January 23, 2015 – Republic of Mining

Ring of Fire requires greater co-operation – by Thomas Perry (Timmins Daily Press – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – Everyone agrees the Ring of Fire has the potential to have a huge impact on our region, the province and the country. Unfortunately, that seams to be as far as the parties involved in this mineral-rich project can go in terms of agreeing on anything.

The parties, for anyone unfamiliar with the Ring of Fire, are the federal government, the provincial government, a number of private-sector companies (including KWG Resources, Noront Resources and Cliff’s Natural Resources) and area First Nations.

Instead of working together to see this project developed, they appear more interested in playing the blame game. Federal Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford, speaking in Timmins this week, for example, suggested the private sector is not willing to move forward on the development at this time.

“The market has had trouble getting to the point where any company can justify moving ahead very quickly with an extractive exercise,” he said. “We are hopeful that the province is coming on board and turning its mind to specific projects that have the value-added, if you will, of connecting First Nation communities and smaller towns and cities in and around the Ring Of Fire, to be involved in and accessible to the Ring Of Fire.”

CORRECTED-Weak rouble helps Russia’s Norilsk weather metals fall – CEO – by Polina Devitt (Reuters U.S. – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

NORILSK, Russia, Jan 23 (Reuters) – Falling metal prices are being more than offset by the rouble slide, allowing Russia’s Norilsk Nickel to maintain margins despite lower foreign currency earnings, its chief executive said.

CEO and co-owner Vladimir Potanin, Russia’s eighth richest man with a $12.6 billion fortune from the world’s largest nickel and palladium miner, said if metal prices remained at current levels, Norilsk’s 2015 foreign currency revenues would decline from a year earlier to $10 billion.

But he said lower metal prices would not affect the company’s earnings before interest, tax and depreciation (EBITDA) margin, which would exceed 40 percent this year. He did not provide data for 2014.

Many Russian companies have been hit by a downturn in the economy, suffering from weak oil prices and Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis, but exporters are enjoying the 50 percent drop in the rouble since the beginning of last year.

Potanin said more important for his core business, based 300 km (186 miles) inside the Arctic Circle where it is dark for more than a month in winter, were prices for the company’s main metal products.

Goldman Joins Banks Cutting Iron Ore Outlook on Global Glut – by Jasmine Ng (Bloomberg News – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.bloomberg.com/

First Citigroup Inc., then UBS Group AG, now Goldman Sachs Group Inc. For iron ore, which plummeted 47 percent in 2014, the cuts to price forecasts from global banks just keep coming in the opening weeks of the year.

The steel-making ingredient may average $66 a metric ton this year from an earlier estimate of $80, Goldman Sachs said in a report dated Jan. 23. This is the first time the New York-based bank has reduced its 2015 prediction since March 2013, and it’s at least the fifth bank this month to lower estimates, citing rising seaborne supplies and weaker demand growth from China, the biggest user.

The iron-ore surplus emerged last year after the largest miners including Rio Tinto Group (RIO), BHP Billiton Ltd. and Vale SA (VALE5) invested billions of dollars to boost output and as China grew at the slowest pace in more than two decades. Cheaper energy costs and depreciating currencies may delay supply cuts needed to rebalance the market, causing prices to extend losses, said Citigroup and UBS, which pared estimates for the commodity by as much as 22 percent.

“Significant overinvestment to date will ensure that the market is well supplied, while demand from the Chinese steel sector is maturing,” Goldman analysts including Christian Lelong wrote in the report. “A painful war of attrition awaits” the iron ore industry as less competitive mines shut, the analysts said.

Prosecuting natural resource theft could help end conflicts: report – by Kieran Guilbert (Reuters U.S. – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.reuters.com/

LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Prosecuting commanders and kingpins of militant groups for trafficking natural resources in conflict zones could help end the world’s worst resource-driven violence, according to a report.

Despite widespread resource-driven conflict, individuals and companies are rarely prosecuted for the war crime of pillage, which is punishable at the International Criminal Court (ICC), said the Enough Project, a policy group fighting to prevent genocide and atrocities.

