When it comes too lifting, transporting, installing ng and decommissioning large structures, we believe elieve your biggest challenges aren’t about size, They’re about time. Uptim me, turnaround time and time-to-market. While the right equipment is essential, sential, its often not enough to get a job done in time. Mammoet bringss deadlines forward through careful planning, innovative engineering and safe delivery. Mammoet provides des tailorr-made -made solutions for engineered heavy logistics. If you are facing challenges in construction, maintenance or decommissioningg, give us a call. Time may not be set in concrete or forged in steel. It isn’t even ven all that heavy. And yet, it’s the biggest thing we move.
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IN THIS ISSUE
62 ON
CIM MAGAZINE MAY | MAI 2014
cover story
THE
LAND
Can aboriginal mining companies realize their dreams? by Eavan Moore
24 “Comply or explain�
Canada, and particularly its mining industry, are laggards when it comes to having women on boards and in senior management positions. With new proposed disclosure rules, the Ontario Securities Commission is putting the pressure on companies to change that by Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco
73 New conveyor designs
stand out in a traditional field
Miners may prefer tried and true conveying systems, but new designs for niche operations offer novel approaches for bulk material handling by Eavan Moore
77 Perseverance
pays off for Cameco
Enormous technical challenges and a series of setbacks did not deter the team working to make the Cigar Lake mine a reality by Ian Ewing
May 2014 | 5
48 28 8 10
Editor’s letter President’s notes
tools of the trade 12
The best in new technology
news
compiled by Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco
14 28
30
Industry at a glance A new state-owned French mining company to explore for minerals in francophone Africa and in South America Richer oil sands emissions data may lead to tougher EIA requirements
columns
36 40 44
48 52 56 58
by Tom DiNardo
by Graham Lanktree
32
upfront
Women in leadership: good for mining and good for business by Ryan Montpellier and Courtnay Hughes
Local procurement through local content helps manage risk by Monica Ospina
Getting beyond the headlines in B.C. by Gavin Dirom
A two-envelope approach to procurement by Mauro Chiesa
6 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Times are tough for the nuclear sector but recovery is inevitable by Brenda Bouw
contenu francophone
81
page couverture
68 Vivre des
ressources de la terre
Patterson Lake South is an incredible find for Fission
Les compagnies minières autochtones peuvent-elles réaliser leurs rêves ?
by Virginia Heffernan
Today’s uranium industry needs to self promote by Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco
Chuck Edwards talks mini-nukes, China, the media and, yes, uranium
par Eavan Moore
10 81
Mot du président
91
par Ian Ewing
by Peter Braul
84
Where do renewables belong in mining’s energy mix?
cim community 85
CIM news from Canada and beyond
La persévérance est rentable pour Cameco Malgré un énorme défi technique et une série de revers subis, l'équipe a concrétisé la mine de Cigar Lake sans se décourager Résumés techniques
travel
compiled by Herb Mathisen
88
Stepnogorsk, Kazakhstan
mining lore
by Dinah Zeldin
98
Kathleen Rice: Trailblazing the Manitoba wilds by Jen Glanville
91 95 96
Technical abstracts Innovation showcase Product files & Professional directory
CIM Magazine est disponible entierement en français en ligne : magazine.CIM.org/fr-CA
007-007 Ad_Mechanicad.qxp_. 2014-04-24 10:43 AM Page 1
Des conduits de ventilation recyclés chez GoldCorp C’est au site Eleonore que Mécanicad a réalisé cette prouesse. Au cours des dernières années, GoldCorp a utilisé un grand nombre de conduits Mécanivent® de 72’’ dia. pour ventiler 4km de ses galeries de départ et en avait encore plusieurs en inventaire. Et elle souhaitait continuer d’installer des Mécanivent® de 60’’ dia. dans les galeries secondaires. Pour protéger l’environnement et réduire les coûts d’acquisition des conduits de ventilation, Mécanicad a proposé d’essayer de recycler les conduits de 72’’ pour en faire des 60’’. GoldCorp a fait transporter les conduits de plus grand diamètre à l’ usine de Mécanicad qui les a utilisés pour fabriquer des Mécanivent® de 60’’ qu’elle a ré-expédiés au site de la mine Eleonore. Ainsi, GoldCorp est gagnante sur toute la ligne : Elle a respecté l’environnement en évitant l’enfouissement des grands conduits, elle a réduit les coûts de ses nouveaux conduits de 30% et elle a permis à Mécanicad de recycler 95% de la matière première. Mécanicad est une compagnie dédiée à l’innovation technologique en utilisant les plastiques dans de multiples applications et, principalement, dans les conduits de ventilation des mines souterraines.
Recycled ventilation pipes for GoldCorp The Eleonore mine is the site where Mecanicad achieved that feat. Over the last couple of years, GoldCorp has used a great number of 72’’ dia. Mecanivent® pipes to ventilate its 4km ramp and had still a fair number of pipes on inventory. And the miner wanted to carry on with 60’’dia. Mecanivent® in its levels and sub-levels. In order to protect the environment while reducing the cost of these products, Mecanicad offered to try and recycle the 72’’ dia. pipes into 60’’ dia. ones. GoldCorp returned the wider diameter pipes to Mecanicad’s plant where 60’’ dia. Mecanivent® were fabricated out of the 72’’ ones and shipped back to Eleonore mine site. It was a winning situation for GoldCorp: The miner has shown respect of environment, avoiding to bury large diameter pipes, the cost of smaller pipes was reduced by 30% and she allowed Mecanicad to recycle 95% of basic raw material. Mecanicad is a company dedicated to technical innovation , using plastic material for many applications, chiefly to ventilating underground mines.
3:47 PM
Editor-in-chief Ryan Bergen, rbergen@cim.org Executive editor Angela Hamlyn, ahamlyn@cim.org Managing editor Andrea Nichiporuk, anichiporuk@cim.org
editor’s letter
Open to discussion
B
ased on the marketing material collected on my desk, the apparent trend in the mining sector is for total solutions, but with this issue of CIM Magazine we offer unanswered questions. This is inevitable when trying to scope out the distance between where the industry is and where many aspire for it to be. How can the uranium industry help people appreciate the incredible potential the mineral has to supply the world’s growing energy needs? What will it take to introduce more diverse leadership into the upper strata of mining company management and boards of directors? How can Canada’s indigenous people take a more active role in mineral development and redefine their status in this country? Eavan Moore explores that last theme in our cover story, “On the land” (p. 62). Moore, a long-time contributor to the magazine, reached out to a number of proponents of indigenous ownership of exploration and mining projects to investigate the existing and potential models for this, and the hurdles that will have to be overcome to make such approaches to resource development happen. One apparent obstacle took shape as this feature story was circulating among the editorial team. In mid-April, the federal government revealed that a number of bands audited under the First Nations Financial Transparency Act had misspent federal funds. The random audits of band finances are intended to inspire more transparency and accountability among First Nation governments, all of which will soon be required to publish their annual financial statements. Because politics are politics, the motives for a policy that has the effect of embarrassing First Nations leaders are likely not completely pure, but transparency is good. The public always benefits from knowing where its money has been spent or misspent, whether by senators or by band councils. Ideally, the increased scrutiny will result in the recognition of leaders who have good governance practices, and give them more leverage as they work to improve their lot. First Nations want to play an active role in generating wealth from the natural resources they have a claim to, and all sides would benefit if that ambition were shared. So, how do we get to that point? I hope the questions raised in this article will provide fuel for discussion at the upcoming CIM Convention in Vancouver, and for those of you who will not be able to make it, we would love to hear your thoughts. Send us a note. Each year at this time, CIM’s National Office hits its top gear as we organize the countless meetings, complete the extra publications, polish the many awards, and tackle the IT and logistical challenges that CIM’s flagship event presents. Beyond these walls, there is an army of volunteers that is also working to make this conference and expo the best they can be. Thanks to you all for the work you have done and congratulations on the event you have created. See you in Vancouver.
Ryan Bergen, Editor-in-chief editor@cim.org @Ryan_CIM_Mag 8 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Section editors Peter Braul, pbraul@cim.org Herb Mathisen, hmathisen@cim.org Copy editor/Communications coordinator Zoë Koulouris, zkoulouris@cim.org Web content editor Maria Olaguera, molaguera@cim.org Editorial intern Tom DiNardo, tdinardo@cim.org Contributors Brenda Bouw, Mauro Chiesa, Gavin Dirom, Ian Ewing, Alexander Filion, Jen Glanville, Virginia Heffernan, Courtnay Hughes, Patrick Kane, Graham Lanktree, Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco, Ryan Montpellier, Eavan Moore, Monica Ospina, Anna Reitman, Dinah Zeldin Editorial advisory board Alicia Ferdinand, Garth Kirkham, Vic Pakalnis, Nathan Stubina Translations André Moreau, SDL, Mark Stout Published 9 times a year by: Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum 1250 – 3500 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West Westmount, QC H3Z 3C1 Tel.: 514.939.2710; Fax: 514.939.2714 www.cim.org; Email: magazine@cim.org Advertising Sales Dovetail Communications Inc. 30 East Beaver Creek Rd., Ste. 202 Richmond Hill, Ontario L4B 1J2 Tel.: 905.886.6640; Fax: 905.886.6615; www.dvtail.com Senior Account Executives 905.886.6641 Janet Jeffery, jjeffery@dvtail.com, ext. 329 Neal Young, nyoung@dvtail.com, ext. 325 Account Manager Fiona Persaud, fpersaud@dvtail.com, ext. 326 Subscriptions Included in CIM membership ($174.00); Non-members (Canada), $270.00/yr (PE, MB, SK, AB, NT, NU, YT add $11.00 GST, BC add $26.40 HST, ON, NB, NL add $28.60 HST, QC add $32.95 GST + PST, NS add $33.00 HST) Non-Members USA and International: US$290.00/year. Single copies, $25.00.
This issue’s cover Darrell Beaulieu photographed by Patrick Kane Layout and design by Clò Communications Inc. www.clocommunications.com Copyright©2014. All rights reserved. ISSN 1718-4177. Publications Mail No. 09786. Postage paid at CPA Saint-Laurent, QC. Dépôt légal: Bibliothèque nationale du Québec. The Institute, as a body, is not responsible for statements made or opinions advanced either in articles or in any discussion appearing in its publications.
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president’s notes | mot du président
The federal government’s fork in the road
Robert Schafer CIM President Président de l’ICM
Recently, the Harper government declared its support for the Canadian mining industry and the development of Canadian natural resources as a key component of its plan for economic growth. The government has said it recognizes that wealth creation through responsible mineral development will grow the economy, provide quality employment for current and future generations, improve the quality of life in rural aboriginal communities, and stimulate the development of Canada’s vast North through infrastructure projects that will provide access to remote regions. Yet the actions of the federal government create ambiguity. The Ring of Fire, which is essentially an entirely new mining province with potential for multiple world-class mines that would provide many different mineral commodities, is currently languishing for lack of land-based access. A major roadwork, perhaps co-sponsored by public and private sources, has the power to spark development as the transnational railway did over a century ago. Many new advantages would be created, including immediate construction jobs, better connected and serviced northern communities, and the opportunity to discover much more mineral wealth. But where is the federal government initiative? In British Columbia, a new gold-copper mine with obvious immediate and long-term benefits was approved by the province, following a modification of operational plans to accommodate requests at the federal level. Yet the permit applications were still turned back by the federal government, largely due to vocal dissent by local aboriginal communities, despite the fact that there was broad support from other communities. This comes at the same time as a strong federal promotion of oil sands development and support for infrastructure and transport pipelines in various directions, against a current of local protests and opposition. These ambiguous actions raise questions: Who holds decision-making primacy when it comes to utilization of Crown lands? Is Canada really open for business? If it is, is mining truly part of the federal government’s business plan, or are politics going to get in the way?
L’avenir de l’exploitation minière au Canada Récemment, le gouvernement Harper a déclaré son appui à l’industrie minière canadienne et au développement des ressources naturelles du pays, qu’il considère comme des composants clés de son plan de croissance économique. Le gouvernement a dit comprendre que la création de richesses par l’intermédiaire d’une mise en valeur des minéraux fera croître l’économie; fournira des emplois de qualité pour la génération actuelle et les générations suivantes; améliorera la qualité de la vie dans les collectivités autochtones rurales; et stimulera le développement du grand nord canadien grâce à des projets d’infrastructure qui donneront accès à des régions éloignées. Et pourtant, les actions du gouvernement fédéral sont ambiguës. Le Cercle de feu, qui consiste essentiellement en une toute nouvelle province minière comprenant potentiellement de multiples mines de calibre mondial qui fourniraient plusieurs minéraux métallifères différents, dépérit présentement faute d’accès terrestre. Des travaux routiers d’envergure, peut-être financés conjointement par des sources publiques et privées, ont le pouvoir de déclencher un développement comme le chemin de fer transnational l’a fait il y a plus de 100 ans. Le projet créerait plusieurs nouveaux avantages, dont des emplois immédiats dans le secteur de la construction, des collectivités nordiques mieux connectées et mieux desservies, et la possibilité de découvrir encore davantage de richesses minérales. Mais où est l’initiative du gouvernement fédéral ? En Colombie-Britannique, une nouvelle mine de cuivre-or aux avantages immédiats et à long terme évidents a obtenu l’aval de la province, puis on a modifié les plans d’exploitation à la demande du fédéral. Mais les demandes de permis se sont tout de même heurtées au refus du gouvernement fédéral, en grande partie à cause des protestations vigoureuses des collectivités autochtones locales et malgré le fait que les autres collectivités appuyaient largement le projet. Au même moment, le fédéral fait une promotion dynamique de l’exploitation des gisements de sables bitumineux et appuie l’infrastructure et les pipelines dans plusieurs directions, malgré la vague d’objections et l’opposition des résidents locaux. Ces gestes équivoques soulèvent des questions : À qui reviennent les décisions sur l’utilisation des terres de la Couronne ? Le Canada est-il vraiment ouvert au monde des affaires ? Et si oui, l’exploitation minière faitelle réellement partie du plan économique du gouvernement fédéral ou sera-t-elle entravée par des considérations politiques ? 10 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
◢ Efficiency in the lab A few years back, Cleveland Vibrator Company, a designer and manufacturer of vibratory products, set out to solve a common problem with laboratory sieve shakers used for sample particle size analysis: screen clogging and inefficient throughput. The result of this work is the Model HK Dual Drive Laboratory Sieve Shaker, which has two rotary electric vibrators that generate much more force and energy than the electromagnetic vibration used in standard lab shakers. Additionally, the screen moves linearly and circularly, increasing the throughput efficiency and speed because “it gives the material being sieved much more motion across the surface of the screen,” says Jeff Hochadel, sales manager for vibratory screening and sieving. Available in eight-inch, 10-inch, 12-inch and 18-inch diameter sieve frame sizes, the unit can accommodate up to eight sieves and comes with the option of an ultrasonic sieving system. “That allows for ultrasonic energy to be applied to the screen surface, which helps eliminate clogging of the sieve,” says Hochadel.
◢ Mineral identification at your fingertips Traditional mineral analysis instruments can be cumbersome to use. “Geologists need three hands to operate the cabling and multiple devices involved,” says Chris Sherry, senior marketing manager at PANalytical Boulder Inc. The company, formerly known as Analytical Spectral Devices (ASD), develops material analysis and near-infrared (NIR) analytical instrumentation. Sherry and his colleagues recently launched the ASD TerraSpec Halo mineral identifier: a handheld device, weighing only two kilograms, that employs NIR spectrometry to identify minerals. “When you pull the trigger, it shines a halogen light on a surface, which interacts with the chemistry,” he says. A sensor captures the reflected light and matches results to the corresponding mineral identification found in the device’s built-in library, comprising roughly 125 minerals from various catalogues, which are always updatable via the Internet. “All you have to do is put the instrument against the rock, click the trigger and in a few seconds you get a mineral result on the screen,” says Sherry. The device also includes a global positioning system unit.
◢ New lean-burn gas-fuelled generators Power generation remains one of the biggest expenses for miners, and the ability for mines to quickly switch to lower-cost natural gas can present significant savings. That is where Cummins Power Generation’s new leanburn gas-fuelled generator sets come in. With power ratings that range from 315 kilowatt electrical to two megawatt electrical, and with low emissions that meet the most stringent air quality regulations without aftertreatment devices in the exhaust stream, these robust and high-efficiency generation sets are capable of running on both natural gas and alternative gaseous fuels including diesel. “As natural gas becomes available, they’re able to go with it and take advantage of its lower operating cost,” says Tony Blaubaum, South Pacific general manager for energy solutions business. Compiled by Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco 12 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Courtesy of Cummins Power Generation
Courtesy of Cleveland Vibrator Company
Courtesy of PANalytical Boulder Inc.
OF TOOLS THE TRADE
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news
The Liberal Party of Quebec’s resounding victory in April’s election may finally bring some stability to the Quebec mining industry. Miners had been on shaky ground since the September 2012 election of a minority Parti-Québécois (PQ) government, which had campaigned on recouping more revenues from the sector and later worked hard to push through mining reforms. After a failed attempt in May 2013, the government passed a new, albeit watered-down, mining act that added permitting requirements, lowered environmental assessment triggering thresholds and gave more power to municipalities to oppose mining developments. This past March, then-PQ-leader Pauline Marois called a snap election, seeking a majority government, but was soundly defeated by the Liberals, which instead took a majority in the National Assembly. “Obviously, a majority government will ensure at least some stability in policy over the next four years,” said Quebec Mineral Exploration Association chairman Philippe Cloutier, adding this certainty should quell investor anxieties. “Investors don’t like to know that they’re investing money and the government’s going to pull a 180 on them.” Newly elected Premier Philippe Couillard spoke to the importance of mining and exploration during the campaign, said Cloutier, adding he announced some commitments during the election that could benefit Quebec’s mining industry. “One of his main proposals is to come back with what is a Plan Nord Plus, and invest in infrastructure, which is a good thing for companies,” Cloutier explained. Couillard also stated his intentions to start a small business ministry, which Cloutier said could help many of the service providers on which the industry depends. – Herb Mathisen 14 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Courtesy of Capstone Mining
New majority government promises stability for Quebec’s mining industry
Less than one year after purchasing the Pinto Valley copper mine in Arizona from BHP Billiton, Capstone Mining Corp. has extended the mine’s life by eight years.
Capstone extends Pinto Valley mine life Vancouver-based Capstone Mining Corp. has extended the mine life of its Pinto Valley copper mine, 125 kilometres east of Phoenix, Arizona, by eight years to 2026. Management had a hunch that it could bolster reserves when it purchased the mine from BHP Billiton in October 2013 and immediately started work on a prefeasibility study. “BHP had a lot of the data already available as they were embarking on something similar for the mine,” said Cindy Burnett, vicepresident of investor relations. “We were able to take advantage of much of that work, and started gathering it even before the sale was finalized.” Under the new plan, production will increase from 22.6 million tonnes this year to 42.3 million tonnes per year in 2016 through to 2019, at which time production will gradually decrease until the end of operations in 2026. Capstone will continue to mine out of the same pit, but it will have to move its explosives facilities and some powerlines and pipelines in the next two years in order to accommodate the new phase. The company will spend US$48 million on new drills, shovels and haul trucks to meet the production increase. Burnett said Capstone management is aiming to extend the mine life
beyond 2026 through the continued conversion of mineral resources to reserves. To do so though, the tailings facility would need to be larger, and this is the limiting factor to any further expansion, she explained. – H.M.
CSA adopts existing shareholder exemption Listed companies on Canada’s public markets can now raise money from existing shareholders thanks to new exemptions approved in March by the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA). Under the new rules, an existing shareholder in a company can invest an additional $15,000 per year to purchase shares directly from the company without having to pay brokerage fees. Representatives of the mineral industry had advocated for higher limits, particularly for individuals holding more than $15,000 worth of stock already, but the restrictions are not expected to present a major barrier, said Nadim Kara, senior program director at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. “By allowing retail investors to participate in private placements, regulators are increasing the investor base in the exempt market and really facilitating capital-raising,” Kara said.
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news He points to statistics showing that an alarming number of juniors are facing desperation financing in the mining sector. In 2013, the number of financings in Canada was down 17 per cent, and the value of financings was down more than 50 per cent. Many of these financings were for very small amounts – 12 per cent of financings on the TSX Venture Exchange were for $100,000 or less and 52 per cent of all financings in 2013 were for less than $500,000. More than 50 per cent of the financings last year were priced at $0.10 per share or less versus 13 per cent in 2010. The only jurisdictions not included in the CSA’s prospectus exemption are Ontario and Newfoundland. The Ontario Securities Commission recently presented its own existing shareholder exemption proposal, which is now in a comment period
16 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
ending June 18. Newfoundland is expected to take up Ontario’s finalized – Anna Reitman regulation.
World Bank to release geological map covering African continent The World Bank is planning to launch the African Mineral Geoscience Initiative (AMGI), dubbed the Billion Dollar map, this summer to level the playing field between African countries and mining companies negotiating land concessions. This project aims to compile geological data on mineral prospectivity in Africa in a public geographic information system (GIS) available online. Right now, geodata mapping in Africa is piecemeal, done in a countryby-country fashion, making it difficult
to compare information. “In the first phase of the project, we will compile, collate and analyze the data available from geological surveys funded by the European Union, the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank, among others,” said Paulo de Sa, sector manager of the oil, gas and mining unit of the World Bank’s Sustainable Energy Department. “Once this is complete, we will advance to the integration of airborne geophysics, geochemistry, available drilling data and field work.” African countries will opt into the project, and the World Bank will conduct surveys regionally, without considering borders in volunteer countries. The primary aim of this initiative is to help African countries when they sit down with mining companies to negotiate land concessions. Due to a lack of geological knowledge of the mineral
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resources available within their borders, African governments are selling their mineral assets at too deep a discount, according to the World Bank. The Democratic Republic of Congo, for example, lost out on at least US$1.36 billion between 2010 and 2012 by underpricing mining assets sold to foreign companies, as outlined in the 2013 Africa Progress Panel report. The World Bank also hopes to attract foreign investment by making geological information readily available. To complete the map, the World Bank needs to raise $1 billion – as the project’s name suggests – for which it is looking to countries, private sector mining companies and even technology enterprises as donors. “We have already secured 50 per cent of the funding needed for the first phase of the program, with $40 million committed from various donor countries,” said de Sa. The Billion Dollar map project will start in southeast Africa and is expected to take roughly 10 - Tom DiNardo years to develop.
