Twitter

Copper miners look past present pain to future gain – by Xan Rice (Financial Times – April 14, 2014)

http://www.ft.com/home/us

Santiago – These are tough times in the copper world. Prices have fallen nearly 10 per cent in 2014, testing four-year lows. Meanwhile, the long-awaited global surplus of refined metal is mounting. So why is the gloom lifting among miners?

“Short-term pain, long-term gain?” – the title of one of the main presentations at the annual copper conference in Chile – offered a hint: better days surely lie ahead.

Several key reasons to be positive emerged from Cesco week in Santiago. First, the plunge in prices is no disaster. Some small, high-cost producers may be struggling, but the industry’s healthy margins mean larger miners and producers remain comfortable.

Read more

Private equity investment still circling mining sector – by Simon Rees (MiningWeekly.com – April 14, 2014)

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

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – The growth in private equity investment within mining and metals has provoked greater debate about its role as a driving force within the sector over the past year. However, private equity is selective about when and where it deploys capital; it cannot be viewed as an industry panacea.

“It’s also fair to say that private equity funds usually approach the sector with a long-term perspective,” Norton Rose Fulbright partner Janet Howard told Mining Weekly Online.

Howard specialises in mergers and acquisitions, corporate and securities law, with emphasis on the mining and natural resources sectors. “Private equity firms view themselves as part of the team directed at problem solving,” she said. “They might say: ‘tell us what you think the potential problems are and we’ll help you fix it’.”

“Their money is sophisticated, deliberate, focused and professional. Often they’ve worked in other sectors during difficult times, so they understand where the risks are and form the necessary solutions,” she added.

Read more

Is sad sack Ontario ‘dragging down’ the rest of Canada? – by Armina Ligaya (National Post – April 15, 2014)

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

Ontario’s government is facing growing calls to get its fiscal house in order, with a Fraser Institute study pegging the province as an economic ball and chain “dragging down the country as a whole.” Respected tax policy expert Jack Mintz made a similar claim in a Financial Post opinion piece last week.

“Ontario is sagging under the weight of monstrous public debt, uncompetitive energy prices and rising taxes,” wrote Mr. Mintz, Palmer Chair, School of Public Policy, University of Calgary. “Given Ontario’s size, other regions of Canada are being hurt.”

But economists are split over how much a weak Ontario — with its shrinking per-capita GDP and weak private-sector employment amid other struggles — is being felt across the country, or whether the province is bearing the brunt of its own demise itself.

Livio di Matteo, a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and lead author of the think-tank’s study released Monday, says Ontario’s economic struggles over the last decade to become a “have-not” province, receiving federal transfers instead of serving as a foundation for the national economy, has implications beyond its borders.

He blames an “incomplete transition to a more competitive world economy,” aggravated by high energy costs, reliance on manufacturing tied to the U.S. market and interventionist government policies.

Read more

First Nations proposes Northern Gateway pipeline alternative following plebiscite setback – by Yadullah Hussain and Jeff Lewis (National Post – April 15, 2014)

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

TORONTO/CALGARY — As Enbridge Inc. reels from the rejection by residents of Kitimat, B.C. of the Northern Gateway pipeline, a First Nations-led consortium is seeking to build an alternative project that would link Alberta’s oil sands to the British Columbia coast.

Eagle Spirit Energy Holdings Ltd. and Vancouver-based Aquilini Group say they have signed non-disclosure agreements with a “substantial number” of First Nation groups in northern B.C., including some “staunchly opposed” to the Enbridge project.

The one-million barrel-per-day pipeline has a tentative 2020 start date once it secures a “social licence” from First Nations to operate, the group said at a media conference in Vancouver on Monday.

“The only licence that matters to do this [project] in British Columbia is the social licence from the First Nations community,” said Calvin Helin, chairman and president of Eagle Spirit Energy Holdings, noting that he spent a year and a half listening carefully to the feedback from and concerns of First Nations. The group will file an application with the National Energy Board only after it has addressed all First Nations’ concerns and issues.

