Republic of Mining

UPDATE 1-India PM: POSCO to start work on steel plant in coming weeks – by Krishna N Das (Reuters India – January 16, 2014)

January 16, 2014

http://in.reuters.com/

NEW DELHI, Jan 16 (Reuters) – South Korea’s POSCO will be able to start work on its planned $12-billion Indian steel plant over the coming weeks, India’s prime minister said on Thursday, ending an eight year delay for environmental and legal clearances.

Manmohan Singh said the firm’s request for an iron ore mining licence – the final regulatory hurdle for the project which would be the biggest foreign direct investment in India – was at an “advanced stage of processing”.

The 12 million-tonnes-per-year plant in the eastern state of Odisha, formerly Orissa, will help world No.4 steel producer India to expand output.

India produced 77.6 million tonnes of crude steel in the past fiscal year, a fraction of top producer China’s nearly 800 million last year. India’s total iron ore reserve was estimated at 28 billion tonnes as of 2010 by the Indian Bureau of Mines.

India’s new Environment and Forest Minister Veerappa Moily last week gave approval to the plant but asked POSCO to spend 5 percent of the total investment on social commitments, which would raise the project’s cost to $12.6 billion.

Afghanistan’s rare earth element bonanza – by Alan Dowd – Fraser Institute (Mining.com – January 15, 2014)

January 16, 2014

http://www.mining.com/

After more than a decade of war and nation building, members of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan are heading for the exits. Although what ISAF will leave behind is better than what was there in 2001, Afghanistan remains a battered land. However, the resources Afghanistan’s land holds — copper, cobalt, iron, barite, sulfur, lead, silver, zinc, niobium, and 1.4 million metric tons of rare-earth elements (REEs) — may be a silver lining.

U.S. agencies estimate Afghanistan’s mineral deposits to be worth upwards of $1 trillion. In fact, a classified Pentagon memo called Afghanistan the “Saudi Arabia of lithium.” (Although lithium is technically not a rare earth element, it serves some of the same purposes.)

Of course, the fact that Afghanistan is rich in minerals is not necessarily new information. The Soviets identified mineral deposits in Afghanistan during their decade-long occupation. What is new is the volume and precision of mineral-related information. Afghanistan has been mapped using what is known as “broad-scale hyper-spectral data” — highly precise technologies deployed by aircraft that, in effect, allow U.S. military and geological experts to peer beneath Afghanistan’s skin and paint a picture of its vast mineral wealth. According to Jim Bullion, who heads a Pentagon task force on postwar development, these maps reveal that Afghanistan could “become a world leader in the minerals sector.”

Why the odds are increasing for Keystone XL pipeline approval – by Claudia Cattaneo (National Post – January 16, 2014)

January 16, 2014

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

The U.S. State Department is expected to release a final environmental impact report around the last week of January that will support the Keystone XL, bolstering the odds that President Barack Obama will approve the controversial Alberta-to-Texas oil pipeline.

After more than five years of review, State is expected to release a voluminous Final Environmental Impact Statement that will include a major analysis of the surge in oil transportation by rail, growing markets for oil sands crude and climate change impacts. Observers expect the report to conclude that Canada’s oil sands will get to market with or without Keystone.

The report is expected to influence the President’s final word on the project, which would come after a 90-day national interest determination. There are conflicting views on the timing of that final decision and worries the final phase could drag on.

Some believe the President should move quickly and avoid making Keystone a mid-term election issue. Others argue the President could take until the summer to conclude his review to demonstrate the project was carefully considered and prevent legal challenges.

Oil industry rebuts ‘trash-talking’ celebrity critics – by Shawn McCarthy and Richard Blackwell (Globe and Mail – January 16, 2014)

January 16, 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.

OTTAWA and TORONTO — Two of Calgary’s most prominent oil executives delivered a scathing rebuttal to celebrity critics such as rock star Neil Young, as the industry attempts to win support for pipeline projects that are essential to its ambitious growth plans for the oil sands.

Cenovus Energy Inc. chief executive Brian Ferguson and TransCanada Corp. chair Russ Girling brought an aggressive message to a joint presentation at Toronto’s Canadian Club, in which they defended the country’s current approach to environmental protection and resource development.