China loses WTO battle over REE exports On March 26, the World Trade Organization (WTO) found that China’s export duties and restrictions on rare earth elements (REE), tungsten and molybdenum contravened trade agreements it had previously signed, and ordered the country to bring its policies in line with its WTO obligations. Back in 2010, China imposed taxes and quotas that limited the amount of rare earths for export. The country, which produces more than 90 per cent of the world's REEs, also put restrictions on the enterprises allowed to export rare earths. The United States filed a complaint in March 2012, insisting that China’s REE export practices violated previously signed agreements including various articles of the WTO’s General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. During the panel hearing, China argued “that the restrictions [were] related to the conservation of its exhaustible natural resources,” and were in place to 18 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Putting the parts in place The 100-tonne lower main frame of the Raptor 2000 rock crusher, the largest piece of Copper Mountain’s $40-million secondary processing unit, is lowered into place in late March. The new unit, which the operation hopes will be completed this summer, will push throughput from 32,000 tonnes per day (tpd) at the British Columbia copper mine to at least 35,000 tpd and potentially 40,000 tpd. – H.M.
protect the environment by preventing over-mining, according to the WTO report. The complainants, which also included the European Union and Japan, insisted “the restrictions [were] designed to provide Chinese industries that produce downstream goods with protected access to the subject materials,” the report outlined. Not surprisingly, on April 17, China announced its intention to appeal the decision. – H.M.
OSC proposes equity crowdfunding rules Ontario’s securities regulator released equity crowdfunding guidelines in its latest proposals to help Canadian companies raise venture capital from a greater pool of eligible investors. Currently companies in the province are not permitted to equity crowdfund from non-accredited investors. A swath of measures from the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) detail issuer requirements and other guidelines in the interest of investor protection. Under the current proposal, a company would be limited to raising $1.5 million per year through crowdfunding, and investment limits include a maximum of $2,500 in a single investment and not more than $10,000 in a calendar year. Crowdfunding portals will also be required to register as dealers with the OSC, perform background screenings on company directors and block potentially
Courtesy of Copper Mountain mine
news
fraudulent issuers to offer further protection to investors. “The mining sector will greatly benefit,” said Oscar Jofre, chief technology officer of the equity crowdfunding mining portal Klondike Strike and cochair of the Equity Crowdfunding Alliance of Canada. “Regulators are also allowing private and public-listed issuers to participate, which is very unique to Canada.” “Exempt market dealers are [still] needed and the fees the portals will be charging are no different from when mining companies seek capital through prospectus or private placement,” Jofre said. “This guideline will be more transparent and beneficial to everyone investing in the mining sector.” – A.R.
Mining Family Matters helps mining families cope Families of miners often deal with particular challenges like the isolation of living in small mining towns or the loneliness of having a parent who works at a fly-in/fly-out (FIFO) operation. To help Canadian mining families cope with the many stresses that come from having one or both parents working away from home for extended periods of time, Australian organization Mining Family Matters (MiningFM) launched a Working Away survival guide at this year’s PDAC. This 32-page resource guide, available in both English and French, explains to readers what to expect when they first work
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news away, and provides advice on parenting and discipline, sex and relationships, overcoming loneliness and helping children cope. Alicia Ranford created MiningFM in February 2010 while she and her children were dealing with her husband’s FIFO schedule in Australia. Four years later, she and fellow co-founder Lainie Anderson decided to launch Canadianspecific content after receiving an increasing number of enquiries from companies and families in North America. “We focused on Canada initially because of the similarities in the issues facing mining families, particularly those working around FIFO rosters,” said Anderson. MiningFM also provides a free online resource for Canadian families in the mining and oil and gas industries. The website features columns by psychologist Angie Willcocks and contributions from Canadian workers to provide a personal perspective on issues in mining families. Additionally it offers career advice and resources to those considering work in Canada. Anderson says the reaction from Canadians has been fantastic so far, especially from corporations. “It’s great that family well-being and emotional resilience are so clearly on the radar for so many Canadian mining companies.” – T.D.
First Nations and Ontario sign Ring of Fire agreement The Ontario government and nine First Nations in the province’s Ring of Fire region took an important step toward developing the mineral-rich area in late March by signing a Regional Framework Agreement. The agreement between nine Matawa-member communities and Ontario defines the role of First Nations in future Ring of Fire negotiations. “The agreement will help ensure that Matawa-member communities are active participants in important discussions around enhanced environmental assessment processes and regional 20 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
The new gold standard With gold slumping late last year and yo-yoing again in 2014, gold miners readjusted their reserves with more conservative gold prices in mind. Here are the reserve pricings some of the big players have set versus their 2012 standard: (figures in US $/ounce) - T.D.
$1,100
(from $1,500)
$1,200
(unchanged from 2013)
$1,250*
(from $1,700) *not for all operations
$1,250
(from $1,400)
$1,350
(from $1,600)
$1,300
(from $1,400) SOURCES: Company financials
long-term monitoring, social and economic supports, regional infrastructure planning, and resource revenue sharing,” said Julia Bennett, a ministry of northern development and mines spokesperson. The agreement followed an early February announcement by Michael Gravelle, Ontario minister of northern development and mines, that Deloitte would act as a neutral third party for Ring of Fire partners to create a regional development corporation. It would partner First Nations with industry, as well as the provincial and federal governments with the aim of aligning the interests of all parties and spur the construction of infrastructure in the region – one of the biggest
setbacks thus far for developing projects in the Ring of Fire. Deloitte has begun discussions with partners and will continue to work to create a legal framework and outline the governance – T.D. of the corporation.
Property File gives exploration companies more resources in B.C. A free mineral exploration database hit an impressive milestone this spring. Property File, an online information trove of long-archived and recently donated files and reports from large companies, independent prospectors and exploration geologists, surpassed 50,000 documents at the PDAC Convention in early March. The project, funded and hosted by the provincial government, started when the British Columbia Geological Survey (BCGS) decided to put the paper mineral occurrence documents filed away in its archives online. “These files were only available in Victoria, in the library, by appointment and under supervision because they were stored in the locked part of the library,” said Nicole Barlow, owner of Purple Rock, the company hired to catalogue and upload the material. “It wasn’t very accessible, but it was useful information and something that you couldn’t find anywhere else.” Now these documents, along with a growing number of donated files – ranging from prospectuses and drill core records from Falconbridge, Placer Dome, Chevron and other companies that have left the region, to handdrawn maps and field trip guidebooks from geologists – are being added to the searchable system. “It’s capturing everything that would otherwise be lost,” she said. “That’s kind of the main objective of Property File: to have a collection of completely unique documents.” With exploration money tight, Barlow said this is another resource that junior companies can use to help zeroin on mineral occurrences, as it provides an additional layer onto the
Courtesy of Purple Rock
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A map of British Columbia showing the distribution of Property File documents across the province.
BCGS mapping interface, which ties together all the province’s mineral information. “It’s completely free,” she said. “You can overlay all the databases, the assessment reports, the mineral occurrence files and create your own map.” Property File contains information and research not available in any other public resource. Barlow added one Property File document they came across noted “great values of gold and silver” with a full property evaluation, including location data, assays, and trenching information, but there were no previous assessment reports on BCGS maps for the prop-
erty. “You could almost put an ‘X’ on the map of where this high mineral occurrence was,” she said, adding that no claims have currently been staked at that location. – H.M.
Goldcorp establishes Dalhousie mining professorship With warnings of looming labour shortages in the mining industry, Vancouver-based Goldcorp donated $300,000 to Dalhousie University’s mineral resource engineering program in April. This money will establish the
Goldcorp Professorship in Mineral Engineering, to be held by Donald Jones, senior professor in Dalhousie’s mineral resource engineering program. Part of Jones’ role will be to develop and design curricula. In recent years, enrolment in Dalhousie’s mineral resource engineering program has spiked from around 20 students per year to 40, which has put a greater strain on the university’s faculty and resources. Goldcorp’s annual donation of $100,000 over three years will help alleviate some of those issues. This year’s portion has already gone toward the hiring of two professors, the most immediate need for the university. The professorship extends the already good relationship between Goldcorp and Dalhousie. Dalhousie students often work at Goldcorp for co-op terms and Goldcorp has a history of hiring students from the Halifax university’s mineral resource engineering program. “They’re pleased with the quality of graduates,” said Dalhousie’s faculty of engineering dean, Joshua Leon. “We see it as a big vote of confidence.” “There is a looming skilled-labour shortage in the mining industry,” said Brent Bergeron, senior vice-president of Goldcorp, in a press release. “We are working to increase the number of new graduates entering this field and we’re confident that Dalhousie can expand on its current track record of graduating top-notch mining engi– T.D. neers.”
moving on up McEwen Mining welcomes Nathan Stubina In March, Nathan Stubina joined McEwen Mining as vice-president of technology. Previously, Stubina worked at Byron Capital Markets where he served as a precious and base metals analyst. During his time there, he led research initiatives in the mining and metallurgical areas. Prior to his role at Byron Capital, Stubina worked for Barrick Gold, Falconbridge Limited and Noranda Inc. He holds a PhD in metallurgy and materials science from the University of Toronto and is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario. Stubina is the current VP international of CIM and a past-president of the Metallurgy and Materials Society of CIM.
22 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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“Comply or explain” Ontario’s securities regulator looks to increase women in leadership positions By Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) is considering new reporting rules aimed at increasing the number of women on boards and in senior management in companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). The proposal includes seven recommendations based on a “comply or explain” approach. This would require companies to disclose the consideration given to the representation of women in executive and board positions when making appointments, or else explain why they were not disclosing this information. The proposal falls short of calling for mandatory quotas and would not apply for venture exchange companies. Women currently make up a little more than 10 per cent of board members on companies listed on the TSX. That number is even lower in the mining industry. Women accounted for only 1.4 per cent of CEOs, 5.3 per cent of directors on boards, and 12.3 per cent of senior officers in mining companies, according to a 2012 report called Creating Gender Inclusive Leadership in the Mining Industry, compiled by the Centre for Women in Politics and Public Lead-
24 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
ership with support from Xstrata Nickel. Moreover, Pricewaterhouse Coopers’s (PwC) Mining for Talent report found that 43 per cent of S&P/TSX composite index mining companies had all-male boards. Last spring, the Ontario government asked OSC to undertake a review and public consultation process looking at disclosure requirements for gender diversity among directors and executives and to provide recommendations by fall 2013. In doing so, Ontario joined the growing list of jurisdictions worldwide including the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Germany, and Australia that have taken similar steps. Jo Anne Matear, OSC manager of corporate finance, said in coming up with its proposed amendments, OSC looked at requirements in other jurisdictions, while also conducting surveys, and consulting academic research and other empirical studies. The OSC’s resulting consultation paper was published last July. In addition to the reporting of numbers, the recommended changes to the disclosure rules would require companies to reveal
whether they have director term limits, whether there are policies related to female board inclusion, as well as to account for whether, and how, potential female directors and executive officers have been identified and evaluated. “We went with the ‘comply or explain’ disclosure approach because we do think that it allows issuers flexibility to adopt policies and practices tailored to their particular circumstances and that is consistent with our corporate governance disclosure approach in general,” said Matear. “We did not propose quotas in the consultation paper but we did receive comments back from stakeholders regarding that and there was very limited support for going that route.” Back in the early 2000s, when Norway first began discussing the possibility of introducing quotas, there was also little support for it in the country. But by 2006, Norway had introduced a 40 per cent quota with drastic sanctions for non-compliers that included the risk of the company being dissolved. The number of women on boards jumped almost overnight to more than 36 per cent. But more than 100 publicly listed
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companies went private, with twothirds admitting they did so in part to avoid the quota. Despite the increase in the number of women on boards, in 2013 there was still not a single female CEO among the 25 biggest companies on the Oslo stock exchange and there was only one woman as chief financial officer. One of the arguments for the “comply or explain” approach over enforced quotas is that the process itself raises awareness within companies that leads to a more genuine embracing of diversity. “I think the single most important contributing factor this rule will have is that it forces this discussion onto the boardroom agenda. You can’t ignore it,” said Stan Magidson, CEO of the Institute of Corporate Directors, during a round table discussion about the rules last October. “You have to put out a public disclosure document to say this will be on the agenda, what is our approach to diversity. Companies will actually have to sit down and decide whether they’re going to embrace diversity.” Australia introduced “comply or explain” rules for publicly traded companies in January 2011, and it only took two years for the number of companies with diversity policies to skyrocket to 90 per cent. “But there wasn’t the significant jump in the percentage of board seats held by women,” said Pamela Jeffery, founder of WXN, the Women’s Executive Network. Having learned from the Australian example, WXN is recommending the inclusion of targets and would like to see more measurable objectives defined in the OSC rules. “We’d like to see more numbers around the process of identifying women,” said Jeffery. “How many were interviewed in putting together the short list? Did the mining company hire a search firm to assist them with the process? We’d like to see more specificity around the process revealed to get more to what we think is the core issue.” 26 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
THERE’S WORK TO DO Average % of women on boards of top 100 companies (by market cap): BY INDUSTRY
Consumer goods Consumer services Financial services Telecommunications Technology Oil and gas Mining
Average % of women on boards of top 100 companies (by market cap) in mining sector: BY EXCHANGE
17.35 16.36 14.08 13.35 11.43 8.29 7.59
South Africa (JSE) 21.05 Australia (ASX) 11.97 USA (NYSE) 7.34 Hong Kong (SEHK) 6.02 Canada (TSX/TSXv) 5.24 United Kingdom (LSE/AIM) 4.27 Source: PwC Mining for Talent 2014
There is a growing body of research that points to the financial rewards of a diverse board. For instance, PwC’s Mining for Talent study found that, of the top 500 mining companies ranked by market capitalization, the 18 mining companies that had at least 25 per cent representation of women on their boards had 49 per cent higher average net profit margins than the average net profit of those 500 companies in 2011. “The reality is shareholders are more aware of the business case for diversity in executive leadership teams and on boards, and those shareholders are going to be increasingly expecting companies to make sure they are leveraging that advantage,” said Monica Banting, senior manager of PwC’s audit and assurance group and a leader with Shine, the company’s mining women’s executive network. Clare Beckton, executive director of the Centre for Women in Politics and Public Leadership, who headed the Creating Gender Inclusive Leadership report, said having a board comprised of members with similar perspectives and experiences is a huge problem for organizations. “If you have and continue to bring in people who are similar, which is what currently happens with boards and senior executive teams, then you get into ‘same-think’ and that gets you into trouble, particularly in a rap-
idly changing society where you have very complex challenges,” she said. “You need that complexity of thinking that diversity brings.” That core issue is the perception that there are not enough women executives qualified to be board members, particularly in the mining and energy sectors. “Mining has been a very challenging culture for women and I think the way the industry markets its work has often not been very appealing to women,” said Beckton. “It’s very difficult to be an early adaptor if you come into an organization and there are no role models at the top. I’ve said to a number of leaders in the mining sector, you need to look more broadly. You don’t need someone who has expertise in a mine to be a VP of operations. If you look outside of the industry, you can bring in new ideas and approaches. We see that in every organization. When you bring in people from different areas, it injects new ideas.” The public comments period closed on April 16 and OSC executive director Maureen Jensen said the commission will analyze the feedback it receives before making its final proposal. The rules, she added, will have to be approved by both the commission and the Ontario finance minister. “We’re looking to have it all in place for next year’s (April) proxy season,” she said. CIM
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France sets its sights abroad New state-owned French mining company to explore for minerals in francophone Africa and in South America
The mining industry within France has been dormant for decades and its global portfolio is modest, but the French government is determined to change that. In late February, French Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg announced the republic would create the Compagnie Nationale des Mines de France (CMF) as part of a plan to grow the country’s mining sector. CMF will act as a de facto junior mining company, exploring for non-energetic minerals largely outside of France in francophone Africa, South America, and Central Asia. It is the first new state-owned company created by the French government since 1993. A source close to the minister, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the decision to create CMF was spurred by demand from foreign countries, mainly in Africa and Asia, for French aid in exploring and developing their natural resources. Rather than deal with private junior and major companies, these countries indicated a preference to work government-togovernment on such exploration projects, the source said.
Courtesy of BRGM
by Tom DiNardo
A French geological mapping team works along the Nyanga River in Gabon.
There is also currently a heightened sensitivity to the geopolitics of metals, said Jean-Claude Guillaneau, director of georesources at France’s Bureau of Geological and Mining Research (BRGM).
“China is producing 95 per cent of the rare earths and they use [them] to attract industrial development,” he said. “To secure our industry, we need to have some long-term control of the metal
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28 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
availability at least on some strategic and critical metals,” he explained, adding other countries like Japan have similar publicly owned mining companies. At the same time, the French government hopes that creating CMF will diversify its mining industry. Right now, there are two major French mining companies: Areva, a uranium specialist, and Eramet, which deals mainly with nickel and magnesium. The French government owns stakes in both companies. “CMF in fact is an idea of a diversified operator in France that we don’t have,” said Guillaneau. “Our ministry of industry thinks that it would be useful to have a more diversified organization [to develop] at the international scale.” BRGM, a shareholder in CMF, has extensive global metallurgic knowledge, especially in Africa, noted Guillaneau. For example, between 2005 and 2010, BRGM headed an international consortium to explore and inventory minerals in Gabon, a former French colony in West Africa. With their guidance, CMF will target specific countries with valuable resources to negotiate parameters for exploration and mining rights if minerals are found. Once resources are discovered, the plan is to have private companies bid on the projects. CMF would aim to own a minority stake in each exploiting society. Because of its role as a sleeping partner in the exploitation stage, CMF would not try to bring smelting or refining operations to France, said the ministry of industry source. France hopes that – 15 years down the road – CMF will have 15 to 20 minority shareholdings in different countries around the world mining a variety of mineral resources. The country expects to invest between $380 to $600 million in CMF, a majority of which will come from the Government Shareholding Agency which invests and manages the state’s holdings in firms. For now, shareholders and the ministry of industry are working on a business plan for CMF with the hopes of creating the company by the summer. CMF will most likely launch a project in French Guiana soon after. According to Guillaneau, CMF is aiming to start at least four exploration projects in its first year. France also has plans to revive its domestic mining industry, as many of the country’s mining operations have been abandoned for close to 20 years. To attract investors to explore and mine France’s natural resources, Montebourg has amended the French mining code to make it easier for firms to apply for and receive permits within France. So far, the initiative is working; three companies have received exploration permits in the past six months. However, CMF will not focus any of its energy on exploration in France for the moment. CIM
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Getting the whole picture Richer oil sands emissions data may lead to tougher EIA requirements
A new study has found that chemical emissions from oil sands tailings ponds are much higher than official estimates reported in environmental impact assessments (EIA). This discovery adds to the growing focus on environmental reporting methods in the oil sands. The study, authored by Abha Parajulee and Frank Wania at the University of Toronto, and published in February in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, discovered that indirect sources of emissions to air were greatly underestimated. The report identifies the evaporation of tailings ponds that store residual fluids from oil sands extraction as important emitters of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) – including carcinogens phenanthrene, pyrene, and benzo(a)pyrene. The authors of the study argue this discrepancy requires a major overhaul of the “methodology used to estimate PAH emissions from different sources in environmental impact assessments.” Modelling of tailings pond evaporation is not currently required for EIAs because the National Pollutant Release Inventory (NPRI) indicates they are “contained within managed disposal sites and are not being released directly into the environment.” This claim is obviously under dispute with these new results, which have reportedly caused a stir at the Joint Canada-Alberta Implementation Plan for Oil Sands Monitoring (JOSM) program. “We have heard from government scientists working with the program who say the work has generated a lot of attention and interest amongst their colleagues and superiors,” said Parajulee, a PhD candidate who spent much of the last year in the Athabasca oil sands region collecting samples and conducting the study. The study began as a term project for a modelling course, with Parajulee looking to see how PAHs travelled through the environment. “We had no idea we 30 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Courtesy of JOSM
by Graham Lanktree
Environment Canada scientists take snow samples from the Athabasca River in Alberta. Models that detail the transport of chemicals in the environment have evolved and provide a clearer indication of the total emissions being released from oil sands operations.
would come to the findings that we did,” she said. “Things started to get more interesting when we found that the modelled concentrations didn’t quite match up to measured concentrations, and so we decided to see what would happen if we tried to account for the huge numbers [of PAHs] reported as ‘disposal’ to tailings areas in the NPRI.” To flesh out a clearer picture of the total emissions being released, Parajulee used a multimedia fate model, known as the Coastal Zone Model for Persistent Organic Pollutants (CoZMo-POP) which accounts for and offers a more complex and holistic view of chemical interactions in the environment. Developed by Wania and his colleagues over 15 years, and driven by JOSM and Parajulee’s samples from the soil, water, air and foliage of the Athabasca region, the model uses algorithms to detail the transport of chemicals between elements of the environment, such as the surface of the tailings pond and the air with which it is in contact.
