FBI arrests seven in $140 million penny stock fraud – by Bernard Vaughan (Reuters U.S. – August 13, 2013)

http://www.reuters.com/

NEW YORK – (Reuters) – Federal prosecutors said on Tuesday they arrested seven people in a more than $140 million international penny stock scheme that involved fraudulently inflating share prices and trading volumes.

Two people charged, including the alleged mastermind, remain at large, according to the office for the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

The fraud generated funds from investors in about 35 nations through various brokerage and bank accounts, according to a statement from the office of U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch in Brooklyn.

The arrests, made in five states and in Canada, followed one of the largest international penny stock investigations ever conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI, according to the statement.

“As alleged in the indictment, the defendants used our securities markets as a platform from which to run elaborate fraudulent schemes to victimize unsuspecting investors across the globe,” Lynch said in a statement. “Where others saw citizens of the world, the defendants saw a pool of potential marks.”

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UPDATE 1-Freeport says Indonesia export ban may cut copper output – by Fergus Jensen (Reuters India – August 13, 2013)

http://in.reuters.com/

Aug 13 (Reuters) – Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc’s Indonesian subsidiary warned that output from Grasberg, the world’s second-biggest copper mine, could be cut by a ban on unprocessed ore exports that takes effect next year.

The Indonesian government is pushing miners, especially foreign-owned operations such as Freeport’s Grasberg, to add more value within the country.

Freeport, which on Tuesday signed two memorandums of understanding with Indonesian companies planning to build smelters that would process its ore, said it might seek a way around the rules during its contract renegotiation with the government.

The company currently processes only around 40 percent of its ore mined in Indonesia at one smelter in East Java, PT Freeport Indonesia Chief Executive Rozik Soetjipto said on Tuesday, but the law now requires it to smelt all of the ore in Indonesia from January 2014.

“If there is no dispensation from the government… our mining capacity will need to be reduced … It’s very complicated,” Soetjipto said at a news conference in Jakarta.

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Northern Promise: Ring of Fire smoulders anew – by Peter Koven (National Post – August 13, 2013)

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

Northern Promise is a six-part series that explores the pace and progress of development in Canada’s remote communities. In this first instalment, Peter Koven covers the glacial-paced evolution of Ontario’s Ring of Fire.

Six years ago, there was no talk about uncertainty over environmental permits or First Nations disputes. The only mood surrounding the Ring of Fire was sheer euphoria.

When a then-unknown company called Noront Resources Ltd. announced its first discovery hole in the James Bay Lowlands in August 2007, it launched a staking rush and investor frenzy of unprecedented proportions for an Ontario project. Junior mining companies flocked to the region, and the mere mention that they had some land was likely to triple their stock price. It all culminated in Noront’s annual meeting that October, a giant party disguised as a shareholder meeting in which Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire was blared at full volume and then-chief executive Richard Nemis was treated like a rock star.

Sadly, that Noront AGM turned out to be the high point for the Ring of Fire story so far.

That is not due to the quality of the discovery. The Ring turned out to be far bigger than first anticipated, with an estimated $30-billion to $50-billion of minerals in the ground.

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Ring of Fire project still experiencing delays (CBC News Sudbury – August 13, 2013)

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

Cliffs unsure when environmental assessment to resume

Talks are continuing around the future of the Ring of Fire chromite project. Frank Iacobucci and Bob Rae have been representing the province and First Nations in on-going discussions.

Mining company Cliffs Natural Resources said it’s happy with the progress that’s been made, but still can’t say when it may resume its environmental assessment. “I think it’s encouraging to have those kinds of discussions and certainly those kind of people involved in that,” Bill Boor, Cliffs vice president said.

“So certainly, it gives me some optimism that we will be able to find a good path forward and get things started like we talked about.”

The company temporarily put its environmental assessment process on hold in June, citing unfinished agreements with the province as one of the reasons for the delay. Speaking on the CBC television program Power and Politics earlier this month, Bob Rae said he had very specific goals for the ongoing negotiations.

