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With Minerals Deal, Trump Ties Himself to Future of Ukraine – by Kim Barker (New York Times – May 1, 2025)

https://www.nytimes.com/

The text of the agreement, made public by Ukraine’s government, made no mention of the security guarantees that Kyiv had long sought.

The minerals deal signed by the United States and Ukraine on Wednesday could bring untold money into a joint investment fund between the two countries that would help rebuild Ukraine whenever the war with Russia ends. But Ukraine’s untapped resources that are the subject of the deal will take years to extract and yield profits. And those could fail to deliver the kind of wealth that President Trump has long said they would.

It is not yet clear how the nine-page deal, the text of which Ukraine’s government made public on Thursday, will work in practice. Many specifics need to be worked out, but the deal will set up an investment fund, jointly managed by Kyiv and Washington.

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Brazil low-cost lithium production: A potential global reference, but internal challenges may delay progress – by Leticia Simionato (Fastmarkets.com – May 2, 2025)

https://www.fastmarkets.com/

“Brazil can be seen as a low-cost reference compared with other global spodumene producers. We compete very well with several geographies: better costs due to geological issues, cheaper labor and electricity… There’s a list of factors that makes us competitive, ” Vinicius Alvarenga, chief executive officer of Companhia Brasileira de Lítio (CBL), told Fastmarkets in an interview.

CBL currently produces 45,000 tonnes per year of spodumene concentrate, of which 30,000 tonnes is exported – mainly to China – while 15,000 tonnes are used in the company’s own refinery, which produces around 2,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). Half of the produced LCE is exported and half is used domestically. Additionally, CBL is currently working on a project to increase mining production to 100,000 tpy of spodumene and expand its chemicals production to 6,000 tpy of LCE.

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Casino Mining defends heap leach plan as distrust of gold extraction method lingers – by Gabrielle Plonka (CBC News North – May 01, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/

Company vice-president says Casino would have ‘significant differences’ from the Eagle gold mine

The heap leach facility at the Casino mine will be different from the one that failed last summer at the Eagle gold mine in the Yukon, according to the mining company. The Casino mine — which is still in the environmental assessment phase — is 300 kilometres northwest of Whitehorse via Carmacks, on what the company says is one of the largest copper-gold deposits in Canada.

Shena Shaw, Casino Mining’s vice-president of environmental and community affairs, gave a presentation at the Association of Yukon Communities’ annual general meeting on April 25.

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Spotlight: Ontario projects to watch – by Staff (Northern Miner – May 1, 2025)

https://www.northernminer.com/

Ontario is among the world’s top 10 mining jurisdictions and is rich in base and precious metals as well as a suite of critical minerals. Here’s a look at eight companies with interesting projects to watch.

Canada Nickel

Canada Nickel expects to receive final permits and make a construction decision on its Crawford nickel sulphide project before the end of this year.

Crawford, 42 km north of Timmins, contains the second-largest nickel reserves in the world with 1.72 billion proven and probable tonnes grading 0.22% nickel, 0.013% cobalt, 0.014 gram palladium per tonne, 0.009 gram platinum, 6.44% iron, 0.57% chrome and 1.61% brucite.

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Pentagon’s AI metals program goes private in bid to boost Western supply deals – by Ernest Scheyder (Reuters – May 2, 2025)

https://www.msn.com/

(Reuters) -A U.S. government-created artificial intelligence program that aims to predict the supply and price of critical minerals has been transferred to the control of a non-profit organization that is helping miners and manufacturers strike supply deals.

Launched in late 2023 by the U.S. Department of Defense, the Open Price Exploration for National Security AI metals program is an attempt to counter China’s sweeping control of the critical minerals sector, as Reuters reported last year.

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Algoma Steel CEO asks Carney to ‘immediately engage’ with Trump on steel tariffs – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – May 1, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Algoma Steel Group Inc. chief executive Michael Garcia is appealing to Prime Minister Mark Carney to “immediately engage” with the Trump administration about dropping punishing tariffs on imports of Canadian steel. Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.-based Algoma is under significant strain owing to the 25-per-cent tariffs on steel and aluminum imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on March 12.

The Canadian steelmaker is directly bearing the costs of the tariffs because it is importer of record in the United States, and it has largely been unable to pass on the costs to its customers. The little under three weeks the company was subject to the tariffs during the first quarter cost it $10.5-million. The U.S. market accounts for about half of Algoma’s revenue.

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Opinion | Let’s judge Ontario’s mineral development by what is protected — not just extracted – by Constance O’Connor (Toronto Star – May 2, 2025)

https://www.thestar.com/

In the Speech from the Throne, the Ford government once again promised to expedite mineral development in the area that mining companies are calling the Ring of Fire in the far north of the province. It then followed up before the Easter long weekend with Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025.

This bill leans hard into the rhetoric of the need to slash laws governing everything from endangered species protections to resource development in a way that promises plenty of chaos — and not much clarity — as everyone from First Nations to businesses tries to sort through its far-reaching implications.

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Vale’s Strategic Alternatives for Nickel Assets in 2025 – by John Zadeh (Discovery Alert – April 30, 2025)

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Market Challenges and Future Outlook

Brazilian mining giant Vale S.A. faces critical decisions regarding its nickel operations amid a complex global market landscape dominated by oversupply pressures and shifting demand dynamics. The company’s strategic review of its nickel portfolio, initiated in early 2025, reflects both short-term operational challenges and long-term optimism about nickel’s role in the energy transition.

This report synthesizes Vale’s current challenges, strategic options, and the broader market forces shaping its decisions, with a focus on Indonesia’s disruptive production growth and the evolving electric vehicle (EV) sector.

