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NEWS RELEASE: Sabina Gold & Silver Reaches Major Milestone to Advance Back River Gold Project with Positive Decision from Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada

http://www.sabinagoldsilver.com/

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Dec. 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. (TSX:SBB.T), (“Sabina” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has received a positive decision from the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (the “Minister” or “INAC”) that the Back River Project (the “Project” or “Back River”) may move forward to the regulatory and licensing phase which would include completion of all necessary permits to commence mine construction.

In July 2017, the Nunavut Impact Review Board (“NIRB”) completed its review of the environmental assessment of the Project and recommended to the Minister that the Project should be given approval to obtain the required permits and licenses for mine construction and operation.

In a letter dated December 5, 2017, the Minister on behalf of the five responsible federal Ministers, accepted NIRB’s recommendation. The NIRB will now work towards issuing a Project Certificate for Back River, which will attach the terms and conditions for mine development, construction, operation and eventual closure.

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Commentary: SCC decision on Peel watershed in Yukon another win for First Nations – by Bill Gallagher (Northen Miner – December 6, 2017)

http://www.northernminer.com/

First Nations have just won an important lawsuit at the Supreme Court of Canada on account that the Yukon government had tried to do an end-run on their land claim settlements.

Readers who have followed my tracking of the native legal winning streak in Canada will be familiar with my preferred wording of “Land Rights” as the catch-all phrase whereby natives typically win in the resources sector since they have constitutionally-protected land rights that the rest of us don’t.

My message to government and industry is always the same: realize that natives are resource gatekeepers in Canada and work them into the project as the key local players that they are.

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Vale cuts nickel output but is positive on long-term demand – by Christian Plumb (Reuters U.S. – December 6, 2017)

https://www.reuters.com/

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Brazilian miner Vale SA dialed back its nickel output forecasts for the next five years on Wednesday, although the world’s top producer of the metal praised its longer term prospects on likely soaring demand for electric cars.

Vale cut its nickel output estimate by 15 percent to 263,000 tonnes next year and said it was still seeking an investor for its New Caledonia nickel mine.

However, Vale wants to “preserve its nickel optionality” ahead of an expected boom in electric vehicles in the next decade, said Jennifer Maki, executive director of Vale’s base metals unit, at an annual investor presentation in New York.

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Iron ore tops $US72 a tonne, defying naysayers yet again – by Timothy Moore (Australian Financial Review – December 5, 2017)

http://www.afr.com/

Iron ore rallied solidly into the $US70 a tonne range as Chinese steel futures surged, with local mills seen continuing to produce at high rates to take advantage of strong profit margins.

The spot price of iron ore rose $US2.57, or 3.7 per cent, to $US72.68 a tonne on Monday, according to Metal Bulletin – its highest since mid September. The steelmaking raw material – which advanced 2.9 per cent on Friday – has now risen more than 20 per cent from late October. Iron ore continues to defy forecasts that it will reverse into the $US50 range as global supply slowly rises and China’s economy gradually slows.

“We think that the latest gains in the iron ore price are a knee-jerk reaction to soaring steel prices, rather than a reflection of iron ore’s fundamentals,” said Caroline Bain, chief commodities economist at Capital Economics.

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Newmont Poised to Oust Barrick as World’s Top Gold Producer – by Danielle Bochove (Bloomberg News – December 6, 2017)

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Newmont Mining Corp.’s Gary Goldberg has the title of world’s biggest gold producer within his grasp. The chief executive officer raised his 2018 production forecast to a range of 4.9 million to 5.4 million ounces.

That exceeds Barrick Gold Corp.’s 2018 guidance of 4.8 million to 5.3 million given in February, which doesn’t include the impact of the sale of 50 percent of a mine in Argentina.

While Newmont is already ahead of Barrick by market value, the midpoints of the two companies’ 2017 guidance indicate Barrick will keep Newmont at bay this year in terms of output. That’s not the case in the following years.

