Republic of Mining

Talon Metals drills record nickel-copper intercept at Tamarack – by Staff (Mining.com – September 22, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.mining.com/

Talon Metals (TSX: TLO) has received more encouraging results from drilling at its Tamarack nickel-copper-cobalt project in Minnesota, including assays for 17 holes drilled on the western side of the Tamarack resource area between 2021-2022 that demonstrated the continuity and thickness of the high-grade massive sulphide zone.

The new drill holes extended the resource from 320 metres from northwest to southeast. One hole (21TK0380) returned a record intercept of 23.44 metres grading 6.04% nickel and 2.85% copper in the Main zone.

India May Boost Coal Power Fleet 25% by 2030 Amid Rising Demand – by Rajesh Kumar Singh and Anna Kitanaka (Bloomberg News – September 23, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — India plans to expand its coal power fleet by about a quarter through the end of the decade as it continues to lean on the fuel to meet growing demand until energy storage costs fall.

The world’s third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases will add nearly 56 gigawatts of coal power capacity unless there’s a substantial drop in the cost of storing electricity, Power Minister Raj Kumar Singh said in an interview this week in New Delhi. India is also planning major investments in renewable energy, but it has to prioritize providing reliable power to spur economic growth, he said.

Belgium’s diamonds lose shine amid Russia sanctions talk – by Ilys Gridneff (Politico – September 22, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.politico.eu/

Belgium is concerned about harming the world-leading Antwerp diamond district. But some countries are losing patience.

ANTWERP, Belgium — Russian diamonds are on Europe’s radar once again — as is Belgium’s fraught role in the industry. Despite six rounds of sweeping European Union sanctions against Moscow, Russian diamonds have remained a shining absence from the embargo list.

Their omission is due in part to Belgium’s prominent role in the diamond industry. Antwerp has, for generations, served as the main hub for diamonds arriving in Europe — including from Russia.

To reach net zero the world still needs mining. After 26 years, here’s what I’ve learned about this ‘evil’ industry – by Bridget Storrie (The Conversation – September 23, 2022)

September 23, 2022September 23, 2022

https://theconversation.com/

On the wooded hill above the Stan Terg lead and zinc mine in Kosovo, there is an old concrete diving platform looming over what was once an open-air swimming pool. Before the break-up of Yugoslavia, people who worked at the mine would bring their families here to swim, sunbathe on the wide terrace with its view across the valley, and picnic among the trees. Now the pool is slowly disappearing into the forest, the view obscured by birch saplings.

I am with Peter*, an Albanian mine worker who used to come up here with his friends before the war began in 1998. Back then, Serbs and Albanians would use the pool and nearby tennis courts together, but there are no Serb mining families here now. Two decades on, the ruination in the landscape still seems unsettling – a reminder for Peter that something valuable has been lost. “I don’t know what the hell happened here,” he says.

Agnico Eagle’s CEO says Mexican copper investment strategic, not a sign he’s losing faith in gold – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – September 22, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://financialpost.com/

As soon as the Fed stops hiking rates, ‘gold is going to be unleashed’

The CEO of Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., the largest producer of gold in Canada, said he’s confident that gold prices will break out of a months-long slump, and characterized his investment in a Mexican copper project as opportunistic, not a pivot from precious metals.

Gold appears to be suffering because the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks have been raising interest rates so quickly in recent months, making fixed-income assets such as bonds more attractive.

Jobs of the Future: Mining no longer the ‘dirty’ job it once was – by Len Gillis (Sudbury.com – September 23, 2022)

September 23, 2022September 23, 2022

https://www.sudbury.com/

Safe, clean and well-paid jobs available in mining industry, which is experiencing a worker shortage

The future of mining is safe, it’s clean, it’s environmentally sound and it is well-paying. That’s the message the mining industry needs to put out on the job market, said Jason Bubba, the chief operating officer at NORCAT

Bubba was one of the many speakers at the Maintenance, Engineering and Mine Operators Conference in Sudbury this week, where part of the focus was discussing workforce strategies aimed at attracting more people to the mining industry.

The World Got Diamonds. A Mining Town Got Buried in Sludge. – by John Eligon and Lynsey Chutel (New York Times – September 23, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.nytimes.com/

Waste from a diamond mine in South Africa grew ever higher as the ownership changed from De Beers to a billionaire to a Dubai-based retailer. The mining town paid the price.

JAGERSFONTEIN, South Africa — The dirt wall holding in mucky waste from diamond mining grew over the years to resemble a wide, towering plateau. Suspended like a frozen tsunami over neat tracts of Monopoly-like homes in the rural South African mining town of Jagersfontein, the dam alarmed residents who feared it may collapse.

“We saw it long time, that one day this thing will burst,” said Memane Paulus, a machine operator at the dam for the past decade. The worst fears of residents came true this month when a section of the dam crumbled, sending a thunderous rush of gray sludge through the community that killed at least one person, destroyed 164 houses, and turned a six-mile stretch of neighborhoods and grassy fields into an ashen wasteland.

