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Opinion: Are [Australian] mine camps like concentration camps? – by Ben Hagemann (Australian Mining – May 23, 2014)

http://www.miningaustralia.com.au/home

The moment anyone drops a clanger in parliament, the media are all over it like gulls on a hot chip, but nothing fires them up more than a comment that might possibly be about Nazis.

Queensland MP Jo-Ann Miller is under fire for comparing FIFO camps to concentration camps, and as any high-school politics student could tell you, that wasn’t a very bright thing to do.

Obviously Australian mining camps are nothing like Nazi death camps. They are also nothing like English concentration camps in South Africa during the Boer war. They are not even like the American concentration camps that were packed to the gills with Japanese descendants after World War II.

She didn’t say “Nazi concentration camps”, so let’s not blow this out of proportion to score political points. To me, a former FIFO worker, I know that mining camps are frequently likened to concentration camps by those who live in them. It’s a way of expressing your dissatisfaction with the conditions.

You’re kept away from your family, your friends, and your favourite past-times for weeks on end. You have to eat food that isn’t like what you cook at home, and although it will comprise a range of different dishes every night, it’s usually of quite average quality and starts to look like the same, homogenous slop every night after the first swing on site.

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Empty Buses Show Defiance in S. Africa’s Platinum Strike – by Kevin Crowley (Bloomberg News – May 23, 2014)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

An empty bus that’s supposed to be taking Lonmin Plc (LMI) employees back to work rolled along the dusty main road in Marikana in the heart of South Africa’s platinum belt, where miners have been on strike for four months.

“You can see for yourself,” said Jandri van Rensburg, a 25-year-old platinum miner who was drinking beer outside Survivors Pub in the settlement on a sunny Friday afternoon. “Don’t believe what the mines are saying — people don’t want to go back to work.”

The bus, green with about 30 seats and a Lonmin sign on the side, was one of three empty shuttles that a reporter from Bloomberg News saw on May 16 heading toward Lonmin (LON)’s Wonderkop mine, close to where 34 wage protesters were killed by police in 2012. Mediation talks between the companies and worker representatives in Johannesburg, set down for three days, have been extended into the weekend.

Van Rensburg’s defiance reflects anger and masks fear in the Rustenburg area of the North West province, where as many as 1.6 million people have been affected by the strike at operations owned by Lonmin, Anglo American Platinum Ltd. (AMS) and Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMP) Five people have been murdered this month, including four miners, while thousands of starving families rely on food aid.

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U.S. miner Cliffs selling ‘Ring of Fire’ exploration camp to Noront – by Peter Koven (National Post – May 23, 2014)

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

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is selling its exploration camp in Northern Ontario’s “Ring of Fire” mineral belt, suggesting it has little desire to spend more money in the region anytime soon.

Junior miner Noront Resources Ltd. announced Friday morning that it will buy the Cliffs camp for an undisclosed price. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter.

The transaction shows that Toronto-based Noront is committed to developing its “Eagle’s Nest” project in the Ring of Fire, which could become the first mine in the area. And it confirms that Cliffs has other priorities.

The Ontario government was counting on Cliffs, a large U.S. miner, to be the first major company to kickstart development in the remote Ring of Fire, located in the James Bay Lowlands. But Cliffs halted work on its US$3.3-billion project Chromite project in the Ring last November after failing to make traction in its negotiations with Queen’s Park. Cliffs is also dealing with an activist shareholder, excess debt and problems at its Bloom Lake mine in Quebec that require immediate focus.

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A Ten-Step Program for Understanding Emerging Markets – by Jim O’Neill (Bloomberg News – May 20, 2014)

http://www.bloombergview.com/

In a recent round of conferences about the so-called emerging-market economies, I often found myself at odds with other analysts and had to keep making the same points repeatedly. To save time in the future, here they are:

1. The emerging economies are more different from one another than they are alike. China is bigger than Germany, France and Italy combined, even in current dollar terms. On the basis of new purchasing-power-parity estimates, China might already be as big as the US, South Korea is as rich as Portugal and not far behind Spain: it has plenty in common with those “advanced economies” and nothing in common with the “emerging markets” of Africa.

