November 20, 2012 – Republic of Mining

Cliffs Natural Resources idles iron-ore production on weak demand – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – November 19, 2012)

November 20, 2012

http://www.miningweekly.com/page/americas-home

TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – New York- and Paris-listed Cliffs Natural Resources on Monday said it would idle mine expansion in Quebec and a portion of production at two US operations as a result of weak iron-ore prices.

The company, which is the largest producer of iron-ore pellets in the US, said it would idle iron-ore production at its Bloom Lake mine Phase 2 expansion, in Quebec, and at two of its US iron-ore operations, Northshore Mining, in Minnesota, and at the Empire mine, in Michigan.

Cliffs said it was adjusting its 2013 operating plans for its North American iron-ore businesses to align with expected sales volumes. These production decreases were driven by increased iron-ore pricing volatility and lower North American steelmaking utilisation rates.

“Disciplined capital allocation is core to our operating strategy and reducing higher cost production will enhance our financial flexibility in both the short and longer term. Despite today’s announcement, we are still committed to our investments in Canada and believe Bloom Lake will deliver significant long-term value over time,” Cliffs chairperson and CEO Joseph Carrabba said.

At the Bloom Lake mine, Cliffs had suspended certain components of the second phase of expansion, including the completion of the concentrator and load-out facility. As a result, construction related to these activities was halted and third-party contractors were demobilised immediately.

Chamber and Unions unite to push for Duluth Complex base/precious metals mines – by Lawrence Williams (Mineweb.com – November 20, 2012)

June 19, 2013November 20, 2012

http://www.mineweb.com/

Mining on the environmentally sensitive Duluth Metallurgical complex in Minnesota is gleaning strong local support from a union/Chamber of Commerce alliance.

LONDON – In what must be a welcome development for prospective miners, PolyMet and Duluth Metals, Minnesota’s Chamber of Commerce and local mining unions will be mounting a combined campaign to try to ensure that mining of what has to be one of the world’s most significant mineral deposits, is given the go-ahead by state and federal bodies.

According to a report in the Duluth News Tribune, The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, the state’s largest business group, and the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council have formed “Jobs for Minnesotans” to promote development of the state’s first-ever massive base and precious metals mining operations on the Duluth Metallurgical Complex which hosts one of the world’s largest potential polymetallic orebodies and which could see large scale mining for the next century, with its associated employment and tax benefits for the state and federal economies.

The Duluth Complex hosts an enormous resource of relatively low grade polymetallic mineralisation, which in combination represents perhaps the world’s largest ever discovery of an orebody containing copper, nickel, cobalt, pgms and gold – and Polymet and the Duluth Metals 60:40 jv with Antofagasta – the Twin Metals project – are the two most advanced projects on the Complex at the moment. However the area where these enormous deposits is hosted lies in an environmentally sensitive locality between the Boundary Waters recreational area and brownfields mining and processing sites left over from the still significant Minnesota taconite iron ore mines and process plants.

NEWS RELEASE: Minister Oliver: Responsible Resource Development Contributes to Jobs for Aboriginal Peoples Across Canada

November 20, 2012

TORONTO, ONTARIO — (Marketwire) — 11/19/12 — The Honourable Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, today highlighted the importance of Responsible Resource Development to jobs for Aboriginal peoples and Canada’s economy. The Minister discussed how the Federal Government’s plans will contribute to further increasing Aboriginal people’s participation in the mining and exploration sector.

“The Harper Government is fully committed to supporting Canadian jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity,” said Minister Oliver. “Our plans support the 31,000 Aboriginal peoples employed in our natural resources sector and will result in opportunities for thousands more.”

The Mining Association of Canada estimates that 7.5 percent of Canadians employed in mining are Aboriginal – making mining Canada’s largest private employer of Aboriginal peoples.

“This government is demonstrating leadership that is resulting in new economic opportunities for Aboriginal communities across Canada,” said Minister Oliver. “Our commitment to creating new markets and keeping taxes low is contributing to an estimated 600 projects over the next 10 years that will increase Aboriginal jobs and economic benefits.”

The mining sector expects to hire approximately 100,000 additional workers over the next decade to coincide with new natural resources projects. Responsible Resource Development strengthens support specifically for Aboriginal peoples by:

Mining veteran [Pierre Gratton] insists record demand for commodities not over – just paused – by Pav Jordan (Globe and Mail – November 19, 2012)

November 20, 2012

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.

Pierre Gratton gets irritated when hear others tell him the global commodities supercycle has ended. That’s not especially surprising: After all, as president of the Mining Association of Canada (MAC), it’s part of Mr. Gratton’s job to be bullish about metals.

But the industry veteran also believes the doomsayers lack historical perspective. Yes, he admits, commodities are facing a downturn – but it’s a lot less black-and-white than simple supply and demand.

“Having been in this business now for 13 years, there is a very significant difference between the mood in this downturn and the kind of attitude and the kind of mood that I used to see in 2000 and 2001,” Mr. Gratton said in an interview.