Their appearance came just three days after Mr. Young launched a cross-country “Honour the Treaties” concert tour with a press conference that slammed the oil-sands development as an environmental catastrophe, ruinous to the health of local populations and an abrogation of treaty commitments.

Without specifically mentioning the singer, Mr. Ferguson said celebrities have been “trash-talking” Canada’s oil industry.

NEWS RELEASE: New Framework Clears Path for Transparency in Canada’s Mining Sector

January 16, 2014

OTTAWA, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – Jan. 16, 2014) – Canadian exploration and mining associations, in collaboration with civil society organizations, have released recommendations for the development of a payment transparency standard for all publicly-traded mining companies in Canada.

Today’s launch by the Resource Revenue Transparency Working Group provides Canada’s federal and provincial governments, alongside provincial securities commissions, with a blueprint for a payment reporting framework. This framework will better serve the needs of the data’s end-users, such as citizens, governments and investors, but also those of the reporting companies.

Government implementation of these recommendations will provide citizens around the world with valuable information about payments from companies to governments in countries that produce minerals. Increased transparency will allow citizens and media to hold their governments to account for the revenues generated from mining activities and help to ensure that these revenues contribute to sustainable development and poverty reduction.

For example, the Africa Progress Panel suggests that Africa is home to 30 percent of the world’s mineral reserves, yet resource-rich African states still lag in almost all development indicators. Enhanced payment transparency is critical to ensuring that governments mobilize natural resource revenues to fight poverty and promote development.

Pioneering Manitoba woman to enter Mining Hall of Fame – by Chris Purdy (Canadian Press/Global – January 15, 2014)

January 15, 2014

http://globalnews.ca/toronto/

Kate Rice was so brilliant she could have done anything, and her family was so wealthy she could have done nothing at all.

The adventurous, tough-as-nails beauty from southern Ontario set out for the rugged Manitoba wilderness 100 years ago with a shotgun and snowshoes in search of treasure.

She never struck it rich, but she did discover the first nickel deposits in the province and made headlines across the continent as Canada’s first “girl” prospector.

“Living in the middle of nowhere, depending solely on yourself … I know how hard it is to work in a man’s world,” says Toronto businesswoman Linda Rice, 60, who recently found the mining legend’s name on a branch of her family tree.

She says she can’t even imagine what life would have been like for such a woman a century ago. “I was gobsmacked … I was very excited that I was related to such a pioneer.”

Takeover bids cut both ways in Quebec – by Peter Hadekel (Montreal Gazette – January 15, 2014)

January 15, 2014

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

There’s long been a circle-the-wagons mentality in Quebec about corporate takeovers. When a buyer from outside the province is interested in a Quebec company, a protectionist reflex often kicks in and calls are made for government action.

We saw it again this week when Vancouver-based mining giant Goldcorp Inc. made a $2.6-billion hostile takeover bid for Montreal-based Osisko Mining Corp., operator of the big Canadian Malartic gold mine in Abitibi.

The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal was quick to ring the alarm bells, calling on the Quebec government to ensure that if the transaction goes through “it won’t harm the economy of Quebec and the metropolitan region.”

But for every Quebec company that gets taken over by outside interests, there’s one making a deal abroad. That’s how the market works in a global economy.

Widely-held Osisko is one of the few Quebec-based mining firms with operations and production in the province, said Board of Trade president Michel Leblanc.

Bennett resists calls for wider review of coal project – by Wendy Stueck (Globe and Mail – January 14, 2014)

January 15, 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 — British Columbia will review parts of a proposed coal export project under its jurisdiction but is unlikely to weigh in on other concerns, including whether Port Metro Vancouver should export more U.S.-mined thermal coal, provincial Mines Minister Bill Bennett said.

“As a minister who believes in natural resource extraction and understands the very important connection between resource development and the Canadian economy in general and the B.C. economy in particular, I don’t think we can pick commodities or pick particular industries and say, ‘Well, we don’t like that – we’re not going to do that one,’” Mr. Bennett said Tuesday.

“The rules and regulations and standards apply to everyone,” he added. “And if you want to build something or do something in B.C. and you can meet those rules and regulations and standards, then it doesn’t matter what industry you’re in or what commodity you’re dealing with – if you meet those standards, you should get a permit for what you want to do.”