2. The mood of the markets is sometimes good for a laugh, but not much else. At one of the conferences, I was assigned this question: “Is this emerging-market crisis going to be as bad as 1998?” This was in March. For the year to date, with the important exceptions of the Chinese and Russian markets, virtually all emerging-market equity indexes are showing stronger gains than the US, many of them at doubledigit rates.

3. Let’s stop supposing that the advanced economies can have a good recovery while the rest fall back —let alone fall as far as they did in 1998. In differing degrees, the US, Europe and Japan all need to export their way to a full recovery from their post-2008 doldrums.

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Russia needs to change rules to encourage mining investment: Kinross CEO – by Peter Koven (National Post – May 23, 2014)

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

A geopolitical crisis and widespread boycott did not stop Paul Rollinson from traveling to Russia and offering some genuine criticisms of the host government’s mining laws.

Federal governments in Canada and the United States urged business leaders to skip an economic forum in St. Petersburg this week in protest of Russia’s seizure of Crimea. Some went along with the boycott, but Mr. Rollinson, the chief executive of Kinross Gold Corp., decided to attend. Russia is a crucial jurisdiction for Toronto-based Kinross, being home to the company’s lowest-cost mines.

With Crimea in the backdrop, there was more-than-usual interest in his presentation at the forum on Thursday.

Mr. Rollinson, who is cautious by nature, kept the geopolitics out of his speech. His message was that Russia has tremendous mineral potential, but needs to change the rules if it wants to attract more foreign mining investment. Kinross, which has expressed this view numerous times in the past, is the largest foreign miner in the country by far.

“We’re looking for certainty, transparency, stability and minimal red tape,” Mr. Rollinson said.

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Rescue competition a great learning tool – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – May 23, 2014)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – Ted Hanley has seen first-hand how training for mine rescue competitions has helped in real-life emergencies.

“Absolutely,” said Hanley, who is the team captain for mine rescue team at Kidd Operations (Glencore). “We’ve had several decades of very experienced competition-trained individuals here who have led teams to actual fires and actual emergencies underground … The more experience people receive in mine-rescue training, the better prepared you are for a real emergency.

“It builds confidence. I know competition training is a level above the normal training you receive, so the people who are involved in the competition are typically very capable leaders with the rest of the roster if there is an emergency.”

The team from Kidd Operations will be representing Timmins district when the Provincial Mine Rescue Team Competition is held here June 5 and 6. The mine rescue teams conduct a lot of training to prepare for the competition.

That is because there is an “unlimited” number of possible emergency scenarios the six-member team may have to respond to, said Hanley.

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It’s time to give new life to our First Nations treaties – by John Olthuis and Bob Rae (Globe and Mail – May 23, 2014)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

John Olthuis and Bob Rae are partners at Olthuis Kleer Townsend

The news that Archbishop Desmond Tutu is going to the Fort McMurray oil sands has stirred public interest. ‘Why is he going?’ and ‘what will he be saying?’ No one but the Archbishop knows exactly what he will be saying, he’s a free and eloquent spirit. He is going at the invitation of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (May 30-June 1 conference co-sponsored by our law firm) to discuss how economic development in the region could be transformed in ways that respect treaty rights, protect the environment and ensure that benefits are equitably shared.

Treaty 8 was signed in 1899 as the Crown wanted to ensure safe passage for prospectos heading for the Klondike gold rush. In his brilliant book Clearing the Plains, James Daschuk describes how starvation was used as a deliberate tactic of the federal government to subjugate the Prairie population, and how a “miserly interpretation” of the Treaty from the earliest days left aboriginal people huddled in reserves, facing disease, discrimination and poverty.

Early in the 1970’s, Dene elders heard that Canada wanted to build a MacKenzie Valley pipeline. The elders said this was a violation of Treaty 8, which was a “peace and friendship treaty” and not a surrender of land treaty.

