March 4, 2015 – Republic of Mining

Former Xstrata CEO poised for a comeback with X2 Resources – by Eric Reguly (Globe and Mail – March 4, 2015)

March 4, 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.

Mick Davis, the mining boss who sold Xstrata to Glencore for $50-billion (U.S.), has reached $5.6-billion in investor capital to finance a mining investment campaign that will almost certainly turn his comeback vehicle, X2 Resources, into an operating company this year.

X2 announced the finish of its capital raising effort from a roster of international “blue chip” investors Wednesday night in London. If debt leverage is added to the figure the new company would have considerable firepower, making it capable of buying assets or operating companies valued at $15-billion to $20-billion.

The $5.6-billion includes $4-billion in committed equity capital that can be spent immediately, and US$1.6-billion that can be spent under certain conditions. A year ago, X2 announced that it had raised $3.75-billion in unconditional and conditional capital, none of which has been spent. The new figure includes the amount raised last year.

The capital comes from 20 investors, of which only two have been identified. They are Noble Group of Hong Kong, one of the world’s largest commodities trading and infrastructure companies, and TPG Capital, the private American investment firm with $65-billion in capital under management. The others are sovereign wealth funds and pension funds, several of which are Canadian.

NEWS RELEASE: Inaugural De Beers Ice Road Run in Aid of First Nation Youth Suicide Prevention

March 4, 2015

CFO to run full marathon on winter ‘ice road’ to raise funds for Mushkegowuk Enrichment Fund

TORONTO, March 3, 2015 /CNW/ – Looking to generate both funds and awareness, the Chief Financial Officer of De Beers in Canada will run 42 kilometres on a northern Ontario ice road in the inaugural De Beers Ice Road Run in support of the Mushkegowuk Council’s inquiry into youth suicide in the region.

Steve Thomas will take to the road on Wednesday, March 11, 2015, departing from the De Beers Victor Mine in Ontario’s Far North, approximately 1,100 kilometres north of Toronto in the James Bay Lowlands. Thomas will cover the full marathon distance on the ice road that connects the mine to the local communities for a short period each winter.

Accompanied by a safety support vehicle, Thomas – an experienced marathon runner who has competed in several events, including Boston, Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa – will complete the distance in stages, running for 60 minutes at a time before returning to the support vehicle for a short break from the extreme cold that occurs this time of year in the James Bay region.

Thomas said that while De Beers has been a corporate supporter of the Mushkegowuk Council and their inquiry into youth suicide, he felt he wanted to do something on a personal level.

PDAC 2015: Junior miners dig into new ways to tap retail investors – by John Shmuel and Peter Koven PDAC 2015: Junior miners dig into new ways to tap retail investors – by John Shmuel and Peter Koven (National Post – March 3, 2015)

March 4, 2015

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

TORONTO — For junior exploration companies, alternative financing options such as crowdfunding are starting to be taken seriously.

The halls of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) conference here are littered with companies clinging onto their last dollars and seeing no opportunity to raise money through traditional equity issues.

So it was no surprise that a big focus of the conference on Monday was digging into the alternatives. Some of them, notably crowdfunding, have real potential. But the rules remain uncertain and they raise serious concerns that even the experts acknowledged are not yet understood.

For decades, exploration companies could count on Canadian retail investors to provide capital. Now that institutional investors have almost entirely stopped funding greenfield exploration, they need to tap into retail more than ever. But under the current securities regime, they have failed to do that in recent years. Now they need to win the retail investor back.

“This is the worst bear market in decades and the retail investor has completely left the room,” said junior mining analyst John Kaiser. He added that the sector has become “inaccessible to the retail investor.”

NEWS RELEASE: Working Group on Natural Resources Development Releases Its Final Report: Importance of Engaging First Nations in Canada’s Resource Future

March 4, 2015

Click here for report: http://www.naturalresourcedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Working-Group-on-Natural-Resource-Development-Report-small.pdf

Toronto, ON – (March 9, 2015) The Working Group on Natural Resources Development, set up as an independent body by the Assembly of First Nations and Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada today released its final report, Advancing Positive, Impactful Change. The report builds on discussions with First Nations leaders, industry and experts and sets out key themes and recommendations outlining potential ways to increase First Nations participation in natural resources development projects.

In November 2014, the Working Group held two working sessions that focused on the themes of governance, environment, prosperity and finance. The report details these discussions and ideas, along with observations and recommendations for next steps that provide a foundation for further dialogue and action.

At sessions in Edmonton and Toronto, a central message that emerged is that individuals, businesses, communities and governments need to move beyond a basic duty to consult and embrace a more robust duty to engage and involve First Nations in all aspects of natural resources development. This requires the commitment and support of all levels of government. These efforts have potential to promote greater First Nations’ participation, prosperity and well-being in a way that benefits all Canadians.

Laughren, as new chair, sees great opportunities for ONTC – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – March 4, 2015)

March 4, 2015

http://www.timminspress.com/

TIMMINS – Former Timmins Mayor Tom Laughren sees a great opportunity for Ontario Northland to make better use of its assets and to generate more revenues and attract more clients.

