Republic of Mining

Sudbury software company provides real-time mine safety data – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – February 10, 2014)

September 5, 2018February 11, 2014

http://www.northernlife.ca/

Northern Ontario mining operations could become more efficient and safe thanks to an improved solution developed by a Sudbury-based software company.

Symboticware received a $100,000 grant from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation to develop an improved version of its SymView software, which allows mining companies to access important data, such as machinery performance and ground stability, in real-time.

The grant will cover about 40 per cent of the cost to develop and implement the software solution, said Symboticware’s president and CEO Kirk Petroski. “The money will allow us to basically have the resources internally staffed to build this new software,” Petroski told Northern Life.

The remaining $150,000 for the project was provided by industry partners and Symboticware’s own investments in research and development. “To me it’s a very good market opportunity,” Petroski said about the project. “It provides reliable data, it provides real-time data and it’s manageable.”

Minister of the Attorney General applies to intervene in Cliffs’ RoF appeal – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – February 10, 2014)

February 11, 2014

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

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Ring of Fire- (RoF) focused chromite project developer KWG Resources on Monday reported that the Ontario Minister of the Attorney General would bring a motion in the Ontario Divisional Court for leave to intervene in diversified miner Cliffs Natural Resources’ appeal of the decision of the Ontario Mining and Lands Commissioner released last September.

Cliffs had last year become embroiled in a legal battle for access to mining claims held by KWG in the RoF, over which the only viable access route to the chromite deposits could be constructed.

While KWG proposed a rail route connecting at Exton to transport chromite to consumers, Cliffs proposes an all-weather road south towards Capreol, in the Sudbury area, where it had proposed to build a chromite beneficiation facility.

The battle over a much-sought after corridor played itself out last year in front of the Ontario Mining and Land Commissioner, which, in the end, denied Cliffs access to KWG Resources’ staked mining claims to construct its proposed road. Despite Cliffs appealing the decision, it had suspended operations in the area, citing, among other reasons, uncertainty about developing the necessary infrastructure to bring its project on line.

Kidd Mine life may get three-year extension – by Jeff Labine (Timmins Daily Press – February 11, 2014)

February 11, 2014

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – If all goes according to plan, Glencore Copper’s Kidd Mining project could have its life extended by another three years.

City council heard from general manager Tom Semadeni about the mining project at Monday night’s meeting. The mine produces copper, zinc and is rumoured to be one of the largest silver mines in Canada. The Kidd Mine also has the distinction of not only being the deepest mine in Canada but also the deepest base metal mine in the world at more than 9,600 feet.

The mine’s life was originally expected to end in 2018 but that might not be the case. Semadeni said the way to make sure the mine continues until 2021 is by providing opportunities for people and for development.

The plan is to continue to keep a safe work environment, make reliable mining plans and find cost savings. “The only reason why I work there and why everyone works there is to maximize the benefit of that ore body,” he told council. “We want to extend its operational life. That’s important to everyone’s interest. We want to do that safely and cost efficiently. We recognize that it is hard because it is deep. It’s technically challenging and expensive.”

Laurentian University’s president has brought ‘a buzz’ to the institution – by Jonathan Migneault (Northern Ontario Business – February 5, 2014)

February 11, 2014

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North.

2014 Top 5 Northern Leaders: Dominic Giroux

Dominic Giroux never aspired to be the president of Laurentian University, or any university, for that matter. But nearly five years into his tenure as president, many of his colleagues could not imagine him doing anything else.

“You know how people want to be around things that are really buzzing? Dominic brings that buzz to the institution,” said Carol McAuley, Laurentian’s vice-president of administration.

Giroux said his appointment as university president, in April 2009, happened organically. The board’s decision to hire him for the top spot was a departure from the direction other Canadian universities had taken. Giroux does not have a PhD, and in 2009 he was 34 – he is 38 today – which made him the youngest university president in Canada.

Before his appointment to Laurentian he was assistant deputy minister with the Ontario Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

B.C. coal export plan faces resistance – by Brent Jang (Globe and Mail – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 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.

VANCOUVER — As Canada’s efforts to send oil abroad encounter thorny opposition, critics are increasingly targeting another resource export: Coal.

Plans to export thermal coal from the West Coast to Asia are being put under the microscope as North American miners jockey to ship abundant domestic supplies overseas.

Demand for thermal coal, a commodity used by power plants to generate electricity, has weakened in recent years in North America due to the boom in U.S. shale gas production. With many U.S. power plants switching to natural gas, a coal glut has forced miners to look to Asia for new markets.

Fraser Surrey Docks LP, a marine terminal located on the Fraser River in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, wants to serve as a new staging ground for exports of thermal coal originating from Wyoming’s Powder River basin. Fraser Surrey Docks is owned by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners, an investment fund managed by Australia’s Macquarie Group.

Mechanised platinum mines forecast for South Africa – by Brendan Ryan (Business Day – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 2014

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

THE persistent climate of labour unrest and unsustainable pay demands could lead to a long-term structural change in South Africa’s platinum mining industry with the producers opting to develop new mechanised mines.