NEWS RELEASE: Future demand for mineral and metal products

January 15, 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.

Okay, it looks like all the votes have been counted. It appears that experts, pundits, industry insiders and outsiders alike are almost unanimous in concluding that 2013 was not a great year for the mining industry around the world. Canada’s mining industry did not escape from the grips of downward trends.

Impacting Ontario’s mining industry particularly hard was the 20% decrease in nickel prices through 2013 and the 30% drop in gold prices. By value in recent years, gold accounts for about 42% of Ontario’s total metal production and 28% of the province’s total mineral production (metals and non-metals). Also, in recent years by value, nickel in an average year accounts for 22% of Ontario’s metal production and 13% of total mineral production.

On a global basis, the general consensus was that the slowdown in China’s economy in 2013 cast a broad shadow over global mineral production. Lessening demand lead to lower prices and companies found themselves struggling with controlling costs and boosting productivity.

NEWS RELEASE: ROM’s New Interactive Gallery Explores the World of Modern Mining: Barrick Gold Corporation Gallery Opens At the ROM

January 15, 2014

(Toronto, Ontario – January 14, 2014): The Barrick Gold Corporation Gallery is now open at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). The gallery, located in the ROM’s Teck Suite of Galleries: Earth’s Treasures (Level 2), is an interactive 600 square foot space, with multi-touch, animated displays, multi-media presentations and more.

This new permanent gallery showcases a range of mineral specimens as well as presentations on the global mining industry, including stories about mining, and how the mining industry impacts our daily lives. The digitally enhanced games and other interactives, such as a touch wall are the most advanced, hands-on, user-driven visitor experiences in the ROM.

“The ROM is delighted to share the Barrick Gold Corporation Gallery in our Teck Suite of Galleries with our visitors and inspire them to discover more about mining. From the interactive games to specimen displays, this gallery illustrates the importance of mining in our daily lives and discusses the social and environmental responsibilities surrounding mining as well as our responsibilities as consumers of products of the Earth. We are grateful to our partners and sponsors, including Barrick Gold Corporation and our Advisory Council, for their valued support,” said Janet Carding, ROM Director and CEO.

Hot Propects in a Cold Climate – by Russell Noble (Canadian Mining Journal – January 2014)

January 15, 2014

Russell Noble is the editor for the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication.

It’s the largest island in Canada, the fifth largest in the world, and it contains some of the most beautiful land and seascapes on the planet, but Baffin Island is also one of the harshest and most unforgiving places on earth when it comes to Mother Nature and her weather conditions.

It’s a place where trees can’t grow, songbirds are rare, and perhaps most of all, it’s an extremely cold place where the sun comes in seasonal divides.

From November to January, the island experiences nearly 24 hours of darkness with less than two hours of twilight. On the flip-side of the calendar, there is continuous daylight from May to August. During the spring and fall months, it’s a gradual fade from dark to light and light to dark, respectively.

At first glance, Baffin Island seems to be an uninviting place, but look a little closer at the more than 11,000 people who live there because they love this massive rock at the top of the world that they have always called “Our Land.” It’s the only home they know, because most of the residents represent generations of Inuit people who have always lived on the island.

Too many Obituaries, not enough Want Ads – by Russell Noble (Canadian Mining Journal – January 2014)

January 15, 2014

Russell Noble is the editor for the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication.

Obituaries, unlike Want Ads, are taking up more space in our newspa¬pers lately and sadly, so too are the number of deaths involving mining com¬panies and subsequently, the job opportunities they once offered to skilled and willing workers.

Barrick Gold’s and Cliffs Resources’ recent issues involving their grand projects in South and North America respec-tively are perfect examples of ‘death-and-hope’ situations (much like Obituaries and Want Ads) because they have resulted in headlines around the world that have not only cast doubt on the individual companies, but they have also caused disappointment within the ranks of shareholders and future investors alike.

And by ‘future investors’ I don’t mean people with money to gamble on mining shares, but people in our schools right now who are contemplating their futures in careers that once included mining as an industry offering a lifetime of opportunities.