The results showed a discrepancy of “two to three orders of magnitude” between Parajulee’s measured PAH levels and estimates in official EIA sources. “It is on some level understandable that these models are not used so much,” said Parajulee, indicating the time it took to complete her study would add extra work to the EIA process. Nevertheless, environmental impact assessments for Teck’s Frontier Oil Sands mine project in 2011, the Shell Jackpine mine in 2012, and the Shell Pierre River mine in 2013 included similar models “to evaluate the contribution of atmospheric deposition to snowmelt and assess the fate of PAHs from the snowmelt in the aquatic system using different development scenarios,” according to Nikki Booth, a spokesperson for Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD). At the moment, requirements for companies to use the CoZMo-POP model are project-dependent. “The actual process for determining the
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appropriate model may be specific to its application and is determined on a caseby-case basis,” she said. Some oil sands operations have begun additional work to better understand PAH emissions from tailings ponds. “Some mining companies are performing fugitive emissions surveys, under the direction of the Alberta government, to try and monitor the actual level of these emissions from tailings ponds,” said Andrew Read, a chemical engineer and technical and policy analyst at the Pembina Institute. He said the frequency of these tests increased in 2013. Since this is a new area of research though, Read explained, there is no indication at this point how or when the data collected will consistently inform the decision-making of Alberta and federal government regulators. “There are major efforts underway through JOSM to develop improved models, a better understanding of pathways, and a better understanding of the limits of existing data,” said Geraldine Anderson, a Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers spokesperson, without addressing the specific impact of Parajulee’s study. At the moment, environmental assessment requirements are in flux. “The modelling approaches used in the recent EIAs are still under development,” said Booth, “and will be validated using ESRD’s recent snowpack surveys conducted in the oil sands area.” As methods to estimate emissions from tailings pond evaporation become available or are improved, “companies are expected to use these methods in completing their [pollutant inventory] reports,” said Environment Canada spokesperson Mark Johnson. Funding is now flowing from Environment Canada for more modelling work from the University of Toronto to follow up on its recent findings, he added. Parajulee is readying her next project. Using multimedia fate models, she
will assess PAH exposure to the out-ofprovince population working in the oil sands and to the region’s aboriginal
communities. “These models,” she said, “could probably be used more often than they are.” CIM
May 2014 | 31
HR OUTLOOK
Women in leadership: good for mining and good for business BY RYAN MONTPELLIER AND COURTNAY HUGHES
T
he results are in: having women on boards and in senior leadership roles is good for business. Specifically, studies conducted by Catalyst, PwC, Credit Suisse, and the Conference Board of Canada have indicated that organizations with women at the board table had greater returns on equity, returns on investment, returns on sales, and share performance, and were better with risk management and attracting top talent. And the list goes on. Further, Catalyst found that organizations with three or more women board members also showed better financial performance than organizations with only one woman on their board. Despite all of the advantages correlated with gender diverse leadership, women continue to be significantly under-represented. Of the top 100 companies (ranked by market cap) listed on the TSX/TSXv, women hold only 10 per cent of board positions and of the Canadian mining companies found on this list, women hold only five per cent of
board seats. The Mining Industry Human Resources Council’s (MiHR) research shows that the number of women in the Canadian mining sector has increased from 10 per cent in 1996 to 16 per cent today, but more research is needed to determine what percentage of women hold leadership roles. Although the proportional increase of women may underwhelm, the number of women in the sector has actually increased by 60 per cent, indicating that momentum is building. Case in point, for the first time, a woman, Zoe Yujnovich, was elected chair of the Mining Association of Canada. At the same time, Women in Mining Canada continues to grow, and between May and June of this year, a series of CEO round tables across Canada will examine how to grow the number of women in the industry. But why is the mining sector still lagging behind other sectors like oil and gas? One answer may be that the sector as a whole has not grasped the magnitude of the challenge it
From concept through closure Industry-leading expertise and project development with the right people in the right places front-end studies mineral and metallurgical process design open pit and underground mine design surface and underground infrastructure engineering tailings technology and mine water management geotechnical engineering and environmental services construction and project management mine closure and reclamation
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32 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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faces: a lack of women in leadership roles, a gendered wage gap, and the need to eliminate assumptions about women’s abilities are all barriers to advancement. Yet one of the most insidious barriers holding back greater gender diversity is the exclusionary workplace culture, often referred to as mining’s “male-dominated culture.”
opment of many senior roles. Exclusionary workplace culture can also be reinforced outside of the workplace, as women often report being objectified at industry events, and shut out of after-work activities like fishing trips and golf outings, where informal mentoring and career-building networks are often established. Ideally, employers would choose to work on greater gender inclusion and advancement “Although overt acts of gender discrimination before it becomes mandatory. The recent proare less prevalent in mining work environments posed amendment by the Ontario Securities Commission would require TSX-listed issuers today, implicit biases do persist.” to disclose annually the number of women on their boards and in executive officer positions, Although overt acts of gender discrimination are less and increase the transparency of selection practices. If prevalent in mining work environments today, implicit biases approved, this amendment presents an opportunity for mindo persist. These biases often result in differing opportunities ing organizations that have diversified their leadership to offered to men and women throughout their careers, and leverage this differentiation. For organizations that have not women find themselves passed over for career advancing addressed gender diversity, this proposed amendment is a work assignments. Women have reported they were not strong indicator that the issue of increasing the number of offered field work simply because they have children or were women engaged in the industry is firmly in the spotlight. thought to be planning to have children, as it is assumed that However, the amendment has been met with mixed opinfield and operational roles conflict with a mother’s parenting ions. For employers, the proposed amendment would responsibilities. This creates a secondary career path for increase their administrative and reporting burden. For women, as field experience is seen as essential in the devel- some, the amendment is not strong enough as it does not include representation quotas, and therefore may not entice organizations to undertake activities that result in any significant change. Equally, women want to obtain leadership roles based on their skills and experience, not because of external pressure, perceived or otherwise, that would come from such reporting. If you are an employer committed to building a gender diversity strategy, where do you start? From MiHR’s previous experience with industry partners, organizations that have developed a gender diversity strategy have had the most impact when they set and align clear objectives with business and HR priorities. Organizations can benefit from ensuring their diversity goals are measurable, tracking progress through solid metrics, as well as collaborating with others in the industry. Using this approach, we have seen one mining organization boost the number of women executives by two in 18 months, and women’s representation in specific management categories by three per cent – surpassing the organization’s initial diversity goal. By challenging current practices within our organizations, developing a strategy and working collaboratively, the CanaFrom geotechnical engineering to environmental dian mining industry will benefit from greater gender diverse assessments, water management, and renewable energy integration, our international team of consulting engineers leadership as it becomes more competitive and socially and scientists has the expertise to help you advance your responsible. CIM project successfully through all stages of mine development. Find out more at www.knightpiesold.com Mining I Power I Water Resources | Environment Ryan Montpellier, executive director of MiHR, is a recognized expert and sought-after speaker on HR issues impacting the Canadian mining sector today. Courtnay Hughes, research analyst with MiHR, leads strategic HR management research initiatives in workforce planning, education-industry partnerships, and workforce diversity.
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Local procurement through local content helps manage risk BY MONICA OSPINA
ome of the most serious and hard-to-measure risks mining companies face, particularly in the developing world, have nothing to do with geology or commodity prices. Rather, they involve risks to their social licence to operate. News of local opposition to a project, involving roadblocks and protests, can go global quickly. Influential bloggers and even tweeting celebrities can instantly turn public opinion and financial sources against a project. Many mining companies overlook two of the most effective, cost-efficient and sustainable ways to build community support: local procurement and local content. This means buying goods or services on the basis of origin of the physical products and where the value was added. It could involve buying produce from local farmers, having the mine’s foodservice done by local caterers, and contracting construction work or road maintenance to locally owned companies. Local procurement and content are distinct from local sourcing or local buying, which means sourcing products from
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local vendors without regard to their place of origin. A mine’s management might make a point of buying from local merchants, but the products might all be imported from distant places, bringing little benefit to the local economy. In these instances, beneficiaries are often just a few individuals within the community who have access to the capital and credit required to set up a shop. These situations can even cause social conflict because the mine builds relations with only a small group in the community, expanding the gap between the rich and poor, especially if the surge in demand for goods sold at the local market inflates prices. Procurement through local content creates value for community residents, initiates and nourishes collaboration through local businesses, while contributing to a company’s ability to obtain a social licence to operate. This approach has the advantage of incubating business as compared to many initiatives around local entrepreneurship that have failed due to a philanthropic approach to economic development.
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36 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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Through our Local Community Procurement Program (LCPP), we have found that a sound local content strategy always starts with a professional and strategic engagement process. This begins by looking for opportunities based on the socio-economic conditions of the communities surrounding the mining operation, alongside the operational and technical conditions of the project. It also considers expanding the local business’ service into markets outside of mining. This is the real power of the local content approach: when the mine’s suppliers can take the management and technical skills they have developed with the mine as a customer, improve operational productivity and expand into other markets. This local employment, innovation and social inclusion can lead to new businesses and sustainable living for communities even after the mine shuts down. Kinross Gold in Ecuador adopted this model, bringing positive results for the company and local communities. The socioeconomic conditions in the remote communities, which had high levels of illiteracy, defined what type of suppliers were likely to succeed under the circumstances. From Kinross’s side, the project’s local demands were minimal due to the complexity of technologies needed and the low-skill labour available in the region. Kinross’s program was adapted to both the community and the company’s needs, creating food suppliers and road maintenance units for the mine. Although Kinross is no longer operating in Ecuador, these productive units are still active today and provide their services to the government, schools and local hospitals. The extended benefits of local content proved to be an opportunity for the community and the best legacy Kinross left for the residents of Los Encuentros, who have openly expressed their gratitude for the program. Local content strategies demand collaboration and commitment from both the mine and the community as they take time to fully develop, but the community relations benefits start immediately as local people are given the chance to take concrete steps that they can see will lead to sustainable opportunities. Junior miners, working in the first stages of mineral exploration, have the greatest advantage to add value to their businesses by developing a network of local suppliers. If the company is sold to a mid-cap or major player, the value of positive, non-conflicted community relations is greatly recognized by the acquirer, as it has a network of local business partners trained to work with the mine. The benefits for operations start from customization, monitoring of the quality of goods and services, on-time delivery, control of expedite orders and immediate response. In many places, private businesses, like mining companies, have the ability to reach communities forgotten by their very own governments, bring opportunities for sustainable development and along with them a more durable social licence to operate. CIM Monica Ospina, founder and director of the social economic development consultancy firm O Trade (otrade.ca) has an MA in diplomatic studies from the University of Westminster and studied at London School of Economics and Harvard University. The Local Community Procurement Program (LCPP) was recognized by the World Bank among the Top 15 Innovations of the Procurement Innovation Challenge 2012.
38 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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Getting beyond the headlines in B.C. BY GAVIN DIROM
ith virtually no access to venture capital, the strength, At the moment, most of the expenditures – around 98 per resiliency and experience of the prospecting, mineral cent – are occurring at advanced coal and copper-gold projects, exploration and development industry in British and not in grassroots exploration projects. Yet to discover rare Columbia was put to the test last year. However, the industry and valuable new deposits, which may eventually lead to the is well acquainted with the cyclical nature of the business, and many AME BC members have taken this opportunity to pre- “[The federal government’s decision on New Prosperity] pare for the next upswing in the markets. does not reflect the exploration and development Despite some of the doom and gloom industry in the province as a whole.” headlines, things are looking up when put into a proper perspective. Although British Columbia’s exploration expenditures were estimated to opening of new major projects like Thompson Creek’s $1.5be down to $476 million in 2013, from the record high of $680 billion Mt. Milligan mine that opened last year, sustained million in 2012, it is still the second-highest number on record. investment in grassroots exploration is required. The good In fact, B.C. attracted more than 20 per cent of the exploration news is that British Columbia is still highly prospective given spending in Canada in 2013 compared to just six per cent in that the province has tremendous mineral and coal develop2001. On top of that, we expect to see continued strong ment potential, is vastly underexplored, and has proven infrademand from Asia for our copper, gold and steel-making coal. structure and expertise in mine construction and production.
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Moreover, the provincial government is committed to supporting the industry. The tax regime in British Columbia, for instance, remains among the most competitive in North America. Our industry benefits from incentives such as the Mining Exploration Tax Credit and the Mining Flow-Through Share Credit. And as announced by Premier Christy Clark at AME BC’s Roundup 2014 conference, the B.C. mining flow-through share tax credit will be extended to December 31, 2014. We also applaud the provincial government’s decision in 2013 to exempt some low-impact exploration activities from requiring a Mines Act permit amendment. The efforts to improve the permitting process, particularly the move to multi-year and multiarea-based exploration permits, have also been well received by the industry. Building positive relationships with First Nations is also important to successful exploration and development. Today, British Columbia is a model for how industry, government and First Nations are working together to address challenges, create business ventures and sign economic development agreements that provide significant benefits to all parties. AME BC recently showcased the province’s leadership at our Roundup 2014 conference, which attracted more than 6,600 participants from 37 countries. We released AME BC’s Aboriginal Engagement Guidebook, a critical reference for mineral explorers aiming to develop the province’s mineral wealth in cooperation with First Nations. We also hosted First Nation and industry leaders in the Gathering Place Aboriginal Pavilion and held an enlightening engagement forum. In late February, Canada’s Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced the federal government’s decision not to proceed with the approval of the New Prosperity copper-gold mine project near Williams Lake. AME BC is disappointed with this outcome, and we expressed our concern that not all of the facts and science regarding the proposed tailings storage facility were taken into consideration. AME BC reaffirms that environmental assessment decisions should be science-based, and we look forward to a re-evaluation of the process and scientific facts related to this matter. But this decision does not reflect the exploration and development industry in the province as a whole. We are fortunate in B.C. to have a government that supports the advancement of the industry. The roughly 300 exploration and 30 mining projects in more than 50 communities across B.C. are proof of that, as are the almost 1,000 exploration and junior mining companies headquartered throughout the province. The industry will be further buoyed in 2014 by the opening of B.C.’s next major copper-gold mine, Red Chris, owned by Imperial Metals. The 287-kilovolt Northwest Transmission Line, which will serve Red Chris and other future mines in the northwest, will significantly reduce the region’s reliance on diesel-generated power. As market conditions improve, British Columbia is in a strong position to attract further investment in exploration and development. CIM Gavin C. Dirom is the president and CEO of AME BC, which will host Roundup 2015, January 26-29, 2015, at Canada Place in Vancouver Convention Centre East.
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A two-envelope approach for improving procurement BY MAURO CHIESA
hareholders today are looking for lower risk and higher dividend yields and do not appreciate hearing of cost overruns. Currently we are in a buyers’ market, and to make the most of it, the mining company must stick to a procurement strategy that better shares the risk with suppliers and controls costs. An effective way to achieve this dual objective is through a “two-envelope” approach, where suppliers bidding on a contract are required to submit technical bids separately from financial bids. On the bid-opening day, the technical envelopes are opened first to ensure that only bids that satisfy all the desired technical specifications are considered. Then the financial terms corresponding only to the clean technical bids are opened to guarantee that the buyer can compare “apples to apples.” Too often, bidders offer perks like hockey tickets, vacations, addenda or modifications in order to secure supply
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contracts. Some potential bidders stay out of the process if they feel others have bought the deal, thus defeating the competitive process. By announcing the two-envelope process well in advance, a mining company adds a degree of legitimacy and transparency that should attract a broader response and lower prices. Though relatively simple, the overall process requires forethought and planning to evoke the broadest response on both the technical requirements and financial considerations. The bidder sees lost procurement bids as a costly process, so transparency and objectivity are essential for justifying the pursuit. The first step one must take is to complete an expression of interest call. This is basically the broad delineation of the buyer’s eventual needs. Equipment procurement is relatively straightforward, but acquiring an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) role is much more
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complex. It may help if the buyer outlines the eventual twoenvelope process so as to reduce the perceived process risk. Once the buying company sees the responses to the expression of interest, it can then define the required qualifications. Again, while simpler for off-the-shelf equipment, the issues are more complex if one is looking for an EPCM. In such cases, the capacities required and the risk matrix become more complex, and any early feedback becomes invaluable. The buyer should also stipulate the remaining process with clarity and then follow with a question-andanswer session to obtain clarifications from potential bidders. The buyer should then announce the bidders that have met the criteria. At this point, the buyer can put out its call for bids and/or proposals with detailed technical and financial specifications. It should also include a process memorandum that lays out the remaining two-envelope process in detail. For complex projects, the process is as important as the product being procured, as the transaction costs incurred by all bidders are not small. An opaque process is difficult to price and therefore easy to avoid. There are a number of components regarding the request for bids/proposal stage. They can include bidders’ conferences, where all comments and questions on the specifications are addressed, and answers are distributed to everyone. In a changing market, the feedback may suggest altering the specifications or the risk matrix itself. If the technical or bidprocess alterations are numerous, the buyer can host a final bidders’ conference to make sure that all issues have been answered and distributed. In a situation where staple financing is requested from the bidders, the financiers may also wish to attend to ensure that all terms and conditions are fully understood. As part of the request for the bids/proposals phase, the buyer should also clarify its transaction closing process, the role of bid-performance bonds, and its appellate process for any bidder that feels it was not treated or reviewed fairly. Should there be funding issues including staple financing from the winning bidder, ample time should be granted as the closing requirements tend to be more complex. This too is appreciated in today’s market, as supplier financing is often in debt form and can offer leverage for the equity markets. In summary, the two-envelope process assures fair treatment to all bidders and thus offers feedback from the broadest response base possible on the technical specifications. It then evokes the best price for those technical specifications. Both of these objectives should allow the CFO and the project manager greater funding leeway in meeting any project’s budget objective. CIM Mauro Chiesa has 33 years of experience in financing and advising extractive and infrastructure projects including multinational banks in New York, the World Bank Group in Washington, D.C., and EDC in Ottawa. He will be chairing a session at CIM 2014's Management and Finance Day.
46 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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Courtesy of Cameco
upfront URANIUM
Uranium market in a tight squeeze Recovery inevitable but speed not guaranteed By Brenda Bouw
Cameco has recently backed off of production targets for 2018.
t has been a rough few years for the mining industry overall, but one commodity has been hit harder than most, and due to different circumstances. Uranium prices – alongside companies that explore, develop and produce the ingredient used to fuel nuclear power reactors – have been pummelled as a result of the earthquake and tsunami that knocked out cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in 2011. Explosions and radiation leaks ensued. It was the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl in 1986. Japan shut down all of its reactors in the wake of the tragedy, as questions about safety put its entire nuclear program in doubt. Other countries with nuclear power plants also grew skeptical. Germany immediately closed eight reactors following Fukushima, vowing to abandon nuclear energy altogether. For the market, the fallout happened almost overnight, and prices have yet to recover. In fact, the spot price of uranium has declined steadily over the past three years. The price of uranium fell from US$70 per pound just prior to the Fukushima disaster to around US$35 in later 2013 and early 2014.
I
Majors restrained but explorers see opportunity “We knew it was going to be negative [after Fukushima], but we didn’t know how long it would last,” says Tim Gitzel, president and CEO of Saskatchewan-based Cameco Corp., the world’s largest publicly traded uranium company. “I think we underestimated that.” While his long-term outlook is positive, in the near term Gitzel says the industry is “still in a bit of a foggy period.” Cameco recently backed off of a 2018 production target of 36 million pounds per year set in late October 2012, which itself was cut from a previous target of 40 million pounds per year. The company has not set a new target, and produced 23.6 million pounds last year. 48 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Other companies are also downsizing their production plans. For instance, Paladin Energy says it is suspending production at its Kayalakera mine in Malawi, citing depressed uranium prices since 2011. Fission Uranium Corp. is concentrating efforts on finding the resource, working towards production when prices eventually recover. “We are trying to put as much money in the ground as we can to really explore our property,” says chairman and CEO Dev Randhawa. “We feel it’s not time to sell yet, when prices are at a seven-year low. Do you sell your house when real estate prices are at the bottom?” Fission increased its winter drilling program by 150 per cent in 2013–14. At Denison Mines Corp., president and CEO Ron Hochstein says the focus is also on exploration in the mineralrich Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan. “We are trying to increase shareholder value with the drill bit,” he says.
Will cooler heads prevail? With the entire sector at the beck and call of uranium prices, all eyes are on a trend that may slowly be changing. The Japanese government has signaled an interest in rebuilding its nuclear program, including restarting its 48 reactors; the country’s cabinet approved a new Basic Energy Plan last month that includes nuclear power as a key part of its energy mix for the next 20 years. That stance has been one of the hallmarks of the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, which came into power in December 2012. The previous government had vowed to phase out atomic power plants across the country, which relied on nuclear-generated power for about 30 per cent of its power supply before March 2011. “While the [Japanese] public remains divided on nuclear power, it seems clear that it will remain part of the mix,” David
upfront URANIUM
Talbot, an analyst at Dundee Capital Markets, wrote in a recent note to clients, calling Japan’s reactor restarts the “fundamental requirement for a rebound in uranium prices.” But demand from Japan, while important, will not cure the sector’s woes completely, Talbot’s note points out: “It has more to do with psychology of the investor and the other 90 per cent of the world’s utilities that have been sitting on their hands and not contracting uranium over the past year.” It will take time for reactors to come back online and for the market to adjust, but uranium companies are already seeing some confidence creeping back into the sector. Their long-suffering share prices started to move higher in recent weeks as analysts begin to bump up their price targets from multi-year lows.