That is the conclusion drawn by JPMorgan Cazenove analysts Allan Cooke and Steve Shepherd in a recently published major review of prospects for the South African platinum industry. The implication of such a development is that the platinum industry would move towards the business model used by the country’s coal producers, where labour relations are far less volatile than on the gold and platinum mines.

The reasons are that the fewer skilled workers employed on the coal mines are far better paid than the larger numbers of unskilled workers employed on the labour-intensive, deep-level gold and platinum mines.

The new platinum mines would be built on the Northern Limb — or “Platreef” — section of the Bushveld Complex. That is where Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) has already established its Mogalakwena opencast mine and entrepreneur Robert Friedland plans to develop his high-tech “Flatreef” underground mine.

COLUMN-Australia going back to coal has lesson on U.S. LNG exports – by Clyde Russell (Reuters India – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 2014

http://in.reuters.com/

Clyde Russell is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own.

LAUNCESTON, Australia, Feb 10 (Reuters) – The decision by an Australian power company to mothball a natural-gas plant and restart two coal-fired units seems wrong on many levels, but strangely, it has implications for U.S. liquefied gas exports.

Stanwell Power Corp, an electricity producer owned by Queensland state, said last week it would shut for three years its 385-megawatt (MW) Swanbank E power station, west of the state capital Brisbane, while restarting two coal units with a combined 350-MW capacity at its Tarong plant.

The decision was framed in terms of economics, with the company saying it made more sense to sell the gas to other users than to use it to generate power, and that returning to coal would improve its competitiveness.

This switch back to coal power in Queensland brings together several issues that show the difficulty of implementing policies designed to combat climate change, while keeping industry competitive and encouraging lucrative energy exports in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

How to kill an industry in Indonesia -by John McBeth (Asia Times – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 2014

http://www.atimes.com/

JAKARTA – Indonesia’s exports of mineral ore are now at a standstill, with unprocessed bauxite and nickel the target of an outright ban and mining companies either refusing or unable to pay the draconian new export duty on copper and the other concentrates that were given a 12th-hour three-year extension.

That’s only half of the story. Far from clear is whether enforced on-shore processing of mineral ores will actually work when there are serious doubts about the economic viability of building smelters and hydrometallurgical processors in an already over-supplied global market.

The dysfunctional way in which the government has implemented the new value-added policy, with unrealistic deadlines and a clear lack of preparation or understanding of its own contracts of work (COW), has shaken the Indonesian mining industry to its core.

A government regulation extending the January 12 ban for copper giants Freeport Indonesia and Newmont Nusa Tenggara and 66 other, mostly Indonesian, mining companies was undercut the next day by the export tax, which rises from an already daunting 20-25% in the first year to a prohibitive 60% in the second half of 2016.

HudBay makes hostile C$540m all-share bid for Augusta Resource – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 2014

http://www.mineweb.com/

HudBay launched a hostile bid for Rosemont project partner, Augusta Resource, claiming it is in a much better position to develop the Arizona copper mine.

RENO (MINEWEB) – HudBay Minerals announced Sunday that it intends to make a C$540 million hostile all-share bid for Augusta Resource Corporation.

HudBay owns 15% of Augusta Resource’s Rosemont copper project in Arizona. Augusta Resource said its board of directors would discuss the bid offer this coming week. Under the terms of the HudBay offer, Augusta shareholders will receive 0.315 of a HudBay share for each common share held, estimated at C$2.96 per Augusta common share.

“Since our initial investment in August in 2010, we have been excited about the potential of the Rosemont project. We view the Rosemont project as an attractive complement to our existing portfolio of high quality, long-life assets that fits well with our construction timeline at Constancia,” said HudBay CEO David Garofalo.

NEWS RELEASE: Ministry of the Attorney General Seeks Leave to Intervene in Cliffs Appeal of Mining and Lands Commissioner Decision

February 10, 2014

TORONTO, CANADA, Feb 10, 2014 (Marketwired via COMTEX) — Counsel for KWG Resources Inc. CA:KWG 0.00% (“KWG”) has advised that the Minister of the Attorney General will bring a motion in the Ontario Divisional Court for leave to intervene in the appeal of the decision of the Ontario Mining and Lands Commissioner released last September.

That decision dismissed the application of a subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (“Cliffs”) for an Order to dispense with the consent of KWG subsidiary Canada Chrome Corporation (“CCC”) for the granting of an easement to Cliffs over mining claims previously staked and assessed by CCC.

The motion for leave will be heard on April 28, 2014 and the hearing of the appeal has now been scheduled for June 16 and 17, 2014.

About KWG: KWG has a 30% interest in the Big Daddy chromite deposit and the right to earn 80% of the Black Horse chromite occurrence where resources are being defined by a drilling program currently under way. KWG also owns 100% of Canada Chrome Corporation which has staked claims and conducted a $15 million surveying and soil testing program for the engineering and construction of a railroad to the Ring of Fire from Exton, Ontario.

