The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Sorted by date Results 1 - 18 of 18
The Alaska mining industry issued a report Jan. 21 that outlines in graphic detail the considerable and growing impact that mining activities are having on the state. Mining companies spent an estimated $1.25 billion in Alaska in 2007 on everything from drilling rigs to rents and royalties. "Mining companies strengthen Alaska communities by employing Alaska residents from more than 100 Alaska communities and purchasing supplies and services from hundreds of Alaska companies," the report said. A banner year for the industry,...
For any of you who have experienced that odd quiet before a big storm hits, I'd suggest you grab Toto and head for the root cellar because the "quiet" is about to end and the perfect storm is about to begin! I say this because the mining industry took its collective breath during the last month and recharged its batteries in preparation for what looks to be a wild and woolly 2008. Commodities prices remain high; worldwide demand for metals and energy minerals remains strong, and investment capital is there for quality mining...
The U.S. Supreme Court Jan. 7 declined to accept Teck Cominco Metals Ltd.'s petition for review and reversal of a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Pakootas, et al. v. Teck Cominco Metals Ltd. The Government of Canada, the Province of British Columbia, and the Chambers of Commerce of both Canada and the United States had all joined Teck Cominco in arguing that diplomatic processes, and not the courts of the United States, are the forum in which to resolve cross-border issues of this nature. Several U.S. organizations,...
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers initiated a 30-day public comment period Jan. 14 on a permit application from Teck Cominco Alaska Inc. to increase the size of the tailings compound at its Red Dog zinc-lead mine near Kotzebue. In the application, Teck Cominco said it needed more holding capacity at the mine to maintain the integrity of the tailings facility, which is an important part of the mine's waste treatment system. Specifically, added capacity would raise the crest elevation of the main tailings dam at Red Dog by 10...
Little Squaw Gold Mining Co. Jan. 7 said it purchased an exclusive right to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the Livengood Bench placer gold deposit about 75 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska. The Spokane, Wash.-based junior paid a fee of $100,000 for the privilege, which includes making commercial viability studies of the property during the next two months. Little Squaw said it has until March 5 to decide whether it will pay $8.35 million in three annual installments of ca...
During this brief respite between the U.S. House and Senate considerations of mining law reform legislation, it is timely to review the bidding. Where are we? Where are we going? How do we get there? We know these things: The House passed legislation (H.R. 2262) is an anathema. Furthermore, there is reason to believe that there will be mining law reform legislation passed, if not in this Congress, probably in the next one. Until the recent Northwest Mining Association...
Years ago, Graham C. Dickson found himself in the difficult position of trying to clean up an environmental mess made by predecessors at the mining company where he worked. "I learned that the best way to address environmental issues is with sustainable mining," Dickson told Mining News in a recent interview. "So I've always tried to do better than what the regulators asked. Experience tells me you'd better do that from the start." Today, Dickson is president and CEO of Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp., a hardrock mining company with...
Tahera Diamond Corp., nearly 17 months to the day after the hopeful startup of its Jericho Diamond Mine in Nunavut Territory, said it would seek protection from its creditors under Canada's Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act. A few hours later, the Toronto-based diamond producer announced that it had obtained an order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice granting the company and its subsidiary protection until Feb. 14, 2008, with the period to be extended or terminated thereafter as the court deems appropriate. The co...
The Alaska Conservation Alliance and the Resource Development Council of Alaska Inc. have come together to recognize organizations, individuals, and/or businesses that have achieved high standards in environmental stewardship as well as economic development. Pat Pourchot, president of Alaska Conservation Voters, and John Shively, president of the Resource Development Council announced the launch of the "Tileston Award" Jan. 17 in Anchorage. The award was named in honor of Peg...
Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp. and No Name Resources Inc. won the Yukon Territory's 2007 Robert E. Leckie awards for outstanding quartz (hard rock) and placer reclamation practices, respectively. The awards were announced Nov. 26 at the Yukon Geoscience Forum Awards Banquet in Whitehorse. Yukon Nevada Gold drew praise for its reclamation work at Ketza River; and No Name Resources for its reclamation activities at Ten Mile and Thirteen Mile creeks. Yukon officials also awarded honorable mentions to Selwyn Resources Ltd. for...
