February 28, 2012 – Republic of Mining

Proposed MPP committee could help with northern alienation – (CBC Sudbury News – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

http://www.cbc.ca/sudbury/

Stan Sudol, a long-time mining issues writer, said
a special legislative body isn’t the answer and
suggested there’s already enough representation
both federally and provincially.

“We shouldn’t need to do this,” Sudol said. “We have
two prominent northerners — Rick Bartolucci from
Northern Development and Mines and Claude Gravelle
from Natural Resources — who are the chief voices
of northern Ontario at the cabinet table.”

Timiskaming-Cochrane New Democrat MPP John Vanthof hopes minority government will help give life to motion

The issue of northern alienation is being raised once again in Queen’s Park.

Timiskaming-Cochrane New Democrat MPP John Vanthof is calling on MPPs to support a bill that would create a new legislative committee comprised of just northern MPPs.

Timiskaming-Cochrane New Democrat MPP John VanthofVanthof said, although this isn’t the first time MPPs have expressed concern about northern alienation, he said this time is different. He said he is counting on the reality of a minority government to make things better for the north.

Don Coxe on why Buffett has gold all wrong – by Martin Mittelstaedt (Globe and Mail – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 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.

Commodities are once again on a tear.

Gold has been surging, and is closing in on $1,800 (U.S.) an ounce. Crude oil is trading comfortably above $100 a barrel, and even better for commodity bulls, there is pain at the pumps for drivers, with gasoline prices in many parts of Canada around $1.30 a litre. Copper, the metal with a degree in economics, is within striking distance of $4 a pound. Corn, soybeans, wheat – practically everything in commodity land is enjoying buoyant prices.

Can these good times continue?

For answers, we turned to one of Canada’s best known commodity gurus, Donald Coxe, strategy adviser to Bank of Montreal. He is the guiding light behind two commodity-focused closed end funds that trade on the Toronto market, one specializing in agriculture, the other in a wider range of materials that also include precious metals, base metals and energy.

Premiers both have a lot to learn – by Jesse Kline (National Post – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

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

Hot on the heels of Alberta Finance Minister Ron Liepert’s North American tour, Premier Alison Redford is hitting the road – visiting key American cities, including Chicago, New York and Washington – to sell her vision of a more co-operative energy strategy. But along the way, the rookie Premier seems to be getting a hard lesson in the harsh reality of politics.

Ms. Redford is facing a tough challenge: The capacity of existing pipelines will soon be maxed out and Alberta needs to get the approval of other jurisdictions (either B.C. or the United States) to build new ones. Oil sands opponents have a keen understanding of this dilemma. Their strategy has been to block Alberta’s access to foreign markets, in the hopes of preventing further expansion of the oil sands. In order to counter its opponents and enable the land-locked province to export its bitumen, Ms. Redford has been trying to get other politicians to help her sell the oil sands – specifically, the Premier of Canada’s largest province, Dalton McGunity.

“We in Alberta have a resource that matters to the rest of the country,” said Ms. Redford. “It’s not enough for Alberta to be talking about the importance of Keystone in the United States. We need the Premier of Ontario talking about that.”

MPP calls for new Northern committee – by The Daily Press (Timmins Daily Press – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

MPP John Vanthof (NDP — Timiskaming-Cochrane) tabled a motion in the Ontario Legislature on Monday calling for the creation of a new legislative committee that would be made up of Northern MPPs.

“For too long, the Ontario Legislature hasn’t responded to the issues and challenges facing the North,” said Vanthof. “This new standing committee would ensure that Northern Ontario MPPs have a say on decisions affecting the North.”

Under Vanthof’s proposal, MPPs from every Northern riding would be a member of this new committee and would have the power to examine legislation that directly impacts Northern Ontario, investigate issues of importance to northern Ontario, solicit input from citizens, and make recommendations to the legislature and government.

Speaking up for the North – by Wayne Snider (Timmins Daily Press – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

Mayor Tom Laughren meeting with provincial cabinet ministers in Toronto

Mayor Tom Laughren is wearing many hats this week as he meets with some of the most influential politicians in Ontario.

In addition to representing the City of Timmins, Laughren is also getting in face time for the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM), the North Eastern Ontario Municipal Association (NEOMA) and the Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board (DSSAB) this week. The mayor is meeting with numerous provincial cabinet ministers and MPPs at the Ontario Good Roads Association convention in Toronto.

Laughren attended meetings Sunday and Monday, and has more lined up before heading home Tuesday. “It’s been very positive so far,” Laughren said in a phone interview Monday. “There has been a real willingness from ministers to listen.

“They’ve been very supportive and understanding of some of the situations we face.” So far Laughren has met with Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Kathleen Wynne, Northern Development and Mines Minister Rick Bartolucci, and Natural Resources Minister Michael Gravelle.

Manitoba starts $3-billion permanent road network (Canadian Consulting Engineer – February 27, 2012)

February 28, 2012

http://www.canadianconsultingengineer.com/

First Nations communities along the east side of Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba are being connected by permanent roads to the provincial road system for the first time.

The Government of Manitoba’s East Side Road Authority has started construction of roads and bridges along the all-season network, which altogether is estimated to cost approximately $3 billion and once completed will cover 1,028 kilometres. The overall project will take up to 30 years to complete.

SNC-Lavalin established the routes in a two-year long study, known as the Large Area Transportation Network Study, which was officially released in June 2011. Now, AECOM is the prime consulting engineering firm implementing the project, and Dillon Consulting is the contract administrator. Both companies are working on the road and bridge works.