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Patent fight could impact half of global rare earth metal supply – by Dorothy Kosich (Mineweb.com – August 13, 2013)

http://www.mineweb.com/

A dispute between a new Chinese rare earth company industrial alliance and Japan’s Hitachi Metals over extension of Nd-Fe-B magnets could impact U.S. and Chinese manufacturing.

RENO (MINEWEB) – China’s desire to promote the development of a domestic rare earth permanent magnet industry is running head-on into Japan’s Hitachi Metals, Ltd. which is trying to protect over 600 sintered rare earth magnet patents globally, including over 100 patents in the U.S., 300 in China and 600 in Japan.

The dispute could impact up to half of the world’s rare earths production. The neodymium- iron-boron alloy magnet is used in motors, audio speakers, headphone, cordless tools, computer hard drives and even golf ball markers.

A year ago, Hitachi Metals, Ltd. and Hitachi Metals North Carolina, Ltd. asked the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to stop the sales of such products and their downstream products that did not have a U.S. patent license. Four Chinese companies entered into settlement agreements with Hitachi in May by paying money to gain the patent license.

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Mexico’s oil policy change challenges Canadian energy sector – by Jeffrey Jones (Globe and Mail – August 13, 2013)

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.

CALGARY — A rush of foreign investment in Mexican oil production in the wake of that country’s energy reforms threatens to fuel competition against Canada in the race to supply the U.S. Gulf Coast market with crude.

Mexico’s government is seeking to break a 75-year state monopoly on energy and lure private investors into the oil, gas and electricity industries to boost flagging output and lower energy costs for manufacturers.

The plan from President Enrique Pena Nieto, unveiled Monday, will be sent to the Congress for approval this week. It includes plans to change articles of the Constitution that prohibit private ownership of Mexican oil and introduce profit-sharing contracts.

If enacted, the reforms would mark the largest private sector opportunity in decades for Mexico’s oil and gas industry, which was nationalized in 1938 and is controlled by state monopoly Pemex. The national oil sector has been a source of Mexican pride since then, so approval of the reforms is still uncertain.

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NEWS RELEASE: Wallbridge Mining Provides Mid-Year Exploration Update (August 13, 2013)

Toronto, Ontario — August 13, 2013 – Wallbridge Mining Company Limited (TSX: WM, FWB: WC7) (“Wallbridge”) today provided a 2013 mid-year exploration update. Exploration activities to date in 2013 have included over 4,000 metres of exploration diamond drilling on the Sudbury area projects. Exploration activities are ongoing, focused on joint venture projects with partners Lonmin Plc (“Lonmin”), Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (“Implats”), and Xstrata Nickel (“Xstrata”). In addition, work is continuing to advance the Broken Hammer PGE-copper project through feasibility and into production.

On the Parkin Offset Joint Venture, which covers a nine kilometre strike length of the Parkin Offset, a review and compilation of the existing and historical drill information has been completed and an updated geological model was created in the first half of 2013. Various targets have been identified within the Parkin Offset Dyke from surface down to 1500 metre level. Follow up drilling and geological interpretation has been proposed for the 2013-2014 exploration program. This $1.0 million 2013/2014 program was approved by the Management Committee. Implats has elected to not participate in the 2013/2014 program. In light of this, Wallbridge will implement a reduced program on the joint venture this year.

The Parkin Offset Dyke hosts platinum, palladium, nickel, copper and gold mineralization typical of other offset dykes in Sudbury with examples at Vale’s Copper Cliff North and South mines and Vale’s Totten mine development. Mineralization on the Parkin Offset includes the Milnet Mine with reported past production of 157,130 tons averaging 2.25 g/t platinum, 2.98 g/t palladium, 0.93 g/t gold, 1.49 % nickel and 1.54 % copper.

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Mexico proposes energy reform, some investors skeptical – by David Alire Garcia and Simon Gardner (Reuters U.S. – August 12, 2013)

http://www.reuters.com/

MEXICO CITY – (Reuters) – President Enrique Pena Nieto on Monday proposed an overhaul of Mexico’s energy industry to offer private companies profit-sharing contracts, but investors said it might be too cautious and some sold Mexican assets.

