Republic of Mining

Wanted: workers with a healthy sense of adventure [Diavik Diamond Mine] – by Gail Johnson (Globe and Mail – October 7, 2011)

October 7, 2011

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.

Richard LeBreton works in one of the planet’s most unique and remote locations: a diamond mine on an isolated island that sits 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife, and 200 km south of the Arctic Circle. In winter, temperatures at the site in Lac de Gras regularly reach -40, and an ice road is required to transport supplies. All in all, it’s a geotechnical engineer’s dream come true.

“The Diavik Diamond Mine is a technological marvel,” he says. “The work itself is a prime opportunity to develop outstanding experience in my field. I pinch myself every day.”

To access the ore, dikes had to be constructed to hold back the waters of Lac de Gras. Mr. LeBreton, a native of Petit-Rocher, N.B., is charged with making sure the massive surrounding walls of granite don’t collapse.

“I ensure that the work environment remains stable,” he says. “It’s very specialized, challenging work. We’re dealing with the Canadian Shield,” which is a vast expanse of Precambrian rock that covers more than half of Canada.

Ivanhoe Mines overreliant on a benevolent Mongolia – by Pierre Fournier (Globe and Mail – October 6, 2011)

October 7, 2011

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.

Investors should consider last week’s events in Mongolia as a warning shot for the long-term geopolitical risks associated with Ivanhoe Mines Ltd.’s massive copper and gold project in Mongolia.

The Mongolian government’s brazen attempt to renegotiate the terms of ownership of the Oyu Tolgoi mine comes less than two years after a formal agreement was reached with Ivanhoe, following six years of tumultuous negotiations. The $6-billion project is only half completed and is not scheduled to start production before the first half of 2013.

At some level, the government’s power play to squeeze a few more nuggets out of Ivanhoe and project partner Rio Tinto is another classic case of resource nationalism. A poor country, rich in resources, and with an election looming next year, is being promised by politicians from both major parties that they can and should expect more from the mining companies. In the short term, the showdown is unlikely to lead to either a full-blown renegotiation of the contract or a significant hit to shareholders. But a few face-saving “concessions” to the Mongolian government cannot be ruled out.

Building Capacity in Sudbury’s Industrial Parks – by Lindsay Kelly (Northern Ontario Business – October, 2011)

September 7, 2018October 6, 2011

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.

Industrial park upgrade plan leaves doubt

News that the City of Greater Sudbury has decided to go forward with upgrades to a pair of industrial parks is good news, but leaves lingering doubts, said a mining industry observer.

“There are more questions than there are answers for me,” said Dick DeStefano, executive director of the Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Service Association (SAMSSA). “It just takes so long. That’s the biggest complaint I got back from our guys: it just takes so long to do.”

In June, Sudbury council approved a plan that calls for $65 million in water, wastewater and road infrastructure upgrades to the city’s eight industrial areas, with the parks at Fielding Road, in the city’s west end, and Elisabella Street, on the east side, identified as priorities.

It will cost a combined $875,000 to complete the preliminary environmental assessment and detailed design estimate at those two properties, and city staff have been given the go-ahead to begin the process, deeming the upgrades necessary to encourage economic development.

Resources should rise if Europe’s woes fixed – by Jonathan Ratner (National Post – October 5, 2011)

October 5, 2011

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

Amid the staggering sell-off in commodities, there is a light at the end of the tunnel for investors – assuming we don’t see another global financial crisis.

The pullback in everything from oil and coal to copper and agriculture runs counter to strong Asian demand growth and structurally short supplies for metals, food and fuels.

So investors are left with a simple question: Will the European sovereign debt crisis and the resulting stress on the financial sector trigger a world economic recession as was experienced in 2008?

“The best way of assessing the likely future remains to track current economic momentum,” Credit Suisse said in a note to clients on Tuesday. “To that end, the first two months of panic looks to have had surprisingly little impact on the data from China and the U.S., although the Euro area has weakened noticeably.”

