February 9, 2012 – Republic of Mining

Goldcorp chair Ian Telfer’s name in an OSC insider trading probe is a high-profile symbol – by David Olive (Toronto Star – February 9, 2012)

February 9, 2012

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.

Chances are you have not heard of Eda Marie Agueci. Until she was suspended by her employer a few days ago, Agueci was a drone in a second-tier Toronto investment firm. She is alleged by the Ontario Securities Commission with being at or near the centre of a ring of friends and relatives engaged in improper insider trading practices at least from 2007.

By contrast, you might well know of Ian W. Telfer, 65, chairman of Vancouver-based Goldcorp Inc., one of the world’s largest gold-mining enterprises.

Telfer is a highly regarded figure, and rightly so. He built Goldcorp into an enterprise with $3.8 billion in 2010 and profits of $1.6 billion, with resource-development projects on four continents. Goldcorp has created a multitude of jobs worldwide, and kept Vancouver on the map as a centre of mining expertise when much of that activity has migrated to Calgary and Toronto.

Along with his 40 or so years of mining expertise, Telfer is a philanthropist whose largesse includes the Telfer School of Management at his alma mater back East, the University of Ottawa.

Historic Canada-China trade agreements benefit both mining sectors – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – February 9, 2012)

February 9, 2012February 9, 2012

www.mineweb.com

After 20 years of negotiations, Canada and China are closer to ratification of a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement that may benefit mining and mining services in both nations.

RENO – The Canada Mining Innovation Council applauded Wednesday’s announcement by Prime Minister Stephen Harper that Canada and China completed negotiations on a historic Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA).

Negotiations for this agreement took 18 years and major players in mining, manufacturing, and the financial sectors were consulted to get to this stage. Harper and Chinese Premier Wen Jaibao Wednesday signed a declaration of intent which must be legally reviewed and ratified by both governments.

If ratified, Canadian mining companies would enjoy more protection and promotion of their Chinese investments through legally-binding rights and obligation. Wen also called for studies into the feasibility of a free-trade agreement between China and Canada.

Jiang Shan, minister counselor from China’s Ministry of Commerce, told China Daily, “Chinese enterprises could make forays into or add investment in the categories of coal, iron ore and potash manure.”

Gold miners need gold above $1,650 to keep nose above water – by Geoff Candy (Mineweb.com – February 8, 2012)

February 9, 2012

www.mineweb.com

According to a number of gold company CEO’s it costs about $1,200 to pull an ounce of gold out of the ground.

CAPE TOWN – For the gold industry to keep its nose above water and maintain the current production base, gold prices need to stay above $1,650 an ounce.

Speaking to Mineweb from the sidelines of the 2012 African Mining Indaba conference, AngloGold Ashanti CEO, Mark Cutifani, said, at a price of $1,650 per ounce, gold miners are “only just returning the weighted average cost of capital for the industry”.

This is the number that gold miners need to work from on a real basis he says, but added, “The average cost to produce an ounce of gold, all up, everything loaded in, is about $1,200 to $1,250.

Harmony Gold CEO, Graham Briggs, agrees with Cutifani saying, from Harmony’s perspective, the all-in cost to pull an ounce of gold out of the ground is around $1,250. This figure includes everything from the cost of the Harmony head office to maintenance and its exploration programme which is why it is higher than the $958/oz cash operating cost figure reported by the miner at its half year results on Monday.

Sudbury slowly growing – by Mike Whitehouse (Sudbury Star – February 9, 2012)

February 9, 2012

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

Greater Sudbury’s population has increased over the past five years by about the paid attendance of the average Sudbury Wolves home game, figures show.

Population changes in communities across Canada from 2006 to 2011 were disclosed Wednesday by Statistics Canada, the first of a series of reports in coming months based on results of last year’s country-wide census.

It’s the third census in a row Greater Sudbury’s population has increased — a success for a community that has endured serious population declines in the recent past, a city official says.

Figures pegged Sudbury’s census metropolitan area population at 160,770 in 2011. That’s up from 158,258 recorded during the 2006 census, which was up from 155,225 in 2001.

[Sudbury Vale workers] Back to work – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – Febraury 9, 2012)

February 9, 2012

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

Vale’s five Sudbury mines should be back in production by the end of next week, says a company spokeswoman.

Production at the mines was halted Jan. 30 after an experienced development miner, Stephen Perry, was killed on the job at Coleman Mine on Jan. 29.

Since then, Vale has been working with employees to ensure all five mines in Sudbury — Coleman, Creighton, Stobie, Garson and Copper Cliff — are safe places for production and maintenance employees to return to work.

“Production will start resuming at our mines as safety issues are addressed and completed,” Vale’s Angie Robson said Wednesday. “We expect that by the end of next week, most of our mines will be back into production.”

Go west, young Canadians – by Margaret Wente (Globe and Mail – February 9, 2012)

February 9, 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.

“Like it or not, Canada’s stupendous natural resources are
our future. They are the envy of the world, and will ensure
our prosperity for many years to come….The question is not
whether we should develop these resources, but how wisely and
how well.” (Margaret Wente – Globe and Mail)

When Caterpillar closed a plant in Southern Ontario last week and threw 450 people out of work, some commentators treated it like a national catastrophe. Caterpillar, which is notorious for its hardball labour tactics, plans to relocate the jobs in Indiana, where people are willing to work for half of what the unionized workers in Ontario got.

I felt awful for the workers. Who wouldn’t? But Ontario has to compete with the entire world. And even if those jobs don’t move away, many are being swept away by new technology. The mighty engine of Confederation has turned into its rust belt. But nobody in the rest of Canada is feeling particularly sorry for us. We squandered the fat years on a vast expansion of our government and threw away our money on foolish green energy schemes. Now we face a gloomy decade of tax increases, deteriorating health care and deep cuts to everything. Did I mention that the average detached house in Toronto costs $606,000?

NEWS RELEASE: Canada world’s top exploration country for ten years

February 9, 2012

Metals Economic Group’s 22nd Corporate Exploration Strategies Study

U.S. dollar currency is used throughout this press release.

Vancouver, British Columbia, January 24, 2012 – According to Metals Economics Group’s (MEG) Corporate Exploration Strategies (CES), Canada has been the world’s top country for exploration for the last ten years, since overtaking Australia in 2002. Canada’s allocation for 2011 represents 18% of worldwide spending. (Metals Economics Group’s study covers expenditures for precious and base metals, diamonds, uranium, and some industrial minerals.)

“Three provinces—Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia accounted for more than 60% of the $3.1 billion in planned Canadian nonferrous exploration spending in 2011”, states Jason Goulden, MEG’s Vice President, Research. “Of the 781 companies that planned to explore in Canada in 2011, almost 91% were based in Canada, together contributing about 82% of the planned Canadian nonferrous exploration total.”

Goulden adds, “Worldwide, Canadian-based companies accounted for more than half of the 2,400+ active explorers—each with a budget of at least $100,000—covered by the 2011 edition of CES, and together accounted for 40% of the $17.25 billion budgeted by all companies for nonferrous exploration in 2011.”