The proposal calls for changes to key articles of the constitution that ban certain contracts and make oil, gas, petrochemicals and electricity the sole preserve of the state, in a bid to lure investment to stem sliding oil output.

If enacted, the reform would mark the largest private sector opening in decades for Mexico’s energy industry, which was nationalized in 1938 and is controlled by state monopoly Pemex.

However, the centrist government’s bill stops short of proposing concessions to tap Mexican oil, or production-sharing, that were viewed as the best-case scenarios by oil companies.

It also avoids giving private companies ownership over Mexico’s oil and gas and instead gives them a share of profits, in cash but not oil. It was not yet clear how attractive the reform would be for oil majors such as BP Plc and Exxon Mobil Corp.

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Canada must continue to exercise its sovereignty in the North (Calgary Herald Editorial – August 12, 2013)

http://www.calgaryherald.com/index.html

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who made the Arctic a priority soon after coming to power in 2006, apparently needs to educate others in the federal government about how important the North is to the country’s well-being.

National Defence advisers have revealed there’s too much infighting going on in the civil service and that departments are failing to embrace the Tories’ so-called Northern Strategy. Their internal report, which was published last year but just now obtained by Postmedia News, is worrisome.

It is essential that Canada demonstrates its sovereignty in the sparsely populated region, which is rich in natural resources and is expected to become increasingly important for shipping in future years.

“The federal government culture can often be described by its hierarchical leanings and stove pipes which limit the exchange of information and often produce a reluctance to co-operate, lest traditional boundaries be violated or perceived authority be ceded unnecessarily,” says the report by the Defence Science Advisory Board.

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ArcelorMittal remains committed to Nunavut iron ore mine – by Robert Gibbens (Montreal Gazette – August 12, 2013)

http://www.montrealgazette.com/index.html

MONTREAL — ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, said Monday it is fully committed to developing a $4 billion open-pit mine with an annual capacity of 18-20 million tonnes of high-grade iron ore on northern Baffin Island in Nunavut.

Steve Wood, ArcelorMittal’s vice-president, Iron Ore Americas, reaffirmed ArcelorMittal’s future plans for long-term development of the Mary River deposits, after addressing the 23rd World Mining Congress at the Palais des Congrès in Montreal. His comments follow skepticism from some industry sources who questioned whether ArcelorMittal was still committed to such a large capacity, following the collapse in global iron ore prices last year, along with a severe slowdown in steel demand.

ArcelorMittal’s commitment to the Baffin Island development comes at a time when executives like Rio Tinto Alcan CEO Jacynthe Côté are talking about the increased risks facing the mining industry, which is struggling with the vagaries of the economic cycle, rising operating, compliance and social costs, and locations that are more remote and challenging.

The blow to iron ore prices last year led ArcelorMittal to reduce its interest in Baffinland Iron Mines Inc. — owner of the almost inexhaustible Mary River deposits — from 75 per cent to 50 per cent.

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Rio Tinto Coal Fight Burns in Australia – by Rebecca Thurlow and Robb M. Stewart (Wall Street Journal – August 12, 2013)

http://online.wsj.com/home-page

Court Hearing Approaches on Whether to Allow Mine’s Expansion BULGA, Australia—For 30 years, the coal mined in this remote Australian town has fired power plants as far away as Tokyo and Shanghai. More recently, it has been generating heat of a different kind: local opposition to a mining project that would feed Asia’s demand for resources.

Rio Tinto RIO.LN +0.77% PLC is fighting to salvage plans to expand a coal mine near Bulga in New South Wales state—among the company’s biggest in the country—after losing the first round of a legal challenge brought by residents who claimed dust and noise from the project would wreck their community. Rio Tinto has warned that 1,300 jobs could be at risk if its appeal—due to be heard from Wednesday—fails in a Sydney court.

Mining officials say more than Rio Tinto’s proposed investment of 600 million Australian dollars (US$552 million) is at risk in the dispute. Australia accounts for one-third of global coal exports, but the industry is under stress as China’s cooling economy sends prices of the fuel to three-year lows. Already 10,000 coal-mining jobs have been lost as companies such as BHP Billiton Ltd. BHP.AU +2.42% and Glencore Xstrata GLNCY +0.80% PLC respond to weaker demand by closing mines or cutting output.