Slow changes will drive growth Much of the potential new production hinges on progress in Japan, but that is a slow process. Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Oscar Cabrera points out that Japan’s Nuclear Regulatory Agency is doing safety inspections on 17 of its 48 nuclear reactors. It has been 10 months since the first 12 applications to restart reactors were submitted to the agency, and that is just the first step, he wrote recently. Both the federal and local governments also need to give approval. Once that is
done, the reactors can restart, which Cabrera says is a “key catalyst” for a boost in uranium prices. Beyond Japan, though, there is hope as China, India, South Korea, and Russia have continued their aggressive build-out of nuclear power plants despite the Fukushima crisis. China in particular is looking at nuclear as a reliable source of clean energy amid a growing pollution problem. According to the World Nuclear Association, China has 20 nuclear power reactors in operation and 28 under construction with big plans to build more. While it still relies on foreign supplies of uranium to fuel its nuclear program, including a long-term deal it has with Cameco, China has a goal to be self-sufficient not just in nuclear power plant capacity, but also in the production of fuel for those plants. India is also forging ahead with its own nuclear program with a goal to supply 25 per cent of its electricity from nuclear power by 2050 in order to meet the demand of its ballooning population. It is that increase in demand from a number of countries that has producers like Cameco believing in better days ahead. Cameco is forecasting an increase in global nuclear plants from 433 today (representing 394 gigawatts) to 526 (or about 514 gigawatts) by 2023. Global demand, at about 170 million pounds, is already outpacing supply at about 160 million pounds. “The supply-demand fundamentals look very good for the industry,” says Gitzel. CIM
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Photo by Cameco
50 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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Courtesy of Fission Uranium
“A new style of discovery” Technological innovation and old-school prospecting brought Fission to Patterson Lake South By Virginia Heffernan
Patterson Lake South is considered the most important uranium discovery in the Athabasca basin in several years.
n invention called the “System and Method for Aerial Surveying or Mapping of Radioactive Deposits,” clearly delineated a uranium-rich boulder field on the Patterson Lake South (PLS) project in October 2009. Devised by Fission Uranium and partner Special Projects Inc. (SPI), the technology is an adaptation of traditional airborne radiometric techniques and designed to identify radioactive boulders. This anomaly would eventually lead joint venture partners Fission (then Fission Energy) and Alpha Minerals (then ESO uranium) to a highgrade bedrock source that is considered the most important uranium discovery in Saskatchewan’s Athabasca basin in several years. “We’d already used the technology to pick up known boulders on our other properties on the east side of the basin and could see individual anomalies with pinpoint accuracy,” said Fission’s president and COO Ross McElroy, from Hong Kong, where he was attending the Mines and Money conference. “So we thought the technique would be a good approach at PLS because the mineralization model suggested that anything that we might have should come to surface.” Fission and Calgary-based SPI have applied for a patent on the technique, which McElroy said is “the difference between looking through wax paper and a wineglass,” when compared with similar systems. Traditional airborne techniques to explore for radioactive minerals generally involve flying a fixed-wing aircraft equipped with large detectors at relatively high altitudes and speeds. They do not pick up localized discrete occurrences such as boulders because the footprint of measurement is so large and the background-to-boulder signature ratio too low. Older systems also lack the navigation and data acquisition tools needed to pinpoint radioactivity.
A
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Though limited to near surface exploration, the Fission/SPI invention is more sensitive because the aircraft flies at the optimal height and speed to detect localized radioactivity. Powerful data processing capabilities within the fuselage map the resulting data, identifying and flagging high-priority points in real time. “There’s a bit of nuclear science, combined with physics, electronics and software development involved,” said Kaj Hedin, founder and president of SPI. “It’s a complex method,” one he is reluctant to elaborate on because the patent is still pending.
Retro philosophy New technology aside, the exploration program conceived by the former joint venture partners (Fission acquired Alpha for $185 million last year) was in some ways a throwback to an era when prospecting played a key role in finding new deposits. At the time of the discovery, the reigning dogma in the Athabasca camp was that all of the shallow deposits had been found. It was believed that most of the remaining potential was in the east, and that any new discoveries would be deep and well within the margins of the basin: a 100,000-square-kilometre sandstone-capped area that supplies about 20 per cent of the world’s uranium. But McElroy and his team knew that the favourable basement geology extends beyond the edges of the basin and were unwilling to accept that just because none of the majors were looking there was nothing to find. They became increasingly intrigued by an area on the southwestern margin of the basin that lay along a major structural corridor of faults and conductors associated with the Cluff Lake and Shea Creek uranium mines. At Patterson Lake, the trend was coincident with the
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Clearwater domain, a major geophysically identified feature that may be associated with uranium in the basin. Acting on a hunch that the area could contain near-surface uranium mineralization, Fission staked a few claims south of the basin margin, partly because of the prospective geology and also because a road through the property provided easy access for exploration. At the same time, Alpha Minerals was honing in on the area, staking claims after finding a CanOXY (now Nexen) report from the 1970s in the Saskatchewan assessment files that cited radioactive anomalies near Patterson Lake. The two companies combined their land holdings under a 50:50 joint venture in 2008.
From Ekati to Athabasca Having merged their claims, the partners needed a way to identify drill targets. McElroy and Ray Ashley, Fission’s vicepresident of exploration, had met Hedin when they worked in the diamond exploration camps of the Northwest Territories: McElroy and Ashley for BHP Billiton at Ekati, and Hedin as a consultant developing high-resolution magnetic surveys for kimberlite exploration. “He just seemed to be a step ahead of everyone in creating new tools,” McElroy recalled. So McElroy and Ashley turned to Hedin, who had designed, with funding from diamond legend Stewart Blusson,
an airborne radiometric system for geological mapping in the Thelon Basin in Nunavut. The three worked together to finetune a system that would be applicable to PLS, which had little outcrop but was expected to have some kind of surface expression based on known geology and structure. “The early deposits around the edge of the basin were found by prospecting back from high-grade boulders discovered by radiometric surveys to a source location,” said McElroy, who recently won PDAC’s Bill Dennis Award for the PLS discovery. “The Thelon Basin work gave us the funding to improve the system, but until we started flying with Fission, we really had no method to collect enough data to understand what we needed to find uranium,” said Hedin, who said the surveys he flew over the Athabasca basin were key to refining the methodology to find uranium-bearing boulders. After analyzing the results of the 2009 radiometric survey, flown in conjunction with magnetics, the partners’ first priority was to secure all the anomalous ground. That proved challenging because the area was reserved for coal development and off-limits to staking for mineral exploration, requiring the provincial government to make an exception to the rule. Subsequent mapping and surface sampling following up on the airborne radiometric anomalies eventually led to pinpointing the location of the buried boulder field in June 2011 on the newly staked ground. Detailed ground geophysics, ice direction
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Courtesy of Fission Uranium
analysis and drilling helped the partners zero in on the bedrock source and in November 2012, hole 22 hit mineralization grading more than one per cent U3O8 over 8.5 metres, just 3.8 kilometres up-ice of the boulder field.
Radon plumes another clue The partners later turned their attention to the east, where geophysics showed the fault zone continuing underneath Patterson Lake. They determined that the best way to detect hot zones along the fault would be to sample radon gas coming from the lake bed in winter, when there would be less water turbulence. Sure enough, several radon plumes were found bubbling up at discrete locations along a two-kilometre
stretch, providing shallow drill targets that yielded more highgrade uranium. In late March, Fission announced its best intersection yet: a 53.5-metre zone of off-scale radioactivity within 146 metres of mineralization. The company also drilled the hole in a gap between two mineralized pods, merging them into one large deposit and further confirming the continuity of the mineralization. This winter’s program of at least 85 holes, designed to demonstrate continuity between several different pods and expand the deposit to the east, wrapped up in mid-April. Fission hopes to gather enough drill results this year to produce an NI 43-101 compliant estimate of resources, while continuing to test the remaining discrete electromagnetic conductors on the rest of the property, of which there are more than 100. McElroy says he is immensely proud of his team, which includes Paul Ramaekers and Roger Thomas. Both are experts in glacial terrain and Athabasca basin geology that played a key role in determining the ice direction at PLS. “Nobody paid any attention or thought there was any potential there,” says McElroy. “PLS is not just a discovery, it’s a new style of discovery in a new area, so significant that it has turned the exploration models in the Athabasca basin upside down.” CIM
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54 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
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The cheering squad How important is hyping nuclear energy for uranium miners? By Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco
Sean Willy, left, has visited communities in Canada, the USA and Australia in his role as director of corporate responsibility.
he problem for Cameco Corporation, and every other uranium producer, is not how little most people know about radiation, but how much they think they know. A 2012 survey conducted for the Canadian Nuclear Association found that less than half of Canadians who claim to be “very familiar” with radiation could correctly answer two true-or-false questions about it. It is a useful lesson for the entire uranium industry; one that some are acting on, and others – at their peril – are not. Radiation anxieties can reach phobic proportions. Shortly after the Fukushima meltdown, fear of radiation crossing the Pacific Ocean led to a sudden surge in U.S. sales of Geiger counters, an instrument that measures ionizing radiation levels, even though scientists did not expect radioactive materials to cross the ocean until 2014, at which time it would be so diluted as to pose no risk. The Geiger does not distinguish between different radioactive materials and the varying degrees of health risks associated with each, nor the fact that ionizing radiation is pervasive in nature including in our own bodies. In December 2013, a website posted a video produced by “Dave” of a Geiger counter sounding the high radiation alarm on a northern California beach. The video, called “Fukushima radiation hits San Francisco?” went viral, triggering an investigation by the California Department of Public Health, which found the high radiation was due to naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM). The recorded levels were about the same as those produced by a granite countertop.
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Legacy issues plague contemporary business Andrea Jennetta, publisher of the U.S.-based Fuel Cycle Week, a nuclear industry newsletter, believes the uranium industry has to tackle the misconceptions and fears of nuclear 56 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
energy through public education and advocacy. “Almost all of the uranium produced goes to nuclear energy,” says Jennetta. “If you allow the charges and accusations [of radiation and industry dangers and abuses] to continue, all you do is erode any future support for nuclear energy. There’s a disconnect among some in the uranium mining industry, and that includes the financial sector that covers uranium. They think they’re not in the nuclear industry but the fact of the matter is they are. And if you don’t fight for nuclear energy, your business is going to go broke.” The reality is that during the Second World War, and throughout the nuclear weapons arms race, governments and mining companies ravaged aboriginal land to extract uranium quickly, often with low-paid aboriginal miners. With short-term thinking and little consideration for the environment or health of the workers and communities, the legacy left behind was not just devastated land and a verified high incidence of lung cancer among the miners, but also a pervasive and persistent distrust and fear of uranium. That legacy is not yesterday’s news. In the Navajo Nation alone, there are 500 abandoned uranium mines still needing reclamation, although recently the Navajo Nation and the Obama administration reached an agreement that will allocate $1 billion to address about 10 per cent of those abandoned mines. “The cleanup has gone ridiculously slowly and the uranium industry in the country has not been out in front of it, leading the charge for more funding, criticizing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for how slow the cleanup is going,” says Jennetta. She cites mass media success stories such as the 2013 documentary film Pandora’s Promise, which takes a pro-nuclear stance, as being particularly effective in educating the public.
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More than one way to build awareness
cational material in the indigenous language of the local Martu Cameco has operations in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, people. Willy flew to Australia and met with the local commuall of which have large aboriginal populations, and Sean Willy, nities. “They first learned about [the uranium industry] in director of corporate responsibility, has an experienced view of their own language,” he says. how industry ought to engage communities. “Look at the Ring But they were still skeptical, so Cameco flew 16 Martu eldof Fire and the Northern Gateway Pipeline project, without the ers up to northern Saskatchewan including Noeletta Lee. “It support of the aboriginal communities, nothing moves,” says was not what I was expecting at all,” she says. “We saw firstWilly. “In northern Saskatchewan, we were granted renewed hand how they rehabilitate after mining. It was so green, with 10-year licences in 2013 because of the health and safety so many trees and new growth. In the desert, the main thing record at our sites, and all of our communities came out to we worry about is water. We know water is used to process support us,” he explains. “We can’t sway everyone’s mind. I uranium and we were worried this could affect our water supthink you have to be transparent with the people you work ply. We were able to see how the water is recycled and safely with and get out early into the communities. It’s important for put back into the river system. them to understand where our product is going.” “It was the trip of a lifetime. We got to see every stage of the For 25 years, Cameco’s focus has been on building rela- mining process, from mining to processing and rehabilitation. tionships and trust locally, around its operations. In We sat down and talked to the First Nation elders and asked Saskatchewan, Cameco developed its relationship-building them questions about mining and how it affected their counmethodology, mostly with aboriginal populations, since ura- try. They live like us. There is a mine, yet people still hunt and nium in Canada, the United States, and Australia is typically gather and live their traditional lives. They have been mining near or within aboriginal communities. Cameco has strength- for 20 years and we were able to learn a lot from them.” ened trust over years by investing in and engaging with aboCameco’s approach requires patience and time, especially in riginal communities through training, business and the United States, where the relationship between aboriginal community development and communication, not to men- people, government and industry has decades’ worth of builttion responsible mining. Today, it is the largest industrial up distrust. “It’s critical for Cameco to be a leader in this,” says employer of aboriginal people in Canada, with 750 First Willy. “We worry if others go and explore for uranium without Nation employees working directly for the company and just the communication and education and respect for the aborigias many First Nations contractors. “We put a lot of effort into nal communities, it will potentially close doors for all of us.” CIM looking at how to take the technical and highly regulatory world of uranium mining and make it straightforward and easTHE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA ier to understand,” says Willy. Department of Materials Engineering Industrial Research Cameco developed educational mateChair in Hydrometallurgy– Assistant Professor Position rial for aboriginal people in and around The Department of Materials Engineering at the University of British Columbia seeks an outstanding its sites including an online resource individual for a grant tenure-track position at the Assistant Professor level in the field of Extractive Metallurgy called Uranium 101, which is also acceswith an emphasis on hydrometallurgy. The starting date of the position will be September 2014, or as soon sible to the general public on the Internet. as possible thereafter. “We’ve made things tactile and visual. We The Industrial Research Chair in Hydrometallurgy was founded in 1988 and is currently funded by 17 want a traditional knowledge tie-in so Canadian and international companies. The successful candidate for this competition will be expected they can understand the scientific nature to complement UBC’s existing strength in hydrometallurgy and extractive metallurgy and will develop an internationally recognized, externally funded research program. As part of the Chair program, the candidate of it, because when they understand the will be expected to teach short courses at sponsor sites, develop industrial research proposals and programs practical side of it, then the communities and generally support the activities of the Chair. The candidate will be expected to teach undergraduate and want to learn more from the academic graduate level courses and to supervise graduate students at the Masters and Ph.D. level. side,” says Willy. “A lot of companies take The candidate will hold a Ph.D. degree or equivalent in Metallurgical or Materials Engineering or a closely this journey of corporate social responsirelated field and will be expected to register as a Professional Engineer in British Columbia. bility and look at it strictly as a philanFurther information on the department is available at www.mtrl.ubc.ca, and information on the employment thropy mechanism. Others look at it as a environment in the Faculty of Applied Science is available at www.apsc.ubc.ca/careers. risk mitigation mechanism. Cameco Applicants should submit a curriculum vitae, a statement (1-2 pages) of technical and teaching interests really sees it as a value-add that comes in and accomplishments, and names and addresses (e-mail included) of four referees. Applications must be submitted online at www.hr.ubc.ca/careers-postings/faculty.php. big time with uranium development around the world.” The initial closing date for applications is May 31st, 2014 but applications will be accepted until a suitable
Nothing beats firsthand knowledge When Cameco acquired major exploration projects in Western Australia in 2008, it began working with the University of Western Australia to develop edu-
candidate is found. All Canadian, permanent residents and international candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. UBC hires on the basis of merit and is committed to employment equity. All qualified persons are encouraged to apply. UBC is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from visible minority group members, women, Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, persons of any sexual orientation or gender identity, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas. Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority
May 2014 | 57
Nuclear powerhouse Metallurgist Chuck Edwards on the changing world of uranium By Peter Braul
here is a little bit of Chuck Edwards in every uranium facility operating in Saskatchewan today. For the last 40 years, he has helped design and build many of the most successful uranium operations on the planet, including the Cigar Lake mine, which began shipping ore in March. To say he has had an influence is an understatement, yet despite the heft of his CV, which includes a term as CIM president and the CIM Distinguished Service Medal, Edwards’ persona might be even more impressive than his professional accomplishments. The force of his personality and his particular sense of style are formidable and as an outspoken supporter of nuclear energy through thick and thin, Edwards has a flair that can make anyone an optimist when it comes to the industry’s future.
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CIM: What do you think are the most significant things to happen in the uranium sector lately? Edwards: Well, there are several exciting uranium exploration projects in the Athabasca Basin. And there’s Cameco getting Cigar Lake into operation (see p. 77). The deposit is very challenging and the mining method is unique. So the fact that they have got it up and running is a creditable achievement. 58 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
CIM: What about in processing? Regulators have been considering reducing the amount of ammonia that is allowed into the environment. What would change for uranium operations in Saskatchewan, if that was the case? Edwards: Uranium mills that use ammonia are going to be challenged because they do have ammonia emissions. The proven other option, instead of using ammonia for solvent extraction stripping and precipitation, is to use sulphuric acid for stripping, and hydrogen peroxide for precipitation. Such mills don’t use ammonia at all, so they’re not affected by the new ammonia regulations. The trend generally is away from ammonia and to making a peroxide precipitation product because the process is ammonia-free. Ammonia mills may find ways to bring the ammonia down; that’s one option. The other option is to retrofit them and shift to the acid strip process, which is doable. That’s what was done at Cameco’s Rabbit Lake mill. CIM: There are lots of mines trying to save energy nowadays, but I think it would surprise people to hear that the Athabasca Basin uranium mines face potential power shortages. How serious is this situation now? Edwards: Unfortunately, up in northern Saskatchewan, you wouldn’t say that the uranium operations are really on a grid,
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because a grid assumes the power can flow to you over multiple routes. They have one line called the I2P line, and it is pretty much at its maximum power now. It is possible to upgrade it by twinning the line or that kind of thing, and SaskPower has an upgrade in progress. But the other problem is that the line is not highly reliable in the summer because there are a lot of lightning strikes. Because it’s on the Canadian Shield and the rock below the power line is not electrically conductive, the line cannot be grounded and so shielded from the lightning strikes (unlike lines built in southern Saskatchewan). So the lightning strikes knock it out, and that happens, on average, between 40 and 50 times every summer. But all the operations cooperate, and there is one site that basically has the weather station. If it looks like a lightning storm is building up in Alberta, they will send out a warning, and people will start up the gensets. It’s an interesting situation. CIM: For the industry to grow, mines will need more stable power – what about nuclear? It would seem fitting for a uranium-producing region. Edwards: Firms in Russia, Argentina, Japan, the United States, and Canada have designs for or are operating little pocket generators, or small nuclear reactors. I had a proposal some time back that one of the operations in northern Saskatchewan put in one of these. A mine or a mill on its own will need about 10 megawatts of power. A mine and mill combined will need maybe 15 or
16 MW, so my suggestion was to put in a 20-MW mini-nuke, use the power you need on site from that, and feed the rest of the power into that I2P line, which would help stabilize it. All the uranium mines and mills are licensed facilities, as are nuclear power plants. And they’re all licensed by the same people: the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. It would be easier to get clearance to put a little nuclear power plant on one of these sites than in it would, say, in your or my backyard. CIM: I saw a presentation recently that made the case that politics is really nuclear energy’s only problem. What do you think of that argument? Edwards: It’s not politics. The major hurdle for the uranium industry is public perception (see p. 56). And public perception of everything nuclear and everything atomic is fearful. It’s unfortunate that the first use of atomic energy was bombs and not power. There are different types of radiation and different things are radioactive in different ways, and exposure produces different outcomes, so it’s complex. And most people don’t understand it. A while back, there were some activists here in Saskatoon who wanted the city council to declare Saskatoon a radioactivity-free zone, which of course is impossible. I mean the river here has uranium in it. Most rivers do. All the oceans do. The major problem for the uranium industry and nuclear power is that most people don’t understand radioactivity but
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are frightened by it because they can’t see it, they can’t taste it, they can’t hear it, they can’t smell it, and they can’t feel it. CIM: How has public sentiment changed over the time that you’ve been working in the business? Edwards: The fact that nuclear power is as green as wind power and solar power has been a boost. I mean, that’s why China and India are building reactors about as fast as they can: because they realize if they keep burning only coal their already poor air quality will only get worse, and so will damage to their citizens’ health. CIM: What lessons do you think the industry has learned about dealing with the public? Edwards: You can’t manage the information. You can provide information, but most of the mass media have difficulty interpreting and passing on technical information. CIM: How does it make you feel that this perspective holds so much sway? Edwards: I think that it’s getting better. I mean once upon a time, back in the day, there was huge opposition in Saskatchewan to uranium and to uranium mining and milling. The opposition to the uranium mining and milling has vanished and the support in Saskatchewan is fairly high. Interest-
ingly enough, the further you go away from the mines and the mills, the less support there is. There is less support for the uranium industry in Regina than there is in Saskatoon, simply because I think the people further from the operations don’t see the benefit as much. CIM: So education is really important, which leads me to ask you about the young engineers you mentor. Does the fact that you work in uranium make it harder to find good recruits? Edwards: I have never seen anybody in our industry think that the difficulty in hiring people is because it’s uranium. One of the problems we have out here is that the Prairie provinces, especially Saskatchewan, are seen in Vancouver and Toronto as a bit of a backwater. And so, we have trouble attracting people to Saskatoon. Once you get them here, it’s “Wow! This is great.� I’ve been around long enough that some of the people that I first met as students are now mill superintendents and mine managers and VPs. I don’t take credit for that happening, but I get a huge happiness out of it. Saskatoon has changed, too. Thirty years ago, it was still in many ways a small prairie town, quite conservative and mildly socialist. If you were doing well, many people believed you were stealing from somebody else. That attitude is gone. Being successful here now is a good idea, it’s not frowned upon. CIM
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ONTHE LAND Mining and First Nations have not always gotten along, but what if they were one and the same? By Eavan Moore
For a long time, Hans Matthews did not connect his mining career to his background as a member of the Wahnapitae First Nation. A childhood mineral enthusiast who dug “gold” out of the road at age seven, he had risen to vice-president of a mining company without thinking much about aboriginal land issues. But when a violent land-use standoff between the Mohawk and the army in Oka, Quebec in 1990 led mining executives to fear they would lose the ability to mine in Canada, the nightmare visions shared by his colleagues left Matthews skeptical. He quit his job, got up to speed on treaty and land claim issues, and founded an organization to inform and aid aboriginal groups asking the same question he had always had: “Why aren’t more communities involved in mining when mines are in their backyards?” Since founding the Canadian Aboriginal Minerals Association (CAMA) and serving as its president for the last 22 years, Matthews says the conversation has changed. Most obviously, the fears of 1990 have turned into awareness among mining companies that genuinely successful mining projects depend on community cooperation. But a handful of aboriginal groups have turned that notion on its head. Why should First Nations, Inuit, or Métis groups not build their own mines?
