The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Sorted by date Results 26 - 47 of 47
SPARKS, Nev. – The notoriously long timeline for permitting a mine in the United States may soon be shortened. This reprieve is not from the various renditions of mine permit reform that has been introduced to Congress over the past decade but from an agency in Washington D.C. that most people have never heard of – the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC). Alexander Herrgott, executive director of FPISC, drew the nervous laughter he was expecting when he...
As the worldwide deficit in zinc production grows, several zinc-lead mining projects across northern Canada await construction of access arteries needed to deliver their ore to market. The projects are among the world's most attractive and represent a base metals treasure trove coveted by would-be developers and end users alike. Recent funding from the Canadian government and other public and private sources could unlock the floodgates to critical infrastructure development...
The World Gold Council Sept. 12 launched its Responsible Gold Mining Principles, which lays out a framework that provides investors and downstream gold supply chain customers with clear expectations as to what constitutes responsible gold mining. "It is our aim that the Responsible Gold Mining Principles reinforce trust in gold and the gold mining industry. Consumers, investors and the downstream gold supply chain will be able to know, with confidence, that their gold has...
The Canadian government has dedicated C$2.2 billion to clean up contaminated mine sites in the Yukon and Northwest Territories. The eight projects to be addressed with this investment are the historical Faro, United Keno Hill, Mount Nansen, Ketza River and Clinton Creek mines in the Yukon; and Giant, Cantung and Great Bear Lake mines in the Northwest Territories. This new remediation effort, Northern Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program, was introduced by the Honorable Carolyn...
Can American resource development and environmental stewardship go hand-in-hand? Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler not only believes the answer is yes but producing the rich mineral and energy resources of the United States is the environmentally preferable alternative. "When it comes to the environment and when it comes to national security, there is no better investment than American energy and minerals," he said during an Aug. 20 luncheon hosted...
With the issuance of five presidential determinations related to the domestic production of rare earth metals and magnets, President Donald Trump is making it clear the White House sees this group of 17 technology elements as essential to the security of the United States. In five memos sent to the secretary of defense on July 22, Trump made an official determination under Section 303 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 that domestic production, separation and manufacturing...
Thanks to the start-up of new mines, The Conference Board of Canada forecasts the economies of Canada's territories to grow significantly over the next two years. In Territorial Outlook Economic Forecast: Summer 2019, The Conference Board of Canada foresees the combined economies of Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Yukon expanding by 5.3 percent in 2019 and 4.4 percent in 2020. "Territorial economies are being positively impacted by new mines that are propelling growth in...
Washington D.C.'s increased interest in securing a steadfast supply of critical minerals may prompt further advancement at Ucore Rare Metals Inc.'s Bokan Mountain, a Southeast Alaska project that hosts seven of the 35 minerals, metals and groups of elements that are considered critical to the United States. A federal interagency report published earlier this month by the U.S. Department of Commerce, "A federal strategy to ensure secure and reliable supplies of critical...
The U.S. Department of Commerce June 4 released "A federal strategy to ensure secure and reliable supplies of critical minerals," an interagency report that outlines a government-wide action plan to ensure the United States has secure and reliable supplies of critical minerals. Department of Commerce was charged with spearheading this report under Executive Order 13817, which was signed by President Donald Trump late in 2017. Trump's critical minerals executive order...
When it comes to rare earths, China has a strategy that goes beyond using these high-tech elements as ammunition for the next salvo in a trade war with the United States. This strategy, which was set into motion around 1980, involves gaining an advantage in high-tech manufacturing by controlling the first three links of the rare earth element supply chain – mining, processing and value-added manufacturing. Over the ensuing four decades, the Middle Kingdom has gained a near m...
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) have teamed up to introduce bipartisan legislation aimed at addressing America's "Achilles' heel" – a heavy dependence on foreign countries for its growing mineral needs. "Our nation's mineral security is a significant, urgent, and often ignored challenge. Our reliance on China and other nations for critical minerals costs us jobs, weakens our economic competitiveness, and leaves us at a geopolitical d...
