The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Sorted by date Results 326 - 350 of 395
It is still early days in the exploration play for gold in eastern Yukon Territory, but a score of companies got a jump on competitors in 2011 by targeting promising occurrences of gold and pathfinder elements in a frenzy of unprecedented claim staking and reconnaissance. The early explorers rushed to the region following a report by Atac Resources Ltd. in September 2010 that it discovered unusual mineralization in the rocky eastern ridges of its 1,600-square-kilometer (618 square miles) Rackla Project. Atac posted high-grade...
NovaGold Resource Inc. has made tectonic shifts in its leadership and corporate structure. Shedding all of its assets except for the Donlin Gold project in Southwest Alaska, the restructured company is singularly focused on bringing this 40-million-ounce gold deposit into production by the end of the decade. Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse - who founded NovaGold and guided the exploration company through 15 years of trials and triumphs - is relinquishing NovaGold's top executive office...
The Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board has approved a proposal by Canadian Zinc Corp. for protecting the environment during operation of the Prairie Creek Mine in the Northwest Territories. The move, which comes after more than three years of review, is seen as perhaps a major milestone in the permitting process for the underground lead-zinc mine project and a signal that the investment climate for mining may be changing for the better in the northern territory. The Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact... Full story
Is the "Yukon Gold Rush" about to spill into Alaska? Since the 1896 discovery of gold on the aptly named Bonanza Creek sparked a stampede of fortune seekers to the rivers and streams of the Klondike, these world-class mining jurisdictions that share a common geological and mineralization history have been engaged in a cross-border rivalry of drawing prospectors and miners to their mineral-rich deposits. While 19th Century miners seeking their fortunes in Alaska's Fortymile...
Throughout the 2011 field season, explorers pushed the envelope in Yukon Territory, scrambling to target and assess rapidly increasing numbers of deposits of gold, silver and base metals mineralization being identified as the exploration rush that overtook the region in 2009 stretched into its third consecutive year. With gold prices climbing to new highs and a stable investment climate, the lure of the Yukon attracted miners and investors in numbers not seen in a century. "Both Yukon and Nunavut are entering a period of sust...
As termination dust settles over Alaska, the diversity of mineral exploration, development and production news this month covers the entire spectrum of mining industry activities. The last of the seasonal early-stage exploration projects are reporting in, a major producing company has entered the state for the first time, Alaska finished its first off-shore mineral lease process in more than a decade, several projects reported on resource definition and feasibility studies, a gold deposit was sold, a ballot initiative aimed... Full story
DENVER - China may be poor in natural resources, but the country has enough cash to source its burgeoning need for minerals from foreign lands. This was the message that Mamadou Barry, senior mining specialist in the Sustainable Energy Department of the World Bank brought to participants in the Mining Americas Summit 2011 held here June 13-14. "China is a country of superlatives. In February China overtook Japan to become the second-largest economy in the world, and they are... Full story
The Money Knob deposit at International Tower Hill Mines Ltd.'s Livengood Project ranks among the top 2 percent of gold discoveries made globally during the past 20 years - a far cry from the prospect a newly-formed junior inherited from AngloGold Ashanti Exploration Inc. in late 2006. "The Livengood Project from 'Day One' really felt to me like we were on top of a very large gold system, so I was very committed to the project," Tower Hill CEO Jeff Pontius told Mining News... Full story
Two Worlds, One Spirit" is a motto that encompasses NANA Regional Corp.'s dedication to developing its natural resources in a way that preserves the integrity of its land and the traditional values of the people who have called Northwest Alaska home for millennia. "At NANA we like to say we live in two worlds but have one spirit - meaning that we will not forsake our traditional values when participating in the modern economy. We can be Native people and bring Native values...
One soil at a time," said Shawn Ryan, describing the gold-hunting technique he has perfected in a decade of working what has become the hottest exploration play in Canada. After collecting more than 200,000 soil samples since 2003 and leading at least two junior mining companies to the most significant gold discoveries in the new White Gold District of Yukon Territory, Ryan is happy to share the particulars of his slow and careful approach to prospecting. The former Dawson City prospector, who recently moved to Whitehorse,... Full story
As the last days of the decade tick by, I am tempted to look back on 2010 and distill the year in a few sentences. I'll resist and opt for a bunch of sentences similar to some I recently dumped on the Society of Economic Geologists, an exploration-focused scientific organization of which I am a card-carrying member. Those words prompted more than a few heated responses, both supportive and not so supportive ("You're a pin-head" is the one that will probably stick with me... Full story
As mining heats up in Yukon Territory, professionals from around the globe are finding new roles in the region and employing a host of unique experiences and perspectives in pursuit of exploration, development and production of the territory's minerals. This growing international contingent covers the industry spectrum and hails from around the globe. Their presence is most evident in exploration camps scattered across the Yukon; however, the new manager of Yukon's sole producer, Capstone Mining Corp.'s Minto Mine, is a...
