Republic of Mining

Recession has little impact on Sudbury [mining]: Chamber – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – September 02, 2015)

September 8, 2015

http://www.northernlife.ca/

Mining supply and services remain steady, but not great

While Canada officially entered a recession Tuesday, it has mostly been business as usual for the last two quarters in Sudbury, says the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce.

“I think Sudbury, as a whole, is doing reasonably well,” said Karen Hourtovenko, chair of the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce.

Statistics Canada announced Tuesday Canada’s gross domestic product decreased by 0.5 per cent between April and June, which marked the second GDP decline in as many quarters. The technical definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth.

The recession has been driven by a slump in the oil and gas sector, but other sectors of the economy have seen more positive growth. The resale housing market, for example, increased nearly 10 per cent in the same quarter.

Why the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit is such a bad idea – by Lindsay Tedds (MACLEAN’S Magazine – September 2, 2015)

September 8, 2015

http://www.macleans.ca/

With taxpayers worried about government spending, we should demand better than the renewal of a credit that represents a wasteful use of tax revenues

Conservative leader Stephen Harper speaks with Joe Guido, President of Premier Mining Products as he is shown drill bits during a campaign stop in North Bay, Ont., on Wednesday, September 2, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Conservative leader Stephen Harper speaks with Joe Guido, President of Premier Mining Products as he is shown drill bits during a campaign stop in North Bay, Ont., on Wednesday, September 2, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

As I am sure all of Canada knows (and much of the world), Canada’s much awaited gross domestic production (GDP) numbers came out Tuesday. Everyone, by now, knows the punchline, but buried in those numbers were little gems that I was certain would lead to policy announcements today. And I was right. The first ones out of the gates have been the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) which announced an extension to and enhancement of the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit.

Mining For Gold Song- by Cowboy Junkies

September 5, 2015

Have a great Labour Day weekend everyone! – Stan Sudol (RepublicOfMining.com)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

The band was formed by three siblings from the Timmins entertainment family.
Another sibling, Cali, rose to fame as an actress on Ryan’s Hope. The Timmins
siblings are descendants of Noah Timmins, a mining prospector who founded
the Ontario [gold mining] city of Timmins. (Wiki)

Cowboy Junkies are a Canadian alternative country/blues/folk rock band. The group was formed in Toronto in 1985 by Margo Timmins (vocalist), Michael Timmins (songwriter, guitarist), Peter Timmins (drummer) and Alan Anton (bassist).[1]

The Junkies first performed publicly at the Beverley Tavern and other clubs in Toronto’s Queen Street West, including The Rivoli. Their 1986 debut album, produced by Canadian producer Peter Moore, was the blues-inspired Whites Off Earth Now!!, recorded using an ambisonic microphone in the family garage.[1]

Africa: Mining Is Still Africa’s Future – by Ibilola (All Africa.com – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://allafrica.com/

One of the most prominent Australian miners in Africa said this week global equity markets should not under-estimate the economic powerhouse that mining can deliver to the continent.

Addressing the Paydirt 2015 Africa Down Under Conference in Perth, Australia, Resolute Mining CEO, John Welborn, told delegates that the business juggernaut that is now China, had to be contrasted to 1978 when it was one of the poorest countries in the world.

“Take that same scenario to Africa and by 2040, Africa is projected to have more than one point one billion people of working age,” Welborn said.

“The challenges that poses specifically for Africa are energy, skilled workers, infrastructure, access to capital, political stability, social licence to operate and productivity issues.

“What the mining industry can do to deliver a better Africa is to attract capital and international finance, ensure transparent negotiations and mining agreements, create jobs and skills, support local industry, build and transfer infrastructure, pay taxes and support a framework for economic advancement.”

Vale CEO still upbeat on China, iron ore market -paper (Reuters U.S. – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

SAO PAULO – China’s stock market crash and currency devaluation have not dampened the optimism of mining giant Vale’s chief executive, who said he is most upbeat on the iron ore market in two years, according to a newspaper interview published Friday.

China’s stock markets have little relation to its real economy and a new foreign exchange policy has been misinterpreted as stimulus for exports, Vale CEO Murilo Ferreira told newspaper Valor Economico.

“The outlook for iron ore in recent weeks is much better than we saw four months ago. Of the last 24 months, I’m most upbeat right now,” said Ferreira.

The sharp Chinese sell-off in recent weeks rattled global markets, but Ferreira played down those fears and said the devaluation of the yuan was a step toward making the currency convertible.