Fortunately for the most part, it still does because as we all know, the industry isn’t going to dry up and blow away like many of the jobs at Barrick and Cliffs did recently.

David S. Robertson (Born 1924) – 2014 Canadian Mining Hall of Fame Inductee

March 9, 2018January 15, 2014

The Canadian Mining Hall of Fame was conceived by the late Maurice R. Brown, former editor and publisher of The Northern Miner, as a way to recognize and honour the legendary mine finders and builders of a great Canadian industry. The Hall was established in 1988. For more information about the extraordinary individuals who have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, please go to their home website: http://mininghalloffame.ca/

David Robertson became a respected statesman of Canada’s mining industry through technical accomplishment and impeccable integrity displayed during a distinguished career spanning more than six decades. Along with other industry giants, he earned his stripes in the mid-1950s for his role in the discovery of uranium deposits at Elliott Lake, Ontario. In 1965, he founded David S. Robertson & Associates, a consulting firm that grew in stature as it expanded from its Canadian base to other countries.

Robertson’s career took on a new dimension in the mid-1970s, after he was retained by the Saskatchewan government to evaluate potash assets for a newly formed Crown corporation. He earned a reputation for credible valuations and as an expert witness in litigation and arbitration cases. His expertise was in demand after his firm merged with Coopers & Lybrand Consulting Group in 1982, and for decades beyond.

http://www.pendaproductions.com/ This video was produced by PENDA Productions, a full service production company specializing in Corporate Communications with a focus on Corporate Responsibility.

Born in Winnipeg, Robertson graduated with a BSc degree in physical chemistry and geology from the University of Manitoba in 1946.

Kathleen C. S. Rice (1882-1963) – 2014 Canadian Mining Hall of Fame Inductee

March 9, 2018January 15, 2014

Kathleen Creighton Starr Rice left the comforts and confines of Edwardian-era Ontario for the wilderness of northern Manitoba, where she found fame as a prospector and mining entrepreneur. Aided by local First Nations, her travels by dog team and canoe through Manitoba and Saskatchewan included an 800 kilometre trek north of The Pas to Reindeer Lake, where she discovered zinc and vanadium in 1914. After moving to the Snow Lake area, she staked gold claims along strike of the Rex, Kiski and Bingo gold mines.

http://www.pendaproductions.com/ This video was produced by PENDA Productions, a full service production company specializing in Corporate Communications with a focus on Corporate Responsibility.

In the early 1920s, she staked the first nickel properties in Manitoba, which ultimately lured Inco (now Vale) to Manitoba. In those days, her high-grade discovery was valued at $5 million. Her intellectual curiosity was wide ranging, and covered topics as diverse as a scientific paper on the Aurora Borealis and plans for hydro-generation at Wekusko Falls.

She was a journalist, an innovative dog trainer, a horticulturalist and a pioneer environmentalist with a deep appreciation of First Nations culture and knowledge.

C. Mark Rebagliati (Born 1943) – 2014 Canadian Mining Hall of Fame Inductee

March 9, 2018January 15, 2014

Few modern-era geoscientists can match the prolific track record of discovery established by Mark Rebagliati in Canada and abroad over four decades. Several of his discoveries became mines in his home province of British Columbia — notably Mount Milligan and Kemess — while others were found in far-flung parts of the world. He earned his place in an elite class of mine-finders known for exceptional technical skills, remarkable tenacity, and hands-on leadership.

Rebagliati attended the BC & Yukon Chamber of Mines prospecting school and the Haileybury School of Mines before earning a degree in geological engineering from Michigan Technological University in 1969. He worked for Consolidated Goldfields, BP Minerals Canada and other companies, and during the 1970s was a member of the discovery teams at the Red Chris project near Dease Lake, and the QR project near Quesnel, BC. QR became a gold mine and Red Chris evolved into a major porphyry copper-gold deposit and is in development.

http://www.pendaproductions.com/ This video was produced by PENDA Productions, a full service production company specializing in Corporate Communications with a focus on Corporate Responsibility.

The pace of discovery increased after Rebagliati established his own consulting firm and formed an alliance with Vancouver-based Hunter Dickinson Inc. (HDI) in 1986, which ultimately let to his post as HDI’s executive vice-president of exploration.