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NEWS RELEASE: Partnership opens mining sector employment doors for First Nations members

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

Ontario Mining Association member Noront Resources is the industry partner in a new alliance to provide training for future mining jobs to the people of Matawa First Nations. The Ring of Fire Aboriginal Training Alliance (RoFATA) has received $5.9 million from the federal government’s Skills and Partnership Fund to support that goal.

“Our government’s top priorities are creating jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity across the country and right here in Northern Ontario,” said Greg Rickford, Minister of State Responsible for the Ring of Fire. “It is important that all Canadians have the necessary skills and training they need to succeed.”

RoFATA was created through a partnership of Noront Resources, Matawa First Nations, Kikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment and Training Services (KKETS) and Confederation College in Thunder Bay. RoFATA’s key objective is to provide training-to-employment opportunities to support Matawa First Nations people. The Matawa First Nation encompasses nine communities.

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Canada’s new science minister wants green mining growth (QMI Agency – August 12th, 2013)

http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/home.html

OTTAWA – Newly appointed Minister of State for Science and Technology Greg Rickford gave a speech at the World Mining Congress Monday in which he referred to the industry as a “cornerstone of the Canadian economy” and iterated the need for continued growth.

He described how the feds have streamlined the regulatory process, eliminated redundant bureaucratic requirements and made project reviews more market sensitive.

But unlike other, similar speeches given by his Conservative comrades, Rickford’s emphasized environmental stewardship and the need for the mining industry to “(obtain) a social licence to operate.”

If the social licence can be defined as a trust among parties that all are benefiting satisfactorily and feel their priorities and concerns are taken into account, then the renewal of such a thing between the federal government, mining companies and the local communities they affect – namely First Nations – could prove invaluable. Because when it comes to the resource extraction industry in particular, public confidence in “the system” is abysmal, said Rob Roach, vice president of research at the Canada West Foundation.

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Europe’s slowdown forces Finland to turn to Russia again – by Jussi Rosendahl (Reuters India – August 12, 2013)

http://in.reuters.com/

HELSINKI, Aug 11 (Reuters) – After decades of pursuing trade with western Europe, Finland is becoming dependent on Russia again as that country’s burgeoning middle class and wealthy investors provide opportunities for growth lacking in recession-hit Europe.

While some Finns still view their eastern neighbour and former ruler with suspicion, expectations of only a slow European recovery mean more businesses are likely to embrace closer ties with Russia, signalling a readjustment after two decades of close commercial relations with Europe.

Recent trade data show a shift has already begun. Finnish exports to the rest of the European Union fell 4 percent year-on-year in the first five months of 2013, while those to Russia rose 4 percent.

Judging from second-quarter corporate results, which showed a wide range of companies hit by uncertainty in Europe, Finland may become even more dependent on Russia. Top companies such as retailer Kesko and department store chain Stockmann have cited Russia as their strongest card.

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Decade-long Australia mining boom turns to bust (The Associated Press/Las Vegas Sun – August 10, 2013)

http://www.lasvegassun.com/

The Australian mining boom built over a decade on Chinese hunger for energy and raw materials is turning into bust for many business owners as China’s cooling growth reverberates through a country accustomed to winning from the rise of an Asian economic giant.

Endowed with vast mineral resources, Australia has been the envy of the Western world for avoiding recession during the global financial crisis while other wealthy countries drowned in debt. But the country now faces a potentially painful transition as it weans itself off a heavy reliance on its two biggest exports, coal and iron ore.

Australia’s dilemma underscores that China’s long run of supercharged growth has given it enough weight in the world economy to create not only winners, but losers too when its own fortunes change.

Trade between Australia and China equaled 7.6 percent of Australia’s $1.5 trillion economy last year, a dramatic threefold increase from a decade earlier, according to an Associated Press analysis of trade data. During that time, mining companies gushed multibillion dollar profits while jobs as mundane as maintenance commanded salaries above $120,000.

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