Republic of Mining

Contagion Spreads in Emerging Markets as Crises Grow – by Ye Xie and John Detrixhe (Bloomberg News – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.bloomberg.com/

The worst selloff in emerging-market currencies in five years is beginning to reveal the extent of the fallout from the Federal Reserve’s tapering of monetary stimulus, compounded by political and financial instability.

The Turkish lira plunged to a record and South Africa’s rand fell yesterday to a level weaker than 11 per dollar for the first time since 2008. Argentine policy makers devalued the peso by reducing support in the foreign-exchange market, allowing the currency to drop the most in 12 years to an unprecedented low.

Investors are losing confidence in some of the biggest developing nations, extending the currency-market rout triggered last year when the Fed first signaled it would scale back stimulus. While Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa were the engines of global growth following the financial crisis in 2008, emerging markets now pose a threat to world financial stability.

“The current environment is potentially very toxic for emerging markets,” Eamon Aghdasi, a strategist at Societe Generale SA in New York, said in a phone interview yesterday. “You have two very troubling things: uncertainty about the Fed policy, combined with concerns about growth, particularly in China. It’s difficult to justify that it’s time to go out and buy emerging markets at the moment.”

Stillwater re-evaluates Marathon PGM mine – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 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. Ian Ross is the editor of Northern Ontario Business ianross@nob.on.ca.

The construction of an open-pit base metals mine near the shores of Lake Superior could be three years away at the earliest, said the Montana mining company that is developing it.

“It is unlikely we will do anything on this in the very near term,” Mick McMullen, president and CEO of Stillwater Mining Company, told industry analysts in a Jan. 21 conference call on its Marathon PGM (platinum group metals) project.

The Billings-based miner said Marathon is undergoing a strategic review as the company laid out a 2014 strategy that’s focussed on investing in proven assets that make money for shareholders.

If Marathon meets certain financial hurdles, McMullen said the best case scenario is that construction could begin “within the next three years,” subject to the issuance of permits.

UPDATE 2-Ghana puts plans for mining windfall tax on hold – by Kwasi Kpodo (Reuters India – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://in.reuters.com/

ACCRA, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Ghana has put on hold plans to introduce a windfall tax on mining profits, Finance Minister Seth Terkper told Reuters, a move that will delight struggling gold firms but could undermine efforts to reduce the country’s budget deficit.

Ghana is Africa’s second-biggest gold producer and the precious metal is a large source of revenues for the country whose government is seeking to maintain rapid economic growth while reining in the deficit and inflation.

But the decision comes after President John Mahama said this week his country had come under pressure from the industry over the planned tax, with companies warning it would lead to job cuts due to a steep fall in gold prices.

“It’s on hold in parliament and we are consulting,” Terkper told Reuters late on Thursday.

Terkper had told parliament during the annual budget in November that the government would impose the tax, which it has been trying to push through since 2012. No timeframe was given at the time.

OMA NEWS RELEASE: Legislative Interns take to mining issues

January 24, 2014

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.

This year’s group of Ontario Legislative Interns appears to have taken on a keen interest in mining and mineral industry issues. Recently, two Ontario Mining Association staff members met with the 10 participants in the 2013-2014 Ontario Legislative Intern Program (OLIP) at Queen’s Park to discuss mining in Ontario and politics.

This program was established in 1975 and it welcomed the first group of interns at Queen’s Park in September 1976. OLIP is administered by the Canadian Political Science Association and it is supported financially by a grant from the Legislative Assembly and donations from private sponsors including several OMA member companies. It is open to candidates who are recent graduates of Canadian universities with an interest in and knowledge of the legislative process.

The program is designed to provide backbench Members of Provincial Parliament with highly qualified assistants. In turn, the interns gain practical experience in the day-to-day workings of the Legislature and supplement their academic training.

Gold production soars to record in 2013 despite price drop: study – by Peter Koven (National Post – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

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

TORONTO – Despite plummeting gold prices, global production of the precious metal reached a record in 2013 for the fourth-consecutive year.

The result appeared in a report on Thursday from the precious metals consultancy Thomson Reuters GFMS. In addition to dispelling theories about “peak gold,” the study shows that gold miners are churning out the metal at a furious pace, even though they are facing severe margin pressure.

Total gold mine supply reached 2,982 tonnes last year, according to GFMS estimates, up 4.1% from 2012. But Rhona O’Connell, head of metals research and forecasting at GFMS, said the final number will likely be higher as fourth quarter production guidance from miners has been stronger than expected.

There are a few explanations for this uptick in production, which seems counter-intuitive in such a tough market.

According to GFMS, many mines boosted their output. In some cases, miners may be processing greater quantities of ore in order to maintain revenue and contain costs at lower gold prices.

UPDATE 2-Indonesia’s mining exports at standstill after new rules -govt officials – by Yayat Supriatna (Reuters U.S. – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.reuters.com/

JAKARTA, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Indonesia’s metal ore and concentrate exports have ground to a complete halt, government officials said on Friday, signalling the turmoil in the mining sector after a ban on ore shipments and an export tax were imposed nearly two weeks ago.