We’ll listen to North, NDP leader promises – by Laura Stricker (Sudbury Star – October 5, 2011)

October 5, 2011October 5, 2011

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

“I started (my campaign) in the North and I’m finishing it in the North.”

NDP leader Andrea Horwath greeted supporters with these words Tuesday, as she returned to Sudbury to drum up more support for NDP Northern Ontario candidates.

Horwath, along with Sudbury candidate Paul Loewenberg, Nickel Belt candidate France Gelinas, Sault Ste. Marie candidate Celia Ross, Timiskaming- Cochrane candidate John Vanthof, Nipissing candidate Henri Giroux and Algoma-Manitoulin candidate Michael Mantha, gathered at Loewenberg’s campaign office.

Throughout her speech, she stressed that the NDP will respect people living in the North. “For me, respect isn’t just about nice words. It’s listening and it’s action. People across the North have been telling me they’re fed up with being taken for granted and having no voice.

Election Eve: Looking Ahead at Post-Election Northern Ontario – by Livio Di Matteo (October 4, 2011)

October 5, 2011

Livio Di Matteo is Professor of Economics at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Visit his new Economics Blog “Northern Economist” at http://ldimatte.shawwebspace.ca/

The time has comes to take stock of the implications for the North of the potential outcomes of the October 6th provincial election. According to the polls, it is a close race and the possibility of a minority government is high. At the same time, polls do not always fully predict the outcome and much depends on the concentration of party support across the various ridings, as well as the actual voter turnout. What can we expect the morning after?

Whatever party forms the government, expect to see the donning of sackcloth and ashes as it suddenly becomes apparent that the economy is on the verge of recession, the stock markets have dropped 20 percent and the province’s coffers are bare as a result of a massive deficit. All those rosy revenue forecasts that were going to see the budget balanced by 2017 will now go out the window. Expect to see announcements of government expenditure cuts, freezes and restructuring as well as the discussion of temporary “revenue enhancements.” A Liberal or NDP backed government will likely favor revenue enhancements over expenditure cuts while a Conservative government is more likely to favor cuts or restructuring.

Should the Liberals win another majority, it will be interpreted as a vindication for their program of policies, especially their job creation strategy focused on Green Energy. As for the North, it means the Far North Act will stay in place. For the North, a Liberal majority win will put it in an odd situation.

Rails to the Ring of Fire – Stan Sudol (Toronto Star – May 30, 2011)

September 5, 2016October 5, 2011

The Toronto Star, has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on federal and Ontario politics as well as shaping public opinion.

For the web’s largest database of articles on the Ring of Fire mining camp, please go to: Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

“The Ring of Fire railroad should be subsidized by
governments as the huge economic impact will benefit
the economy for decades to come, help balance budgets
and alleviate aboriginal poverty in the surrounding
First Nations communities.” (Stan Sudol)

Notwithstanding the recent correction in commodity prices, near-record highs for gold, silver and a host of base metals essential for industry confirm that the commodity “supercycle” is back and with a vengeance.

China, India, Brazil and many other developing economies are continuing their rapid pace of growth. In 2010, China overtook Japan to become the world’s second largest economy and surpassed the United States to become the biggest producer of cars.

In March, Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney remarked: “Commodity markets are in the midst of a supercycle. . . . Rapid urbanization underpins this growth. . . . Even though history teaches that all booms are finite, this one could go on for some time.”

Quebec’s visionary 25-year “Plan Nord” will see billions invested in northern resource development and infrastructure to take advantage of the tsunami in global metal demand and generate much needed revenue for government programs.

In Ontario, the isolated Ring of Fire mining camp in the James Bay lowlands is one of the most exciting and possibly the richest new Canadian mineral discovery in more than a generation. It has been compared with both the Sudbury Basin and the Abitibi Greenstone belt that includes Timmins, Kirkland Lake, Noranda and Val d’Or.

