of fossil fuels, and place all human activity under bureaucratic control, got very little.

The pretensions of the latter text, released by the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action, ADP, which is assigned to come up with an agreement to put to the vast UN climate meeting in Paris in December, are mind-boggling. The fact that they attracted little attention means either that the media and public have no idea of the climate agenda’s implications, or that nobody takes the agenda seriously. Probably both. After all, the UN has been promoting the “urgent threat of climate change” for more than 25 years.

While the text of the TPP has yet to be finalized, that of the Paris meeting is skeletal. But, like skeletons, it is scary.

If anybody doubts the significance of the changes to which the puppeteers of Paris aspire, they should refer to remarks made last week by Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of England, who suggested that the climate thrust could destroy massive value as oil and gas assets are “stranded” by climate legislation.

Mining operator convicted of 2 misdemeanors for polluting Southwest Alaska river – by Jerzy Shedlock (Alaska Dispatch News – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.adn.com/

A Southwest Alaska mine operator from Canada was convicted of two misdemeanor violations of the federal Clean Water Act on Wednesday in Anchorage for allowing muddy water to seep into a salmon stream over the course of two mining seasons.

The government charged James Slade — a mining consultant from Calgary, Alberta, who became chief operating officer for XS Platinum Inc. in 2010 — with six felonies. The charges included conspiracy, various violations of the Clean Water Act and submission of a false report.

Jurors could have found that Slade violated the regulations knowingly or negligently. They decided Slade’s actions were irresponsible but could not reach a unanimous decision about whether he knew he was breaking the law on two of the charges. What could have been felony convictions were instead found to be misdemeanors.

The jury deliberated for two days, finding Slade not guilty of half of his alleged crimes. The government will decide next week whether or not to retry Slade for three charges on which jurors were deadlocked, said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis.

Statement from the Arizona Mining Association – by Kelly Norton (October 8, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.azmining.com/

Kelly Norton is the President of the Arizona Mining Association.

“Reforms proposed for the Mining Law will not fix the challenging legacy mine situation in the U.S. but will instead distract policymakers from effective solutions.

“The mining industry is not opposed to a royalty on new mines provided it sustains a competitive environment for U.S. mines, the mining economy and the employment it supports, and is coupled with a timely and efficient permitting process.

“Legislative initiatives proposing punitive royalties on new mining will only kill investment, jobs, and local revenue generated by modern mining.

“Modern mining is a highly regulated industry unlike the by-gone era when exhausted mines were not regulated and simply abandoned. Post-mining reclamation and restoration is a requirement of modern mining and includes both state and federal regulations.

Why Alaska doesn’t trust BC – by Judith Lavoie (DeSmog Canada/Troy Media – October 2, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.troymedia.com/

Energy and Mines Minister Bill Bennett visited southeast Alaska this summer, trying to calm critics of the province’s aggressive push to build at least 10 mines close to the Alaska border.

“I understand why people feel so strongly about protecting what they have,” Bennett said at a news conference in Juneau. “There’s a way of life here that has tremendous value and the people here don’t want to lose it. I get that.”

Bennett’s conciliatory tone was in response to an unprecedented outpouring of concern from a powerful alliance of Alaskan politicians, tribes, fishing organizations and environmental groups. They’re perturbed by the modern-day gold rush alongside vital transboundary salmon rivers such as the Unuk, Taku and Stikine.

Indeed, long-held perceptions of Canada as a country with strict environmental standards and B.C. as a province that values natural beauty have taken a beating in southeast Alaska. Many now regard Canadians as bad neighbours who unilaterally make decisions that could threaten the region’s two major economic drivers – tourism and fishing.

Copper’s outlook may be rosier than you thought – by Andy Home (Reuters U.S. – October 7, 2015)

October 8, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

German copper producer Aurubis has just rung the bell on the start of the “mating season”, the annual negotiation of term contracts for shipments in the following year.

It has announced it will be reducing its copper cathode premium from $110 per tonne over LME cash metal this year to $92 next year.

Aurubis’ preemptive move will raise expectations of a similar-sized reduction in the annual premium from Chile’s Codelco, the world’s largest producer. Its European premium has been higher than that of Aurubis in both 2014 and 2015 at $112 per tonne.

The case for cutting copper premiums seems obvious. Everyone’s worried about the state of demand, particularly in China, which accounts for around 45 percent of global copper usage.

The price itself looks wobbly. Currently trading around $5,250 per tonne, basis LME three-month metal, it is already down by around 16 percent so far this year with plenty of bears calling for lower prices still.