What Challenges Is Vale Facing in the Nickel Market?

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What is deep-sea mining and why is Donald Trump suddenly so interested in it? – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – April 30, 2025)

https://financialpost.com/

Canadian company stands to gain from U.S. president’s thirst for critical minerals

An executive order signed by United States President Donald Trump last week could potentially challenge existing global norms linked to deep-sea mining as he tries to reduce his country’s reliance on China for critical minerals. Trump’s order lists several instructions to speed up the start of seabed mining, such as expediting reviews of mineral exploration licences and commercial permits in areas “beyond national jurisdiction.”

The move was lauded by Vancouver-based Metals Co. Inc. (TMC), which has exploration rights in two areas of the Pacific Ocean and has been evaluating U.S. locations since 2019. On Tuesday, it applied for two additional exploration licences and one commercial recovery permit.

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The Search for Golconda – by Stellene Volandes (Town and Country – December 12, 2012)

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/

A mysterious mine somewhere in India once produced the world’s most magnificent diamonds — the stones Napoleon, English monarchs, and Mughal emperors fought to own. Now they’re causing a new uproar — and setting record prices.

For his first day at Harry Winston, in January 2010, Frédéric de Narp, the company’s contagiously enthusiastic president and CEO, had one request: He wanted to hold the Hope diamond. The 110-carat blue stone, first sold to Louis XIV in 1668, was stolen from the French court jewels during the looting of the Treasury, in 1792.

In 1812 it mysteriously reappeared, in the hands of a London diamond merchant, and in 1946, Winston himself acquired it as part of the jewelry collection of Evalyn Walsh McLean, wife of the owner of the Washington Post. (The couple had bought it in 1911 for a reported $300,000.) Winston donated it to the Smithsonian Institution.

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From Queen’s Park to the core of Ontario mining: An interview with Chris Hodgson – by Tamer Elbokl, PhD and Kesiah Stoker (Canadian Mining Journal – April 28, 2025)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Few figures have shaped Ontario’s mining landscape as profoundly as Chris Hodgson (CH). He has left an indelible mark on Ontario’s mining industry. His career, which spanned both politics and industry leadership, showcases his unwavering dedication to the sector.

Hodgson’s journey from natural resources critic to mining minister, and ultimately to a 20-year tenure as president of the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), reflects a deep commitment to advancing the sector. In this wide-ranging interview, Hodgson speaks with the Canadian Mining Journal about his unexpected entry into mining, the tough decisions that defined his time in office, and the major strides made under his leadership — from groundbreaking safety reforms to reshaping public perceptions of the industry.

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New Turmoil in Regulating Deep Seabed Mining on the High Seas – by Tom LaTourrette and Douglas Ligor(Modern Diplomacy – April 27, 2025)

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The still potential-but-perhaps-soon-to-be-real world of seabed mining took an interesting turn in the past month.

The still potential-but-perhaps-soon-to-be-real world of seabed mining took an interesting turn in the past month. The announcement from The Metals Company that it “has formally initiated a process…to apply for exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits under existing U.S. legislation, the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act of 1980 (DSHMRA)” came just prior to the White House’s issuance of a new executive order authorizing this approach.

These announcements mark major course changes. The Metals Company is essentially giving up on the existing international framework to govern and regulate seabed mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction (the high seas), and the U.S., which to date has been a largely passive observer of efforts to develop seabed mining, may be about to thrust itself into the center of the action.

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Teck, tariffs, and the Red Dog zinc mine – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – April 28, 2025)

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/

Teck Resources Ltd. CEO Johnathan Price says the diversified Canadian miner’s portfolio of American mining operations delivering metals critical to 21st-century energy and technologies are well-positioned to weather a geopolitical storm that threatens to hobble the global economy, fuel inflation, and disrupt supply chains.

“Despite these headwinds, we believe that the fundamentals for our key metals, copper and zinc, are robust over the medium and long term as several macro factors continue to drive demand,” he informed analysts and investors during an April 24 earnings call. “These metals are essential for global manufacturing and development, industrial policy and national security, electrification infrastructure, as well as the growth of the digital economy.”

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Why the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act Was Enacted Swiftly and Silently – by Mariyam Suleman Anees (The Diplomat – April 28, 2025)

https://thediplomat.com/

The controversial law will undermine restive Balochistan’s rights over its mineral reserves.

In the second week of March, while the media was busy covering the deadly train hijacking in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, the provincial assembly quietly and in great haste passed an important and now controversial piece of legislation: the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act, 2025.

With little to no discussion or opposition to the bill, it silently slipped through the Balochistan provincial assembly and became an act on March 14, receiving barely any media coverage. Only after a similar bill in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province sparked controversy did the Balochistan Mines and Minerals Act come into the limelight.

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BC First Nation files ‘urgent’ injunction to halt tailings dam construction at Mount Polley mine – by Amanda Stutt (Mining.com – April 28, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

A British Columbia First Nation filed on Friday an injunction application on an “urgent basis” in Supreme Court to halt construction to raise the dam at the former Mount Polley gold mine. Xatśūll First Nation government is part of the larger Secwepemc (Shuswap) nation, located in the Cariboo region of the Canadian province.

The Xatśūll First Nation first filed a judicial review on April 15 with the Supreme Court of BC against the province’s minister of mining and critical minerals, the minister of environment and parks, the provincial deputy permitting officer, major mines offices and the Mount Polley Mining Corporation to overturn two provincial decisions authorizing Mount Polley Mining (MPMC) to raise the height of the dam at its tailings storage facility (TSF).

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