Last week, Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger visited Manto Sipi Cree Nation near Gods River to see first-hand how work is progressing. A series of new permanent and some temporary bridges is under way and Chief Michael Yellowback said the communities are already benefiting, since warming temperatures had put the current winter roads in jeopardy.

McGuinty’s ungracious response to Premier of Alberta’s appeal for support on Keystone XL pipeline – Globe and Mail Editorial (February 28, 2012)

February 28, 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.

Dalton McGuinty, the Premier of Ontario, should not have responded ungraciously to an appeal by Premier Alison Redford of Alberta for solidarity from Ontario and Quebec, in the course of her speech on Friday to the Small Explorers and Producers Association on Friday. In particular, she wants the Premiers of the two Central Canadian provinces to help articulate the importance of the Keystone XL pipeline to the country as a whole.

“If I had my preferences,” said Mr. McGuinty – using the subjunctive mood to express what grammarians call a contrary-to-fact hypothesis – “as to whether we had a rapidly growing oil and gas sector in the West or a lower dollar, I’ll tell you where I stand: with the lower dollar.”

But Mr. McGuinty cannot enforce his preferences. Such exercises of the imagination are futile. There is of course a correlation between the exchange rate of the Canadian dollar and foreign demand for Canadian commodities, and a higher dollar means that Canadian goods – both manufactured products and natural resources – are more expensive.

Redford’s energy vision clashes with McGuinty’s view of oil-sands benefits – Karen Howlett and Dawn Walton (Globe and Mail – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 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.

TORONTO AND CALGARY— Alberta Premier Alison Redford’s vision of a national Canadian energy strategy has bogged down in an increasingly bitter dispute with Ontario over the economic benefits of the oil sands.

Ms. Redford had suggested Ontario should be a more vocal advocate for oil-sands development, on the grounds that related businesses benefit Ontario’s economy. That met with a rebuff on Monday from Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, who said Canada’s high “petro dollar” has hobbled exporters in his province.

That prompted a sharp rebuke from Ms. Redford. She said Mr. McGuinty’s “simplistic” approach to the oil sands and the Canadian dollar is based on a “false paradigm” and suggested that the leader of the country’s one-time economic powerhouse needs to broaden his outlook.

“When we talk about oil sands, it’s not about what’s in Alberta’s best interests,” Ms. Redford told reporters Monday. “It is about what’s in Canada’s best interests.”

Vale saying little about ruling – by Star Staff (Sudbury Star – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

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

LABOUR RELATIONS: Board decision favours union

Vale is still not commenting on the decision Friday by the Ontario Labour Relations Board to direct the matter of eight discharged employees to just cause arbitration.

Vale spokeswoman Angie Robson said Monday at 4 p.m. she had nothing to add to a statement issued Saturday at The Sudbury Star’s request.

Robson said then that Vale is continuing to “review and assess the decision of the Ontario Labour Relations Board. “The OLRB has made no ruling on the correctness or legitimacy of the discharges,” said Robson.

The purpose of the hearings into United Steelworkers unfair bargaining complaint against Vale was not to determine if the firing of eight Steelworkers during their year-long strike against the mining company were justified.

Ontario needs Alberta’s oilsands – by Ezra Levant (Toronto Sun – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012February 28, 2012

The Toronto Sun is the city’s daily tabloid newspaper.

QMI Agency

Three years ago, taxpayers were forced to loan $13.7 billion to General Motors and Chrysler because no banks were crazy enough. Some of that taxpayers’ money has been repaid, but $5.5 billion will never be recovered.

Could you imagine if Alberta’s premier had campaigned against that bailout? Or even spoke out against it now? It’s not like the bailout worked, after all.

There are 2,000 fewer jobs at GM today and 800 fewer at Chrysler. As economist Mark Milke points out, the jobs that were “saved” — at least for now, until the next bailout — cost $90,000 each at Chrysler, and $474,000 each at GM. That’s not a typo. Taxpayers spent $474,000 to “save” each job at Government Motors.

What if Alberta’s premier had said: “If I had my preferences as to whether we prop up a failing, obsolete, over-unionized company in the East or lower taxes, I’ll tell you where I stand: With lower taxes.”

Ontario bashes Alberta oil sands to make play for federal cash – by Terence Corcoran (National Post – February 28, 2012)

February 28, 2012

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper. Terence Corcoran is the editor and columnist for the Financial Post section of the National Post.

By saying no to Alberta’s oil sands, McGuinty is starting a campaign for Ottawa to bail out Ontario

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, his province in hock up to a looming $400-billion and his political future looking grim, has decided to do what demagogues often do best: take on an extraterritorial foe. If you can’t win at home, maybe you can pretend to destroy some mythical foe thousands of kilometres away. These days, what could be safer for a broke lefty premier who has squandered billions on dead-end green energy projects than to direct attention to Alberta’s oil sands and Alberta Premier Alison Redford.

What Mr. McGuinty is really after here, however, is not the humiliation of Alberta but the transfer of federal cash to Ontario. The oil sands comments are a pretext, another McGuinty McGuffin that is the front for other real motives.

For weeks now, Ms. Redford and key members of her Conservative Cabinet — Energy Minister Ted Morton and Finance Minister Ron Liepert — have been trying to enlist Ontario and other provinces in a campaign to boost the oil sands as part of a Canadian Energy Strategy.