The United States Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) April 16 announced the availability of up to $400,000 in funding through its Brookwood-Sago grant program to support education and training to help identify, avoid, and prevent unsafe working conditions in and around U.S. mines. Brookwood-Sago grants focus on powered haulage safety – such as reducing vehicle-on-vehicle collisions, increasing seat belt use, and improving belt conveyor safety ...
The value of non-fuel metals produced in Alaska and the United States during 2018 were similar to 2017, according to Mineral Commodity Summaries 2019, an annual report published by the U.S. Geological Survey. Alaska mines produced roughly $3.44 billion worth of non-fuel minerals last year, down nearly 3 percent from the US$3.53 million in 2017. This slight drop is largely due to lower output from the two largest mines in the state – Fort Knox and Pogo. The roughly 1.4 b...
When it comes to attracting mining investment, Alaska, British Columbia and all three Canadian territories rank among the top 20 jurisdictions in the world on the Fraser Institute Survey of Mining Companies 2018. This report asks industry professionals from around the globe to score mining jurisdictions based on their mineral endowment and various policy topics important to mining. "The mining survey-now in its 21st year-is the most comprehensive report card on government...
He who controls battery metals and the evolving energy storage technology controls the world of industrial power in the 21st century auto and energy storage industries. This is the message Benchmark Mineral Intelligence Managing Director Simon Moores delivered to the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Moores, a global authority on lithium-ion batteries and the metals that go into them, was invited to testify by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Lisa...
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, called on Congress to pass legislation that will curb the United States' increasing dependence on foreign countries for its growing mineral needs. In its Mineral Commodity Summaries 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey identified 50 minerals for which the U.S. was reliant on other countries for at least 50 percent of its supply, including 21 for which America is 100 percent import reliant. Many of these are on the USGS list of 35 minerals and...
A dearth of infrastructure in Canada's northern territories is proving to be a severe hindrance to mine development in mineral provinces ranked by many among the most attractive and stable in the world. The lack of roads, ports, power, telecommunications and land access north of the 60th parallel in Canada dominated discussions at an annual gathering of the country energy and mining ministers, held in Iqaluit, Nunavut Aug. 12-14. "Our opportunities are hindered by...
In an initial move to implement President Donald Trump's strategy to break the United States' growing reliance on foreign countries for minerals and metals vital to its security and economy, the U.S. Department of Interior published a final list of 35 critical minerals on May 18. An executive order signed by President Trump in December instructed Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke, in consultation with Secretary of Defense James Mattis, to identify and publish a list of...
In a report published in December, the United States Geological Survey defined critical minerals as non-fuel minerals or mineral materials essential to the economic and national security of the United States; vulnerable to supply chain disruptions; and serve an essential function in the manufacturing of a product, the absence of which would have significant consequences for the U.S. economy or security. Using this definition, USGS has identified 35 minerals critical to the...
For the fourth year running, Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nevada, has put forward the legislation aimed at streamlining the process for permitting strategic and critical minerals in the United States. "Critical and strategic minerals are essential to the technologies that make our daily lives and economy work. Unfortunately, when it comes to mining strategic and critical minerals domestically, duplicative regulations, bureaucratic inefficiency, and lack of coordination between federal...
Alaska's rich mineral endowment helped propel the Last Frontier into the top ten on the Fraser Institute's Survey of Mining Companies 2017. To gather information for its report, the Fraser Institute asks mining executives to rank the mineral potential and mining policies of mining jurisdictions around the globe. The Canada-based think-tank compiles this data into the "Investment Attractiveness Index", a measure that weighs mining executives' perceptions of both the mineral...
Following a U.S. Geological Survey report that identifies 23 minerals critical to the economic wellbeing and security of the United States, President Donald Trump issued an executive order calling on federal agencies to devise a strategy to ensure America has reliable supply of these critical minerals. "It shall be the policy of the federal government to reduce the nation's vulnerability to disruptions in the supply of critical minerals, which constitutes a strategic...
