January 24, 2012 – Republic of Mining

Vale: Investing in the Future – by Gay Sutton (Business Excellence Magazine – Janauary 23, 2012)

January 24, 2012

This article is from Business Excellence Magazine

When the world’s second largest diversified mining company Vale acquired the iconic Canadian nickel miner Inco five years ago it was the beginning of the largest investment in Canadian mining in the country’s history, as Cory McPhee explains to Gay Sutton.

Superficially, the icy northern reaches of Canada and the hot arid deserts of Australia have little in common other than the language. Look more closely, and both benefit from enormous mineral resources that account for a significant portion of the national economy and an even greater percentage of their exports. Moreover, some of these resources have been mined for more than a century and a half. In both cases a number of famous mining towns and cities have sprung up – providing services, products, homes and entertainment for those working in some of the world’s least hospitable places.

The city of Sudbury in Ontario is one such place. With long cold winters and brief but warm and humid summers, it began as a simple mining camp in the rich geological region known as the Sudbury Basin. Today Sudbury is a city of some 158,000 people and its economy has diversified to include financial services, business, tourism, healthcare and education. But mining continues to play a significant role. According to figures produced by the Greater Sudbury Development Corporation last year, Vale – which can trace its history back to 1902 when Inco opened its first mine in Sudbury – is still the city’s largest employer.

Cameco’s requests to nuclear commission opposed by Northwatch – by Dan Bellerose (Sault Star – January 24, 2012)

May 16, 2012January 24, 2012

This article came from: http://www.saultstar.com/

The largest commercial uranium refinery in the western world, located 140 kilometres east of Sault Ste. Marie, immediately west of Blind River, is seeking to double its licence period and increase production capacity.

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission heard the application from Cameco Blind River late last week in Port Hope, Ont., and a decision is expected in the coming weeks.

Cameco, whose current five-year licence expires Feb. 29, wants to double its operating licence period from five years, to 10 years, and increase production capacity by 6,000 tonnes, from 18,000 to 24,000 tonnes.

“Our environmental and safety performance merits a longer licence term,” says Bill Koch, director of public and government affairs for the Cameco fuel services division.

NEWS RELEASE: NWT Mining Industry Recommends Mineral Resource Potential Remain Open for Development in the Ramparts Region

January 24, 2012

Yellowknife, NT – January 20, 2011.

The Chamber of Mines has submitted its recommendations that important mineral resources in the 10,000 square kilometre Ts’ude niline Tu’eyeta, or Ramparts area of the Northwest Territories be protected for its future development potential. The area is a candidate protected area under the NWT Protected Areas Strategy.

Geoscience studies reveal that large parts of the Ramparts area have the potential to host deposits of zinc, lead, copper, diamonds and oil & gas that could create socio‐economic opportunities for the K’asho Got’ine people, for the Sahtu region, and for the Northwest Territories. To maximize the opportunities, the Chamber recommends that the moderate to high mineral potential areas not be included under any protected area designation that blocks development forever.

The Chamber recommends the Sahtu Land Use Plan be the tool used for protection as it can be modified by future generations to accommodate their needs, it provides a more flexible approach to balancing environmental values and economic development, and it provides more control to local communities.

‘An aboriginal uprising is inevitable’ if Harper doesn’t listen, chief threatens – by By Peter O’Neil

January 24, 2012

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

The announcements underscore the Harper government’s
messaging that the best route out of aboriginal poverty
is economic and resource development instead of social
program spending.

OTTAWA — Canada could face an Arab Spring-style “uprising” if Prime Minister Stephen Harper doesn’t give a clear indication in his meeting with aboriginal leaders here Tuesday that he’s prepared to take their concerns seriously, a B.C. native leader warned Monday.

“We must do better. The honour of the Crown and the very integrity of Canada as a nation is at stake,” said Stewart Phillip, grand chief of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, in a news release issued by the Assembly of First Nations’ B.C. wing.

“Otherwise, an aboriginal uprising is inevitable.”

An estimated 400 chiefs from across Canada, including 47 from British Columbia and 22 from Alberta, have gathered here for their first face-to-face meeting with Harper since the Conservatives formed government in 2006.

Pan American Silver buys Minefinders Corp. – by Brenda Bouw (Globe and Mail – January 24, 2012)

May 4, 2015January 24, 2012

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 – Pan American Silver Corp. plans to create a silver-producing powerhouse with the proposed $1.5-billion acquisition of Mexico-focused Minefinders Corp. But investors weren’t impressed, driving down Pan American shares 10 per cent on Monday.

Pan American is offering cash or shares – or both – for fellow Vancouver-based company Minefinders, owner of the Dolores silver and gold mine in northern Mexico and the nearby La Bolsa property set to begin production later this year.

The deal will create a combined company valued at $4-billion and double Pan American’s silver production to 50 million ounces by 2015, with eight mines across Latin America. Still, Pan American shareholders showed concern about the dilution of their shares as a result of the transaction.

There is hope for Canada’s First Nations – by Ken Coates and Greg Poelzer (National Post – January 24, 2012)

January 24, 2012

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

…and a boiling crisis in Ontario. The Ontario government
does not really get the challenges and opportunities of its
north, particularly those of aboriginal communities, and is
currently more preoccupied with resource development than
aboriginal issues. (Ken Coates and Greg Poelzer)

Ken Coates is professor of history at the University of Waterloo. Greg Poelzer is an associate professor of political studies at the University of Saskatchewan.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s meetings this week with First Nations leaders have a quiet urgency about them. It has been a long while — really not since the final negotiations on the Kelowna Accord late in 2005 — since there was a First Nations meeting of this importance.

The shadow of Attawapiskat — and David Inlet and Kashechewan and other communities in crisis — hangs over this gathering. Conditions on many First Nations reserve communities are appalling and represent a national disgrace. Governments and First Nations leaders alike agree that education and economic opportunity are the keys to long-term revitalization. There is also a consensus that the housing conditions, facilities and infrastructure in many communities need immediate upgrading.

There is less agreement about what to do next. First Nations want more money; the Government of Canada wants greater accountability and transparency. First Nations demand greater autonomy and access to resource revenues. The Government wants improvements in local governance and viable economic strategies, particularly for remote communities.