Cliffs wins victory in Ring of Fire court case – by Sudbury Northern Life Staff (August 1, 2014)

http://www.northernlife.ca/

It’ll be up to Natural Resources Minister Bill Mauro to decide if Cliffs Natural Resources gets permission for an overland transportation route into the Ring of Fire.

On July 29, an Ontario Divisional Court set aside a decision reached by the Ontario Mining and Lands Commissioner last September that denied Cliffs an easement for a road to reach its Black Thor chromite deposit atop the mining claims of a rival company, KWG Resources.

Cliffs, which has halted all exploration on its chromite project, launched the appeal last October. The case was heard in Toronto, June 16-17.

The bone of contention with Cliffs has been over the use of surface rights by KWG to stake a 330-kilometre long corridor using mining claims from Nakina north to the exploration camps in the James Bay lowlands.

Cliffs contended that KWG was holding other mining companies hostage by blocking a critical path into the region. KWG, through its Canada Chrome subsidiary, wants to use the corridor for a future railroad.

KWG also has a 30-per-cent stake in the Big Daddy chromite deposit that it shares in an adversarial relationship with Cliffs.

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South Africa: Nationalising the Mines Is Not Socialism – by Terry Bell (All Africa.com – August 1, 2014)

http://allafrica.com/

Nationalise the mines. That is a demand taken up loudly in recent months by the Economic Freedom Fighters. It is a demand long made by many in the labour movement and it has been given added impetus with the Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) deision to dispose of, or close down, some of its older underground mines.

But those both for and against nationalisation tend to see this demand as “socialist”, as an alternative to the present capitalist system. It is not.

In fact, to equate nationalisation with socialism is as erroneous as blaming the Amplats decision to dispose of mines on the recent strike and on the wage demands won by miners. Yet this blame game is in full swing, peppered with jargon that owes more to blind emotion than rational thought.

In a public relations sense, it is convenient for Amplats that its decision is blamed on the strike and higher wages. But the truth is that the move has long been on the cards — and makes economic sense for the company.

As part of the global capitalist system, Amplats needs to compete as efficiently and effectively as possible in order to accumulate the profits that reward shareholders and are ploughed back into making the business more profitable. Competition and accumulation. This is the underlying dynamic that defines the system, nothing else.

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Synthetics pose a conundrum for world diamond industry – by Ari Rabinovitch (Reuters U.K. – July 31, 2014)

http://uk.reuters.com/

TEL AVIV – (Reuters) – Diamonds are a girl’s best friend – but only if they are natural.

That is the message mining companies and luxury jewellers are keen to instil in consumers as the diamond trade faces a growing challenge from the production of synthetic diamonds.

Global diamond jewellery sales are worth more than $72 billion (42.6 billion pounds) a year, according to the World Diamond Council, and jewellers like Tiffany (TIF.N) and diamond miners led by De Beers stress that a jewel mined at great expense, and often with great risk, is infinitely more valuable than one made by man.

But it can be hard to tell the difference.

Synthetic diamonds can be manufactured in a laboratory to the extent that they have the same properties as natural ones, raising the risk that a synthetic product could one day inadvertently end up in a luxury jeweller’s showroom.

“God help the major diamond jeweller, be it Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef, anybody, who puts a piece of jewellery out there and it’s later found to be having synthetic diamonds in it without disclosure. That fear is what’s driving the industry,” said Martin Rapaport, chairman of the Rapaport Group, which is the primary source of diamond price information around the world.

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Increased demand for South African smelting tech – by Pimani Baloyi (MiningWeekly.com – August 1, 2014)

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

As Africa’s mining industries consider new methods of processing precious metals and base metals, the demand for South African induction-heating technologies on the continent is increasing, says induction-heating solutions company Hot Platinum.

Hot Platinum MD Ali Brey tells Mining Weekly that this renewed demand has significantly increased company clientele on the continent. The company manufactures induction-heating equipment and develops technology for melting and casting gold, platinum, copper and various other metals.

“There is a significant increase in the demand for our equipment from West, Central and Southern Africa owing to the number of new mining operations starting and many African countries wanting to process their metals in their countries,” he explains.

Brey highlights Hot Platinum’s status as a South African company as a contributing factor to its success in the African market, as it understands the African environment better than European and Asian competitors and can tailor clients’ systems and technologies to the African environment. The company customises systems and technologies to suit client specifications.

Brey also points out that mining companies operating in Africa take part in the development of local expertise when contracting Hot Platinum.

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Cliffs Natural Resources Official Response to Ontario Divisional Court Ruling (August 1, 2014)

August 1, 2014 William Boor, Executive Vice President, Corporate Development, Government Affairs and Chief Strategy Officer stated, “We’re very encouraged and pleased with the decision that came out Wednesday. The original Mining and Lands Commissioner decision created an unnecessary barrier that contributed to delays in the development of the region. Clearly, that decision was a …

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Press Release: Divisional Court Says KWG May Negotiate Conditions of Easement Under Public Lands Act, Not Withhold Consent Under Mining Act

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – Aug. 1, 2014) – KWG Resources Inc. (TSX VENTURE:KWG)(FRANKFURT:KW6) reports that the Divisional Court of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on Wednesday released its decision in the appeal brought by 2274659 Ontario Inc., a subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (“Cliffs”), of the judgment of the Ontario Mining and Lands Commissioner (“MLC”) issued September 10, 2013. The appeal was heard on June 16 and 17, 2014. Wednesday’s decision allowed the appeal, set aside the decision of the MLC and granted the original application to dispense with the consent of KWG subsidiary Canada Chrome Corporation (“CCC”) to an application for an easement over CCC claims.

The Divisional Court reasons held, in part: “Whether or not it is in the public interest to grant an easement for a road is a matter for the Minister of Natural Resources to determine, after an environmental assessment and consultation with First Nations and other affected interests. It is for the Minister to determine whether the easement should be granted in the public interest and on what terms. CCC will be able to participate in that process.” And elsewhere: “I would add that the issue being decided under s.51(4) of the Mining Act does not deprive CCC of its ability at the next stage to oppose Cliffs’ easement application or to ask for conditions that would protect its legitimate interests in its mining claims.”

Counsel for KWG are reviewing the Divisional Court’s extensive reasons for judgment.

About KWG: KWG has a 30% interest in the Big Daddy chromite deposit and the right to earn 80% of the Black Horse chromite where resources are being defined. KWG has also acquired interests in provisional patents including a method for the direct reduction of chromite to metalized iron and chrome using natural gas.

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