With gold nuggets weighing up to 41 troy ounces, Silverado Gold Mines Ltd's Nolan Placer Gold Mine is the type of place that would give even the well-seasoned miner gold fever! Located about 280 miles, or 452 kilometers, north of Fairbanks, Nolan Creek has placer ore that does not thaw sufficiently to be processed until mid-June. During the ensuing three months, crews work around the clock, sluicing as much ore as possible before subfreezing temperatures return to the Arctic....
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Jan. 3 in favor on all counts of a permit that allows NovaGold Resources Inc to develop the Rock Creek Mine Project near Nome. In a 29-page decision, a three-judge panel of the appeals court affirmed the June 2007 decision of the United States District Court for Alaska dismissing a lawsuit initiated by Bering Straits Citizens for Responsible Resource Development. Bering Straits and two individuals had challenged a permit issued for the mine project by the U.S. Army Corps of...
NovaGold Resources Inc. Jan. 16 announced the appointment of new senior managers for the Galore Creek copper-gold-silver project that it owns jointly with Teck Cominco Ltd. in northwestern British Columbia as the partners launch an effort to re-evaluate and optimize development of the property. The companies suspended construction activities at Galore Creek in November when an independent engineering firm estimated that capital costs for developing a proposed 65,000-metric-tons-per-day mine could climb to $5 billion, more...
Sherwood Copper Corp., owner of the Yukon's Minto copper-gold mine, has offered to purchase Western Keltic Mines Inc. in a friendly stock-swap transaction valued at about $37.52 million. Acting with the blessing of Western Keltic's board of directors, Vancouver, B.C.-based Sherwood mailed its buyout bid to Western Keltic shareholders Dec. 24. Under the terms of the offer, Sherwood would acquire all of Western Keltic's nearly 80 million shares by issuing eight-hundredths (0.08) of a share of Sherwood stock for each share of...
High diamond counts from an exploration property in Nunavut Territory are raising hopes in Canadian investment circles of a new diamond mining district in Canada's far north. Diamonds North Resources Ltd. reported finds of 862 high-quality diamonds Jan. 8 and Jan. 14 from drill-hole samples of three kimberlites located on its 2 million-acre Amaruk property in the Pelly Bay Diamond District in northeast Nunavut. Diamond counts for two of the kimberlites averaged 2.5 diamonds per kilogram and 2 diamonds per kilogram. Diamonds...
The Clean Water Initiatives that could come before Alaska voters in the general election next fall "are dangerous and deceptive proposals that Alaska cannot afford," according to a key executive at NANA Development Corp. Rosie Barr, resources manager for the operating arm of NANA Inc., the Alaska Native regional corporation for Northwest Alaska, spoke out against the initiatives and outlined the economic benefits of the Red Dog zinc-lead mine to Alaska at an industry...
Bayswater Uranium Corp. Jan. 7 said results of its 2007 field program from the North and South Thelon Projects located in Nunavut and Northwest Territories, Canada respectively, successfully delineated high priority uranium targets that will be drill-tested in 2008. "The potential of Bayswater's properties in the Thelon Basin to host significant high grade uranium deposits has been confirmed by our 2007 surveys," Victor Tanaka, Bayswater's chief operating officer, said in a statement Jan. 4. Bayswater also entered an...
Nash Minerals Ltd. and its joint venture partner Mega Uranium Ltd. may have a tiger by the tail, but the beast these explorers are tracking is metallic in nature. Unveiling the most promising results to date from four years of exploring the Wernecke Uranium District in northern Yukon Territory, Cash Minerals Jan. 23 said it is moving into the resource definition stage at its Igor property with a goal of developing a resource estimate for the iron oxide copper-gold-uranium (IOCG-U) prospect by this summer. Igor is the most adv...