Quebec lawyers jump on Plan Nord – Drew Hasselback (National Post – October 5, 2011)

October 5, 2011

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

“Plan Nord is not portrayed as a massive government handout.
Montreal lawyers insist they believe the North will be
developed purely through market forces. They see the plan as
the government living up to its traditional role, which is to
install infrastructure such as roads, ports, power lines and
airports.”

“Plan Nord is about making sure Quebec has the roads,
electricity supplies, airports and shipping ports in
place to serve future generations.” (Drew Hasselback)

Step inside the office of any law firm in Montreal, and you won’t have to walk too far before you bump into someone who’s been assigned to that firm’s Plan Nord team. That’s because Plan Nord is the biggest source of business for transaction-oriented law firms in Montreal these days.

The plan is well understood within Montreal business circles, and it’s also caught the attention of resource investors from around the world. For lawyers, it pushes a lot of buttons. Plan Nord anticipates $80-billion worth of development in Quebec’s North over the next 25 years.

This involves the development of mining projects, transportation links, power-generation facilities, supporting businesses and other infrastructure investments. Putting the plan into action means business across a broad spectrum of legal specialities.

$US 44 Million for the Boreal Forest & Mining “Reform.” Why Is Pew Spending So Much Money in Canada? – by Vivian Krause (Fair-Questions.com – September 27, 2011)

October 4, 2011

Vivian Krause is a Vancouver-based independent researcher and writer who investigates the environmental movement’s lobbying efforts in Canada and their sources of funding. www.fair-questions.com

In previous blog postings, Vivian Krause stated that, “According to my preliminary calculations, since 2000 USA foundations have poured at least $300 million into the environmental movement in Canada.” Currently, she estimates that about $50 million a year is being funnelled into Canadian environmental organizations from U.S. sources.

The Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew”) is one of the largest charitable foundation’s in the United States. In its annual report for 2011, Pew reports that it has $4.9 billion in assets that originated from the founders of Sun Oil, an American oil company.

Pew recognizes boreal forests and the need to protect them in Russia, South America, Indonesia and Africa but the place where Pew is investing more far more money than anywhere else, is Canada.

Pew considers that about 60 percent of the entire national territory of Canada is boreal forest. Of that, 12 percent is already protected by Canada. For Pew, however, that’s not enough.

Since Canada has the world’s largest temperate rainforest and the world’s largest boreal forest, global interest is natural. But lets not forget, Canada’s forests are also home to some of the world’s largest deposits of energy and minerals. This fact is not lost on Pew. In fact, some of Pew’s grants for the Boreal Forest Initiative are titled, “British Columbia mining.”

[Sudbury-based research organization] CEMI takes a new approach to mining innovation – by Lindsay Kelly (Northern Ontario Business – September, 2011)

October 4, 2011

Holistic mining

It sounds more like a reference to a new-age healing trend, but a novel approach to mining that will focus on holistic practices is poised to put Sudbury’s Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI) on course to change the face of the industry.

In July, CEMI received $823,000 from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp. (NOHFC) to instate a Research Chair for Holistic Mining Practices, vice-president Douglas Morrison, whose scope of work will include the expansion of research opportunities and attraction of innovation in mining.

It’s holistic because the research and innovation opportunities will encompass a greater spectrum of considerations than the technical aspect of mining, explained CEMI president and CEO Peter Kaiser.

“You can’t think anymore just technical, little gadgets. You can’t just think of cost reduction. You need to think safety, environmental, permits, Native issues,” Kaiser said. “If you want to succeed, it’s no more just a technical problem and ‘How do I bring a ton of ore out of the ground.’ You need a more holistic approach.”

Battlefield Nebraska: A pipeline plan stirs emotions – Nathan Vanderklippe (Globe and Mail – October 1, 2011)

October 4, 2011

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.

STUART, NEB.— Next to a sun-stained red flag that marks the planned route of the Keystone XL pipeline, Leon Weichman kneels on his Nebraska hay field. Moisture spots his jeans. It has barely rained in 30 days in this arid part of the central U.S., yet the grasses are thick and green. The soil is black and damp.