Principle and pragmatism – by Matthew Pearson (Ottawa Citizen – February 9, 2014)

February 10, 2014

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

Premier Wynne has made First Nations a priority during her first year in power, but the true test of her words awaits

TORONTO — On the day Kathleen Wynne was sworn in as premier — a year ago Tuesday — she chose to add something a little different to the dry ceremonial program that had been used for the two dozen men who had come before her.

In addition to the presence of Ontario’s lieutenant-governor, a minister and the tones of O Canada, the premier-to-be requested that First Nations traditions be included in the ceremony. And so it was for the first time on the floor of the Queen’s Park legislature that seven aboriginal women drummed and sang an honour song in Ojibway.

While most of that day’s news reports focused on other firsts — namely, Wynne as the first female premier in Ontario and first openly gay premier in Canada — the inclusion of drummers was in fact more significant to some.

“It sent a signal that we were going to be important as part of her premiership,” said Sylvia Maracle, executive director of the Ontario Federation of Indian Friendship Centres.

Gold miners to slash reserves as price drop forces revision – by Rachelle Younglai (Globe and Mail – February 10, 2014)

February 10, 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.

After years of costly mistakes, the new chief executives of Barrick Gold Corp. and Kinross Gold Corp. have ushered in an era of austerity in the precious metal sector.

The results of their labour will be on display when Canadian mining companies report fourth-quarter earnings this week. Investors are already expecting gold producers to reduce their bullion reserves, write down more assets and record lower profits.

But the bad news may soon be ending with companies adjusting to the lower gold price. “The worst is over,” said John Ing, president of investment firm Maison Placements Canada Inc. in Toronto. That doesn’t mean the picture will be pretty this quarter.

Barrick CEO Jamie Sokalsky told investors that the company will use a $1,100 (U.S.) price to calculate its unmined gold. That is down sharply from the $1,500 price assumption used to calculate last year’s reserves.

Gold miner results to get ‘another kick in the pants’ on reserve losses – by Peter Koven (National Post – February 8, 2014)

February 10, 2014

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

Kinross Gold Corp. did the unthinkable last year: it consciously decided to own less gold. The Toronto-based gold miner went against conventional wisdom by maintaining a price of US$1,200 an ounce to calculate reserves, and US$1,400 for resources.

Given gold was closer to US$1,700 and on the way up, rivals were using much higher prices and, as a result, adding more low-grade ounces into their mine plans and boosting reserves.

The opposite happened to Kinross: its reserves fell by three million ounces. That is a traditional no-no in the gold sector, especially when prices are on the upswing.

“That was a tough decision, to hold the line and shrink the resource,” chief executive Paul Rollinson said in an interview last year. “But the good news is we created value because we’re not chasing those last marginal ounces at the bottom of a pit.”

Today, the other gold mining CEOs only wish they followed Kinross’s lead a year ago, because they are about to pay the penalty for being too aggressive back then.

OSC review finds juniors struggling with disclosure – by Alisha Hiyate (Mining Markets – February 7, 2014)

February 10, 2014

http://www.miningmarkets.ca/

Ontario’s junior mining companies are struggling to meet disclosure requirements, a review by the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) has found.

The review looked at the Management’s Discussion and Analysis filings (or MD&A’s) of 100 Ontario-based junior mining issuers with a market capitalization of less than $100 million. Focusing on key areas of disclosure, including: discussion of operations, liquidity and capital resources; related-party transactions; and reporting on use of financing proceeds, the biggest problem the OSC found was failure to fully disclose information, rather than a total absence of disclosure.

In particular, companies are relying too much on boilerplate disclosure and not including enough specifics in their MD&A’s, said Kathryn Daniels, deputy director of the OSC’s finance branch.

Part of the OSC’s outreach to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the review was carried out to better understand and support smaller issuers in their efforts to raise capital and meet their disclosure obligations, Daniels says. “We are alive to the fact that that segment of our market is under pressure and finding it very difficult to raise capital,” she said in an interview.

We’re One Step Closer to Mining Transparency in Canada – by Claire Woodside and Pierre Gratton (Huffington Post – February 7, 2014)

February 10, 2014

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/

It’s hard to have a conversation about Canada’s economy these days without it touching on our natural resource wealth, and the global reach of our mining companies.

But there’s one part of this conversation that Canadian provinces may be missing: how they can become global leaders in a burgeoning international effort to improve governance and transparency in the extractive sector. Should they choose to meet the challenge, they would get support from an unexpected coalition of partners.

Following over a year of dialogue, civil society organizations and the Canadian mining industry have taken a united stand for transparency in the mining sector. In January of this year this unique collaboration — known as the Resource Revenue Transparency Working Group — published recommendations that call on Canadian governments (federal and provincial) to implement strong standards requiring that mining companies report the payments they make to governments both at home and abroad.

For the members of this group — the Mining Association of Canada, the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, Publish What You Pay Canada and the Revenue Watch Institute — these recommendations provide a blueprint for the creation of a new transparency standard for the mining sector.