Laughren, it was announced last week, has been nominated for appointment as chairman of the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission rail and bus service.

Laughren’s nomination, as well as the nomination of board members Steven Carmichael, Ewen Cornick, Gaeten Malette and Ila Watson, is subject to the approval of the standing committee on government agencies. “I think we’re going to go in with the goal to create an entity that is sustainable,” he said. “New direction, new customers, new clients, that’s been one of the downfalls of Ontario Northland, especially on the rail side.

“We’ve just watched Resolute (the paper mill in Iroquois Falls) close. I’m sure Resolute would have been a huge user of Ontario Northland. We’ve seen the changes at the Kidd Metallurgical site (with the Hoyle smelter closing). So we all know the importance of rail but we also have to look at new opportunities and future opportunities.”

PDAC Interview: Michael Gravelle beats the drum for Ontario – (Northern Miner – March 3, 2015)

March 4, 2015

The Northern Miner, first published in 1915, during the Cobalt Silver Rush, is considered Canada’s leading authority on the mining industry.

Ontario’s Minister of Northern Development and Mines, Michael Gravelle, and Greg Rickford, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, kicked off PDAC with an announcement of a joint investment of more than $785,000 to support economic development and community access in northwestern Ontario.

The government of Canada and the province of Ontario will each invest $393,814 to enable the Webequie First Nation, in partnership with the First Nations of Eabametoong, Neskantaga, and Nibinik, to complete a study on a regional community service corridor. The study will examine the benefits of developing an all-season transportation corridor connecting First Nation communities in the area with existing roadways, in order to capitalize on opportunities related to resource development in the region, including in the Ring of Fire, 540 km northeast of Thunder Bay.

In a further announcement on the second day of the mining conference, the provincial government said it plans to renew its 2006 Mineral Development Strategy, with fresh input from stakeholders. Over the next three months, the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines will host workshops across Ontario to provide industry, Aboriginal communities, and other community partners the opportunity to respond to the proposed themes for a renewed MDS and set priorities to strengthen the sector.

The Northern Miner caught up with Gravelle on the sidelines of the conference.

Mushkegowuk rail plan still on despite road study – by Len Gillis (Timmins Times – March 3, 2015)

March 4, 2015

http://www.timminstimes.com/

The federal and provincial governments announced on the weekend that more than three-quarters of a million dollars will be spent on a study for a new road in Northern Ontario.

The announcement was made Sunday at the annual Prospector’s and Developers Convention (PDAC) in Toronto. Federal Natural Resources minister Greg Rickford and provincial Northern Development and Mines minister Michael Gravelle said their governments are contributing 50-50 to a $785,000 expenditure through the FedNor Northern Ontario Development Program.

The money is for a joint venture to study the idea of building a road into the lucrative Ring Of Fire mining prospect.

“The study will examine the benefits of developing an all-season transportation corridor connecting First Nation communities in the area with existing roadways, enabling them to capitalize on opportunities related to resource development in the region,” said the joint news release.

Reaction to the announcement is generally good, but there doesn’t appear to be a lot of overwhelming excitement, based on comments from from at least two Northern leaders. “The word I am hearing is, there’s the announcement and some people are saying, what, another study?” said Lawrence Martin, the Grand Chief of the Mushkegowuk Council.

PDAC 2015: Lukas Lundin sets lofty goals as he re-enters gold game – by Tommy Humphreys (National Post – March 3, 2015)

March 4, 2015

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

Legendary mining and oil tycoon Lukas Lundin has never been modest about his goals. So his latest targets probably shouldn’t surprise anyone, as eye-opening as they might sound.

“I want Lundin Mining up to $10-billion [market capitalization]. I want Lundin Petroleum up to $10-billion. And I want Lundin Gold [at] $5-billion,” the Swedish entrepreneur said in an interview in his office, which overlooks the city of Vancouver and the North Shore Mountains beyond.

On his bookshelf sits an unusual marble pig with a red dash up its spine. It is a gift from an investment banker that commemorates Mr. Lundin’s US$7.1-billion sale of Red Back Mining Inc. to Kinross Gold Corp. in 2010. That was probably the most one-sided deal in the history of the gold business, and Mr. Lundin, as he usually does, came out on the winning end.

Now the Lundin Group of Companies is back in the gold game. It paid US$240 million – including US$100 million from Mr. Lundin’s own family – to Kinross for the Fruta del Norte (FDN) project in Ecuador last year, creating Lundin Gold Inc. Kinross paid US$1.2 billion for FDN in 2008, but decided not to build the mine after the government imposed a punitive windfall profits tax.

FDN is one of the largest and richest undeveloped gold projects in the world. It’s capable of producing 500,000 to 600,000 ounces of gold per year at low cash costs, Mr. Lundin said. But he has to overcome the political problems in Ecuador that felled Kinross.