The pillaging of minerals was particularly destabilizing in the Democratic Republic of Congo, it said, placing civilians under threat of violence and providing lucrative incomes to rebels, Congolese army factions, and businesses.

Lawyers in Congo said identifying ownership of natural resources, showing links between those accused of pillage and the derived wealth, and proving that armed conflict facilitated theft were major challenges to putting forward a strong case.

The report said prosecutions could help reduce incomes for perpetrators of atrocities, combat resource exploitation, and end the impunity that enables illegal financial networks to thrive in conflict zones and allows other crimes to continue.

Grand Theft on a Global Scale: Prosecuting the War Crime of Pillage – – by Holly Dranginis (Enough Project.org – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.enoughproject.org/

Click here for report: http://www.enoughproject.org/files/GrandTheftGlobal-PillageReport-Dranginis-Enough-Jan2015.pdf

In Enough Project Policy Analyst Holly Dranginis’ latest report, Grand Theft Global: Prosecuting the War Crime of Natural Resource Pillage in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Dranginis provides an inside look at why the widespread theft of minerals in Congo has gone on unpunished, and how policymakers and legal practitioners can help advance cases. Grand Theft Global is the result of research in Congo, The Hague, and Washington, DC, including dozens of interviews with Congolese attorneys, international prosecutors, and local communities affected by pillage and the violence it enables.

Underneath the forests, hills, and rivers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo lie billions of dollars in mineral wealth, with millions of that being traded illegally through sophisticated criminal networks. Every year, those resources are stolen and traded for lucrative profits by some of the world’s worst criminals and their allies, including rebel leaders and state army commanders. This large-scale theft enables violent war crimes and crimes against humanity, and it constitutes a war crime in its own right, called pillage.

Yet, it’s not being prosecuted by courts in the Congo or on the world stage. Notorious groups like the FDLR, the Lord’s Resistance Army, and Seleka have been linked to natural resource theft in the central African region. They steal and trade elephant ivory, charcoal, gold, and other minerals to buy guns, munitions, and supplies. Without prosecutions, warlords, middlemen, and corporations cashing in on Congo’s stolen resources have been free to operate and profit in a climate of impunity.

Not here, not now: Nunavut residents, others, still wary of uranium project – by Thomas Rohner (Nunatsiaq News – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

“Will the caribou be safe? Will it be safe to eat?” Too many unaddressed community concerns persist for many Kivalliq residents, and others, to support Areva Resources Canada’s proposed uranium mine near Baker Lake.

That came across loud and clear from a number of organizations who submitted comments and recommendations on Areva’s final environmental impact assessment of the proposed Kivalliq project to the Nunavut Impact Review Board.

How Nunavut’s first uranium mine might affect nearby caribou herds, the absence of a project timeline, and the likelihood that this project would lead to other uranium mining and exploration in the area top the list of unaswered questions.

“In a nutshell, our concern is that there are uncertainties that have not been addressed in the final statement, that we have raised,” said Ross Thompson, executive director of the Beverly and Qamanirjuaq Caribou Management Board, in an interview Jan. 22.

The NIRB received comments and recommendations on Kiggavik from the caribou management board, along with 15 other local, territorial and federal agencies, as well as from a Baker Lake land claim beneficiary.

Harper says there’s more to the Canadian economy than oil – by Bill Curry (Globe and Mail – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

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.

Ottawa — Stephen Harper is playing down the impact of energy on the overall Canadian economy, noting that other sectors will help keep growth strong during hard times for the oil patch.

The Prime Minister, who has previously promoted Canada abroad as an emerging energy superpower, stressed the importance of small business, manufacturing and innovation during an event in St. Catharines, one of many Southwestern Ontario communities that have lost manufacturing jobs in recent years.

“It’s obviously significant for the Canadian economy, particularly certain sectors and regions, but the oil industry isn’t remotely the entire Canadian economy,” said Mr. Harper. “There are many benefits to other parts of the economy because of these developments and although the oil industry in those regions are going to face some pretty significant adjustments, the fact of the matter is that this is a resilient industry that knows that prices go up and down.”