“It’s just a whole different kind of feeling. Back then, times were tough and there was no sense it was going to get better, whereas now, times are tough, but we know it’s going to get better, so it’s a different mentality.”

Global commodity prices staggered in recent months, battered by fears that a strong global economic recovery could be more elusive than initially thought.

Glenstrata deal costs chairman Bond his job – by Clara Ferreira-Marques and Emma Farge (Reuters Canada – November 20, 2012)

November 20, 2012

http://ca.reuters.com/

LONDON/ZUG, Switzerland (Reuters) – Shareholders in Xstrata (XTA.L: Quote) prompted the resignation of the miner’s chairman on Tuesday as they voted through a $31 billion takeover by trader Glencore (GLEN.L: Quote) but twice snubbed a controversial pay plan to retain key managers.

Xstrata Chairman John Bond, formerly chairman of HSBC (HSBA.L: Quote) and Vodafone (VOD.L: Quote), would have been chairman of the new Glencore Xstrata.

Bond had been under fire for months over a 140 million pound ($223 million) “golden handcuffs” package for managers the Xstrata board said were key to operations, and over what some investors felt was an insufficient fight for better terms from Glencore, Xstrata’s top shareholder.

It took an unprecedented, activist stance from the Gulf state of Qatar, an unexpected kingmaker and second-largest shareholder in Xstrata, to force Glencore to improve the offer – just hours before a September shareholder vote, later cancelled.

At the shareholder meeting in the lakeside Swiss town of Zug activist investor Knight Vinke, also a top 25 Xstrata shareholder, accused the board of “governance failings” and said it had no confidence in its independence and robustness.

Cliffs considers Vermilion river for smelter’s water supply – by CBC Radio Sudbury (November 19, 2012)

November 20, 2012

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

Other industrial development planned for Vermilion as well

Cliffs Natural Resources says it’s evaluating a number of water sources, including the Vermilion River, for its proposed ferrochrome smelter in Capreol in Sudbury — and that has the local stewardship committee concerned. Vermilion River Stewardship chair Linda Heron said the river can’t take any more development.

“For years the water levels have been going lower and lower, so we question what we can afford to lose additionally out of the river,” she said.

There are already five proposals for hydro-electric dams that could end up on the Vermilion River, in addition to the Cliffs project. Xeneca has four proposed Hydro electric dams on the Vermilion River, and Water Power Group plans to put a hydroelectric dam in Capreol.

Operating within watershed

Jason Aagenes, director of Environmental Affairs with Cliffs, said an environmental assessment will determine the effect of operating within the Vermilion River watershed, especially during extended low-flow river conditions.

An Industry Struggles to Keep Its Luster – by John Tagliabue (New York Times – November 6, 2012)

November 20, 2012

http://www.nytimes.com/

ANTWERP, Belgium — Step off the train here and you cannot miss the signs on the stores: Diamond World, Diamond Gallery, Diamond Creations or simply, Diamonds. Of late, there are the banners and posters reading simply, “Antwerp Loves Diamonds.”
Though this Belgian port has had a love affair with diamonds for centuries, of late it seems to be losing some of its passion. For years now, much of the lucrative but labor-intensive business of cutting and polishing stones has been drifting to low-wage centers in the developing world, like Mumbai, Dubai and Shanghai.

More ominously, in recent years, diamond traders have been accused of a range of violations, including tax fraud, money laundering and cheating on customs payments when buying and selling stones.

Local business leaders recognize the threat. This year, they embarked on what local newspapers described as a “charm offensive.” In a 160-page program, titled Project 2020, the World Diamond Center, a trade-promotion group, outlined plans to draw business back to Antwerp by simplifying and accelerating trading via online systems. That, the industry hopes, will win back some of the polishing business lost to Asian countries with new technology, like fully automated diamond polishers, and generally burnish the image of the diamond business in the public’s jaded eye.

“This is our strength,” said Ari Epstein, 36, a lawyer who is chief executive of the World Diamond Center and the son of a diamond trader, whose father emigrated from a village in Romania in the 1960s. “We have the critical mass so that every diamond finds a buyer and seller.”

‘Pause’ ONTC divestment: Murray – by Dave Dale (North Bay Nugget – November 19, 2012)

November 20, 2012

http://www.nugget.ca/

NORTH BAY – Big city Liberal politician Glen Murray said Northern Ontario is the key to the province’s future and should be run by a regional authority.

And Murray, who is seeking to replace out-going Premier Dalton McGuinty as the Grit party leader, said they should “pause” the divestment of the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission until regional priorities are set.

“I’d put the pause button on ONTC decisions,” he said while in North Bay, Sunday. “We should not be making these one off decisions.”

Murray is stumping for Liberal Party membership support and visited Thunder Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury pitching his campaign platform. Tax cuts for the middle class and small business, no-money-down university or college and Northern Ontario autonomy.

“The north needs it’s own voice,” he said, noting it’s a resource-rich region with residents, business owners and community leaders with a stake in its success.

Murray said the shape of the authority could be decided by referendum — whether a general northern government or separate regional government n the northeast and northwest.