Southeast Asia’s biggest economy introduced a controversial ore export ban on Jan. 12, although last-minute amendments aimed to ease the impact of the export ban on miners like Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold and Newmont Mining Corp . They now face a progressive export tax on concentrates.

“There has been no concentrate export since January 12,” Bachrul Chairi, director general of foreign trade at the trade ministry told Reuters. “As of now, no miners or companies have requested export approval for concentrate or processed ore from the trade ministry.”

Freeport Indonesia and Newmont are in talks with the government over the new rules and are yet to resume exports since the new tax was introduced, while the Mineral Entrepreneurs Association has filed a legal challenge against the ore export ban.

Platinum Talks Today Will Seek End to Pay Strike at Mines – by Kevin Crowley, Andre Janse van Vuuren and Paul Burkhardt (Bloomberg News – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.bloomberg.com/

South Africa’s government will today mediate talks between union officials and the world’s three biggest platinum producers as a strike that’s crippling mines enters a second day.

Labor Minister Mildred Oliphant will lead talks between Anglo American Platinum Ltd. (AMS), Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMP) and Lonmin Plc (LMI) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, said Musa Zondi, her spokesman. The discussions were due to begin at 9 a.m. in Johannesburg. The companies should expect “marathon negotiations,” AMCU President Joseph Mathunjwa said.

“There are pressures from all sides” to reach an agreement, AMCU Treasurer Jimmy Gama said today by phone. “When you have these pressures, all the parties need to apply their minds constructively to deal with the issue.”

At least 70,000 employees downed tools at platinum mines yesterday in South Africa, home to 70 percent of the world’s production of the metal, causing about $13.1 million of lost revenue on the first day. The police stepped up safety measures as it sought to avoid a repeat of labor unrest that claimed the lives of at least 44 workers near platinum mines in August 2012.

Insufficient mine supply bodes well for medium-term zinc, lead – Macquarie – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.mineweb.com/

The recent North American polar vortex, as well as massive snowstorms and freezing temperatures now slamming the U.S. may result in some unseasonal tightness for lead markets, says Macquarie Research.

RENO (MINEWEB) – “Supply/demand conditions look increasingly positive for both zinc and lead in the medium-term, with increasing concern that there is insufficient new mine supply in the pipeline to replace several major closures,” said Macquarie Commodities Research.

“However, on a one-year view, we are more positive on zinc than lead, on the basis that short-term demand conditions look stronger while supply growth has decelerated faster,” said Macquarie analysts in a “Commodities Comment” published Thursday.

Macquarie analysts think that the refined zinc market “is currently in a modest deficit.” “In 2013, TCs rose to a level to re-incentive metal production, a flow that will continue at least until the raw material market tightens up again,” they advised. “We see this as being in 2015 though much depends on how quickly stocks of concentrate are worked through.”

Mining Project Reignites Global Debate Over Indigenous Rights On Resource-Rich Land – by Sunny Freeman (Huffington Post – January 23, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/

LONG LAKE NO. 58, Ontario — Along the remote stretch of highway that connects this northern community to the rest the world, it’s easy to distinguish the haves from the have-nots.

The aboriginal groups who first inhabited this region once sold furs and fish, but clear-cutting and water pollution have put an end to that. About 400 of their descendants now live in the Long Lake No. 58 First Nation reserve, where the homes are dilapidated, about 70 percent of residents are unemployed, and there’s just one business — a gas station.

But now those on the reserve are poised to gain from a surge of investment to their area, following the discovery of a $50-billion mineral deposit that has been dubbed “The Ring of Fire.” It’s the biggest resource development Ontario has seen in more than a century, often referred to as “Canada’s next oil sands.” The prospect of a mining project fills people here with a mixture of anticipation and concern.

Around the globe, the discovery of precious resources has proven both a blessing and curse for native people. They have sometimes tapped riches via profit-sharing and employment opportunities, but they have also seen the toll that mining takes on land and wildlife, disrupting subsistence economies.

Sudbury space pioneers cheer on Rosetta probe – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

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

It may not be a giant leap for mankind or even a small step for mining — not yet, anyway — but word that the Rosetta spacecraft is on track to reach a distant comet is certainly of interest to space-mining pioneers in Sudbury.

“It’s going to touch down on the surface and extract a sample with a lander-mounted drill,” said Dale Boucher, CEO of Deltion Innovations Ltd. “So, what this does is move the prospecting as we know it into a more common, everyday occurrence.”

Deltion has been developing mining systems that it hopes to employ on missions to extract water and minerals in space.

The Rosetta probe, which awoke from a three-year hibernation this week to send its first signal back to Earth, isn’t going to look for harvestable resources on its faraway ball of ice and rock, but that doesn’t mean useful information for commercial applications can’t come out of the experiment, said Boucher.

“In this particular case they’re looking at it from a scientific perspective — they want to understand what it is, so they’re going to analyze these samples,” he said.

Barrick going lean at Hemlo – by Carl Clutchey (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal – January 24, 2014)

January 24, 2014

Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario.

