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Human development first: Rae – by Bryan Phelan (Wawatay News – November 8, 2013)

http://www.wawataynews.ca/

Ontario needs a plan for its Far North beyond just the Ring of Fire and the Matawa First Nations nearby, says Bob Rae.

Rae, the former NDP premier and Liberal MP, currently works as an advisor to the Matawa tribal council in negotiations with the provincial government regarding mining development in the Ring of Fire, about 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay. Rae talked about those negotiations Oct. 16 as the keynote dinner speaker at the Mining Ready Summit in Timmins, hosted by the Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund. But he also shared a broader perspective on development in the North and “the underlying issues that we have to deal with.”

Partway into his speech, Rae looked behind at a backdrop bearing the name of the event: Mining Ready Summit. “We’ve got to ask ourselves the question, ‘Are communities really ready?’ ” he said. “Or when we look at ourselves honestly, don’t we have to recognize that we have significant challenges.”

Rae listed some of those challenges in the region’s remote First Nations: “significant problems with respect to health care;” “significant issues with making sure people are ready to get trained to take advantage of the opportunites;” isolation and the resulting high cost of living; poor quality of housing and other factors that have created “public health issues that you see on every reserve that we shouldn’t be seeing in our communities in Canada.”

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NEWS RELEASE: GCA encouraged with Creation of Ring of Fire Development Corporation

NORTH BAY, ON, Nov. 8, 2013 /CNW/ – The General Chairperson’s Association (GCA) representing unionized employees at Ontario Northland is encouraged with the direction Premier Wynne’s Government is taking with today’s announcement that it will be creating a development corporation which will bring together both private and public parties to develop, construct, finance, operate and maintain a publically owned infrastructure to access the Ring of Fire.

“This proposal by Premier Wynne’s Government is a positive step for all Northerners and the GCA is ready and willing to be part of any discussion about this new corporation. The Minister of Northern Development and Mines Advisory Commission (MAC) should play an important role in these discussions”, said GCA spokesperson Brian Kelly

“It is a natural fit for the ONTC which is a major provincial infrastructure holding in the north to be involved in accessing the Ring of Fire. Converting the ONTC into an integrated transportation and communication system for both north eastern and north western Ontario makes sense and would also help improve the social and economic development of all communities in Northern Ontario” added Kelly.

“The ONTC can be the catalyst to develop an environmentally responsible transportation corridor into this pristine area that will access and develop the vast mineral deposits for the betterment of all Northerners”, concluded Kelly.

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Ontario creating Ring of Fire corporation – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – November 8, 2013)

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 Ontario government is establishing a development corporation to build infrastructure and settle all the squabbling in the Ring of Fire.

Northern Development and Mines Minister Michael Gravelle announced Friday in Thunder Bay that the province is “taking action” to move forward on infrastructure development for the mining companies and First Nation communities in the James Bay lowlands.

But Ottawa needs to come to the table, he said. “My intention is, and always has been, to drive this project forward,” said Gravelle. “We are going to invest in this vital piece of infrastructure. But we really need the federal government to join us.”

Mineral exploration of the vast chromite and nickel deposits in the Ring has stalled largely because of a lack of government direction on how to develop road or rail access to this future mining camp, 600 kilometres north of Thunder Bay.

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Ontario creating Ring of Fire development corporation – by CBC News Thunder Bay (November 08, 2013)

http://www.cbc.ca/thunderbay/

Provincial officials say they want to help push mining project forward, in spite of recent setbacks

Ontario’s governing Liberals are pledging to create a development corporation for the Ring of Fire mineral zone in an effort to ensure infrastructure development for future mining projects moves ahead. Northern Development and Mines minister Michael Gravelle made the announcement in Thunder Bay on Friday.

In a statement, Gravelle said the corporation will bring First Nations, mining companies and provincial and federal partners together “to settle divergent interests and get back to making this development happen.”

Gravelle said competing private sector interests have impacted the project’s ability to move forward.He hopes the new development corporation will help bring the parties together, and make mutual development decisions.