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[Norm Tollinsky] Journalist honoured for mining industry coverage – by Karen McKinley (Northern Ontario Business – December 5, 2017)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Sudbury Mining Solutions Journal writer and founding editor Norm Tollinsky inducted into Mining Hall of Fame

It was a night of firsts at the Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Service Association (SAMSSA) annual general meeting. The first time a woman will be president and the first time a journalist has been inducted into the Mining Hall of Fame.

Norm Tollinsky, editor of Sudbury Mining Solutions Journal, was presented with the honour on Dec. 4 at Dynamic Earth. He and the journal were lauded for 12 years of covering stories specific to the mining industry and bringing stories of the hard work and innovation coming from it.

Taking the podium, he thanked everyone for the honour, adding there was no greater feeling for a writer than being appreciated by the readers.

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Alaskan Native village, conservation groups sue BLM over mine on Chilkat River – by Kevin Gullufsen (Juneau Empire – December 5, 2017)

http://juneauempire.com/

The tribal government of Klukwan filed a lawsuit Monday against the Bureau of Land Management, accusing it of failing to protect culturally-important salmon habitat and world’s largest bald eagle congregation from mining on the Chilkat River drainage.

Filed in U.S. District Court on Monday, the suit alleges that BLM neglected its duties when permitting expansions of mineral exploration in the area in the last year and a half.

Permitting mineral exploration would eventually lead to the creation of a hard rock mine, the suit argues, which has been shown to negatively affect water bodies downstream. Mining companies conduct mineral exploration in hopes of documenting the existence of valuable ore bodies. Smaller exploration companies often then sell their claims to larger extraction companies after they’ve proved valuable.

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Rio Tinto aims for “intelligent” Australian iron ore mine – by James Regans (Reuters U.S. – December 4, 2017)

https://www.reuters.com/

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Rio Tinto next year will seek board approval to develop an “intelligent” iron ore mine at a cost of $2.2 billion, fully incorporating technologies such as robotics and driverless trains and trucks on a single site, the company’s head of iron ore said on Monday.

A feasibility study was underway to demonstrate the economics behind developing the Koodaideri mine in the Pilbara region of the state of Western Australia, said Chief Executive, Iron Ore Chris Salisbury.

Rio Tinto extracts more than 300 million tonnes of ore annually in Australia, making it the world’s second-biggest iron ore miner after Brazilian giant Vale.

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Copper’s Art of the Deal – by David Fickling (Bloomberg News – December 6, 2017)

https://www.bloomberg.com/

The seeds of Tuesday’s 4.6 percent copper slump — the sharpest in almost three years — were planted in a scarcely noted non-event earlier this month.

Smelters and miners meeting during Asia Copper Week in Shanghai failed to come to an agreement over processing fees for 2018, and split without an agreement on a benchmark price, a smelter official with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News Friday.

Such miner-smelter agreements on treatment and refining charges, or TC/RCs, are an important indicator for the direction of the two industries we collectively call the copper market. Miners produce largely concentrates, a powdery brown intermediary product that’s then sold to smelter-refiners to turn into the pink metal itself. Just six of the world’s top 20 miners appear on the list of the world’s top 20 refiners.

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Thankfully, most Canadian businesses keep ignoring politicians’ growth-killing climate crusade – by Kevin Libin (Financial Post – December 2, 2017)

http://business.financialpost.com/

Governments keep promoting — and paying for — unprofitable “green” technologies in the name of helping businesses shift to the post-carbon economy

Rachel Notley isn’t going to let the fact that she has yet to get any pipelines built stop her from giving lessons on how to get pipelines built. In a speech to Ottawa’s Economic Club last week, she lectured oil-industry champions and “conservatives” that “denying (manmade) climate change … won’t get pipelines built.”

The Alberta premier’s last lesson on getting pipelines built told Albertans they needed carbon taxes to win “social licence” from opponents. That hasn’t worked either, which is why Notley had to travel to B.C. this week with the federal natural resources minister to plead with opponents there to please stop opposing the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

Anyway, try and find a prominent conservative in Ottawa or Alberta who hasn’t agreed to go along with the manmade-climate-change orthodoxy. Or an oil industry representative, for that matter, with the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers recently saying (as reported by Post columnist John Robson from a recent Manning Centre conference)

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NEWS RELEASE: YMP Launches Career Connect, a Free of Charge Platform to unite Mining’s Talent and Job Seekers

www.youngminingprofessionals.com

Toronto, Canada – December 5, 2017 – Young Mining Professionals (“YMP”) is pleased to announce the launch of Career Connect, our new platform designed to unite subscribed followers with mining and metals organizations who are looking for the best and brightest talent.