While Barrick Gold sells off mines and other assets to remain profitable, the company’s renowned Hemlo camp remains one of its flagship operations. But to stay that way, it faces a lean 2014 in the aftermath of a steep plunge in the price of gold.

Hemlo operations general manager Andrew Baumen said the 30-year-old mining camp is going “crew by crew” to come up with ways to keep costs down and make the operation more efficient.

“That’s our big push right now,” Baumen said Thursday from the Highway 17 complex about 40 kilometres east of Marathon.
“This is all being driven by the collapse in the gold price,” he added. “We’re operating at a break-even point.”

Baumen said if Hemlo can realize $19 million in overall operational savings and efficiencies, it should be able to remain on track to continue operating for another five to six years as previously forecast.

Hemlo, which consists of the David Bell and William’s mines, remains a large employer with a combination of 800 direct employees and contractors.

Dawson City toasts Klondike TV miniseries (CBC News North – January 21, 2014)

January 24, 2014

http://www.cbc.ca/north/

A few inaccuracies don’t tarnish the allure of the modern Gold Rush myth

You don’t need a prospector’s sharp eyes to spot inaccuracies in Klondike. But residents say it’s a fun adventure series and a fine reason to throw a costume party.

Last night Dawsonites packed the KIAC ballroom to watch the first episode of the new Discovery Channel miniseries. Rian Lougheed-Smith was working the bar at the event. “You know what, I think it was entertaining,” she says. “The sets are really incredible, the storefronts, the mud…”

Lougheed-Smith says it doesn’t really take away from the series but there are more than a few inaccurate details. One example: Snow and darkness in Dawson in July.

Zambia Said to Withhold Up to $500 Million of Mine Refunds (2) – by Matthew Hill (Bloomberg News – January 23, 2014)

January 23, 2014

http://www.businessweek.com/

Zambia’s government has withheld as much as $500 million in value-added tax repayments from mining companies failing to provide importer documentation, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

Zambia’s revenue authority is holding back the repayments after last year introducing rules requiring the provision of documents from importers, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter isn’t public. They said they estimated the amount because they don’t have the exact figures.

Vedanta Resources Plc (VED) and other miners in Africa’s biggest copper producer say they can’t comply with the rules because they sell to commodity traders and don’t know the final destination of their output. The tax authority also stipulated that export revenue must be paid directly to a Zambian bank, while some mining companies are paid via foreign accounts.

Mumbuna Kufekisa, a spokesman for the Zambia Revenue Authority in the capital, Lusaka, declined to comment. Emmanuel Mutati, president of the Chamber of Mines of Zambia, couldn’t immediately comment when called on his mobile phone.

Poor planning by Liberals derailed Ring of Fire: Horwath – by Darren MacDonald (Sudbury Northern Life – January 23, 2014)

January 23, 2014

http://www.northernlife.ca/

NDP leader says unlike other provinces, Ontario lacks coherent policy for Far North development

Poor planning by Ontario’s governing Liberals has played a major role in the problems plaguing the development of the Ring of Fire, the leader of the province’s New Democrats said in Sudbury this week.

“The Liberals were doing a lot of announcements, a lot of ribbon cutting and making a lot of hay, but weren’t doing the behind-the-scenes work that needed to be done to keep that Cliffs promise alive,” Andrea Horwath said Wednesday, after she toured Stack Brewing with Sudbury NDP candidate Joe Cimino.

Development of the vast chromite deposits in the Ring stalled in 2013, with Cliffs Natural Resources announcing it was suspending work because of a series of delays in getting environmental assessments and determining exactly how ore will be transported from the remote site in northwestern Ontario.

Cliffs is the largest stakeholder in the area, and planned to invest $3.3 billion developing deposits worth an estimated $60 billion.

SPECIAL REPORT-How Caterpillar got bulldozed in China – by Clare Baldwin and John Ruwitch (Reuters U.S. – January 23, 2014)

January 23, 2014

http://www.reuters.com/

ZHENGZHOU, China, Jan. 23 (Reuters) – Asia’s top mergers and acquisitions bankers gathered two years ago at the swanky Island Shangri La in Hong Kong to celebrate the top deals of 2012. As the transactions were being toasted, one was unraveling.

Advisers on Caterpillar Inc’s $677 million purchase of ERA Mining Machinery Ltd picked up an award for cross-border deal of the year. The purchase was billed as a coup for Caterpillar, the world’s top maker of tractors and excavators. ERA was the holding company for Zhengzhou Siwei Mechanical & Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Co Ltd, one of China’s biggest makers of hydraulic coal-mine roof supports. Siwei would help Caterpillar gain traction in the world’s largest coal industry.

“Siwei was going to be our Chinese business card,” said a person with direct knowledge of Caterpillar’s strategy.

The night of the awards on Nov. 16 three Caterpillar lawyers were wrapping up an eight-hour grilling of Wang Fu, Siwei’s chairman. Major accounting problems had been unearthed at Siwei headquarters in the gritty Chinese city of Zhengzhou. Two months later, on Jan. 18, 2013, Caterpillar said it had discovered “deliberate, multi-year, coordinated accounting misconduct” at Siwei.