Cliffs Natural Resources has stated it may have to reconsider its project as a result of a recent failed effort to obtain the right to build an access road to its holdings on top of claims held by KWG Resources. First Nations continue to express concerns about a lack of consultation on resource development in their traditional territory.

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Editorial: Is Pretium petering out? – by John Cumming (Northern Miner – November 6, 2013)

The Northern Miner, first published in 1915, during the Cobalt Silver Rush, is considered Canada’s leading authority on the mining industry. Editor John Cumming MSc (Geol) is one of the country’s most well respected mining journalists. jcumming@northernminer.com

The Pretium saga brings to mind the old joke about the ever-optimistic geologist seeing that the glass is half full, while the mining engineer sees only that the glass should be reduced in size by 50%.

In 2010, Pretium had its initial public offering at $6 and bought its flagship Brucejack gold-silver project in remote, northwestern B.C. from Silver Standard for a cool $450 million in cash and shares.

Since then, the Vancouver-based junior, led by veteran geologist and former Silver Standard exec Robert Quartermain (Qvartermain?), has pushed the project forward at breakneck speed. It has so far brought drilling in the Valley of the Kings deposit to 200,000 metres; defined a probable reserve of 6.6 million oz. gold in 15.1 million tonnes grading 13.6 grams gold; completed a feasibility study showing potential to mine 321,500 oz. gold annually over a 22-year mine life, starting in 2016; and picked up the prestigious Bill Dennis discovery award from the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada.

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NEWS RELEASE: What can we learn from the fate of Australia’s and Quebec’s mining tax plans?

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.

A recent trend in resource taxation philosophy found on both sides of the world came to light recently. It would seem both Australia at the national level in the southern hemisphere and Quebec at the provincial level in the northern hemisphere are heading in the same direction on this topic.

New Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and his government believe the mining tax imposed by the previous government was damaging to investment and jobs. The government is in the midst of repealing the tax, which it believes “fundamentally undermined confidence in Australia as an investment destination.”

The mining tax or “resource super profits tax” (RSPT), is a tax on any profit made by mining companies that is above 6% of their capital investment, in addition to corporate tax. Mr. Abbott’s government claims scrapping the mining tax will mean workers will be an extra $450 (Aus) a year better off. The RSPT did not net the government the tax dollars anticipated.

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Canada Uses Protest Lesson to Develop C$50B Ring of Fire – by Greg Quinn (Bloomberg News – November 7, 2013)

http://www.bloomberg.com/

The Canadian federal minister overseeing projects to develop C$50 billion ($48 billion) of mineral deposits said he’ll use lessons learned from aboriginal protests to temper resistance that has slowed other projects.

Increased job training, infrastructure and participation in environmental reviews are helping build trust with aboriginal communities adjacent to the so-called Ring of Fire deposits in northern Ontario, Greg Rickford said in an interview. The Idle No More protest movement that emerged last year showed anger with “politics at every level” and demonstrated that aboriginals want to share the benefits of resource development, he said.

The protests “give us important guidance on how to proceed, and we have been following that playbook,” Rickford, minister responsible for Ring of Fire and economic development in northern Ontario, said in an interview at Bloomberg’s Ottawa newsroom.

While Prime Minister Stephen Harper has said he wants Canada to become an energy superpower, those efforts have been slowed by protests against projects such as Enbridge Inc.’s Northern Gateway pipeline to bring Alberta oil to the west coast for export.

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Ring of Fire: Voisey’s Bay replay – by Bill Gallagher (Onotassiniik Magazine – Winter 2013/2014)

http://onotassiniik.com

Bill Gallagher served as a strategist to Voisey’s Bay Nickel Company on forging key Native impact and benefits agreement alliances. He is the author of Resource Rulers: Fortune and Folly on Canada’s Road to Resources, available on Amazon.com (see his blog: http://billgallagher.ca/resource-rulers-book/)

Ring of Fire followers should plan on becoming Voisey’s Bay followers, given the close parallels and missed outcomes after five years of project wheel-spinning.

