The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Sorted by date Results 1 - 10 of 10
As Alaska's mining industry moves into the frenetic summer exploration and development season, the rest of the world is being buffeted by wild financial and commodity "mood swings" that are affecting the metals markets. The big markets shake the little markets and the little markets shake Alaska. Perfect example: the World Gold Council recently reported that China's growing middle class is expected to double its demand for gold for jewelry and investment purposes over the...
It is said that two things are certain: death and taxes. Since most of us have just sent off our annual tribute to the sovereign, it seems timely to reflect on death for a while. Always an indelicate subject in our society, death stalks us all. None of us are getting out of here alive. Of the 61 million people who will shuffle off the mortal coil this year, roughly 90 percent will die as a result of some medical condition, which leaves all other causes with the rest. Half of...
IQALUIT, Nunavut - Canadian mining companies can expect to see continued upward movement in prices generally for precious and base metals and coal, along with increasing volatility during the next 18 months to 2 years, a top economist told a gathering here April 13. Patricia Mohr, vice president, economics and commodity market specialist for The Scotiabank Bank Group offered delegates attending the 13th annual Nunavut Mining Symposium her expert view of current global economic conditions and how they will likely impact...
Rare earth elements have become a hot topic among United States policymakers. The growing demand for the unique properties of these metals in "green energy" technology and military applications, coupled with China's monopoly on the rare earth market has lawmakers and the Pentagon investigating the need to stimulate domestic production, manufacture and stockpiling of these elements. A bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Colo., in March has moved the rare earth conversa...
IQALUIT, Nunavut - Now that Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd. is producing three or four 8-kilogram bars of gold every week at the newly opened Meadowbank Mine in the central region, government, business and mining industry officials here are beginning to look ahead toward the territory's next big challenge. "Meadowbank's startup is a small step for us in Nunavut," said Paul Kaludjak, president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., the Inuit organization that co-administers the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement with the Government of Canada. "We...
IQALUIT, Nunavut -Mayors and representatives from six Nunavut communities offered feedback on the effects of mining exploration and development activities in their respective areas during a forum at the 13th annual Nunavut Mining Symposium held April 14 at the Frobisher Inn and Conference Centre. The panel members voiced concerns about potential detrimental effects of mining activities on the environment. "How will the companies make the land like it was before?" asked Mayor Ernie Bernhardt of Kugluktuk, a community in...
Eager to discover whether Rio Tinto Ltd. subsidiary Kennecott Exploration Inc. will exercise its right to buy back a 60 percent stake in the Whistler gold-copper project, Kiska Metals Corp. has launched a 15-hole drill campaign and corresponding 3-D-induced polarization survey to explore the larger potential of the 173-square-mile, or 448-square-kilometer, central Alaska property. The largest portion of the drill program, which began in mid-March, is testing targets within...
Quebec is considered the best place in the world to mine, according to the Fraser Institute's Survey of Mining Companies 2009/2010. "Mining executives say Quebec remains an international standout for investment because stable government policies offer them the certainty that reduces risk for long-term projects," said Fred McMahon, coordinator of the survey and the institute's vice-president of international policy research. The Toronto-based thinktank asked 670 mining...
As investors clamor for bigger stakes in exploration projects in the White Gold District of Yukon Territory, one astute explorer is shifting part of its focus farther south and eastward. In early April, Northern Tiger Resources Inc., a spin-out of Firestone Ventures Inc. in 2008, reported optioning the 3Ace Property - located about 270 kilometers, or 167.4 miles, north of Watson Lake in southeast Yukon Territory - from longtime Yukon prospector Alex McMillan. The junior formalized terms outlined in a March 5 letter of...
The expansion of North America's infrastructure ended about 500 miles short of reaching the westernmost shores of the United States, leaving more than 350,000 square miles of Alaska without surface transportation or affordable energy. A vast amount of mineral wealth is locked up in this Texas-sized expanse of western Alaska. In its 2010 report, the Alaska Minerals Commission informed state lawmakers that, "Mining is one of few Alaska industries with near-term growth...