Newmont’s Musselwhite Mine celebrates 25 Years of First Nations agreement – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – September 23, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Musselwhite Agreement set targets for First Nation employment, business spinoff opportunities and environmental protection

One of the first mines in Canada to enter into a comprehensive agreement with First Nation communities is celebrating the 25th anniversary of that pact.

On September 20, Newmont commemorated the signing of the Musselwhite Agreement that involved Musselwhite’s original owners, Goldcorp, and the mine’s neighbouring signatory communities of Cat Lake First Nation, North Caribou First Nation, Kingfisher Lake First Nation, Wunnumin Lake First Nation, Windigo and Shibogama Councils. The mine also has an agreement with Mishkeegogamang First Nation.

Russian Aluminum Imports Are Hurting US Market, Rio Tinto CEO Warns – by Joe Deaux (Bloomberg News – September 21, 2022)

September 23, 2022

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Rio Tinto Plc’s top executive is raising the alarm that the unfettered flow of Russian aluminum into the US is making North American producers less competitive.

Russian imports, which remain exempt from US sanctions, are flowing into the country unrestricted when allies like Australia continue to face restrictions left over from the Trump administration, Chief Executive Officer Jakob Stausholm said in an interview at Bloomberg’s New York headquarters. His comments are the most candid about the aluminum industry since taking the helm of Rio at the start of 2021.

Column: Low global copper stocks jar with market’s downbeat mood – by Andy Home (Reuters – September 21, 2022)

September 23, 2022September 23, 2022

https://www.reuters.com/

LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters) – London Metal Exchange (LME) warehouses saw 11,200 tonnes of copper arrivals on Tuesday, the largest single-day warranting since June. Inflows have totalled over 35,000 tonnes so far this month but have been largely offset by departures. Headline stocks of 118,000 tonnes are up by only 3,625 tonnes on the end of August.

LME inventory remains ultra-low by any historical yardstick, representing just two days’ worth of global usage. But this is not just an LME phenomenon. Registered inventory with both the CME and Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) is also super low and between them the three exchanges hold just 200,000 tonnes of metal.

A Great Copper Squeeze Is Coming for the Global Economy – by James Attwood (Bloomberg News – September 21, 2022)

September 22, 2022

https://www.bloomberg.com/

The price of copper — used in everything from computer chips and toasters to power systems and air conditioners — has fallen by nearly a third since March. Investors are selling on fears that a global recession will stunt demand for a metal that’s synonymous with growth and expansion.

You wouldn’t know it from looking at the market today, but some of the largest miners and metals traders are warning that in just a couple of years’ time, a massive shortfall will emerge for the world’s most critical metal — one that could itself hold back global growth, stoke inflation by raising manufacturing costs and throw global climate goals off course. The recent downturn and the under-investment that ensues only threatens to make it worse.

Indonesia’s electric vehicle batteries dream has a dirty nickel problem – by Rodrigo Castillo, Lilly Blumenthal, and Caitlin Purdy (Brookings Education – September 21, 2022)

September 22, 2022

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/

Indonesia—the world’s largest nickel miner—is making moves to become a key player in the electric vehicle supply chain. Most of Indonesia’s nickel output is currently Class 2 nickel, a low-purity type used for stainless steel.

The country’s government and the mining sector are determined to transform its nickel industry to meet the rising demand for Class 1 nickel, a crucial component for electric vehicle (EV) batteries.[1] EVs are widely viewed as a pillar of the transition toward renewable energy sources since they typically have a smaller carbon footprint over their lifespan than gasoline-powered vehicles.

Indigenous Leaders: ‘We’re tired of managing poverty’ – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – September 20, 2022)

September 20, 2022

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Indigenous people don’t need ‘environmental colonials’ to speak for them on resource development, says JP Gladu

The onset of the pandemic threw a great many Canadians out of work. Even J.P. Gladu, one of Canada’s most visible Indigenous business leaders, was lumped into the mix. He was laid off before he even started a new job.

In early 2020, Gladu said his goodbyes to his colleagues and left the security of his job heading the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB), where he had spent almost eight years.

Russia’s Secret Gem Sales Are Dividing the Diamond World (Bloomberg News – September 17, 2022)

September 20, 2022

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — The secretive sale of Russian diamonds, worth hundreds of millions of dollars every month, is fracturing the global trade that stretches from cutting factories in Mumbai to luxury stores on New York’s Fifth Avenue.

Many in the industry refuse to deal in Russian gems following the invasion of Ukraine and after mining giant Alrosa PJSC was hit with US sanctions. But there’s a handful of Indian and Belgian buyers who are snapping up large volumes at lucrative terms, getting to pick and choose the diamonds they need while others stay away.

Australia ‘too far behind’ to make EV batteries: lithium giant – by Brad Thompson (Australian Financial Review – September 19, 2022)

September 20, 2022

https://www.afr.com/

Albemarle boss Kent Masters says it will be hard for Australia to make the leap from mining key ingredients to making batteries for electric vehicles.

That’s despite the company having just built one of the world’s biggest and most advanced lithium hydroxide plants – estimated to have cost more than $2 billion – at an industrial park south of Perth.