The Prime Minister’s comments, which followed an announcement to expand a program for small-business loans, marked his first public response since Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz shocked markets Wednesday by cutting interest rates in response to lower-than-expected growth and inflation.

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, the careful reformer, dies at 90 – by Mark MacKinnon (Globe and Mail – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

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.

LONDON — King Abdullah, the monarch who led Saudi Arabia through a period of wrenching change in the Middle East – keeping the oil-rich country stable as the region convulsed around it and critics demanded urgent reform – died late Thursday, a statement from the royal palace in Riyadh said.

The death, while immediately mourned in the Arab world, was hardly unexpected. The 90-year-old Abdullah had been seriously ill for several weeks, suffering from pneumonia and breathing only with the help of a tube.

Abdullah became king after the 2006 death of his half-brother, Fahd, but with Fahd in ill health, he had been de facto regent for a decade before that. He led the country through the worst years of the Iraq war, kept the kingdom intact through the upheaval of the Arab Spring, and in recent years built an informal Sunni Arab coalition that confronted what he saw as Iran’s rising influence across the region, particularly in Syria.

Saudi Arabia’s role in Syria will remain a controversial part of Abdullah’s legacy. Saudi Arabia gave money and weapons to jihadi groups opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, helping give birth to the force now known as Islamic State.

Iron Ore goes bust in Labrador West, once booming in production – by Terry Roberts (CBC The Current – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/ Click here for program but note advertisements for other news segments: http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/podcasts/current_20150123_79604.mp3 The fall in demand for Iron Ore is turning life upside down in the part of Labrador they once called “Mini Fort Mac”. Today we head to Labrador West, Canada’s capital of Iron Ore, where they know a thing or two about …

B.C. First Nation to probe pollutants despite assurances from mine – by Mark Hume (Globe and Mail – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

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.

VANCOUVER — A small native community in central British Columbia has launched a health study into the possible impacts of a copper mine, despite assurances from the company that its research shows there’s no reason for concern.

Chief Bernie Mack of the 180-member Esdilagh First Nation said as tailings from the Gibraltar Mine build up around reserve lands, concerns are growing that pollutants may be seeping into the ecosystem.

“Number one thing is, our community members fear the resources and the water around the mine are contaminated. So why we are doing this research is to find out how safe the ecosystem and the health of the environment is,” Mr. Mack said Thursday.

A research team from the University of Victoria and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, a Switzerland-based agency that works globally, will conduct the research. Mr. Mack said many Esdilagh members grew up with the mine almost in their back yards, but they have become increasingly concerned about the operation.

Welcome to Winnipeg: Where Canada’s racism problem is at its worst – by Nancy Macdonald (MACLEAN’S Magazine – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.macleans.ca/

How the death of Tina Fontaine has finally forced it to face its festering race problem.

“Oh Goddd how long are aboriginal people going to use what happened as a crutch to suck more money out of Canadians?” Winnipeg teacher Brad Badiuk wrote on Facebook last month. “They have contributed NOTHING to the development of Canada. Just standing with their hand out. Get to work, tear the treaties and shut the FK up already. Why am I on the hook for their cultural support?”

Another day in Winnipeg, another hateful screed against the city’s growing indigenous population. This one from a teacher (now on unpaid leave) at Kelvin High School, long considered among the city’s progressive schools—alma mater to just about every Winipegger of note, from Marshall McLuhan to Izzy Asper, Fred Penner and Neil Young.

Badiuk’s comments came to light the day Rinelle Harper—the shy 16-year-old indigenous girl left for dead in the city’s Assiniboine River after a brutal sexual assault—spoke publicly for the first time after her recovery. She called for an inquiry to help explain why so many indigenous girls and women are being murdered in Winnipeg, and elsewhere in Canada.

Badiuk’s comments came while the city was still reeling from the murder of Tina Fontaine, a 15-year-old child from the Sagkeeng First Nation who was wrapped in plastic and tossed into the Red River after being sexually exploited in the city’s core.