Read more

Scotiabank raises nickel price outlook in light of Indonesian export ban – by Craig Wong (Canadian Press/CTV News – April 14, 2014)

http://www.ctvnews.ca/

OTTAWA — Scotiabank is raising its outlook for the price of nickel — a key component in stainless steel — following an Indonesian export ban on unprocessed ore that took effect earlier this year. Nickel prices have been rising following the Indonesian ban that was enacted in an attempt to encourage foreign investment in ore processing in the country.

“While the export ban was announced more than four years ago with an unchanged starting date of January 2014, few market observers, including ourselves, believed that Indonesia would have the resolve to stick with this agenda,” Scotiabank said in a report Monday.

“However, after three months and no signs of the ban being eased or watered down, the nickel market has begun to panic, with prices moving up sharply.”

The bank said it now expects nickel to average US$7.66 per pound this year, up from earlier expectations for US$6.75. Scotiabank also raised its outlook for 2015 to US$9 from US$7 for 2016 to US$10 from US$7.50. The price of nickel was US$6.82 per pound last year.

Read more

COLUMN-BHP’s “unloved” assets may be better long-term bet – by Clyde Russell (Reuters U.K. – April 14, 2014)

http://uk.reuters.com/

LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 14 (Reuters) – “Unloved” was a word that popped up several times in relation to BHP Billiton’s mooted plans to spin-off its non-core aluminium, nickel and manganese businesses.

It’s worth looking at the language used to describe and frame corporate plans as this is more often revealing that the bland statements companies tend to issue.

BHP Billiton didn’t use the word “unloved” itself, that was the description applied by news outlets, among them Reuters, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Wall Street Journal.

What BHP Chief Executive Andrew Mackenzie did say was the world’s largest mining company was looking at a range of options in the “next phase of simplification,” but would only pursue those that enhanced shareholder value.

BHP has identified four key pillars of its business – iron ore, copper, coal and petroleum – with potash a potential fifth. This leaves the so-called unloved assets as aluminium, alumina, bauxite, nickel and manganese.

Read more

Anglo seeks buyer for Rustenburg operations – by Staff Writer (Business Day Live – April 14, 2014)

http://www.bdlive.co.za/

ANGLO American is seeking a buyer for its Rustenburg platinum mines as the group looks elsewhere to extract the metal, CEO Mark Cutifani said on Friday. In a BusinessDay TV interview with editor Peter Bruce, Mr Cutifani said the skills within Anglo could be better deployed elsewhere than the deep-level, labour-intensive and technically complex mines that make up Rustenburg.

The mines under consideration are operated by Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), an 80% held Anglo subsidiary. Mr Cutifani has indicated before that Rustenburg was no longer a core asset, but this was the first time he has been explicit about wanting another party to own the mines.

His comments have a deeper resonance as a strike at the mines enters a third month. “The Rustenburg resource is not what it used to be,” Mr Cutifani said. “I don’t think that’s where our best skills set sits.

“That’s why I’ve been quite vocal saying we should consider taking a step back from Rustenburg. We should be focusing on the more mechanised operations, which is what I think we do much better, and allow someone who has a better skills set in those types of mines to run those kinds of assets,” he said.

Read more

Chinese group buys Las Bambas mine for $5.85-billion, giving boost to sector – by Rachelle Younglai (Globe and Mail – April 14, 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.

Glencore Xstrata PLC sold its massive Peruvian copper project to Chinese investors for $5.85-billion (U.S.) in cash, the biggest deal in the mining sector in more than a year and an encouraging sign for an industry that has been hit hard by lower metal prices.

The sale of Las Bambas to a consortium led by state-owned China Minmetals Corp. could inject more life into the mining sector, which has struggled with fears that China’s slowing economy will crimp demand for raw materials.

“This shows you that Chinese companies still really believe in China. Westerners are overreacting to the lower economic growth,” said John Gravelle, mining leader with consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC.

The large Las Bambas copper mine is mostly built and scheduled to start production next year. It is scheduled to produce 400,000 tonnes of copper a year from 2015, equivalent to 12.5 per cent of 2013 imports of copper metal by China. Chinese regulators required the divestiture of the Peruvian asset when Switzerland-based Glencore bought Anglo-Swiss Xstrata.