Oilsands will be a definining showdown in battle between forms of capitalism – by Jim Prentice (National Post – November 20, 2012)

November 20, 2012

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

Jim Prentice, the former Calgary MP who who served in the Harper cabinet as minister of industry and later as minister of environment and is now an executive at CIBC, addressed a conference in London on foreign investment in the oilsands, and the proposed $15 billion purchase of Nexen Inc. by China’s state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp. The text follows.

The theme of our conference is, of course, Energy Strategies for Turbulent Times. These are indeed turbulent times and no one is unaffected, even Canada. In that context, I have been asked to speak today on the subject of foreign investment in Canada – in particular as it pertains to oil and gas. This topic is demanding, controversial, relevant to investors and, of late, the source of vigorous public and media debate in Canada.

This controversy has been building for years and it achieved a force in recent months that can fairly said to be “turbulence”. This is because of two proposed investments in Canadian energy companies by two State Owned Enterprises – Petronas from Malaysia, and CNOOC from China.

This is a pivotal time for the Canadian government. It must consider its policy on foreign investment in light of the growing and evolving role of SOEs in Canada’s oil and gas industry and across its economy, and in the face of changing geopolitical realities.

Expanding trade with Asia is the next big thing – by Justin Trudeau (National Post – November 20, 2012)

November 20, 2012

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

I opened my leadership campaign last month with the argument that, if the Liberal party is to become a positive force for change in Canada, we need to give voice to the aspirations of our middle class.

Personal income for middle-class Canadians has stagnated for more than a generation. This deeply troubling development is masked by a rise in family income, due to the entry of a new generation of well-educated, hard-working women into the workforce. While overwhelmingly positive, we must be clear-eyed in understanding that this is a one-time benefit.

So, we’re left with the vexing question: Where will the next wave of growth for the middle class come from?

Public and private investment in science, and the innovation and productivity growth it spurs, will unquestionably play a major role. A renewed national commitment to build the world’s most educated citizenry is essential, as is a more strategic approach to our natural resources. We also need to keep costs competitive and make smart infrastructure investments.

But all of these, while necessary, will be insufficient to provide the opportunities we want for the middle class unless we get one big thing right. Canada’s economic prospects have always been tied to trade. We are a small market that must export and attract investment to create jobs and growth, and import to keep costs down and provide choice for middle-class families.

The dauphin [Justin Trudeau] acknowledges oilsands realities – by John Ivison (National Post – November 20, 2012)

November 20, 2012

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

OTTAWA — The kids on Twitter were onside with Justin Trudeau’s call to decriminalize pot, but what will they make of his latest policy stance – that the CNOOC acquisition of Calgary oil company Nexen is “good for Canada”?

Opinion polls consistently show the public opposes the deal, but in an op-ed for Postmedia newspapers to coincide with a campaign stop in Calgary Tuesday, the Liberal leadership front-runner said that he supports the $15-billion deal because Chinese investment will create middle-class Canadian jobs.

“Foreign investment raises productivity and hence living standards for Canadian families. More fundamentally, it is in Canada’s interests to broaden and deepen our relationship with the world’s second largest economy,” he said.

Amen to all that. But it is somewhat surprising coming from a candidate that polls suggest could become Prime Minister, as long as he continues to mouth vacuous tinsel about hope and change. Very brave, as Sir Humphrey might have put it on Yes, Minister.

It seems Mr. Trudeau can’t resist frustrating his critics, be it in the boxing ring, or in the political arena. Just days after Martha Hall Findlay entered the leadership race with the provocative taunt: “It’s not good enough to talk about values and principles,” Mr. Trudeau has come forth with a bold call for a more coherent strategy to diversify our trade away from the United States and open up Asian markets.

Transformative Impact: Mining and Canadian First Nations – by Joe Oliver, Canadian Natural Resources Minister (November 19, 2012)

November 20, 2012

The Honourable Joe Oliver, Minister of Natural Resources opening remarks at the Canadian Aboriginal Mineral Association Conference in Toronto, Canada, November 19, 2012.

Check Against Delivery

Thank you very much, Bill, and ladies and gentlemen. First, let me say how much I appreciated the welcome and the prayer from Elder Garry Sault of Mississaugas of New Credit who have welcomed us into their traditional territory. I’d also like to acknowledge Hans Matthews, President of the Canadian Aboriginal Minerals Association, Aboriginal leaders and chiefs in attendance this morning. My thanks to CAMA and the Canada Forum for their invitation to share a few words and to be part of your 20th anniversary celebrations. I’m delighted to join you this morning.

Permettez-moi d’abord de remercier l’Association canadienne des minéraux pour les autochtones et leur Forum canadien pour l’amiable invitation à prononcer quelques mots et à participer aux célébrations de votre 20e anniversaire. Je suis vraiment enchanté d’être parmi vous ce matin.

I applaud your association for increasing understanding and awareness among industry, Aboriginal communities and government about the knowledge and expertise that First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities bring to the mining sector across our great country.

Mining can have a wonderfully transformative impact on Aboriginal communities and indeed all communities. Let me give you a small anecdote.