July 7, 2014 – Republic of Mining

Taseko sees ‘positive future’ for New Prosperity mine after high court ruling – by Gordon Hoekstra (Vancouver Sun – July 6, 2014)

July 7, 2014

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

Tsilhqot’in Nation says company is in denial about central-B.C. project, mine is dead

A Supreme Court of Canada decision may have opened the door to a twice rejected gold and copper mine mired in a legal battle.

That’s because the $1.1-billion New Prosperity mine falls outside the 1,750 square kilometres of territory in central B.C. for which the Tsilhqot’in now has title and where consent is needed for industrial projects, says Taseko Mines Ltd.

The aboriginal title question always hung over the project, and now it’s settled, says the company. “It’s the only mine development deposit (in British Columbia) that people now know for sure is not in aboriginal title area,” says Brian Battison, vice-president of corporate affairs for Taseko.

The Tsilhqot’in continue to oppose the project, citing hunting and trapping rights, and admonish the company for continuing to push a project unwanted by First Nations. “I think Taseko has a very twisted view of things. I think it’s very, very irresponsible,” said chief Joe Alphonse, tribal chairman of the Tsilhqot’in.

The continuing dispute over New Prosperity shows how the complex nature of resource development in British Columbia — where aboriginal, industrial, government and local non-native interests often overlap — will continue to pose a challenge despite the landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision.

BHP Billiton looks to catch up to Rio Tinto in ironman contest – by Amanda Saunders (The Age – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

http://www.theage.com.au/business

Miner BHP Billiton is confident it can ”close the gap” with iron ore arch-rival Rio Tinto on margin per tonne within a few years.

And it is likely to develop the $20 billion outer-harbour project at Port Hedland rather than expand its inner-harbour operation if it moves to produce beyond its current annual run rate target of 270 million tonnes. BHP president of iron ore Jimmy Wilson says the miner is trailing Rio on margin per tonne, and ”our desire absolutely is to close that gap”.

He said the miner would never be in a competition with Rio on volumes but stressed ”where we would like to compete is on the cost of production side, more importantly, the margin per tonne that we make”.

”While we are marginally behind Rio at the moment, we’ve got to back the fact that we are going to eliminate that gap in the foreseeable future,” he says.

”What is the foreseeable future? I’d be disappointed if it took more than a couple of years. ”I do respect our competitors – Rio, Fortescue, Vale – [and] none of them is standing still either. So, I think, at the end of the day, you are going to see an improvement come through for all of those businesses.”

Thomas Berger’s latest fight: Keeping the Yukon wilderness wild – by Jason Unrau (Globe and Mail – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

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.

It’s been half a lifetime for Thomas Berger since he recommended – successfully – that a proposed pipeline along Yukon’s Beaufort Sea coast be scrapped, and a trunkline from the mouth of the Mackenzie River delta through the Northwest Territories to Alberta be delayed indefinitely.

But the 81-year-old lawyer’s latest interest in Canada’s North is not to weigh mega-project pros and cons, but to test the limits of the government’s authority over Crown land, entwined in a modern land claim in the Yukon known as the Umbrella Final Agreement (UFA).

“My legacy goes a long way back and I won’t be around to know what people make of it,” Mr. Berger said. “But this is a case I agreed as a lawyer to undertake. I think it’s an important case.”

Mr. Berger’s clients – Nacho Nyak Dun and Trodek Hwech’in First Nations, Yukon Conservation Society and CPAWS – are suing the territorial government to try to protect a 68,000-square-kilometre Xanadu of unpopulated wilderness known as the Peel watershed.

Rich in flora and fauna – Trondek Hwech’in Chief Eddie Taylor describes the Peel as a university and a breadbasket for the First Nation – the Peel also possesses incredible mineral and hydrocarbon potential.

How politics nearly ruined deal to end South Africa’s longest strike – by ED CROPLEY, JOE BROCK AND ZANDI SHABALALA (Reuters India – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

http://in.reuters.com/

JOHANNESBURG – (Reuters) – Forty-eight hours after talks to end South Africa’s longest strike hit a brick wall when the mining minister suddenly pulled out, a bishop and an anti-establishment corporate lawyer engineered a deal at a secret meeting in a ritzy hotel.

The events, revealed by interviews with key players in the five-month platinum strike, expose the impotence of the bargaining structures that have underpinned labour relations since the end of white-minority rule in 1994.

They also cast a shadow over the ruling African National Congress (ANC), which admonished the minister for inviting the lawyer to the talks after he had left the ANC to be elected to parliament for the ultra-leftist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

The chastened minister then withdrew from the negotiations, almost scuppering an agreement between the world’s three biggest platinum firms and the striking Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), which has informal ties to the EFF.

“They did not tell me how to withdraw,” the minister, Ngoako Ramatlhodi, told Reuters. “They just told me: ‘We think you have done enough. We want you to go slow on this.'”

Quebec’s Renard diamond mine is a glimmer of hope for slowing industry – by Anna Nicolaou (Globe and Mail – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

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.

Something sparkly has caught Quebec’s eye. Nearly a decade after the most precious form of carbon was found in the northern mountains of Quebec, the first diamond mine in Quebec is opening in July. Stornoway Diamond Corp.’s Renard mine, nestled near the Otish Mountains, is projected to produce 1.5 to 2 million carats of diamonds a year.

The opening of Renard comes at a convenient time: Globally, demand for diamonds greatly exceeds supply, largely because few new mines have been discovered recently.