Self-sufficiency
Alexander Filion
The Dene Nations of the Northwest Territories (N.W.T.) have become the latest to act on that vision and are the most ambitious so far. In 2013, DenenHans Matthews founded the Canadian Aboriginal Minerals Association and has been its president for 22 years.
deh Investments Limited Partnership formed an exploration and mining company and bought up brownfield mineral properties in the N.W.T. with the intent of developing and operating a metal mine. The decision to explore arose from broad discussions amongst Dene in N.W.T. communities about their vision for economic development in a region driven by the mining industry. Darrell Beaulieu, president and CEO at Denendeh Investments, tells the story of an elderly woman from the Yellowknives Dene who showed a prospector a lump of gold in 1932 and kicked off the development of the Giant mine. Beaulieu himself got his start in the exploration business. Since then, his focus on economic development as a former Yellowknives Dene First Nation chief and Dene business leader has often involved mining in some form or another. But over those years, Beaulieu says, “The Dene have not really fully participated in the way that they wanted to.” Economic self-sufficiency is their new vision: Through exploring, developing and directly benefiting from their resources, the Dene can diversify their economies and sustain existing aboriginal-owned mine services businesses, more than 60 of which have sprung up in the N.W.T. in the last decade. As far as Beaulieu knows, they would be the first aboriginal owners of a metal mining company in Canada. May 2014 | 63
Patrick Kane
As resident owners, they also want to show potential investors a competitive edge. “We live here, we’re based here, we operate here,” Beaulieu explains, “whereas people in the past have seen mining companies come from
could generate far more income as a project proponent than impact and benefit agreements would provide. “I think First Nations are starting to realize that that’s where the real substantial income is made,” says Merle Alexander,
“We live here, we’re based here, we operate here.” – D. Beaulieu other jurisdictions not really knowing the lay of the land.” The Denendeh Exploration and Mining Company, or DEMCo, bought four brownfield mining properties in the Camsell River mining area near Great Bear Lake in 2013. The Terra mine is the most exciting property, with a past history of silver production. There is also potential for other minerals in the total assembly of leases, which includes the former Smallwood, Northrim, and Norex mines. The claimholder of Norex was a lone prospector, geologist and mining engineer who optioned it to DEMCo and asked to be a director of the company. DEMCo is now focused on compiling existing exploration data and using that information to create three-dimensional models. Denendeh Investments has raised close to the $1 million needed to carry the project through this phase. After the models are complete, DEMCo will hit the mining conventions in Yellowknife, Vancouver, and Toronto and begin in earnest to seek out a joint venture partner, whether from Canada or overseas.
Project proponents, not beneficiaries With a vision, good management and a strong funding base, DEMCo Opposite page: Darrell Beaulieu is CEO of Denendeh Investments, which was established to create long-term economic self-sufficiency for the Dene through business ventures.
a partner at Gowlings, who practises aboriginal resource law, “and that they have to start looking at their own territory and identifying areas where they could find it acceptable for there to be mining development and then trying themselves to start staking claims.” Aboriginal-run mining operations are out there. Many First Nations run gravel pits, which have low start-up costs, ranging up to $1 million. A few aboriginal groups have run industrial minerals operations producing graphite, garnet or marble, which can cost several million dollars to develop. Matthews and CAMA helped a Labrador Inuit company start up two labradorite quarries. A Sudbury-area garnet mine owned by members of the Mohawk Nation and located on Wahnapitae land has been running for about 10 years. In 2013, Mohawk Garnet received $4.3 million from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund to expand its processing plant. But despite the potential, Alexander says the topic of becoming a project proponent seldom surfaces in his conversations with clients. While there are numerous reasons why more First Nations have not started up their own mines, they generally come down to money. “To be a mine operator you have to have a lot of cash, and so that excludes a lot of people, not just First Nations,” points out Glenn Nolan, vice-president, aboriginal affairs at Noront Resources and former chief of the Missanabie Cree. But First Nations
have it particularly hard, as their income sources put tight limits on what they can actually do. “Most communities get probably 90 per cent of their money from government revenues,” says Matthews. “Maybe the other 10 per cent comes from their own economic development ventures.” Government cash contributions are measured within short timeframes from one year to several years, limiting their usefulness on major infrastructure projects. “Other orders of government do not function on such short financial horizons,” says Harold Calla, co-founder and executive chair of the First Nations Financial Management Board (FNFMB) and member of the Squamish Nation in British Columbia. “Most governments will finance their infrastructure assets over the life of the asset. We’re being expected to pay for them in 12 months. It’s just not realistic in the world we have today.” More important than cash is the ability to obtain loans. Here, too, aboriginal governments are at a disadvantage. Rarely does a First Nation have the financial track record to reassure lenders; it is also difficult to get a loan without collateral, which is the case for First Nations whose assets are on reserve land. Those assets cannot be put up as collateral, because the lender has no right of seizure and no ability to sell to another party. And finally, there are multiple types of expertise involved in starting a mine. Most communities, although they may have residents and businesses that have worked at and for mines, do not have experience when it comes to managing one. Making major financial calls in general, says Calla, exceeds most communities’ capacity and expertise. “The Indian Act froze us in time,” he says. “We were not allowed to engage in the economic mainstream. And we’ve been that way for 300 years. All of a sudden, in the last 20 years, we’ve been unfrozen, but we’ve not had those 300 years to evolve.” That’s why the First Nations Finance Authority exists. The non-profit was incorporated in 1995 to provide alterMay 2014 | 65
nate financing sources. This year it will issue about $350 million in loans. “It’s almost like a credit union or a co-op,” explains Calla. “You get a bunch of First Nations who come together, they get a credit rating, and they go directly to the capital markets, and they borrow money under the Finance Authority who issues bonds, and we lend that money to the First Nation. What we’re creating in this process is a wholesale access to capital that is not subject to some risk-management policy of a major financial institution. And access to capital is probably the single most important thing that First Nations as governments can use to support achieving their goals and aspirations.” For ambitious projects, however, First Nations could use more help, and Calla suggests that aboriginal groups accept a significant minority stake as a good stepping stone. It does not have the same profit potential, but it guarantees a portion of the wealth while skirting risk. When First Nations who lived along proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) corridors in British Columbia expressed an interest in buying a share of the projects, FNFMB did the math on an example LNG project and came up with a financing proposal: Why shouldn’t the federal government of Canada backstop loans to First Nations seeking to invest? “An equity participation in a $37-billion project is beyond the financial capacity of any single or group of First Nations likely in this country,” says Calla. “And so as part of the duty to consult and accommodate, what we have suggested is that Canada should consider, under terms that it would deem appropriate, bringing to the table a federal loan guarantee program, so that the private sector and First Nations would know that an equity ask by First Nations was possible.” The FNFMB’s proposal, released in October, showed the value chain of an illustrative gas pipeline, intending that everyone should know precisely what the numbers would look like for a First Nation interested in equity participation. (A few gas companies have already offered First Nations about a third of the 66 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
equity in a project.) Assuming that a $37-billion project is financed on a 60:40 debt-to-equity split, a one-third equity interest would cost $4.5 billion. “So you can imagine how the jaws dropped, when we tabled that report,” says Calla. The initial response from the
“That’s a
BIG number, Harold.” – H. Calla feds and First Nations? “That’s a big number, Harold.” It is a big number, and it is roughly the figure that proponents of a new metal mine would be looking at. For First Nations or for anyone, the associated risk is tremendous. “You know, there’s a great romantic notion – and I say that deliberately – about what being in business means,” Calla says. “In my opinion, we don’t understand the concepts of risk. We just think it’s all going to be like Indian Affairs funding: the cheque’s just going to show up. “I will tell you,” he continues, “that in the early 1990s, I was very much active in an attempt by the Squamish Nation to purchase a regional shopping centre on our lands in West Vancouver, B.C. We came second, and I was really disappointed. But I can say today, ‘Thank God we didn’t win.’” Calla wheezes a laugh. “Because they’ve invested twice what they paid for it to modernize it.”
The path to ownership How can aboriginal groups earn a significant stake in a multibillion-dollar project with limited funds? The FNFMB
proposes that First Nations acquire their option when the private sector brings the project online, so that cost overruns and delays do not hit them hard before any revenue has materialized. One way to do this is to divert the proceeds from their revenue sharing agreement into buying shares. Another way, used by the Naskapi Nation of Kawawachikamach in northern Quebec, is to negotiate a carried interest to be paid back when the project starts producing. The Naskapis were originally approached by an iron company looking for investors on the LabMag project, and they agreed to use their treaty settlement funds to pay for environmental baseline studies in exchange for a 16.5 per cent stake in the project. When New Millennium Iron Corp. bought out the owners, it negotiated an additional 3.5 per cent stake and a 0.333 per cent gross overriding royalty on future production with the Naskapis. The First Nation will pay back its share of development costs, but only when the mine starts reporting a profit. By then, a joint-venture partner will have come on board, so the Naskapis will be paying for a fraction of a fraction of the cost if the project gets off the ground. The right partnership can eventually take a community to 100 per cent ownership without upfront risk. In a transitional ownership model, the group can partner with an owner, generate money from the project, and then use it to gain full control – on the condition that the product go to a specific buyer. This has been used in the forestry industry and in the case of the Labrador Inuit labradorite quarries. A growing number of firms are offering small equity shares to aboriginal communities without cash changing hands. Avalon Rare Metals hopes to develop its Nechalacho rare earth project in the N.W.T. under a limited partnership with 10 per cent aboriginal ownership, shared equally among three First Nations. Avalon President and CEO Don Bubar believes there is inherent value in treaty rights and traditional use of the land; providing equity is a
“The whole industry needs this to happen…” – D. Bubar way of recognizing that value, showing respect to the community, and providing an asset that can be leveraged for further investment. But he also sees this model as an interim stage: “In the future, most mineral exploration development in northern Canada will be led by aboriginal businesses. The whole industry needs this to happen, because most of the mines of tomorrow will be found in the North and in areas where aboriginal communities are the only communities.”
A South African example To see the most lucrative example to date of an indigenous government running its own mining venture, Canadians can look to South Africa. The experience of the Royal Bafokeng Nation (RBN) shows how a group with strong land claims and vision can reap longterm rewards from its mineral wealth. In the late 19th century, the Bafokeng began buying up the titles to land within the roughly 1,200 square kilometres they had occupied for 500 years, foreseeing that private landownership would provide a measure of community protection under colonial European law. Bafokeng men went to work on farms and diamond mines to earn the purchase funds. In 1925, this foresight paid off when platinum was discovered on Bafokeng land. With ownership established, RBN was able to lease mineral rights to platinum companies and eventually negotiate royalties from platinum mining, most notably with Impala Platinum. It used the money to improve infrastructure and services for its community. Tara Polzer Ngwato, who holds the title of executive of research and knowledge management within the Royal Bafokeng Administration, studies the history and impacts of the nation’s work. “Retaining land ownership and
securing income from mineral exploitation was not an easy or obvious process, but one requiring a long legal struggle against both the South African state and against Impala,” she comments. Polzer Ngwato believes that mines must “abandon the idea of a state-management-labour trifecta where ‘social licence’ is understood merely as the cost of keeping communities happy.” In the Bafokeng’s experience, she says, the shift to sustainability happened when they moved “from being recipients of benefits to becoming owners and managers.” RBN benefited from post-Apartheid Black Economic Empowerment regulations requiring companies to have a certain percentage of ownership by historically disadvantaged people, which ushered in the opportunity to translate royalties into stock holding agreements. That brought a 13 per cent share of in Impala Platinum; it also facilitated a joint venture with Anglo American Platinum that is now 57-percent-owned by RBN. Polzer Ngwato notes that it was RBN’s initiative and hard work that got the ball rolling on the Anglo American joint venture. The platinum boom from 1996 to 2008 fattened the community’s asset base to figures in the billions. These assets are held entirely in a trust and are invested in a diversified equity portfolio by RBN’s own investment company to reduce the overall dependence on the mining commodities cycle. RBN has used the dividends from these investments to upgrade the public infrastructure of its 150,000-person community with roads, water lines, schools and clinics. In the last decade, street lights have replaced nighttime darkness. The infrastructure in the RBN community is now markedly better than other communities in the platinum belt. Nevertheless, Polzer Ngwato points out, the wealth of the community cannot be confused with the wealth of its
members. Unemployment remains high, and some question RBN’s policy of major long-term investments as opposed to more direct relief. But the community can boast a 2013 social expenditure budget of about $75 million, and it can look forward to the long-term sustainability of its existence. RBN is deliberately planning for the time when platinum resources run out.
Evolution In Darrell Beaulieu’s view, the time to become owners is now, when the industry downturn has put cut-rate properties on the market. But DEMCo is likely to remain a rarity. From their positions at FNFMB and CAMA – organizations intended to help Aboriginal Peoples get their financial houses in order and share what they know about the mining industry, respectively – Calla and Matthews can see that there is a long way to go. Building a sustainable future will be much easier if mining companies and governments make it a priority. “Governments, both federal and provincial, need to stop looking at First Nations as a risk management issue,” says Calla, “and to start looking at us as partners that need to be supported, need to have the resources, the same kind of resourcing that the federal government has when it’s making its decisions.” What is the role for mining companies looking to support active community involvement? Matthews has an answer. “I’m telling mining companies that when we started 20 years ago, everyone talked about aboriginal participation in mining. It’s no longer aboriginal participation in mining, it’s mining company participation in the aboriginal community, and that’s the key. And that’s how communities are going to learn about the industry, not by being on the workbench sitting in the mine.” CIM May 2014 | 67
VIVRE DES
Alexander Filion
RESSOURCES DE LA TERRE
Le secteur minier et les communautés des Premières nations ne se sont pas toujours bien entendus. Mais s’il y avait convergence entre leurs intérêts ? par Eavan Moore Pendant longtemps, Hans Matthews ne faisait pas de lien entre sa carrière dans l’industrie minière et ses antécédents dans la Première nation des Wahnapitae. À l’époque de son enfance, il était un amateur de minéraux et, à sept ans, il déterrait de « l’or » du chemin. Plus tard, il a atteint le poste de viceprésident d’une compagnie minière sans trop réfléchir aux questions de revendications territoriales autochtones. Lors d’un affrontement violent survenu 68 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
à Oka, au Québec, en 1990, au sujet de l’utilisation des terres, qui opposait l’Armée et les Mohawks, certains dirigeants de compagnies minières craignaient qu’il ne serait plus possible de faire de l’extraction minière au Canada. Matthews trouvait peu crédibles ces visions cauchemardesques de ses collègues. Il a démissionné, a étudié les questions liées aux traités et aux revendications territoriales et a fondé un organisme qui aiderait les groupes
autochtones à mieux connaître la réponse à une question qui l’avait toujours préoccupé : Comment se fait-il que des communautés plus nombreuses ne participent pas à l’extraction minière lorsque des mines se trouvent dans leur propre arrière-cour ? Depuis qu’il a fondé l’Association canadienne des intérêts autochtones de l’industrie minérale (Canadian Aboriginal Minerals Association – CAMA) et qu’il en a été le président depuis 22 ans, Matthews trouve que le sujet de la conversation a changé. De toute évidence, les craintes de 1990 se sont transformées. Les sociétés minières ont pris conscience qu’un véritable succès de projets miniers nécessite la coopération de la communauté. Cependant, quelques groupes autochtones ont pris cette idée
par l’autre bout. Pourquoi les Premières nations, les Inuits ou les groupes métis ne construiraient-ils pas leurs propres mines ?
L’autosuffisance La Nation dénée des Territoires du Nord-Ouest (T.N.-O.) est la dernière en date à donner suite à cette vision et se révèle la plus ambitieuse jusqu’à présent. En 2013, Denendeh Investments, société en commandite, a créé une entreprise d’exploration et d’exploitation minière et a acheté des sites désaffectés de biens miniers dans les T.N.-O. dans l’intention de développer et d’exploiter une mine métallifère. La décision d’explorer a découlé d’un large débat parmi les Dénés dans les collectivités des T.N.-O. au sujet de leur vision du développement économique dans une région dirigée par l’industrie minière. Darrell Beaulieu, président et chef des opérations de Denendeh Investments, raconte l’histoire d’une femme âgée des Dénés Yellowknives qui montre à un prospecteur, en 1932, un gros morceau d’or, ce qui donne le coup d’envoi à l’aménagement de la mine Giant. Beaulieu lui-même a fait ses débuts dans les activités d’exploration. Depuis lors, cet ancien chef de la Première nation des Dénés Yellowknives et homme d’affaires Déné a mis l’accent sur le développement économique, souvent dans un contexte minier. Toutefois, au fil de ces années, Beaulieu dit : « Les Dénés n’ont pas participé pleinement comme ils l’auraient voulu. » Ils ont une nouvelle vision d’autonomie économique : par l’exploration, le développement minier et les retombées positives de leurs ressources, les Dénés seront en mesure de diversifier leur économie et de soutenir les entreprises de services miniers qui appartiennent actuellement à des autochtones, dont plus de 60 ont vu le jour dans les T.N.-O. depuis dix ans. À sa connaissance, Beaulieu croit qu’ils seraient les (Page précédente) Hans Matthews est le fondateur de la Canadian Aboriginal Minerals Association, où il siège comme président depuis 22 ans.
premiers propriétaires autochtones d’une mine métallifère au Canada. En tant que propriétaires résidants, ils veulent aussi présenter aux investisseurs potentiels un avantage concurrentiel. Beaulieu explique : « Nous vivons ici, nous sommes établis ici, nous travaillons ici, alors que, dans le passé, les gens voyaient des sociétés minières venir ici d’ailleurs, sans vraiment connaître les réalités d’ici. » En 2013, la Denendeh Exploration and Mining Company, ou DEMCo, a fait l’achat de quatre zones minières désaffectées dans la région minière de la rivière Camsell, près du Grand lac de l’Ours. La mine Terra est la plus prometteuse, ayant des antécédents de production d’argent. Il y a aussi du potentiel pour d’autres minéraux dans l’ensemble des concessions minières, qui comprend les anciennes mines de Smallwood, Northrim et Norex. Le titulaire d’un concesson d’exploration de Norex était un prospecteur solitaire, géologue et ingénieur des mines, qui a donné une option à DEMCo et a demandé d’en devenir un administrateur. DEMCo met maintenant l’accent sur la compilation de données d’exploration existantes pour en faire des modèles tridimensionnels. Denendeh Investments a recueilli près de un million de dollars nécessaires pour franchir cette étape du projet. Une fois les modèles achevés, DEMCo se rendra aux congrès de Yellowknife, Vancouver et Toronto et se mettra sérieusement à chercher un partenaire en coentreprise au Canada ou à l’étranger.