Rio Tinto shows Glencore’s Ivan Glasenberg who knows China best – by James Thomson (Australian Financial Review – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.afr.com/

Finally, a little relief for Glencore chief Ivan Glasenberg, who watched the miner’s stock climb 6.6 per cent on Thursday night after two horror days of trading that saw it fall 6.7 per cent and then 8.4 per cent.

Glencore stock has hit record low after record low since Glasenberg delivered the company’s results on August 19. Obviously this has been a period of extreme volatility for global markets, and a global commodities trader with a debt pile of $42.7 billion won’t win any awards for defensive stock of the month. But a 26 per cent fall in 12 days isn’t pretty.

Thursday night’s jump came despite Standard & Poor’s revising its outlook on Glencore to “negative” from “stable” after lowering its price assumptions for aluminium, copper, and other metals, “reflecting a change in market conditions and uncertainties about China’s economic outlook.”

But it did take a little financial show of strength to get the shares moving in the right direction again. On Wednesday Glencore said it would pay back $US350 million ($500 million) of perpetual bonds next month, at the earliest possible date. It was a clever way of showing the company has cash to pay debt as it battles the commodity price slump.

Greenpeace India Says It Will Continue Environmental Campaign – by Nida Najar (New York Times – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.nytimes.com/

NEW DELHI — Greenpeace India said on Friday that it would continue campaigning for clean air and against coal mining in protected forests in the country despite the government’s revoking its permission to receive foreign donations.

In an order canceling the group’s registration under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, the Ministry of Home Affairs said that Greenpeace had “prejudicially affected the economic interest of the state.” Greenpeace India learned of the cancellation on Thursday.

The government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has declared economic development a priority and has been cracking down on nongovernmental organizations like Greenpeace, whose work often runs counter to its aims.

“I think all along this is not about Greenpeace alone; this is about what’s happening to the space for dissent in India,” said Vinuta Gopal, the interim co-executive director of Greenpeace India. “The clampdown has not been just against us. It’s been against a number of NGOs.”

In April, the government suspended Greenpeace India’s registration for foreign funding and froze its bank accounts.

Canadian miner Nevsun defends operations in Eritrea as locals flee to Europe – by Ian Bickis (Canadian Press/Canadian Business Magazine – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/business-news/

CALGARY – Canadian mining company Nevsun Resources is defending its operations in Eritrea following a damning report by the United Nations that accused the miner of using forced labour in the North African country.

Nevsun released an updated independent human rights report this week that found no evidence of forced labour or human rights violations at its 60-per-cent-owned Bisha mine in Eritrea, where thousands of people are fleeing on perilous treks to Europe.

The report by LKL International Consulting is in contrast to June’s UN report, which said Nevsun used forced labour at the Bisha mine after the company was required to hire government-owned contractors that included Segen Construction.

The UN commissioners spoke with former Segen workers who said they were forced to work at the mine while in the compulsory national service. “Even though Segen tried to conceal their status, the majority of Segen’s ‘workers’ were in fact conscripts performing their national service,” wrote the commissioners.

Low nickel price ‘not sustainable’ – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

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

Bring on the monsoon.

It may seem like a strange wish to make from a part of the world that is more likely to get a freak autumn snowfall than a drenching from rain-laden ocean winds, but it could help a domestic mining industry that has been rocked of late by low nickel prices.

“Right now we’re about two-thirds of the way through the peak shipping season for laterite nickel ore from the Phillipines, which is the primary exporter to China,” said Mark Selby, a former Inco executive now heading up Royal Nickel, a Toronto-based junior mining company.

Laterite ore — which Selby describes as “basically soggy dirt sitting at the surface” — is cheaper to mine than the sulphide ore in Sudbury, but complicated to process.

China, which converts it to so-called pig iron once coke is added to it in a furnace, does a brisk trade with laterite providers from the Phillipines and (before an export ban was imposed) Indonesia.

Fission’s uranium price – by Kip Keen (Mineweb.com – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.mineweb.com/

There is a big gap between the company’s assumptions and reality.

HALIFAX – First let me say Canadian-junior Fission Uranium has its hands on a delightful discovery with the Triple R deposit. It’s already pretty big, high grade, and set to grow.

It and predecessor companies made the find a few years back in the Athabasca Basin, where the cream of the world’s uranium resides – at least in terms of grade. They recently calculated a 79.6 million pound uranium resource, indicated, at 1.58% U3O8. That’s quite sizeable and high grade by the industry’s standards.