Read more

NEWS RELEASE: Royal Nickel Gains Exposure to the Drill-Ready Aer-Kidd Ni-Cu-PGE Project in Sudbury Basin

rr-royal nickel final 500Reminder: RNC will host a conference call/webcast today at 11:00 a.m. (Eastern time) to provide a nickel market update and discuss recent RNC news (access information below)

TORONTO, April 14, 2014 /CNW/ – Royal Nickel Corporation (“RNC”) (TSX: RNX) is pleased to announce it has gained exposure to the highly prospective Aer-Kidd nickel-copper-platinum group metals project in Sudbury through the acquisition of a 25% interest in Sudbury Platinum Corporation (“SPC”) for a consideration of CDN$1.5 million.

SPC, a private subsidiary of Transition Metals Corp., holds an option to earn up to 70% of the Aer-Kidd property.

“Opportunities to participate in compelling Sudbury area sulphide exploration plays such as Aer-Kidd are rare and I am pleased that RNC will gain exposure to the upside potential of this promising project. I am very enthusiastic about Aer-Kidd’s untested potential at depth given its location on the Worthington offset dyke between known high grade Ni-Cu-PGE resources at the Totten mine (Vale) and the Victoria project (KGHM),” said Mark Selby, interim President and CEO of Royal Nickel Corporation.

Read more

First Nations’ Remarkable Legal Winning Streak – by Shiri Pasternak (The Tyee.ca – April 10, 2014)

http://thetyee.ca/

‘Resource Rulers’ says industry ignores at its peril wave of ‘native empowerment.’

When news media pay attention to books about Indigenous people in Canada, they tend to select those that stick to a particular script. Flanagan, Alacantra and Le Dressay’s Beyond the Indian Act, Widdowson and Howard’s Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry, and Calvin Helin’s Dances with Dependencyall received extensive coverage by the national press upon release.

These books, while different in content, share in common the characterization of Indigenous economies as dependent systems. The solution to achieving self-determination is always conflated with free market access. And while these authors are careful to situate the poverty in First Nations communities within a historical context of land dispossession and legislative discrimination, they are equally careful to avoid analyzing inequalities in systems of free market capitalism.

Now it is Bill Gallagher’s self-published book Resource Rulers that is getting all the attention. It is an engaging read that argues the legal winning streak of First Nations in resource conflicts (he counts over 150) should put industry on notice to comply with their expanding obligations to Indigenous peoples. Each chapter in the book surveys a different region or province, highlighting what Gallagher perceives to be the key legal victories of “native empowerment.”

Striking a tone of caution to industry regarding native rights, is Resource Rulers thematically apiece with the usual populism described above?

Read more

Vancouver Island First Nation declares ‘tribal park’ to protect land – by Gordon Hoekstra (Vancouver Sun – April 13, 2014)

http://www.vancouversun.com/index.html

Latest park meant to thwart potential Imperial Metals mining project near Tofino

The Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation on Vancouver Island has used a unilateral tribal park declaration to try to control development on their traditional territories. The Tranquil Valley tribal park in Clayoquot Sound — where Imperial Metals is investigating the possibility of a mine — is the third tribal park the First Nation has declared.

The Tla-o-qui-aht has declared this territory, about 20 kilometres northeast of Tofino, off limits to mining activity after the province issued a gold exploration permit to the Vancouver-based company last summer.

While tribal parks have not been recognized by the province, Parks Canada worked with the Tla-o-qui-aht on a “tribal parks establishment project” in one of its declared parks in 2009.

The tribal parks are meant to create a management system to protect the land, but also create sustainable jobs. The Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation has done that, for example, with hatchery programs to improve fisheries, bear watching and run-of-the-river hydro projects.

Read more

Coal sector muscles up to green activists – by Sarah-Jane Tasker (The Australian – April 14, 2014)

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

AUSTRALIA’S coal industry is hitting back at its vocal opponents and returning fire with the tools used by anti-coal activists as it steps up its campaign to gain support for the struggling sector.