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NEWS RELEASE: Ontario mine earns national safety honours

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

For the second year in a row, an Ontario Mining Association member company has earned the John T. Ryan National Safety Trophy for metal mines symbolizing the highest standards of mine safety across Canada. Barrick Hemlo’s Williams gold mine, near Marathon, shares the honours with Cameco’s McArthur River uranium mine in Saskatchewan. Both operations had reportable injury rates of zero for the 2013 calendar year.

The previous year, Glencore’s Kidd Operations captured the honours as the safest metal mine in the country. That marked the eleventh time, the Timmins copper-zinc operation gained this national award.

“Safety performance in mining for 2013 was outstanding,” said Gord Winkel, Chairman of the John T. Ryan Safety Trophies Committee. “This year, we are pleased to announce a tie for best performance in the national metal mining category, along with a three-way tie in our national select mine category. These mining operations are joined by another company in the national coal mine category for a total of six award winners in 2013.”

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Hudak plan could hit Sudbury hard: Analysis – by Ben Leeson (Sudbury Star – May 23, 2014)

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

Economists and union officials say Greater Sudbury will be particularly hard hit if Tim Hudak follows through on his pledge to cut 100,000 public-sector jobs in the province.

David Robinson, a professor of economics at Laurentian University, said based on population, he can see at least 1,000 local jobs being eliminated if the Progressive Conservatives take power in the June 12 provincial election.

Officials for the Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union (OPSEU) predicted even bigger cuts for the Nickel City, due to its disproportionately high number of civil service jobs here, pegging losses at more than 1,600, along with more than 1,100 lost in the private sector as spin-off

But Sudbury PC candidate Paula Peroni said while her party is still working on its own numbers, she expects local public-sector losses to be much lower, and for private-sector jobs to be created by other elements of Hudak’s platform.

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BC First Nations to profit from Imperial Metals’ Huckleberry expansion – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – May 21, 2014)

http://www.miningweekly.com/page/americas-home

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – New revenue-sharing agreements will enable four First Nations in the Bulkley-Nechako area of British Columbia to benefit from the expansion of TSX-listed Imperial Metals’ Huckleberry copper mine.

Economic and community development agreements (ECDAs) would enable the Cheslatta Carrier First Nation, the Nee-Tahi-Buhn Band, the Skin Tyee Nation and the Wet’suwet’en First Nation to receive a share of mineral tax revenues collected by the province from the expansion of the Huckleberry mine, located 123 km south-west of Houston.

“These agreements will not only bring social and economic benefits to the four First Nations, but the entire Bulkley-Nechako region. ‎Reaching non-treaty agreements with First Nations is an important component of our government’s BC Jobs Plan, and I’m proud that today we surpass our goal of ten new agreements by 2015. They ensure First Nations have the opportunity to participate in the economy, while giving industry the certainty to invest in our province,” provincial Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation Minister John Rustad said.

ECDAs are agreements between British Columbia and First Nations for sharing the direct mineral tax revenue on new mines and major mine expansions.

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Mining plays a vital role in southeast Saskatchewan – by David Willberg (Saskatchewan Lifestyles – May 22, 2014)

http://www.sasklifestyles.com/section/estlifestyles

The Westmoreland Coal Company is using the upcoming Saskatchewan Mining Week as an opportunity to promote the impact that mining has on southeast Saskatchewan.

Kraig Wanner has been the general manager for Westmoreland Coal’s Estevan mines for a little more than a year, and the char and activated carbon plants for about eight months. He said that the company’s mandate is to provide the lowest cost fuel to SaskPower, while generating employment for hundreds of people, and support for many different initiatives.

Between the two mines, a char plant and an activated carbon plant, Westmoreland has nearly 375 employees in the Estevan area, with 295 employees who are part of the United Mine Workers of America, and another 75 staff and management.

Safety plays an important role in the mines’ operations, Wanner said. “I would hope that would be the case for any workforce in Saskatchewan, but especially at the mine site where we’re dealing with big equipment,” said Wanner.“All of our employees have to be focused on the task at hand in whatever their classification of job is at the mine site.”