Des promoteurs de projets, plutôt que des bénéficiaires Avec une vision, une bonne gestion et une base de financement solide, DEMCo pourrait générer bien plus de revenus en tant que promoteur de projet que ne pourraient procurer des ententes sur les répercussions et les avantages. « À mon avis, les Premières nations commencent maintenant à se rendre compte que c’est ainsi que se réalisent les grands bénéfices », selon Merle Alexander, associé au sein du cabinet Gowlings et spécialiste
du droit des autochtones et des ressources. « Elles doivent se pencher sur leur propre territoire et cerner des zones qui pourraient admettre une exploitation minière acceptable et puis essayer ellesmêmes de jalonner des concessions d’exploration. » Il existe des opérations minières dirigées par des autochtones. Plusieurs groupes des Premières nations exploitent des carrières de gravier qui ont de faibles coûts de démarrage, allant jusqu’à un million de dollars. Quelques groupes autochtones ont dirigé des opérations de minéraux industriels qui produisent du graphite, du grenat ou du marbre, ce qui peut coûter quelques millions à aménager. Matthews et CAMA ont aidé une entreprise inuite du Labrador à lancer deux carrières de labradorite. Depuis environ dix ans dans la région de Sudbury, on exploite une mine de grenat qui appartient à des membres de la Nation mohawk et qui est située sur des terres des Wahnapitae. En 2013, Mohawk Garnet a reçu 4,3 millions de dollars du Fonds du patrimoine du Nord de l’Ontario pour agrandir son usine de traitement. Toutefois, malgré le potentiel, Alexander fait remarquer qu’il entend rarement ses clients aborder le sujet de devenir promoteurs de projet. Bien qu’il existe de nombreuses raisons qui expliquent pourquoi les Premières nations n’ont pas été plus nombreuses à lancer leurs propres mines, cela se résume en général en questions d’argent. « Pour devenir exploitant minier, il faut posséder beaucoup de liquidités, ce qui exclut bien des gens, et pas seulement des Premières nations », selon Glenn Nolan, vice-président, affaires autochtones chez Noront Resources et ancien chef de la Première nation crie Missanabie. Cependant, c’est particulièrement difficile pour les Premières nations puisque leurs sources de revenus limitent ce qu’elles peuvent réellement faire. Selon Matthews, « La plupart des communautés touchent probablement 90 % de leurs revenus du Gouvernement. Les 10 % qui restent viennent peut-être de leurs propres initiatives de développement économique. » La conMay 2014 | 69
tribution au comptant versée par le Gouvernement s’étale sur une période courte, allant de un an à quelques années, ce qui en limite l’utilité dans les grands projets d’infrastructure. « D’autres ordres de gouvernement n’ont pas des horizons financiers aussi courts », selon Harold Calla, cofondateur et président exécutif du Conseil de gestion financière des Premières nations (CGFPN) et membre de la Première nation de Squamish en Colombie-Britannique. « La plupart des gouvernements financent leurs actifs liés à l’infrastructure sur la durée de vie de ces actifs. On nous demande de les payer sur une période de douze mois. Ce n’est pas un objectif réaliste dans notre monde contemporain. » Ce qui compte encore plus que l’argent liquide, c’est la possibilité d’obtenir des prêts. Là aussi, les gouvernements autochtones sont désavantagés. Une Première nation a rarement un dossier d’antécédents financiers qui puisse rassurer les prêteurs. Il est difficile aussi d’obtenir un prêt en l’absence de garanties, ce qui pose un problème pour les Premières nations dont l’actif se trouve sur des terres de réserve. Ce genre d’actif ne peut pas être fourni en nantissement car le prêteur n’aura aucun droit de saisie et ne pourra pas vendre à un tiers. Finalement, la mise en service d’une mine exige des types multiples de compétences. Bien qu’il y ait parfois des résidants et des entreprises qui ont une expérience du travail minier, la plupart des collectivités ne possèdent pas d’expérience pertinente quand il s’agit de gérer une mine. En règle générale, prendre de grandes décisions financières dépasse les capacités et les compétences de la plupart des communautés, selon Calla. Il dit que « La Loi sur les Indiens nous a empêchés d’évoluer au fil du temps. Il ne nous était pas permis de participer à l’économie générale. Et c’était ainsi pendant 300 ans. Et tout à coup, depuis vingt ans, nous avons pu bouger mais sans bénéficier d’expériences accumulées pendant ces trois siècles. » Voilà pourquoi il existe l’Administration financière des premières nations. Cette organisation à but non lucratif remonte à 1995 et a pour mandat de 70 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
fournir des sources de financement de rechange. En 2005, elle est placée sous l’autorité de la Loi sur la gestion financière des premières nations. Cette loi a fourni à des groupes signataires des mécanismes de fiscalité foncière et a mis sur pied un certain nombre d’institutions d’appui, notamment le CGFPN de Calla. Calla explique : L’Administration financière des premières nations, « C’est presque comme une caisse populaire ou une coop. » Sous la direction de Premières nations, elle rassemble des Premières nations qui ont adhéré en tant que membres emprunteurs. L’institution obtient une cote de crédit et émet des obligations sur les marchés des capitaux et, par la suite, prête de l’argent à des Premières nations individuelles. Cette année, elle émettra environ 350 millions de dollars d’emprunts. Calla précise : « Par ce processus, nous créons un accès de gros au capital, sans être soumis à quelque politique de gestion des risques de grandes institutions financières. En somme, pour les Premières nations qui gouvernent, l’accès aux capitaux est probablement le facteur le plus important pour atteindre leurs objectifs et réaliser leurs aspirations. » Cependant, pour les projets d’envergure, les Premières nations auraient besoin d’une aide plus importante. Calla suggère que les groupes autochtones acceptent une participation minoritaire non négligeable, ce qui serait un bon tremplin. Bien que cela n’ait pas le même potentiel de profit, cela garantit une part des bénéfices tout en diminuant le risque. Lorsque des Premières nations qui habitaient le long de corridors proposés pour des pipelines de gaz naturel liquéfié (GNL) en Colombie-Britannique ont manifesté leur intérêt pour acheter une part des projets, le CGFPN a fait des calculs sur un projet-type de GNL et a trouvé une proposition de Financement : pourquoi le gouvernement fédéral canadien ne pourrait-il pas garantir des prêts aux Premières nations qui voudraient investir ? « Une participation au capital dans un projet de 37 milliards de dollars dépasse la capacité financière d’une Pre-
mière nation ou de tout groupe de Premières nations susceptible de se former au Canada », selon Calla. « Par conséquent, d’après nous, une partie de l’obligation légale de consulter et d’accommoder serait que le Canada envisage des modalités appropriées pour soumettre un programme fédéral de garanties de prêts. Ainsi, le secteur privé et les Premières nations sauraient qu’il est possible d’octroyer à une Première nation une participation au capital. » Le rapport du CGFPN publié en octobre affiche, en guise d’exemple, la chaîne de valeur d’un gazoduc, dans l’intention que tout le monde sache précisément à quoi ressembleraient les chiffres d’une participation au capital par une Première nation. Quelques sociétés gazières ont déjà offert à des Premières nations environ un tiers des capitaux propres d’un projet. En supposant qu’un projet de 37 milliards de dollars se finance selon un ratio emprunts/capitaux propres de 6040, une participation jusqu’à concurrence d’un tiers coûterait 4,5 milliards de dollars. Selon Calla : « Alors, vous pourrez bien imaginer comment ce rapport a fait tomber les mâchoires. » Comment les autorités fédérales et les Premières nations ont-elles réagi dans un premier temps ? « Harold, ça représente un montant faramineux. » Oui, c’est une somme faramineuse et c’est à peu près ce montant que devront envisager les promoteurs d’une nouvelle mine métallifère. Pour les Premières nations ou quiconque, les niveaux de risques associés sont énormes. Selon Calla : « Écoutez, il y a des gens qui rêvent en couleurs – je le dis délibérément – des gens qui se font des idées fausses au sujet d’être en affaires. Selon moi, nous comprenons mal le concept de risque. Nous sommes portés à croire que le commerce ressemble aux rapports avec les Affaires indiennes, que le chèque de financement est dans le courrier. Il illustre son propos : « Laissez-moi vous dire que vers le début des années 1990,
(Page suivante) Darrell Beaulieu est le PDG de Denendeh Investments Inc., un cabinet qui a été établi pour appuyer une autonomie économique durable pour le people déné par la création d’entreprises commerciales.
Patrick Kane
j’ai participé très activement à une tentative par la Première nation de Squamish d’acheter un centre commercial régional situé sur nos terres dans West Vancouver, en Colombie-Britannique. Nous sommes arrivés en deuxième position, ce qui m’a bien déçu. Mais, aujourd’hui, je peux dire que c’était un coup de chance pour nous, heureusement. » Calla éclate de rire. « Nos concurrents ont dû dépenser le double du prix d’achat pour moderniser leurs installations. »
La voie menant vers la propriété Vu leurs fonds restreints, comment les groupes autochtones pourront-ils se tailler une place importante dans un projet qui vaut plusieurs milliards de dollars ? Le CGFPN propose que les Premières nations acquièrent leur option quand le projet du secteur privé entre en service. De cette façon, elles ne seront pas durement touchées par des retards dans la réalisation et des dépassements de coûts avant que des revenus ne se matérialisent. Une des manières de le faire consiste à affecter les recettes issues de leur
entente de répartition à l’achat d’actions. Une deuxième façon : imiter l’exemple de la Nation naskapi de Kawawachikamach, du Nord de Québec, qui a négocié des intérêts reportés qui seront remboursés quand le projet commencera à produire. À l’origine, une compagnie de minerai de fer a abordé les Naskapis pour trouver des investisseurs dans le projet de LabMag. Les Naskapis se sont mis d’accord pour utiliser leurs fonds de règlement de traité pour payer des études initiales sur l’environnement. En contrepartie, les Naskapis ont acquis une prise de participation de 16,5 % dans le projet. Lorsque New Millenium Iron Corp. a racheté les parts des propriétaires en place, elle a négocié avec les Naskapis un supplément de 3,5 % de la prise de participation et une redevance dérogatoire brute de 0,333 % de la production future. La Première nation remboursera sa part des frais de développement, mais seulement quand la mine commencera à enregistrer des bénéfices. D’ici là, un partenaire de coentreprise se sera joint au projet. Par conséquent, les Naskapis ne paieront qu’une fraction d’une fraction du coût si le projet devient une réalité.
Un bon partenariat peut par la suite amener la communauté à un taux de propriété de 100 %, et cela sans s’exposer au risque initial. Dans un modèle de propriété transitoire, le groupe pourra s’associer avec un propriétaire, faire fructifier de l’argent du projet et puis s’en servir pour s’assurer le contrôle total – à la condition que le produit soit vendu à un acheteur particulier. Cette stratégie a servi dans l’industrie forestière et dans les carrières de labradorite des Inuits au Labrador. Un nombre croissant de sociétés offrent maintenant une petite part d’actions à des communautés autochtones sans que de l’argent ne change de mains. Par exemple, Avalon Rare Metals espère développer son projet Nechalacho de terres rares dans les T.N.-O. au moyen d’une société en commandite avec 10 % de propriété autochtone que se partageront également trois Premières nations. Don Bubar, président et chef de la direction d’Avalon, croit en la valeur intrinsèque des droits issus de traités et en l’utilisation traditionnelle des terres. Offrir une prise de participation est un moyen d’apprécier cette valeur, de faire preuve de respect pour la communauté May 2014 | 71
et de fournir un actif qui pourra multiplier des investissements supplémentaires. Toutefois, Bubar voit aussi dans ce modèle une étape intermédiaire : « À l’avenir, ce seront des entreprises autochtones qui mèneront l’essentiel de l’exploration et de la mise en valeur du minerai dans le Nord du Canada. Toute l’industrie en a besoin puisque la plupart des mines de demain seront situées dans le Nord et dans des régions où les seules communautés seront des communautés autochtones. »
Un exemple sud-africain Pour trouver l’exemple le plus lucratif jusqu’à présent d’un gouvernement autochtone qui mène un projet minier qui lui appartient, examinons l’Afrique du Sud. L’expérience vécue par la Royal Bafokeng Nation (RBN) montre comment un groupe ayant de fortes revendications territoriales et une vision d’avenir peut tirer profit à long terme de ses richesses minérales. À la fin du XIXe siècle, les Bafokengs se sont mis à acheter des titres de propriété des terres à l’intérieur des quelques 1 200 kilomètres carrés de territoire qu’ils avaient occupés depuis cinq cents ans. Ils prévoyaient qu’une propriété privée de la terre offrirait une certaine protection à leur communauté sous le droit colonial européen. Les hommes Bafokengs allaient travailler sur des fermes et dans des mines à diamants pour gagner le prix d’achat des terres. En 1925, leur prévoyance a rapporté quand on a découvert la présence de platine dans les terres des Bafokengs. Leur propriété étant établie, la RBN était en mesure d’accorder des droits miniers à des compagnies de production de platine et, par la suite, de négocier des redevances minières, notamment avec Impala Platinum. Cet argent a servi à améliorer l’infrastructure et les services dans la communauté. Tara Polzer Ngwato, cadre responsable de la recherche et de la gestion du savoir dans la Royal Bafokeng Administration, étudie l’histoire et les conséquences des travaux de la Nation. « Demeurer propriétaires des terres et 72 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
tirer des revenus d’une exploitation de minerai n’étaient ni faciles ni évidents ; cela a nécessité un long combat juridique contre l’État sud-africain ainsi que contre Impala. » Elle croit que les sociétés minières doivent : « renoncer à l’idée d’une relation triangulaire rentable État-patronat-travailleurs, d’un ‘pacte social’ qui ne représente que le coût d’apaisement des communautés. Selon l’expérience connue par les Bafokengs, la transition vers la pérennité s’est produite quand les Bafokengs sont passés du statut de bénéficiaires des retombées à celui de propriétaires et de gestionnaires. » La RBN a tiré avantage des règlements visant à faire accéder les Noirs au pouvoir économique après l’apartheid. Les entreprises étaient tenues d’avoir un certain pourcentage de propriété appartenant à des groupes historiquement désavantagés, ce qui a ouvert la porte à la possibilité de transformer des redevances en des accords d’actionnariat. Cela a mené à une propriété de 13 % des actions d’Impala Platinum. Cela a aussi favorisé une coentreprise avec Anglo American Platinum qui appartient maintenant jusqu’à concurrence de 57 % à la RBN. Polzer Ngwato fait remarquer que c’était l’initiative et le travail acharné de la RBN qui ont fait avancer la coentreprise avec Anglo American. L’essor de la platine entre 1996 et 2008 a fait grimper à quelques milliards la base des actifs de la communauté. Ces actifs sont détenus entièrement en fiducie et sont investis dans des portefeuilles d’actions diversifiées par une société d’investissement qui appartient à la RBN. Cela réduit la dépendance globale à l’égard du cycle des produits miniers. La RBN a employé le rendement de ses actions pour parachever l’infrastructure publique de sa communauté de 150 000 personnes : routes, conduites d’eau, écoles, cliniques. Au cours de la dernière décennie, l’obscurité nocturne a cédé la place à un éclairage des rues. La communauté de la RBN possède maintenant une infrastructure nettement meilleure que celle d’autres communautés dans la zone de platine. Cependant, Polzer Ngwato signale que l’on ne doit pas confondre la
richesse de la communauté avec celle de ses membres. Le chômage reste élevé et certains remettent en cause la politique RBN de grands investissements à long terme, par opposition à une aide plus directe. Toutefois, la communauté peut se vanter d’avoir un budget de dépenses sociales en 2013 d’environ 75 millions de dollars et elle peut s’attendre à être viable à long terme. La RBN envisage délibérément une époque marquée par l’épuisement des ressources de platine.
Évolution D’après Darrell Beaulieu, le temps est maintenant venu de devenir propriétaires, pendant que le ralentissement de l’industrie fait vendre des propriétés au rabais. Mais DEMCo pourrait bien demeurer un phénomène rare. Le CGFPN et CAMA ont le mandat d’aider les peuples autochtones à mettre de l’ordre dans leur situation financière et de partager leurs connaissances de l’industrie minière. Calla et Matthews voient qu’il reste beaucoup de chemin à parcourir. Il sera bien plus facile de bâtir un avenir durable si les compagnies minières et les gouvernements en font une priorité. Selon Calla : « Les gouvernements, tant fédéral que provinciaux, doivent cesser de voir dans les Premières nations un problème de gestion des risques ; ils doivent commencer à voir en nous des partenaires à appuyer, des partenaires qui ont besoin de ressources à un niveau analogue à celui du Gouvernement fédéral quand il fait des choix. » Quel rôle reviendra aux compagnies minières qui cherchent à soutenir un engagement communautaire actif ? Matthews donne une réponse : « Je dis aux compagnies minières qu’à nos débuts, il y a vingt ans, tout le monde parlait de la participation autochtone dans le secteur minier. De nos jours, c’est périmé. Parlons plutôt de la participation des sociétés minières dans les communautés autochtones. Je pense que cela est fondamental. C’est ainsi que les communautés apprendront au sujet de l’industrie, plutôt qu’en travaillant à l’intérieur des mines. » ICM
Going places
technology
C C CONVEYING
New conveyor designs stand out in a traditional field By Eavan Moore
When miners look to assemble a conveyor system, the majority tend to stick with the tried and true. For projects that need to move major tonnages, conveyor systems are being pushed to new dimensions, getting bigger and more powerful. But for operations cursed with steep and demanding terrain, and for miners seeking more efficient transportation, some new design developments could challenge traditional systems. Courtesy of Doppelmayr
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Jamalco, a joint venture between Alcoa and the Jamaican government, uses Doppelmayr’s RopeCon system to move bauxite ore up steep terrain at its Mount Oliphant mine.
hen it comes to satisfying his customers’ top needs, Derek Lawrence, sales manager of B.I.D. Bulk Material Handling Systems, says modern belt conveyor technology is most in demand. “A lot of times, their primary concerns are capital cost and delivery. Since they’ve proven reliable, conventional systems are often chosen,” says Lawrence. In the last 20 years, information technology has had an enormous influence on basic conveyor system design, according to Steve Davis, technical director for materials handling at Worley Parsons Canada. Computing power and modelling software, and a better understanding of material properties has allowed engineers, for instance, to design more precise, lighter weight, cost-effective conveyor systems for higher capacities. These same advances have also provided designs that better handle practical problems like controlling material flow onto belts or minimizing dust creation and material spillage. “Transfer chutes have improved phenomenally in the last 20 years,” explains Davis. “Our ability to manage material and airflow in chutes, along with improved wear resistance and belt cleaning, and better skirt systems allows us to have a series of conveyors in line and be able to more or less guarantee that the transfer between those conveyors is going to work out 100 per cent of the time.” May 2014 | 73
More recently, the mining megaprojects under development have been catalysts for new capabilities in conveyor components. Higher production levels and higher waste-to-ore ratios put more demands on conveyor systems, says Patrick Dronsky, manager of the material handling department at AMEC. A conveyor at one of the biggest mines under development might move 20,000 tonnes per hour. That has driven the adoption of more powerful drives, stronger belts and bigger overall systems. Gearless conveyor drives become economically competitive with conventional conveyor drives (with gearboxes) at about 2.5 megawatts (MW). A few large South American mines have ordered gearless drives for their new conveyor systems. Glencore installed two 3.8-MW Siemens gearless drives on a 6.5-kilometre conveyor at its Antapaccay copper mine in Peru. Conventional drives could do the same job, but generally with higher cost and more maintenance requirements. By eliminating the gearbox and connecting a synchronous motor directly to the drive pulley, gearless drives add efficiency. Drives don’t do all the heavy lifting: as systems ramp up capacity, the belt needs to be stronger, too. Davis says companies like ContiTech and Veyance have developed belts with strength ratings of ST10,000. At that strength, one belt could potentially handle a load that might previously have required three separate flights of lower strength belts. “This is significant because each transfer and drive costs money to install and to operate, so if one long belt can be used instead of three shorter belts in a line, money will be saved all around,” explains Davis. Until a few years ago, the strongest belt available was rated and proven at ST7,800. While the larger conveyors address the question of capacity, they run up against traditional limitations. For instance, even the biggest conveyor belts cannot carry run-of-mine sizing of a metre or more. That could be a problem if more mines turn to in-pit conveying, as Davis suspects they will. Conveyors also require cleared land along their route and only moderately steep slopes. Providing solutions to these niches though could be accomplished by a couple of new designs that break the mould.
Rail-Veyor: rethinking the mine
Rail-Veyor represents a fundamentally different option for bulk material handling. It is an all-electric troughed light rail system that integrates with, or replaces, trucks and conveyors with a continuous haulage system. Rail-Veyor can handle development debris or run-of-mine ore, emits no diesel particulates and has less rolling resistance than electric conveyor systems. According to Pat Fantin, vice-president, technical, the system’s operating costs are 20 per cent lower than conveyers and it also has fewer wearable moving parts. The system can transport larger lump unsized ore and it also addresses the problems associated with transfer points. 74 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Courtesy of Rail-Veyor
Heavyweight belts
Ontario-based Rail-Veyor, a “Once the Rail-Veyor system is versatile, all-electric light rail loaded, there are no transfer system, has proved successful at Vale’s Copper points and it can run continuCliff operation. The miner ously to the final destination,” now has plans to install similar systems at some of says Fantin. its Brazilian operations. Its first Canadian installation, serving a near surface ore body at Vale’s Copper Cliff operation, provided a test of how the technology can be integrated into a reengineered mining process. After finding the system doubled its development-advance rate, Vale now has plans to install it in two more mines in Brazil. Rail-Veyor compares its systems to a Lego set, with components that combine to create customizable solutions. Using the experience gained during the Vale project, Rail-Veyor has changed some components to make a lighter and modular system that can be more easily manufactured and installed. Rail-Veyor has intrigued operators and garnered press around the world since it debuted, but still has only a handful of installations. “Using a Rail-Veyor system can fundamentally change the mining process,” says Fantin, adding that it can lower operating and capital costs when “mine planners integrate the system into their initial mine design.” Often Rail-Veyor gets called in too late in the process. Well into building an underground mine in Africa that relied on conveyors and trucks, one client proposed transferring ore from truck, to ore pass, to Rail-Veyor. When a contact from
Images courtesy of B.I.D. Bulk Materials Handling Systems
Vale suggested that the company put in a spur to send the train directly to the level being mined, the client’s eyes lit up with the possibility, says Fantin, although it was recognized as too late to do so. That is not to say the technology only suits new mines. The Vale experience in the Sudbury basin showed that an operating mine looking to transition to Rail-Veyor can do it by identifying the right transition point – when the long-term benefits outweigh new equipment costs, or when the mine naturally progresses to a new ore zone.
RopeCon: steep hills, low costs
For mines operating on hillier terrain, or that are removing ore from a pit of suitable geometry, rope-based conveyors can pick up the slack. Doppelmayr’s RopeCon, for one, suspends its load from a structural rope system. RopeCon’s polyamide wheels run along continuous steel track ropes, bearing a conveyor belt with corrugated sidewalls for up to 20 kilometres. An inspection trolley runs overhead on a third set of ropes. “It effortlessly spans valleys and obstacles, thus enabling direct, short routes between two points,” says Stefanie Reis, part of the international sales team at Doppelmayr. “Being an elevated system, it also minimizes space requirements along the line.” BeMo Tunnelling GmbH successfully used the first RopeCon on a civil works site in Tyrol, Austria, from 2002 to 2004. To get from the tunnel to the dump site, muck had to cross a road, a creek, and a railway line. A conventional conveyor belt would have been expensive and difficult to install, since support stanchions would need to be widely placed. RopeCon, on the other hand, only requires one support stanchion every 250 metres. The cost of using haul trucks would have been comparable, but BeMo opted for RopeCon because it seemed faster and more reliable, particularly during winter. The installed system was capable of conveying about 600 tonnes per hour. Maintenance – mainly regular greasing – took only a couple of hours out of the day for the one maintenance person on site. The RopeCon system has also seen some uptake in the mining industry. Jamalco, a joint venture of Alcoa and the
Top left: When shopping for Jamaican government, went with bulk material handling RopeCon at its Mount Oliphant systems, miners still generally opt for traditional bauxite operation. The system, conveyor solutions, says with its 6.8-kilometre long Con- B.I.D. Bulk Material Handling Systems sales manager, tiTech belt, runs 3.4 kilometres to Derek Lawrence. A railcarthe St. Jago loading station. Both loading conveyor at Cliffs’s Bloom Lake iron ore overland trucking and convenoperation. tional conveyors were considered, but RopeCon had a smaller enviTop right: A shiploader conveyor system at Cliffs’s ronmental footprint. The addiPointe-Noire terminal in tional benefit has been savings in Sept-Îles, Quebec. energy costs – US$1.5 million in the first four years alone. On its bauxite-loaded descent, RopeCon generates about 1,200 kilowatts of braking energy per hour, which goes back into the operation and is also fed into the Jamaican grid. However, the system remains unique among Alcoa’s operations, as none of its other mines have the same steep terrain as Mount Oliphant. Another mining customer uses RopeCon in Papua New Guinea, but overall the market for suspended conveyors has been slow. The total cost of installation and operation for RopeCon becomes competitive with other conveying systems when the terrain gets rough or difficult, or when a low footprint is beneficial for environmental reasons or for crossing water and infrastructure. It is “a very well-engineered system, and I think that is reflected in the cost,” says WorleyParsons’s Davis. A similar cable system, Metso’s MRC Cable Belt conveyor, designed for long distance applications, has been around for more than 50 years. Rail and rope systems also do not represent the sum total of innovation; other models just have not gained traction. B.I.D.’s Lawrence says air-supported belt conveyors and enclosed pipe belt conveyors have also been developed, but have no takers among his customers. Rulmeca motorized pulley drives, which enclose drive parts in a compact, sealed space, have also experienced limited success despite their advantages. Users often prefer the components they have previously used and know to be reliable at low cost to newer, less familiar ideas. But for the users with specific problems or the willingness to test out new innovations, solutions are out there. CIM
May 2014 | 75
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After nearly a decade, several setbacks and more than $2 billion of investment, the Cigar Lake uranium mine in northern Saskatchewan has finally begun production. The first truckload of concentrated ore slurry rolled out to the nearby McClean Lake mill for processing into saleable yellowcake on a clear, cold day in March. BY | IAN EWING
he mine, operated and 50 per-cent-owned by Cameco, was originally slated to open in 2007 at a cost of $450 million. (Areva, which owns and operates McClean Lake, also has a 37 per cent stake in Cigar Lake.) Setbacks, largely related to water inflows in one of the most challenging geologies ever mined, had repeatedly pushed construction timelines back and propelled costs skyward, to more than $2.6 billion. But through it all, Cameco personnel say they believed in the project, and especially in their team’s ability to persevere and conquer the technical difficulties. “The challenges were always there,” says Bob Steane, senior vice-president and chief operating officer of Cameco, “but we became better at understanding and assessing the challenges. We never reached a point where we thought this isn’t going to succeed.”