This field is naturally irrigated by the subterranean reaches of a vast underground formation called the Ogallala Aquifer that underlies the heart of America. It is half the size of British Columbia and filled with freshwater.

Mr. Weichman says he has slept uneasily for three years, knowing that the red flag portends a time when up to 830,000 barrels of oil could course through his field each day. “If we couldn’t use this water, this area would just be vacated.” Mr. Weichman says. “We couldn’t raise livestock here. We couldn’t use crops here. It would just be done.”

Now the Ogallala has inspired a fierce battle over oil, turning Keystone XL into a symbolic dividing line for opponents and supporters of Canada’s oil sands. The red flags marking the route have come to delineate an increasingly bitter fight between those who tout the economic and strategic benefits of a giant resource of North American crude and those who see the oil sands as an unacceptable environmental threat.

Let Canada’s oil flow – Conrad Black (National Post – October 1, 2011)

October 3, 2011

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

There has been good, as well as disappointing, economic news for Canada in recent days.

On the positive side: All indications are that the impenetrable mysteries of the American political and regulatory process will finally overcome ecological hysteria and approve the transmission of oil from the Alberta oil sands to the Gulf of Mexico through the yet-to-be-completed Keystone XL pipeline.

It is nonsense, of course, that this project has been so long delayed, a fact that is due to the pitched, hand-to-hand combat necessary to win the heart and mind of the U.S. President and administration over to its national interest from tired environmental pieties. Apart from being good news in itself, it is good to have Canada on the side of the adults on such an issue.

This has been a more complicated process than it should have been, as the usual suspects, led by Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama, signed the inevitable petition against the oil sands. One more time we see the inadvisability of clergymen, like opinionated actors and legitimate cultural figures, meddling in matters they know nothing of.

How a South African Anglican minister and a Tibetan national religious leader in exile imagine this is any concern of theirs, or that they have any standing to express an opinion about it, fortunately has finally escaped the comprehension of those who have the responsibility to decide the issue.

MINING WATCH NEWS RELEASE: Northern Ontario First Nation Calls On McGuinty to Stop Mining Activity on Sacred Burial Sites

October 3, 2011

For more information go to: www.kitchenuhmaykoosib.com/landsandenvironment/

Sep 27, 2011

Source: Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) First Nation

Ontario’s inaction violates freedom of religion; threatens to spark new conflict

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) — KI Chief Donny Morris is urgently calling on Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty to intervene to stop mining exploration activity on a sacred KI ancestral burial site. Mining exploration company God’s Lake Resources has staked new claims in violation of KI’s well publicized moratorium and has worked the site in spite of being informed that multiple sacred KI graves are within the claim area. Government officials say that they are powerless to stop God’s Lake from working their claims in spite of KI’s Indigenous Title, Rights, and sensitive spiritual connection to the area. This growing conflict closely mirrors the events that led to the jailing of Chief Morris and five other KI leaders in 2008 for refusing to allow platinum mining exploration on their homeland.

“Our ancestors deserve a place where they can rest undisturbed. People everywhere understand that cemeteries are sacred places. But in Sherman Lake, they want to put a gold mine on one,” said Chief Morris.

Can’t wait forever (New KI mining conflict) – Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal Editorial (October 2, 2011)

October 3, 2011

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

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) First Nation has a reputation for making demands. But what does it want?

KI, formerly called Big Trout Lake, insists it wants to share in a resurgent mining boom in the Far North, but on its own terms. So far, those terms remain elusive.

Miners and First Nations need to negotiate terms acceptable to both, with oversight by the province which is responsible for mining and Crown land. Such talks have led to several successful partnerships here in the North but other relations are strained or broken.

KI forced mining exploration company Platinex to cease operations 60 kilometres from the community over allegations the band had not been properly consulted or respected concerning its traditional territory. In 2009 the province agreed to pay $5 million to Platinex to give up its mining claims. The signal to the mining industry was clear; the loss of jobs and revenue to KI, incalculable.