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Platinum Shortage Widens With Palladium on Tight Supplies – by Nicholas Larkin (Bloomberg News – May 20, 2014)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Supply shortages for platinum and palladium will be the largest in more than three decades this year on stronger demand from car companies and restricted supplies, Johnson Matthey Plc said.

Platinum consumption will beat supply by 1.22 million ounces, compared with 940,000 ounces in 2013, London-based Johnson Matthey said in its platinum-group metals report. Palladium’s deficit will expand to 1.61 million ounces, from 371,000 ounces last year. They would be the biggest shortfalls ever, based on data going back to 1975 for platinum and 1980 for palladium on the company’s website.

Platinum has gained this year as more than 70,000 workers went on strike from January in South Africa, the largest producer of the metal and second-biggest for palladium. Demand from automakers, which use the metals in pollution-control devices, helped keep the materials in shortages since 2012. Palladium reached the highest since 2011 this month, partly as western nations threatened top producer Russia with sanctions.

“Supply-side issues are common to both platinum and palladium,” Peter Duncan, general manager, market research at Johnson Matthey, said yesterday.

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Candidates sound off on combining Northern Development with Natural Resources – by Leith Dunick (tbnewswatch.com – May 22, 2014)

 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/

THUNDER BAY — Michael Gravelle does not want to see the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines rolled into the Ministry of Natural Resources.

But that’s precisely what will happen if the Progressive Conservatives under Tim Hudak are elected to office on June 12, the Liberal candidate in Thunder Bay-Superior North warned.

Gravelle, who held the Northern Development and Mines portfolio before the writ was dropped, said it shows the PCs don’t understand the importance of a standalone ministry for Northern Ontario.

It also shows a failure to understand the complexities of the MNR, he added. “For the Conservatives to talk about putting those two ministries together, that is not about making a stronger representation of Northern Ontario,” Gravelle said. “It’s about reducing the effectiveness of our cabinet presence.”

The MNR has province-wide responsibilities and the North cannot afford to have its voice reduced or diluted, he went on to say.

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Moody’s warns Canadian provinces on debt and credit ratings (You listening, Ontario?) – by Michael Babad (Globe and Mail – May 22, 2014)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

Debt and taxes

Moody’s Investors Service is warning some of Canada’s provinces to get their act in gear lest their credit ratings face further pressure.

Moody’s, one of the world’s major agencies, didn’t single out any province in a new report released yesterday, pointing out that seven are in deficit. But its debt-to-revenue measure puts Ontario at the top of the naughty list.

Ontario, of course, is in the midst of an election campaign that pits the Liberals against the Conservatives as to who forms the next government.

The governing Liberals have presented a credible budget for these uncertain times, though it misses their original short-term target, forecasting a $12.5-billion shortfall, while still pledging to balance the books in line with the longer-term plan.

They also plan a jobs fund, billions in infrastructure spending and a focus on social services. The Tories, on the other hand, promise to balance the books far earlier, slash public sector positions and create a million jobs over an eight-year period, the latter being a wonderful catch-phrase but about as unrealistic as election promises come.

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Miners Enter The Fray In Eastern Ukraine – by Claire Bigg (Radio Free Europe – May 20, 2014)

http://www.rferl.org/

The shrill wails of sirens resounded throughout Ukraine’s eastern rust belt on May 20, a rallying call for miners and steelworkers to unite against separatists seeking to take over their region.

Industrial workers have remained largely on the sidelines of the smoldering conflict in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian militants have been occupying key government buildings in a dozen cities.

But with separatists increasingly disrupting business, industrial bosses and trade unions are urging workers to rise against the insurgency. Coal and steel magnate Rinat Akhmetov, who has an estimated 300,000 employees on his payroll, this week called on his employees to stage peaceful protests at their workplaces.

“The rally will start tomorrow at noon with a siren ringing at all industrial businesses of the Donbass in support of peace and against bloodshed,” he said in a televised address late on May 19, adding that sirens would ring daily at noon “until peace is established.”

In his sharpest condemnation of the separatists so far, Akhmetov said people were “tired of living in fear and terror” and warned that the violent tactics used by separatists would spell disaster for the economy and lead to “genocide” of eastern Ukraine.

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