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The project certainly had its doubters outside the company, especially after the mine completely flooded for a second time during construction. Although the ore body was highly coveted – it was the largest undeveloped high-grade uranium deposit known in the world – the difficult geology was also unparalleled. The deposit, with proven and probable reserves of 217 million pounds of U3O8 at an average grade of 18 per cent, sits in a clay halo in a water-saturated sandstone area of the Athabasca Basin that rests on basement rock that is also not particularly competent. Above: When the mine achieves full production, the mining team expects to have two jet boring machines mining the deposit at one time, while two more are either undergoing maintenance, being relocated or working on backfilling. May 2014 | 77
Courtesy of Cameco Corp.
PERSEVERANCE PAYS OFF FOR CAMECO
project profile | C I G A R L A K E 2.
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CIGAR LAKE
Assurance of success Driving the project team, which numbered about 50 employees in 2008, was a philosophy that Steane repeats regularly during our conversation. “Starting in 2007, we had adopted an ‘assurance of success’ view,” he says. The philosophy embraces the importance of contingency planning in such a difficult project. The team analyzed all the actions they planned to take, assessed the potential consequences, and developed mitigation strategies for negative possibilities. After the inflow in 2008, the team was compelled to expand the scope of its contingency planning. Where the company had previously identified higher-risk areas and implemented water management strategies accordingly, the new attitude expected the potential for water everywhere in the mine with equal likelihood. That meant an entirely new approach to water management. Gone were the bulkhead doors in high-risk areas that formed the core of the old strategy. If water could come from anywhere in this geological setting, it had to be actively managed, not just reacted to. The result was a water management strategy and infrastructure including pumps, pipes and treatment capacity that would handle any possible in-flow without flooding the mine. This allows for water remediation from in the mine, without having to retreat to surface again. Based on modelled peak inflows, backed by actual data from the 2006 inflow, Cameco was able to design its systems to match and exceed
Opposite page: 1. Bob Steane (senior vice-president and chief operating officer), Tim Gitzel (president and chief executive officer), and Gary Chad (senior vicepresident and chief legal officer) celebrate the first ore shipment from the Cigar Lake mine in March; 2. The jet boring mining method does not require equipment operators to work near the ore being mined; 3. The Cigar Lake deposit was first discovered in 1981. Construction on what CEO Tim Gitzel describes as “among the most technically challenging mining projects in the world,” began in 2005; 4. The mine will employ around 600 people when it reaches full production; 5. The ore from the Cigar Lake mine will be processed at Areva Resources’ McClean Lake mill, 70 kilometres to the northeast of the mine. All images courtesy of Cameco Corp.
the worst-case scenario. Four permanent Flowserve dewatering pumps are supplemented by five contingency dewatering pumps and four Baker Hughes submersible borehole pumps, for a nominal total of 2,300 cubic metres per hour. “We have Courtesy of Cameco Corp.
On the heels of the first major inflow in 2006, the company spent two years sealing the inflow source and then dewatering the mine for recovery, making sure to lower the water level slowly and deliberately to avoid a sudden depressurization. But then in August 2008, with little warning and before the mine was completely pumped out, Cigar Lake catastrophically flooded again. “There was another inflow – from where, we didn’t know,” recalls Steane. “All we knew was that our mine was full again, but it didn’t come from where we had just sealed.” The sudden inflow submerged and ruined much of the underground infrastructure in place at the time – roughly 20 per cent of the final facilities – including electrical equipment, wiring, and freeze systems. “I had just stepped off a plane in Kazakhstan and (thenCOO, now CEO and president) Tim Gitzel phoned to tell me what was happening,” recalls Steane. “That was a discouraging moment. But the key word is that it was a moment. After that, it was, ‘OK, what do we do now?’ And the team buckled down.”
| project profile
Jet boring Even before the inflows, Cameco was pioneering innovative techniques to deal with the unique geological conditions and high grade ore at Cigar Lake. The company developed and is now using a non-entry method of mining called jet boring. From access drifts beneath the frozen ore body, a pilot hole is drilled upwards into the ore. A high-pressure nozzle is inserted into the pilot shaft, and the shaft is sealed. Water jets from the nozzle at 15,000 psi and carves a cavity in the ore body. As the jet circulates around the cavity, rocks breaks off and act as an autogenous mill, grinding the ore further and growing the cavity to an average four to five metres in diameter. The broken ore flows out of the cavity through steel pipes as slurry. It is pumped to run-ofmine storage and processing equipment, which includes 1,000 cubic metres of ore storage, mills, and a 13-metre diameter thickener, all constructed 480 metres underground with controls to protect workers from radiation from the high-grade ore. After grinding and thickening, the slurry is pumped to the surface to be trucked to Areva’s McClean Lake mill. The cavity, meanwhile, is back-filled with highstrength concrete, to provide structural stability and to allow mining of adjacent cavities and maximize recovery.
May 2014 | 79
project profile | C I G A R L A K E a lot of redundant contingency water pumping capacity,” says deployed small robotic submarines – remotely operated vehiSteve Lowen, the general manager of Cigar Lake. The team cles (ROV) – to operate in the cold, dark water. The ROVs also initiated a more robust probe and grout program, used ultrasonic technology that gave the operators the vision together with more detailed geological mapping ahead of any to see underwater and guide them through the underground development. workings. Sensitive flow, pH and temperature detectors were Cigar Lake also adopted and expanded a ground freezing fitted to the ROVs, providing information that ultimately program to support ore mining. “Ground freezing was actually pointed toward the source of the inflow. The inflow source one of the original strategies here,” says Lowen. “It was in fact contained water that was a bit cooler and lower in pH than the the only way we could mine the ore static water in the mine. After locating body. the leak, a six-by-two-inch hole in the “Instead of using “What’s unique to Cigar is that ceiling of a drift, the ROVs became the instead of using freezing as simply a hands of the operators, moving debris freezing as simply a wall wall to prevent water inflow, we’re to clear a space in the drift. Finally, an using it to bulk-freeze the entire ore ROV carried a large inflatable bag down to prevent water inflow, body. That’s both to prevent water into the drift. The bag was carefully inflow, but also to create enough we’re using it to bulk-freeze placed, then inflated with concrete, perstructural stability in the ore body manently sealing the drift and allowing the entire ore body.” area so that we can use our jet-boring dewatering to commence. system effectively,” says Lowen [see – S. Lowen Culture of determination sidebar, “Jet boring”]. The surface It takes a certain kind of person to freeze active zone, which is continukeep coming back to tackle tremendous ally expanding for future requirements, currently measures an immense 120m x 80m x 60m, challenges in the face of repeated setbacks and complications. totalling 576,000 cubic metres of frozen ore, clay, and sand- The team at Cigar Lake, which included many Saskatchewanbased engineers and geologists, met the ongoing problems stone. with gusto. “These are the types of people that would do that Flexibility and innovation good of a job wherever they were working,” Steane says The third prong of Cameco’s post-inflow approach was proudly. “They are committed, dedicated people.” changing how they worked with the local geology by adjusting “The project was very difficult – that was recognized very their ground support methods. Previously, the company had early,” he adds. “I think Cigar Lake started to attract those peoused a rigid system of cross-cut supports and high-strength ple who really like a challenge.” concrete segments when developing in the challenging geologAside from finally getting the second-largest uranium ical environment under the ore zone. The natural movement deposit in the world into production, the takeaways for of the ground, however, was putting stress on the rigid seg- Cameco are numerous. Planning, thoughtfulness and preparaments faster than expected, thus shortening the expected life tion are certainly valued more than they were before the first of the developments. They then decided to change the ground inflow in 2006. But some things cannot be planned for. “Lessupport system to one that was more flexible. This meant son A is never give up,” says Steane. The upshot, in his mind, adopting the New Austrian Tunnelling method, which uses a is that with the right attitude and preparation and, most quick application of shotcrete, and installation of flexible importantly, with determination, even the most challenging ground support and lattice girders that can adjust to the move- projects are possible. ment of the ground, while still ensuring stability for the tun“It doesn’t scare us off,” Steane says. “It maybe causes us to nel. “We knew that ground squeezing and flexing were forever think carefully, but we’re not going to shy away from the nonand a day going to be part of the Cigar Lake operation,” Steane routine.” For the general manager at Cigar Lake, the first producexplains. “The new system provided the necessary ground tion milestone is only the beginning. Lowen is already looksupport, but as things changed and moved, we could deal with ing ahead, thinking about the thousands of truckloads still to it and remediate it.” come. For him, and the 600 other members of the Cigar Lake That flexibility may as well be a metaphor for how the team production team, the next challenge is to make sure the mine approached all the project’s challenges after the 2008 inflow. Under the guiding principle of “assurance of success” – and can be operated reliably enough to get up to the full producwith nearly $7.6 billion worth of uranium (at the April spot tion volume of 18 million pounds annually by 2018. “I’m price of US$35/lb) to motivate them – the Cigar Lake team absolutely confident that we’re going to get there,” Lowen took ideas and innovations from anywhere they could to says. Then, as if to exemplify the determination and flexibilensure successful construction. ity so often demonstrated on the project, he adds, “It’s just To locate the second leak, for example, the team improved going to take a lot of hard work and adjustment as we go on a method they had used after the first inflow. They along.” CIM 80 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
| profil de projet Avec l’aimable authorisation de Cameco Corp.
CIGAR LAKE
Le minerai de la mine de Cigar Lake sera traité à l’usine McClean Lake d’Areva Resources, située à 70 km au nord-est de la mine.
LA PERSÉVÉRANCE EST RENTABLE POUR CAMECO PAR | IAN EWING
près plus de deux décennies et deux milliards de dollars de reculs, la mine d’uranium de Cigar Lake au nord de la Saskatchewan a finalement commencé sa phase d’exploitation. Le premier chargement de boue de forage concentrée a quitté l’usine de concentration de McClean Lake pour être transformé en concentré d’oxyde jaune d’uranium par une belle journée froide de mars. La mine, exploitée par la société Cameco qui en est propriétaire à 50 pour cent, devait initialement ouvrir ses portes en 2007 au coût de 450 millions de dollars. (Areva, propriétaire et exploitant de McClean Lake, détient un
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intérêt de 37 pour cent dans Cigar Lake) Les reculs, largement liés aux infiltrations d’eau dans un des sites géologiques miniers les plus exigeants ont constamment repoussé les échéances de construction et gonflé les coûts jusqu’à 2,6 milliards de dollars. Mais tout au long de ce processus, le personnel de Cameco dit avoir toujours cru au projet et particulièrement aux capacités de son équipe pour faire preuve de persévérance et surmonter les difficultés techniques. « Les défis ont toujours été présents », affirme Bob Steane, vice-président directeur et directeur de l’exploitation de Cameco, « mais nous sommes May 2014 | 81
Avec l’aimable authorisation de Cameco Corp.
profil de projet | C I G A R L A K E
La découverte initiale du gisement Cigar Lake remonte à 1981. En 2005, la construction commence dans ce que Tim Gitzel, PDG, appelle “l’un des projets miniers les plus techniquement difficiles du monde”
devenus meilleurs pour comprendre et mieux évaluer les défis. Nous n’avons jamais senti que nous n’allions pas réussir. » Le projet avait certainement ses détracteurs à l’extérieur de l’entreprise, particulièrement lorsque la mine a été complètement inondée une deuxième fois lors de sa construction. Bien que le corps minéralisé était hautement convoité – il s’agissait du gisement d’uranium de haute qualité le plus connu et le moins exploité au monde – avec une configuration géologique difficile sans pareil. Le gisement, avec des réserves confirmées et probables de plus de 217 millions de livres de U3O8 d’une qualité moyenne de 18 pour cent, repose sous une couche d’argile dans une zone de grès saturée d’eau du bassin d’Athabasca qui repose sur un sous-sol rocheux qui n’est pas particulièrement approprié. À la suite de la première infiltration d’eau majeure en 2006, l’entreprise avait passé plus de deux ans à assécher la mine pour la récupérer, tout en s’assurant d’abaisser lentement et délibérément le niveau d’eau de sorte à éviter une dépressurisation trop soudaine. Puis, presque sans avertissement, en août 2008, la mine de Cigar Lake fut inondée à nouveau. « Il y eut une autre infiltration d’eau – d’où provenait-elle? Nous ne le savons pas », raconte Steane. « Tout ce que nous savons c’est que notre mine est de nouveau remplie, et que l’eau ne provient pas de l’endroit que nous avions colmaté. » L’infiltration d’eau soudaine a submergé et ruiné une grande partie de l’infrastructure souterraine déjà en place – environ 20 pour cent des installations finales – incluant le matériel électrique, le câblage et les systèmes de congélation. « Je venais tout juste de descendre de l’avion au Kazakhstan lorsque Tim Gitzel (alors chef de l’exploitation, maintenant PDG et président) a téléphoné pour me mettre au courant de la situation », raconte Steane. « Ce fut un moment décourageant. Mais le mot clé, c’est qu’il ne s’agissait que d’un moment. Après coup, tous se demandaient : qu’allons-nous faire maintenant? Et l’équipe s’est remise au travail. » 82 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Assurance de succès Diriger l’équipe du projet, qui comptait environ 50 employés en 2008, était une philosophie souvent répétée par Steane durant notre conversation. « Dès 2007, nous avons adopté une philosophie nommée Assurance de succès », affirme-t-il. Cette philosophie souligne l’importance de la planification des mesures d’urgence dans le cadre d’un projet si difficile. L’équipe a analysé toutes les mesures qu’elle entendait utiliser, a évalué les conséquences potentielles, et mis au point des stratégies de mitigation pour les probabilités négatives. Après l’inondation en 2008, l’équipe fut appelée à augmenter l’étendue de la planification des mesures d’urgence. Ce que l’entreprise avait identifié comme des zones à risque élevé et où des stratégies de gestion de l’eau avaient été mises en oeuvre, la nouvelle attitude tenait compte du potentiel de l’eau à la grandeur de la mine avec les mêmes risques encourus. Cela signifiait une toute nouvelle approche en matière de gestion de l’eau. Fini les portes à cloison dans les zones à risque élevé qui formaient le coeur de l’ancienne stratégie. Si l’eau pouvait s’infiltrer par n’importe où dans cet environnement géologique, elle devait être gérée activement, plutôt que de laisser l’équipe simplement réagir à la situation. Le résultat aboutit à la mise en oeuvre du programme de congélation du sol le plus complet qui soit dans l’industrie. Deux usines de réfrigération alimentent de la saumure froide à -30°C à cinq pompes Goulds, lesquelles font circuler la saumure dans des tuyaux de 4 po de diamètre à des profondeurs de plus de 450 mètres, congelant d’immenses sections de sol en aval et autour des galeries d’accès. « [la congélation du sol] était l’une des stratégies initiales envisagées dans ce cas-ci », dit le directeur général de Cigar Lake, Steve Lowen. « Il s’agissait en effet de la seule façon d’accéder au gisement minier. » À la suite des inondations catastrophiques toutefois, le programme de congélation d’origine a été élargi de façon significative.
CIGAR LAKE
« Ce qui est unique à Cigar Lake, c’est qu’au lieu d’utiliser la technique de congélation pour empêcher l’eau de pénétrer, nous l’utilisons également pour congeler entièrement le gisement minier. À la fois pour empêcher l’infiltration de l’eau, mais également pour créer suffisamment de stabilité structurale dans le sol pour nous permettre d’utiliser efficacement notre système de forage à érosion. » [Voir l’encadré – texte cidessous.] La zone active de congélation de la surface, qui s’agrandit continuellement pour satisfaire aux exigence futures mesure plus de 120 m x 80 m x 60 m, totalisant 576 000 mètres cubes de minerai, d’argile et de grès congelés. Une capacité de pompage accrue vient compléter l’ensemble du processus de congélation. Bien qu’ils auraient préféré travailler à partir de modèles théoriques, les deux inondations à Cigar Lake, et une autre en 2003 à leur mine soeur de McArthur Lake ont permis aux dirigeants de Cameco de recueillir des données sur la magnitude du volume des entrées d’eau auxquelles ils pouvaient s’attendre. Cela a permis à l’entreprise de mettre au point des systèmes pour gérer de telles situations et même de dépasser les exigences dans le pire des cas. Quatre pompes d’épuisement permanentes Flowserve sont appuyées par cinq pompes d’épuisement d’urgence et quatre pompes de forage Baker Hughes, pour un total nominal de 2 300 mètres cubes par heure. « Nous avons une grande capacité de pompage d’eau d’urgence », de dire Lowen.
Flexibilité et innovation Le troisième volet de l’approche post-inondation de Cameco venait modifier la méthode de travail utilisée avec la géologie locale. Précédemment, l’entreprise utilisait un système très rigide de supports croisés et de segments en béton. Toutefois, le sol exerçait une pression sur les supports rigides, ne faisant qu’aggraver la situation. En plus de déménager les installations 15 mètres plus profond dans le soussol rocheux, ils décidèrent d’opter pour un système de support de sol plus flexible. Cela signifiait l’adoption d’une méthode de creusement autrichienne qui utilise des segments de support de sol et des arcs mobiles bougeant de façon contrôlée lorsque le sol devient compact, tout en assurant la stabilité du tunnel. « Nous savions que le compactage et le fléchissement du sol étaient permanents et qu’ils feraient partie un jour des opérations à Cigar Lake », explique Steane. « Le nouveau système procurait tout le support de sol nécessaire, mais à mesure que la situation évoluait, nous pouvions nous y adapter et y remédier. Cette flexibilité pouvait tout aussi bien être une métaphore servant à illustrer l’approche de l’équipe face à tous les défis depuis l’infiltration d’eau de 2008. En se guidant sur le principe de « l’assurance du succès » – et avec près de 7,6 milliards de dollars d’uranium (selon les prix les plus récents du marché) pour les motiver – l’équipe de Cigar Lake accepta les idées et les innovations venant de partout pour tenter de récupérer la mine et assurer une construction réussie. Pour localiser la deuxième fuite, par exemple, l’équipe est parvenue à améliorer une méthode déjà utilisée après la pre-
| profil de projet
mière infiltration. Ils ont adapté un petit sous-marin robotisé – un véhicule commandé à distance ou (ROV) – pouvant fonctionner dans l’eau froide et sombre. Un thermomètre hautement sensible fixé au véhicule commandé à distance a permis de fournir aux opérateurs des « yeux » sous l’eau et de les guider vers la source de l’entrée d’eau, qui se trouvait une fraction de degré plus froide que le reste de l’eau dans la mine. Après avoir localisé la fuite (un trou de deux pouces par six pouces au plafond d’une galerie d’accès), le véhicule a servi de mains aux opérateurs, leur permettant de déplacer des débris pour dégager un espace dans le passage. Finalement, le véhicule a pu transporter et introduire un énorme sac gonflable dans le passage. Le sac a été soigneusement installé, puis gonflé avec du béton, permettant ainsi de colmater le passage en permanence et de commencer le pompage de l’eau.
Culture de détermination Il faut un certain type d’individu pour persister et relever d’immenses défis après plusieurs reculs et complications. L’équipe du projet de Cigar Lake, qui comprenait plusieurs ingénieurs et géologues de Saskatchewan, a relevé le défi avec beaucoup de conviction. « Ces gens sont du type qui offriraient un rendement supérieur peu importe où ils travaillent », de retorquer Steane avec fierté. « Ce sont des personnes engagées et dévouées. » « Le projet était très difficile – cette situation a été reconnue très tôt dans le processus », ajoute-t-il. « Je crois que le projet a commencé a attirer les gens qui aiment vraiment ce genre de défi. » En plus d’exploiter le deuxième plus gros gisement d’uranium au monde, les avantages pour Cameco sont nombreux. La planification, l’attention et la préparation sont davantage mis en valeur que lors de la première inondation en 2006. Or, certaines choses ne peuvent être planifiées. Selon Steane : « La première leçon consiste à ne jamais abandonner. » Selon ce dernier, avec une attitude appropriée et une bonne préparation, mais particulièrement avec de la détermination, même les projets les plus exigeants deviennent possibles à concrétiser. « Rien ne nous effraie », affirme Steane. « Peut-être que cela nous force à faire preuve de plus de prudence, mais nous n’allons pas reculer devant cette situation inhabituelle. » Pour le directeur général à Cigar Lake, la première étape de l’exploitation n’est que le début. « Je ne sais pas si cela représente un soulagement », affirme Lowen avec perspicacité. Il planifie déjà à long terme, en pensant aux milliers de chargements à venir. Pour lui et les 600 autres membres de l’équipe de production de Cigar Lake, le prochain défi est de s’assurer que la mine peut être exploitée suffisamment pour atteindre son plein volume de production de 18 millions de livres annuellement d’ici 2018. « Je suis convaincu que nous allons atteindre notre objectif », affirme Lowen. Puis, pour, pour donner un exemple de détermination et de flexibilité si souvent démontré lors du projet, ajoute-t-il : « Il faudra beaucoup de travail et d’adaptation, au fur et à mesure que nous progresserons. » ICM May 2014 | 83
CIM community MAC to present inaugural awards at the 2014 CIM Convention For the last decade, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) has shone the spotlight on some of the country’s best mining operations as part of its Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) initiative. This year, MAC will hand out two brand new awards to celebrate outstanding achievements in the areas of community engagement and environmental excellence. “We decided to create the awards to recognize and celebrate the good work that is taking place in the industry,” said
Pierre Gratton, MAC president and CEO. “Many of our member companies are working hard to implement innovative projects and initiatives that raise the bar for the rest of the industry. We also want the awards to be an incentive for companies. We were really impressed by the quantity of nominations received this year as well as the quality of the initiatives.” Winners will be announced at this year’s CIM Convention on May 12.