I helped develop a recovery strategy for the Labrador nickel project and it would appear that likewise, that’s what’s needed today for the Ring of Fire chromite project. All the same factors are in play and, to cut to the chase, if you can get Native communities onside then all the other project blockages will soon start to dissipate.

For Inco, original owner of the Voisey’s Bay mine, the triggering event was the following headline: “Voisey’s Bay gets aboriginal support: sources” (Canadian Press Nov. 30 2001). Here’s what project followers need to know in order to make up for lost time on the Ring of Fire’s road to resources.

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Better Than Ping Pong: Panda Diplomacy Builds [Resource] Relationships – by Cassie Ryan (Epoch Times Oct. 31 – Nov. 6, 2013)

http://www.theepochtimes.com/

Cute bears involved in uranium sales and free-trade agreements

A new study from Oxford University holds that the 50 something giant pandas on loan around the world are aimed at building ‘guanxi’ or deep, long-lasting relationships in exchange for “trades and foreign-investment deals.”

Australia, France, and most recently Canada received panda loans when uranium deals were struck with the Chinese regime. Panda transactions also took place with Asian nations like Malaysia and Thailand as part of free-trade agreements.

Published in the journal Environmental Practice, the study points to an emergent third phase in the Chinese Communist Party’s strategy of gifting and loaning pandas, whereby countries with important resources and technology can lease the black and white bears for a hefty fee. This new pattern appears to be related to the 2008 earthquake that struck Sichuan Province and damaged the Wolong Breeding Center, meaning that the 60 pandas there needed rehousing.

In phase one, during Mao Zedong’s era in the 1960s and 1970s, pandas were gifted to build strategic friendships. During Deng Xiaoping’s regime, starting in 1978, phase two involved loaning the bears in a capitalist lease model based on financial transactions.

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Ontario appeals to prime minister for cash to support Ring of Fire development – by Keith Leslie (Guelph Mercury/Canadian Press – November 8, 2013)

http://www.guelphmercury.com/guelph-on/

TORONTO — The federal government funded large-scale infrastructure projects in other provinces and should be prepared to help develop the mineral rich Ring of Fire in northern Ontario, Premier Kathleen Wynne said Friday.

The capital investment for industrial infrastructure is expected to be up to $1 billion, plus another $1.25 billion to construct all-season access roads to the remote region 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay.

“Ontario is prepared to make a substantial contribution to the infrastructure needed to access the resources,” Wynne said in a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper. “We expect your government to come to the table with matching funds.”

The letter lists specific federal contributions to projects in other provinces, including $508 million in direct spending in “the fossil fuels sector,” $130 million for the Northwest Transmission Line in British Columbia and $6.3 billion in a federal loan guarantee for the Lower Churchill hydroelectric project in Labrador.

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Powering the Far North – by Bryan Phelan (Onotassiniik Magazine – Winter 2013/2014)

http://onotassiniik.com

Hydro transmission plans for remote First Nations and mines

An Ontario Power Authority (OPA) plan, to be finalized by the end of this year, shows there is a “strong economic case” for connecting 21 remote First Nations in northwestern Ontario to the province’s hydro grid.

The First Nations, including the five Matawa tribal council communities closest to the Ring of Fire mining development, currently rely on diesel generators for their electricity – generally described as an expensive, unreliable, dirty, and growth restricting source.

While co-ordinated efforts between remote communities and mining companies could reduce power costs for both groups, OPA draft plans show it makes economic sense to build hydro transmission lines to the First Nations even without connection to future mines in the Ring of Fire. OPA, which plans Ontario’s electricity system for the long term, figures hydro grid connection to the 21 remote communities would eliminate about half a billion dollars in diesel generation costs over 40 years, while providing a cleaner and more reliable electrical supply.