Canada’s race problem? It’s even worse than America’s. – by Scott Gilmore (MACLEAN’S Magazine – January 22, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.macleans.ca/

For a country so self-satisfied with its image of progressive tolerance, how is this not a national crisis?

The racial mess in the United States looks pretty grim and is painful to watch. We can be forgiven for being quietly thankful for Canada’s more inclusive society, which has avoided dramas like that in Ferguson, Mo. We are not the only ones to think this. In the recently released Social Progress Index, Canada is ranked second amongst all nations for its tolerance and inclusion.

Unfortunately, the truth is we have a far worse race problem than the United States. We just can’t see it very easily.

Terry Glavin, recently writing in the Ottawa Citizen, mocked the idea that the United States could learn from Canada’s example when it comes to racial harmony. To illustrate his point, he compared the conditions of the African-American community to Canada’s First Nations. If you judge a society by how it treats its most disadvantaged, Glavin found us wanting. Consider the accompanying table. By almost every measurable indicator, the Aboriginal population in Canada is treated worse and lives with more hardship than the African-American population. All these facts tell us one thing: Canada has a race problem, too.

How are we not choking on these numbers? For a country so self-satisfied with its image of progressive tolerance, how is this not a national crisis? Why are governments not falling on this issue?

2015 Black Swans abounding – Safe Haven gold to benefit – by Lawrence Williams (Mineweb.com – January 23, 2015)

January 23, 2015

http://www.mineweb.com/

Global economic uncertainty may prompt return to safe haven gold buying.

January 2015 has already been remarkable for the number of Black Swan (unanticipated) events which have hit the markets in such a short space of time. Some of these have been totally unheralded like the Swiss National Bank’s decision to unpeg the Swiss Franc from the Euro and the Charlie Hebdo massacre – which really did take the markets by surprise – while others may, in hindsight have been a little more predictable.

These include the escalation of fighting in Eastern Ukraine as both sides appear to have used a recent ceasefire to boost their military arsenals and prepare for more fighting; the death yesterday of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia – perhaps predictable in that he was 90 years old and in poor health – but nonetheless promoting new uncertainties in what is a particularly volatile part of the world; the apparent growth in strength of Boko Haram in West Africa, which has the potential perhaps to spread to major gold producing areas if the rebel group is unable to be held back.

And all this within a three week period! Who knows what else is in store for us in the remaining 49 weeks that lie ahead?

There are some very predictable potentially destabilising factors coming up. The latest opinion polls for Greek elections this weekend suggest the country is poised to put the left wing anti-austerity party, Syriza, into power, possibly with an overall majority sufficient to govern without a coalition partner.

PRESS RELEASE: Most Commodity Prices Expected to Continue Declining in 2015, in Rare Occurrence, Says WB Report

January 23, 2015

Click here for the report: http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/GEP/GEPcommodities/GEP2015a_commodity_Jan2015.pdf

WASHINGTON, January 22, 2015 – This year may well see a rare occurrence for world commodity markets – a decline in all nine key commodity price indices, says the World Bank’s latest Commodity Markets Outlook, released today.

While oil prices have seen the most dramatic decline, the third largest since World War II, other commodities have also been gradually weakening in recent months. And this broad-based weakness is expected to continue throughout 2015, before beginning a modest turn around in 2016.

In oil markets, a “perfect storm” of conditions has led to a plunge in prices since mid-2014: growth in unconventional oil production, decline in demand, appreciation of the U.S. dollar, receding geopolitical risks, and a major redirection toward maintaining market share rather than targeting prices by the world’s oil cartel, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Oil prices have dropped 55 percent in seven months, from the most recent high of $108 per barrel in mid-June 2014 to $47 two days ago. Should the current slide continue, it could surpass the previous records of a 7-month decline of 67 percent, set in 1985/86, and a 75 percent drop in 2008.

In addition, the World Bank’s three industrial commodity price indices – energy, metals and minerals, and agricultural raw materials – experienced near identical declines between early 2011 and the end of 2014, of more than 35 percent each, and will continue to contract this year.