Career Connect is free of charge to all users, and its only mandate is to unite the thousands of young mining professionals who are passionate about the mining and metals industry with those looking for the best talent.

Career Connect is a bi-monthly subscribed email which will be sent out to subscribers across Canada and the United Kingdom.

For Job Seekers, subscribe here: www.youngminingprofessionals.com/careerconnect to receive YMP’s bi-monthly Career Connect email with the latest mining and metals job opportunities.

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Glencore, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan launch mining royalty firm – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – December 6, 2017)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

AngloSwiss mining giant Glencore PLC has struck a deal with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan to create a private royalty and streaming business – one of the first of its kind in the base metals sector.

BaseCore Metals starts life with a portfolio of existing Glencore royalties in North and South America worth $300-million (U.S)., and includes a royalty on Highland Valley, a Teck Resources Ltd. copper mine in British Columbia.

According to a joint press release on Tuesday, Teachers paid cash to Glencore for its 50-per-cent share in the entity. The pension fund declined to comment further when asked by The Globe and Mail about the exact amount of its investment.

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Ferrochrome Smelter won’t go where it’s not wanted, Noront – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – December 6, 2017)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Noront Resources won’t place a ferrochrome smelter in a community that isn’t totally comfortable with having one. Company president-CEO Alan Coutts further added they won’t process Ring of Fire chromite ore in Ontario – or Canada for that matter – unless his company can secure a favourable power rate from Queen’s Park.

“The level of comfort we get from the communities and the government will help us to pick the site and to make sure that we’ve got a viable long-term process.” Coutts shed some light on Noront’s thought process and approach in selecting a suitable host site for a proposed ferrochrome production plant.

Cutting the ribbon on a smelter could be five to 10 years away but there are 350 plant jobs at stake for a chromite processing facility that could potentially expand and create all kinds of industrial service and supply spinoff opportunities.

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Electric charge: Glencore bets big on car battery metals – by Barbara Lewis and Maiya Keidan (Reuters Canada – December 5, 2017)

https://ca.reuters.com/

LONDON (Reuters) – Glencore (GLEN.L) has increased production of the metals used to make electric car batteries faster than its major mining rivals, according to an industry-wide analysis that shows the scale of a strategy that has big prospective risks and rewards.

The Anglo-Swiss company’s output of cobalt and copper roughly doubled in the five years to 2016, while its production of nickel quadrupled, the research compiled for Reuters by S&P Global Market Intelligence shows. (Graphic: Glencore’s mining production – tmsnrt.rs/2zOQTgo)

Electric vehicle metals account for roughly 50 percent of Glencore’s core profit, more than double the proportion of its major listed competitors – BHP (BLT.L) (BHP.AX), Rio Tinto (RIO.L) (RIO.AX) and Anglo American (AAL.L).

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Iron Ore Enters Bull Market as China’s Curbs Supercharge Steel – by Jake Lloyd-Smith and Ranjeetha Pakiam (Bloomberg News – December 3, 2017)

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Iron ore has rallied back into a bull market. Prices are surging as China’s crackdown on steel output this winter runs down inventories, helping mills’ profitability and stoking demand for high-grade ore even as investors discount signs of ample supply.

Spot ore with 62 percent iron content jumped 3.7 percent to $72.68 a metric ton, the highest since Sept. 14, according to Metal Bulletin Ltd. That’s more than 20 percent up from the low hit in late October, meeting the common bull-market definition. Earlier, on Monday, futures in Asia rallied, with the SGX AsiaClear prices rising 2.9 percent to $71.29 a ton.

Iron ore’s gains — which will aid miners including Rio Tinto Group, BHP Billiton Ltd. and Vale SA — are buttressed by China’s unprecedented push to rein in steel output this winter to cut pollution.

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