The industry, which has ­increasingly become a target by activists determined to close coalmines, has taken the unusual step to publicly muscle up in its fight with the green movement and launch an active campaign.

The Minerals Council of Australia, backed by the world’s largest coalminers, such as BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Glencore, will today launch a website — Australians for coal — to give a voice to the sector.

Brendan Pearson, chief executive of the Minerals Council, said the website was an ­opportunity for the silent majority to have a say and not let what he says are the small number of noisy extremists get free air.

“A small number of fringe ­activist groups are doing their level best to undermine the sector,” he said.

Read more

Montana Moment: Miners win eight-hour workdays – by Kristen Inbody (Great Falls Tribune – April 12, 2014)

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/

The moment: Butte miners win eight-hour workday in 1901.

The story: Children grew up in Butte attuned to the sounds that signaled death and disaster in the mines, sounds that could leave them fatherless, as accidents killed a miner every other day in Butte in the 1890s.

One woman lost three husbands in a row to the mines, with children from each to support on her own, wrote Janet Finn in her “Mining Childhood.” Another former child of Butte recalled a widow with 20 children who became a midwife, rustled railroad ties, had a cow, baked bread and took in washing, which her children delivered.

Mines were opportunities and peril, bread on the table and a stake in a new land for 8,000 miners pulling 210 million pounds of copper a year from five square miles. Against a rising swell of populism, Butte unions lobbied for better pay and safer conditions. Unions helped members when they were sick, paid for funerals and gave workers a voice. A campaign for a balanced day of eight hours of work, eight hours of leisure and eight hours of sleep became a rallying cry for workers around the industrialized world. A 12- to 14-hour workday was the norm.

Read more

Palladium at Highest Since 2011 on Ukraine as Gold Gains – by Nicholas Larkin and Glenys Sim (Bloomberg News – April 14, 2014)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

Palladium rose to the highest price since 2011 in New York on concern supply may be restricted as tension escalated over Ukraine. Gold reached a three-week high.

Russia and the U.S. traded barbs at an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council as a deadline passed for pro-Russian separatists to leave buildings they occupied amid escalating violence in eastern Ukraine. The U.S. and European Union have vowed to impose tougher sanctions on Russia if President Vladimir Putin’s government makes another move threatening Ukraine’s sovereignty.

Palladium advanced 13 percent this year as the threat of disruption to Russian exports compounded concerns about supply spurred by a miners’ strike in South Africa that started in January. The nations are the world’s biggest producers. Gold futures climbed 1.2 percent last week as a weaker U.S. dollar and falling equities increased demand for a haven.

“It’s a double-edged sword for palladium, we’re seeing robust demand and also supply constraints,” James Moore, an analyst at FastMarkets Ltd. in London, said today by phone. “You’ve got the South African strikes and concern regarding Russian sanctions as tension bubbles along. Investment demand is strong.”

Read more

China-backed group pays US$6B for Glencore’s Las Bambas copper mine – by Karen Rebelo and Silvia Antonioli (Reuters/National Post – April 14, 2014)

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

A Chinese consortium bought the Las Bambas copper mine in Peru from Glencore Xstrata for US$6 billion, the high end of analysts’ forecasts in China’s biggest acquisition of a mine, showing the strength of its long-term need for copper.

MMG Ltd, the Hong Kong-listed offshore arm of China’s state-owned Minmetals Corp, led the winning bid in partnership with Hong Kong-registered Guoxin International Investment Corp and state-owned investment giant CITIC Group.

Commodity trader Glencore had agreed to sell Las Bambas to secure approval from China’s competition authorities for its takeover of miner Xstrata. Beijing made this condition to prevent the merged group from having potentially too much power over the global copper market.

A Chinese buyer had been considered a virtual certainty since Las Bambas was put on the block, given the deep pockets of China’s state-owned enterprises and its hunger for copper as the world’s top consumer of the metal.

Glencore will receive about US$5.85 billion in cash upon completion of the deal, which compared with analysts’ forecasts between US$5 billion and US$6 billion.

Read more