“There’s Renard in Quebec, DeBeers in the Northwest Territories and one pipe in Russia, that’s about it,” said Edward Sterck, diamond analyst at BMO Capital Markets. “And these are not of the same world-class scale as DeBeers in Botswana and Russia, which are now very old and in decline, so… Supply is incredibly limited.”

Diamond prices have crept higher over the past few years as demand flourishes, particularly in emerging markets such as India and China, where the growing middle class seeks luxury goods.

First Perspective columnist [Bill Gallagher] features in CTV news segment – by Trevor Greyeyes (First Perspective – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

http://www.firstperspective.ca/ Bill Gallagher right all along I think the mainstream media in Canada is finally starting to clue in to the fact that Bill Gallagher knows a thing or two about First Nation issues especially when it comes to resource issues. When I first interviewed him about his book “Resource Rulers” a couple of years …

Trafigura Among Six to Enter BHP Nickel Sale, Review Says – by Ben Sharples (Bloomberg News – July 06, 2014)

July 7, 2014

http://www.businessweek.com/

Trafigura Beheer BV and Sherritt International Corp. (S) are among six companies to enter the sale process for BHP Billiton Ltd.’s Australian nickel unit, according to a report from the Australian Financial Review.

Glencore Plc, X2 Resources, Jinchuan Group Co. and MMG Ltd., a unit of China Minmetals Corp., are also among bidders that have started due diligence on BHP’s Nickel West business, the newspaper reported today, without saying where it got the information. Emily Perry, a Melbourne-based spokeswoman for BHP, declined to comment in an e-mailed response.

BHP said in May it’s considering selling all or part of its Australian nickel unit as prices surge amid an Indonesian export ban on the steel hardening agent. The due diligence process may take months and BHP is keen to finalize a deal by the end of the year, the newspaper said. The business may be worth more than A$800 million ($749 million), according to the newspaper.

Michael Oke, a spokesman for London-based X2 Resources, Francis de Rosa, a Sydney-based spokesman for Glencore, and Kathleen Kawecki, a Melbourne-based spokeswoman for MMG, didn’t immediately respond to e-mails sent outside of normal business hours seeking comment on the sale process. Three calls to Gao Tianpeng, the general manager of Jinchuan’s asset operation department, went unanswered.

Amsterdam-based Trafigura and Toronto-based Sherritt didn’t immediately respond to e-mails seeking comment.

Work together on Gateway, for prosperity’s sake – by Mike Harris (Globe and Mail – July 7, 2014)

July 7, 2014

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.

Mike Harris, former premier of Ontario, is a senior business adviser at Fasken Martineau and a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute.

Canada is a resource nation. In every region, its natural resource sectors, including mining, forestry, energy and oil and gas, support vital social programs and provide stable, well-paying jobs.

However, regardless of their economic contributions, major infrastructure projects face intense scrutiny – as they should. In order to proceed, these projects must balance economic development with environmental and safety protections.

Consider, as just one example, the Northern Gateway pipeline, recently approved by the federal government. Since being proposed more than a decade ago, the project’s journey hasn’t always been easy. It has faced tough criticism. But thoughtful debate has taken place and ideas have been exchanged that have resulted in a better pipeline proposal.

As a former premier, I know first-hand the experience of fighting for economic development for your province and its people, but not to the detriment of local communities and the environment. Receiving social licence for resource projects must be the leading objective for proponents; public input and consultations are paramount.

Canadian company hopes to find copper in Methow Valley – by Craig Welch (Seattle Times – July 5, 2014)

July 7, 2014

http://seattletimes.com/html/home/index.html

Less than 2 miles from the heart of one of the most popular outdoor recreation spots in Washington, a Canadian company plans to drill holes to hunt for copper. The Forest Service says it doesn’t have the authority to stop the project.

MAZAMA, Okanogan County — Behind the general store and the outdoor gear shop — above the inn and horse corral — granite walls and pine-covered hills rise thousands of feet to form a towering nob called Goat Peak.

This fixture overlooking the North Cascades’ upper Methow Valley — one of the most popular outdoor playgrounds in the state — is where residents and visitors, including many from Seattle, walk dogs, run trails, cross-country ski, snowmobile, hike, bike and even paraglide.

Now a Canadian mining company wants to explore the earth beneath this recreation hot spot to see if metals marbled into the rock are plentiful enough for a copper mine. And despite mountains of opposition, the U.S. agency overseeing exploration maintains it’s powerless to stop the project.

Not 2 miles from the heart of Mazama, Vancouver-based Blue River Resources is proposing to drill as many as 15 bore holes 1,000 feet deep to see how much copper and molybdenum ore is there. The drilling could go on 24 hours a day for months, and would require the company to haul thousands of gallons of water up the mountain. The drilling could start later this summer.

NEWS RELEASE: BHP BILLITON SHIPS ONE BILLION TONNES OF IRON ORE TO JAPAN – July 2, 2014

July 7, 2014

BHP Billiton today celebrated the shipment of its one billionth tonne of iron ore to Japan with customers, joint venture participants and employees in Port Hedland, Western Australia.

BHP Billiton President Iron Ore Jimmy Wilson and BHP Billiton President HSE, Marketing and Technology Mike Henry were joined by joint venture participants ITOCHU Corporation (ITOCHU) and Mitsui & Co., Ltd (Mitsui) to mark the milestone in front of the Saiko bound for Japan.

Mr Henry acknowledged Japan’s industrial transformation and the importance of two-way trade in driving economic growth.

“In the late 1960s and through the 1970s, Japan grew to become an economic powerhouse through its expertise in steel manufacturing, heavy industry, technology and electronics,” he said.