Mining is becoming increasingly important to Alaskans looking for good-paying jobs. Not only does the industry provide high wages, the geographical diversity of the mines provides employment opportunities to oftentimes economically challenged rural regions of the vast state. According to the Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development, the number of mining jobs in Alaska has jumped 40.3 percent since 2000, almost triple the statewide average employment growth of 14.1... Full story
When I wrote a first editorial for Mining Explorers last year, it was on the occasion of Nunavut celebrating its first 10 years as a separate territory, and so it was fitting to review some of the accomplishments of the decade. Now, as we enter into a second decade, many of the fruits of those labors are coming to bear. That first decade, 1999-2009, wasn't, of course, without its share of both accomplishments and setbacks. Early in Nunavut's short life around 2002, three long-producing mines closed: the Polaris and Nanisivik...
The search for furs opened up the Northwest Territories more than 400 years ago, bringing explorers and traders to the North. In today's economy, it's the search for - and the development of - mineral resources that is the one of the main cogs in the NWT economy. It's an industry that contributes more than C$1 billion annually to our economy and creates more than 2,000 direct jobs. And while the past two years have been challenging for the mining industry everywhere due to the global economic crisis that has seen exploration...
The Last Frontier, as Alaska has long been labeled, is as applicable a moniker today as it was to prospectors who ventured to the territory at the end of the 19th century. Alaska is considered one of the most mineralized provinces on Earth, but due to an inter-related combination of Arctic weather, rugged terrain, limited infrastructure and high exploration costs, the state's vast mineral potential remains at the edge of exploratory expansion. Though the Far North state...
DEC: TSX President: Edward Kruchkowski, P. Geo, P. Geol. Director and CFO: Andrew Bowering Decade Resources Ltd. is focused on exploration stage mineral properties in northern British Columbia. In 2010, the junior's activities centered on the Red Cliff gold and Wedeene copper-gold properties. At April 30 Decade had incurred all the required exploration expenditures to earn a 60 percent interest in Red Cliff. Decade has informed Mountain Boy that it will not be exercising its option to earn the additional 20 percent interest....
MTB: TSX-V President and CEO: Frank Kamermans Director: Edward Kruchkowski, P. Geo, P. Geol. Mountain Boy Minerals Ltd. is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on mineral prospects in north-central British Columbia near Stewart, B.C. Mountain Boy owns a 49 percent interest in the Silver Coin mineral claims (19 percent is optioned to Pinnacle Mines Ltd.), a 26.95 percent interest in the Indi mineral claims and a 29.4 percent interest in the Kansas mineral claims. These 26 contiguous claims cover 1,255 hectares and...
Dozens of small explorers mounted exploration campaigns in 2010 in and around the historic Stewart Gold Camp in northwestern British Columbia, and as assays trickle in from samples and core sent to labs this spring and summer, many of them are reporting encouraging results. The Stewart Gold Camp, located about 20 miles, or 35 kilometers, from the B.C./Alaska border, is an emerging, world-class mining district that continues to offer discovery opportunities for major gold-copper and precious metal polymetallic deposits. The...
THISTLE CREEK, Yukon Territory - The Bell Jet Ranger helicopter just landed, while the A-Star unloaded passengers before powering down its engines on the other side of the creek. A third, smaller copter whined as its rotors buffeted bystanders with gusts of dust and debris during takeoff. Meanwhile, a small plane soared overhead. Welcome to the Dawson Mining District of central Yukon in early August. Or as one wag joked: "JFK West!" Visitors prepared to tour Kaminak Gold Corp.'s mining exploration camp here as a three-man...
DAWSON, Yukon Territory - Hardrock mining explorers are capitalizing on unprecedented investor interest and going after paying gold, silver, copper-rich porphyry, lead-zinc and other metal deposits here with uncommon gusto this summer. A few years ago, a multimillion-dollar, single-season exploration program would have been a rare commodity in the Yukon. But this year, at least a half-dozen juniors have joined one major, Kinross Gold Corp., and the Yukon's only producer, Capstone Mining Corp., in forking over megabucks to...
FORTYMILE - The storm clouds responsible for the torrential rains that recently washed away long sections of the Taylor Highway are not the only source of rumbling in the Fortymile region of eastern Interior Alaska. Full Metal Minerals Ltd. has launched the Rolling Thunder Project here this summer. The staking and exploration initiative is targeting the lode source of more than half a million ounces of placer gold recovered historically from the streams draining the rolling... Full story
Areva Resources Canada Inc. is working away at its plan to develop the Kiggavik Project in Nunavut within the next decade. A subsidiary of France-based Areva, the world's largest uranium producer with output of 22 million pounds in 2009, Areva Canada considers the 10-year plan very good news. That's because a decade in the world of uranium mining is a relatively brief interlude. "Uranium mining is a long-term business," said Areva Canada executive Richard Gladue told a crowd at the 2010 Nunavut Mining Symposium in Iqaluit in...
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...
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... Full story