Fission has released an early stage economic analysis (preliminary economic assessment or PEA in Canadian parlance) that puts the price tag at $1.1 billion to get it into production, with a 14-year mine life. It also anticipates pretty low operating costs per tonne – in the mid-teens per pound uranium.

But here’s my beef on the PEA and I’m not alone in having it. Fission (and RPA as the consultant) use $65/lb uranium as the base case in the PEA, giving it a catchy 35% IRR, post-tax. Yet current uranium prices are a lot lower in spot and contract markets and have been so for years.

KGHM, Metis Nation strike Victoria Mine agreement – by Staff (Sudbury Star – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

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

The Metis Nation of Ontario and KGHM International Ltd. announced Thursday a deal covering development of the Victoria Mine project in Sudbury.

The memorandum of understanding will guide their working relationship as the mine is being prepared for a 2017 opening.

“This agreement is very important to the Metis people because it guarantees that Metis rights will be protected and the Metis way of life in the Sudbury area is being respected,” Metis Nation of Ontario chair France Picotte said in a release.

“We are pleased to continue working with KGHM. Agreements like this one are another benefit that we see coming from the MNO-Ontario Framework Agreement, which was first signed in 2008 and renewed this past year.”

In 2012, KGHM announced plans to spend $750-million to redevelop Victoria Mine near Worthington. One of Sudbury’s oldest and most prolific mines, Victoria would employ more than 200 full-time workers by the time it goes back into full production in 2017. It would produce copper and nickel.

‘Window of opportunity’ for new LNG projects is gone because of supply glut, consultancy says – by Yadullah Hussain (National Post – September 4, 2015)

September 4, 2015

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

The window to build liquefied natural gas projects in Canada and elsewhere has closed amid a global supply glut, says global energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie.

“There is a clear reluctance by companies to stand down, but the reality is that the window of opportunity closed over six months ago for everyone, not just for Canada,” Noel Tomnay, vice-president global gas and LNG research for Wood Mackenzie said in an interview.

Qatar and Australia led the first two waves of LNG development with the U.S. spearheading the third wave, even as Canadian and East African proposals were stalled.

“Canada’s biggest competitor is not the U.S. — it is probably Mozambique,” Tomnay said, noting that these two regions would probably the play the role of niche, “strategic resources” for investors in the next wave of development that will cater to demand after 2022.

No union coal mines remain in Kentucky – by Dylan Lovan (Associated Press/Salt Lake City Tribune – September 3, 2015)

September 4, 2015

http://www.sltrib.com/

Harlan, Ky. – Kentucky coal miners bled and died to unionize.

Their workplaces became war zones, and gun battles once punctuated union protests. In past decades, organizers have been beaten, stabbed and shot while seeking better pay and safer conditions deep underground.

But more recently the United Mine Workers in Kentucky have been in retreat, dwindling like the black seams of coal in the Appalachian mountains. And now the last union mine in Kentucky has been shut down.

“A lot of people right now who don’t know what the [union] stands for is getting good wages and benefits because of the sacrifice that we made,” said Kenny Johnson, a retired union miner who was arrested during the Brookside strike in Harlan County in the 1970s. “Because when we went on those long strikes, it wasn’t because we wanted to be out of work.”

Hard-fought gains are taken for granted by younger workers who earn high wages now, leading the coal industry to argue that the union ultimately rendered itself obsolete.

[Zimbabwe Diamonds] The tragic saga of Marange (Zimbabwe Independent – September 4, 2015)

November 3, 2015September 4, 2015

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

In 2000, a small geological survey team from De Beers Ltd, the largest diamond mining company in the world and a global top 500 enterprise, moved into a camp on the banks of the Save river. They secured an Exclusive Prospecting Order (EPO) over a large area and began to probe for raw diamonds. They found ample evidence of diamonds and sent loads of soil to Johannesburg, South Africa, for analysis but after six years decided that the qualities of the stones on site were not good enough to warrant commercial exploitation.

Eddie Cross

In London another company, African Consolidated Resources (ACR), formed by a group of Zimbabweans, watched the developments very carefully. When De Beers failed to renew their EPO over the area, they moved very quickly to take up the EPO and registered claims over 3 800 hectares of land that they identified as having the most potential.

Under the guidance of an experienced Australian geologist, the company cut deep trenches across the site and in a matter of weeks discovered gem quality stones. Although less than 20% of all the stones recovered were in this category, they felt that it was commercially viable because of the low cost of extraction.