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Ring of Fire Statement – by the Hon. Michael Gravelle, Minister of Northern Development and Mines (November 8, 2013)

(L to R) Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and Michael Gravelle, Minister of Northern Development and Mines at the PDAC Convention, March, 2013. (Photo by Stan Sudol)

Friday November 8th, 2013

The Ring of Fire is a tremendous opportunity, with incredible potential to unlock economic potential within the region, create thousands of jobs and significantly strengthen our economy for years to come. There is no question that this is a very complex undertaking, particularly when one acknowledges that this is a major resource development project in a remote part of the province that has never seen development before. That is why it’s so important that we lay the necessary groundwork now. And that work is underway;

– A historic regional process with Chiefs of the Matawa Tribal Council, led by former Justice Iacobucci and Bob Rae;
– Capacity building, to ensure people have the training and skills required to take advantage of the benefits developing the region will bring;
– Community readiness initiatives, to support communities as they become vital transportation hubs and new centres for the mining services and supply sector, a sector sure to see incredible growth; and
– Certainly our work with interested companies continues to show progress.

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ONTARIO GOVERNMENT NEWS RELEASE: Moving Forward on the Ring of Fire

Ontario Leading the Creation of a Development Corporation for Ring of Fire Infrastructure

November 8, 2013

Ontario is taking a significant step forward toward the development of the Ring of Fire. The province will lead the creation of a development corporation that would bring together private and public parties, including First Nations, mining companies, as well as the federal and provincial governments. This continues Ontario’s smart, sustainable and collaborative approach to the Ring of Fire.

The corporation would develop, construct, finance, operate and maintain infrastructure supporting access to strategic resources in the Ring of Fire. The province will begin immediate work with partners, including the federal government, on the development corporation to determine its scope and a suitable governance model.

Premier Wynne has written Prime Minister Harper seeking a role for the federal government to partner with Ontario, through the development corporation, in order to develop vital infrastructure investments for the region.

Ontario continues to be committed to smart, sustainable and collaborative development in the Ring of Fire, subject to all necessary environmental assessment and regulatory processes while ensuring the Crown fulfils its duty to consult.

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Uranium investors eye NAFTA challenge in Quebec – by Nicolas Van Praet (National Post – November 8, 2013)

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

MONTREAL – U.S. investors are readying legal action against the Canadian government over Quebec’s resistance to Strateco Resources Inc.’s Matoush uranium mining project, the company’s chief executive says.

“We have been informed that certain important American shareholders have the intention to sue under Chapter 11 of the [North American Free Trade] agreement,” Guy Hébert said in an interview Thursday.

Mr. Hébert said he has advised them to wait for the outcome of the company’s own separate case against Quebec’s environment minister on the matter, in which it is seeking to get a definitive answer on whether the project can move forward. Some industry players say privately the confusion surrounding Matoush has made Quebec a laughing stock abroad, preventing other firms from being able to raise capital for mining projects in Canada’s second-largest province.

“Investors are telling us ‘You’re too risky’ because you’re in Quebec,’” said one senior mining executive who asked that his name not be used. “They’re saying ‘We don’t know if you can get your permitting and we don’t know how long it will take.’”

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New [Laurentian] school of mines to take a broad approach – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – November 7, 2013)

http://www.northernlife.ca/

The Goodman School of Mines will explore all aspects of the mining industry

Nicole Tardif, the program co-ordinator for Laurentian University’s Goodman School of Mines, updated mining industry professionals in Sudbury on the school’s progress at the 2013 Ontario Exploration and Geoscience Symposium. Jonathan Migneault Northern Life.
Laurentian University’s new Goodman School of Mines has taken a multi-disciplinary approach to teach every aspect of the mining cycle.

Nicole Tardif, the Goodman School of Mines’ program co-ordinator, said staff have worked to offer students a wide variety of programs ranging from geology, to engineering and workplace safety.

Tardif addressed a crowd of mining professionals Wednesday at the 2013 Ontario Exploration and Geoscience Symposium in Sudbury with updates on the school’s progress since it was founded in 2012.

The school’s goal, Tardif said, has been to regroup Laurentian’s various mining-related courses to create relevant programs for mining students.

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