Finalists for the TSM Environmental Excellence Award
Finalists for the TSM Community Engagement Award Glencore Canada: For its efforts to attract and advance Inuit talent at its Raglan mine in northern Quebec Building on previous initiatives, Glencore created a new program in 2013 called RIDE (Rapid Inuit Development and Employment) to encourage internal mobility for Inuit employees and to work with educational institutions to offer Inuit students scholarships and job opportunities. Iamgold Corporation: For kick-starting a successful village market gardening program in communities around its Essakane mine in Burkina Faso Residents in the region rely heavily on livestock breeding and gold mining to make a living. To develop alternative revenue sources, while also improving food security and combating poverty in the desert-like region, Iamgold has worked with community groups since 2009 to initiate market gardening with great success.
Dominion Diamond Corporation and Rio Tinto: For grizzly bear monitoring in the Northwest Territories Dominion Diamond Corporation’s Ekati mine and Rio Tinto’s Diavik mine established the Grizzly Bear DNA program in the Northwest Territories in 2012. The large-scale study encompasses a 16,000-kilometre area around the two operations and will help determine if minerelated activities influence the relative abundance and distribution of grizzly bears over time through DNA analysis from hair samples. Iamgold Corporation: For launching a reforestation program in the region surrounding its Essakane mine in Burkina Faso Communities around the mine depend on trees for firewood, food and traditional medicine. With trees having to be removed to construct the mine, Iamgold launched a reforestation program in 2009 to compensate for the loss to local biodiversity, aiming to plant 100,000 living trees by the time it ceases operations. Iamgold has trained local women in nursery techniques and they have planted 200,000 trees so far.
Rio Tinto/Iron Ore Company of Canada: For helping to manage growth in the Labrador City, Newfoundland region When mining activity picks up, towns go through growing pains, with housing, infrastructure and social services shortages as typical symptoms. Since 2006, the Iron Ore Company of Canada has taken a proactive approach to resolving these issues by establishing a community advisory panel and regional task force that work towards ensuring appropriate housing, health and emergency services, community infrastructure, and training opportunities for residents in the region.
Syncrude Canada: For restoring wetlands in northern Alberta Syncrude Canada: For restoring wetlands in northern Alberta Inspired by the fen wetlands of northern Alberta Syncrude created an interdisciplinary team of experts to begin the Sandhill Fen Research Watershed initiative in 2007 to reclaim a tailings structure. The watershed, completed in 2012, was developed on 52 hectares of land on a portion of what was once a 60-metre deep mine. This project is young, but results are encouraging: peat studies show it is possible to transplant live peat and grow it in a newly constructed area; many native plants have taken root on their own.
Vale: For initiating economic development and diversification planning in Thompson, Manitoba For more than 50 years, the city has been a regional service hub to northern Manitoba, but with Vale reducing its operations by 2015, the company is helping Thompson plan for its future. In 2011, Vale proactively funded and co-launched the Thompson Economic Diversification Working Group, which developed action plans for economic development and diversification collaboratively with involvement from aboriginal communities, government and community organizations.
Vale: For water monitoring programs near its Voisey Bay operation in Newfoundland and Labrador Vale’s Voisey’s Bay operation in Newfoundland and Labrador, in partnership with the provincial government, set an industry best practice through the Real Time Water Quality (RTWQ) Monitoring Partnership – a program that provides near real-time water quality information of various streams near the mine and mill. Community members use the information to enhance traditional knowledge as the water stage, flow measurements and water temperature can help predict the migration patterns of Arctic char. CIM May 2014 | 85
Marlene Moore
CIM community
Sudbury’s supportive branch CIM Sudbury Branch donations chair Sue Tessier (left) with representatives from Modern Mining and Technology Sudbury, Cambrian College’s Mining Day 2014, the Sudbury Regional Science Fair, and the Laurentian University Mining Games. Since 1997, the Sudbury branch has contributed significant donations toward mining education at the primary, secondary and post-secondary school levels. These events include mining week, science fairs and a teachers’ tour program, along with support for various local industry organizations that build awareness about the importance of the mining sector and career choices the industry has to offer.
Saskatoon branch gives back Volunteers at the CIM Saskatoon Branch have been busy this year. Branch director Robert Carey said just less than 140 people showed up for the CIM Saskatoon’s Environmental Safety Night in January, which included a presentation from incoming CIM president-elect Garth Kirkham. The geoscientist discussed CIM standards and definitions at the event, “including lots of talk about the history of why it came into place and why people in mining have to be careful when talking about reserves and resources,” said Carey. He added that Kirkham was impressed by the more than 20 minutes of questions that followed his presentation. On March 20, the branch held its Industry Collaboration night, formerly known as its Student Night. “We gave out $31,000 in scholarships to students who are interested in working in mining or engineering,” said Carey. In all, 21 post-secondary students received $1,400 scholarships each and two students won $1,000 attendance scholarships. The $1,400 scholarship winners were Kara Nickel, Mike Amos, Yuhou Hu, Jason Meginbir, Scott Garrison, Kayla Seguin, Garrett Snell, Spencer Chuhaniuk, Tanner Smith, Melissa Scansen, Cristina Sabo, Justin Stack, Jessica Wilson, Morgan Rhode, Adrienne Bangsund, Cody Bolotniuk, Pascal Marjolaine, Laine Bryan, Rylan Elliott, Derrick Catterall and Dunja Gaco.
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CIM community Minds and money The Canadian Mining and Metallurgical Foundation (CMMF) has announced its new cohort of scholarship winners. CMMF awards scholarships annually to post-secondary students pursuing careers in mining: McIntosh Engineering Scholarships: ($12,000 for post-secondary students studying engineering or technical degrees in mining focused on underground mining)
Benoit Quinn CEGEP de l’Abitibi: Geology Dream job: general manager of an exploration company
Anthony Clapperton Université Laval: Mining engineering with a specialty in mineral processing Dream job: metallurgist in a mineral concentrator
Victor Desrosiers McGill University: Mining engineering Dream job: underground hardrock mining, working on safety and innovation
Frédéric Provencher École Polytechnique de Montréal: Mining engineering Dream job: mine general manager in my home region AbitibiTémiscamingue
Taking Flight Scholarship: ($1,000 for high school/ post-secondary students pursuing a mining career) Dakota Recollet Laurentian University: Geology Dream job: one that would allow me to travel and see how operations vary in different areas of the world
Irene and Arthur Foley Scholarships: ($3,000 Victoria Thomsen for mining engineering students enrolled at University of Alberta: École Polytechnique de Montréal) Mining engineering Dream job: immerse myself in the fundamentals of mining operations to improve the dynamic balance between social, environmental and economic practices Robert Glen Murray University of British Columbia: Mining and mineral process engineering Dream job: operations manager who develops mines from planning stages into production
Frédéric Provencher École Polytechnique de Montréal Marin Brochu-Baekelmans École Polytechnique de Montréal: Project management, and health and safety Dream job: long-term strategic planning and mine design
Metallurgical plant design book in the works Seventeen mining and engineering experts from around the world are currently writing chapters for a comprehensive metallurgical plant design book that CIM will publish next year. Chris Twigge-Molecey, CIM past-president and senior advisor at Hatch, said there is a big gap in the market for a book devoted specifically to the design of metallurgical plants. “The key is it’s about design,” he said. “It’s not about construction. It’s not about project management, because there’re all kinds of books about that.” The book will cover all aspects associated with metallurgical plant design including risk management approaches, project definition, site selection, technology selection, as well as sustainability and safety issues. Twigge-Molecey, who is among the 17 authors of the book, said the consequences of poor plant design can be grave. “The typical outcome of not doing things the proper way on the design side is cost overruns, schedule delays and probably most critically, poor performance of the operating plant,” he explained. “In fairness, you can do a good design job and screw up construction and still have cost overruns and schedule problems. But typically, if you do a good design job, you’re not going to have a performance problem.” Twigge-Molecey said the first draft of the book should be completed shortly and he is cautiously optimistic that it will be released at the Conference of Metallurgists 2015 in Toronto. Compiled by Herb Mathisen May 2014 | 87
E
By Dinah Zeldin
stepnogorsk.org
WHERE TO
WHERE TO
STAY
The standard for business travellers is Hotel Stepnogorsk. Located a few steps from the city’s central square, the 1970s-era, four-storey complex includes a restaurant, a snack bar, and a selection of suites. Rooms start at $45/night. For travellers looking to offset the city’s grey landscape with a little glitz, the recently opened MiLa Hotel promises luxury suites, starting at $115/night. Other hotels are not recommended. Hotel Stepnogorsk: +7 71645 60962 Mi-La: +7 71645 32906
To avoid expensive roaming fees purchase a prepaid SIM card at the airport.
WHO
TO CONTACT
88 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
Ken and Nyetta/Flickr
TIP
DINE
Local fare is based on meat, potatoes and pasta. Signature dishes include shish kebabs, “beshTIP barmak,” a horse meat Make dinner and pasta dish reservations in advance, with potato especially on weekends. and onion, Because there are only and “plov,” three restaurants in town fried rice with they can get busy. meat, carrots and raisins. The best restaurant, The Kazakhstan, is located on the first floor the Stenpnogorsk Hotel. Meals range from $20 to $30. Other popular dining spots are Char-
HOW TO
odeika (+7 71645 62572) and Zhuldyz (+7 71645 32898). Quick meals are served at cafés, where prices range from $10
Ramon/Flickr
Stepnogorsk
to $15 for a meal. Zhili-Bili and Dzenis, both located in microrayon 3 (micro-district 3), are recommended. Pastries and coffee are available at Kofeyina in the Kazakhstan Shopping Centre.
PAY
Transactions are done primarily with cash. The Kazakh currency is the tenge (KZT), and it is illegal to use foreign currency in financial transactions. Currency can be exchanged at any bank, and 1 CAD is worth about 165 KZT.
CANADIAN EMBASSY Kabanbay, Batyr Street 13/1, Astana, +7 (7172) 475 577, astnag@international.gc.ca U.S. EMBASSY Rakhymzhan Koshkarbayev Avenue, No. 3, Astana, +7 (7172) 70-21-00, astanainfo@state.gov MEDICAL The town clinic +7 71645 62127; The emergency clinic +7 71645 62127; The Bioritm Private Clinic +7 71645 27700
Irene 2005/Flickr
TRAVEL
stablished by Soviet officials in 1956, the industrial town of Stepnogorsk, located in the Akmola province of Kazakhstan, was once a top-secret location developed around military facilities. This included a large uranium processing plant and a biochemical plant where anthrax was manufactured. When Stepnogorsk was opened to the public after the collapse of the Soviet Union the town was an industrial wasteland. But in 2011, Kazatomprom, the state-owned nuclear company, began partnering with foreign enterprises to develop the rich rare earth potential in the area, and Stepnogorsk started regaining its industrial clout. Today, the town (pop. 46,000) offers business travellers the basic comforts required for a pleasant stay.
HOW TO
FIT IN
msykos/Flickr
Business cards are common in Russian and English; some cards can be in Kazakh. Arranging meetings with senior officials and top managers of Kazakh companies can be a challenge. Be nimble; such meetings are frequently only confirmed at the last minute. Kazakh is the official state language, but Russian is spoken by the majority of the population and is still the business language. English is not widely spoken. Very
After establishing a business relationship, local businessmen may invite you to a restaurant or to their home. When invited to a Kazakh contact’s home, bring a bottle of wine, whiskey or cognac, and an uneven number of flowers for the women of the house (giving an even number of flowers is considered bad luck).
EXPLORE
Ken and Nyetta/Flickr
WHERE TO
few people speak French. It is best to use a reputable and experienced translator during business meetings.
Travellers looking for a cultural experience should visit Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana. You will have to pass through in any case if you are destined for Stepnogorsk. Designated as the capital in the late 1990s, the city underwent a major facelift and boasts a skyline dominated by impressive contemporary architecture. The Ishim River splits the New City, which is full of architectural marvels, from the Old City,
which is occupied by Soviet-era structures and government buildings. The central promenade, the Avenue of the Republic, is bustling with shops and restaurants. Make sure to stroll by the Baiterek Monument, a unique 105metre tall construction of metal and concrete, with a glass sphere set at a height of 97 metres. Venture inside and ride the glass elevators to the top to
enjoy a cocktail at a bar that offers a panoramic view of the city. The Khan Shatyr, a shopping mall and cultural centre, built to look like a tent from the outside, is also worth a visit. In the evening, head over to the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation; the pyramidshaped structure, designed by British architects Foster and Partners, was built in 2006 to house the
GET THERE Wendy Longo
HOW TO
Lufthansa, Etihad Airways, Turkish Airlines, KLM and Transaero Airlines fly from Canada to the closest airport in Astana in about 12 hours, with one or more stops. A taxi from Astana to Stenpnogorsk costs from $70 to $85. A shuttle bus, if there are enough passenTIP gers, is available for $15 per person. Although the drive Foreigners have been from Astana to Stepnorobbed by individuals gorsk is just less than posing as police officers. 200 kilometres, it can take as long as four hours If approached, ask to see due to poor roads and bad police credentials. weather.
Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, which is held in Astana every year. The structure also contains a 1,500seat opera house, the national museum of culture and several other socio-cultural institutions. If you have time to extend your stay, you
GETTING
might want to venture off the beaten path to Borovoye, a resort with rustic lakefront accommodations, a forest and small mountains. Fishing enthusiasts can arrange an angling adventure, and hikers can tour the hills. Your hotel will be able to organize transportation to the resort.
AROUND
The best way to get around is by cab. Use only trusted taxi lines Jaguar and Akdzol. Taxi fare to any part of the city should not exceed 500KZT (about $3). The city is fairly small, so in nice weather walking is also an option. At night, it is advisable to call a reputable taxi service before leaving popular restaurants and places of recreation, as foreigners have been specifically targeted for theft around such venues.
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Certification in Ore Reserve Risk and Strategic Mine Planning Optimization Spread over a period of four months, this four-week course is designed for busy mining professionals who wish to update their skills and knowledge base in modern modelling techniques for ore bodies and new risk-based optimization methodologies for strategic mine planning. Gain practical experience by applying the following hands-on concepts and technical methods: methods for modelling ore bodies; stochastic simulations, case studies and models of geological uncertainty; and demand-driven production scheduling and geological risk. INSTRUCTOR Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • DATES Week 1: May 5-9, Week 2: June 2-6, Week 3: July 7-11, Week 4: August 25-28, 2014 • LOCATION Montreal, Quebec, Canada • INFO & REGISTRATION http://www.mcgill.ca/scs-ore
An Introduction to Cutoff Grade: Theory and Practice in Open Pit and Underground Mines (with a new section on blending optimization strategy) Cutoff grades are essential in determining the economic feasibility and mine life of a project. Learn how to solve most cutoff grade estimation problems by developing techniques and graphical analytical methods, about the relationship between cutoff grades and the design of pushbacks in open pit mines, and the optimization of block sizes in caving methods. INSTRUCTOR Jean-Michel Rendu, USA • DATE September 3-5, 2014 • LOCATION Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Geostatistical Mineral Resource Estimation and Meeting the New Regulatory Environment: Step by Step from Sampling to Grade Control Learn about the latest regulations on public reporting of resources/reserves through state-of-the-art statistical and geostatistical techniques; how to apply geostatistics to predict dilution and adapt reserve estimates to that predicted dilution; how geostatistics can help you categorize your resources in an objective manner; and how to understand principles of NI 43-101 and the SME Guide. INSTRUCTORS Marcelo Godoy, Golder Associates, Chile; and Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • DATE September 8-12, 2014 • LOCATION Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Quantitative Mineral Resource Assessments: An Integrated Approach to Planning for Exploration Risk Reduction Learn about exploration risk analysis for strategic planning. Understand how to demonstrate how operational mineral deposit models can reduce uncertainties; make estimates of the number of undiscovered deposits; and integrate the information and examine the economic possibilities. INSTRUCTORS Don Singer, USA; and David Menzie, U.S. Geological Survey, USA • DATE September 29-October 1, 2014 • LOCATION Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Strategic Risk Management in Mine Design: From Life-of-Mine to Mining Complexes Learn how you can have a significant, positive impact on your company’s bottom line by utilizing strategic mine planning methodologies and software; improve your understanding of strategic mine planning and life-of-mine optimization concepts, as well as your understanding of the relationship of uncertainty and risk, and how to exploit uncertainty in order to maximize profitability. Note: The strategic mine planning software used is Whittle. An optional half-day skills refresher workshop on Whittle may be available. INSTRUCTORS Tarrant Elkington, Snowden, Australia; and Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • DATE October 15-17, 2014 • LOCATION Montreal, Quebec, Canada
TECHNICAL ABSTRACTS
CIM
journal
Excerpts taken from abstracts in CIM Journal, Vol. 5, No. 2. To subscribe, to submit a paper or to be a peer reviewer—www.cim.org
Estimating bulk density for mineral resource reporting G. J. Arseneau, SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc., Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
ABSTRACT Mineral resource statements are reported as tonnage (volume × density) and grades. Effort is expended to accurately estimate the volume and grade, but accurately determining bulk density is often overlooked. Oversimplification of density modelling can result in potentially serious errors in tonnage estimates and over- or underestimation of metal content. A reliable bulk density model requires an adequate database and a good understanding of density variability, along with grade and geology. In this paper, the author summarizes density measuring techniques, draws on examples of simple and complex grade-variable density domains, and discusses improved approaches for minimizing density estimation errors.
RÉSUMÉ Les déclarations de ressources minérales sont exprimées en termes de tonnage (volume x densité) et de teneurs. De grands efforts sont consentis pour estimer le volume et la teneur de manière précise mais la détermination de la masse volumique apparente est souvent négligée. Une simplification exagérée de la modélisation de la densité pourrait engendrer de sérieuses erreurs potentielles dans les estimés de tonnage et conduire à la sur- ou la sous-estimation du contenu en métaux. Un modèle fiable de détermination de la masse volumique apparente exige une base de données adéquate et une bonne compréhension de la variabilité de la densité, ainsi que de la teneur et de la géologie. Dans le présent article, l’auteur résume les techniques de mesure de la densité, il donne des exemples, simples et complexes, de domaines de densité à teneur variable et il traite aussi d’approches améliorées pour minimiser les erreurs d’estimation de la densité.
Reconciling the recent uranium surge with staff shortages: Where are the human resources for the next generation? P. W. Waggitt, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
ABSTRACT From approximately 1986 until 2000, uranium production was at a historic low. In 2003, uranium mineral exploration surged, despite the global financial crisis; however, the shortage and aging of qualified and experienced operators and regulators might soon become a constraint to this upsurge. This is true for all types of engineers, geologists, other scientists, tradespeople, and technicians. The situation raises questions about how the global mining industry in general and the uranium sector in particular will cope with future staffing needs. In this paper, the author examines the current situation and describes how some organizations are seeking possible solutions.
RÉSUMÉ Dans la période générale entre 1986 et 2000, la production d’uranium a connu un bas historique. En 2003, l’exploration pour l’uranium a surgi malgré une crise financière mondiale. Cependant, la pénurie et l’âge des opérateurs et des régulateurs qualifiés et d’expérience pourraient bientôt restreindre cette remontée. C’est vrai pour tous les types de professions : ingénieurs, géologues, autres scientifiques, gens de métier et techniciens. La situation soulève des questions sur la capacité de l’industrie minière mondiale, et du secteur de l’uranium en particulier, à faire face aux futurs besoins de recrutement de personnel. Dans cet article, l’auteur examine la situation actuelle et décrit comment certaines organisations cherchent des solutions possibles.
Industry-scale knowledge management—RISKGATE and Australian coal operations P. A. Kirsch and J. Harris, Minerals Industry Safety and Health Centre, Sustainable Minerals Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; D. Sprott, Design Solutions Pty. Ltd., Buddina, Queensland, Australia; D. Cliff, Minerals Industry Safety and Health Centre, Sustainable Minerals Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
ABSTRACT RISKGATE is the largest Australian Coal Association Research Program (ACARP) occupational health and safety initiative to date. It is an interactive online risk management system developed to maximize health and safety performance in the coal mining industry by implementing continuous improvement in managing major unwanted events. The comprehensive knowledge base covers tires, collisions, fires, isolation, strata control underground, ground
RÉSUMÉ À ce jour, RISKGATE est la plus importante initiative de santé et sécurité au travail de l’ACARP (Australian Coal Association Research Program) [programme de recherche de l’association de charbon de l’Australie]. Il s’agit d’un système interactif en ligne de gestion du risque qui a été développé pour maximiser la performance en santé et sécurité dans l’industrie minière du charbon; c’est réalisé en améliorant continuellement la gestion d’événements majeurs non désirés. La base très étendue des connaissances traite des pneus, des collisions, des feux, de l’isolation, du contrôle des May 2014 | 91
TECHNICAL ABSTRACTS
CIM
journal
Excerpts taken from abstracts in CIM Journal, Vol. 5, No. 2. To subscribe, to submit a paper or to be a peer reviewer—www.cim.org
control open cut, explosions, explosives, manual tasks, and slips/trips/falls. All major Australian coal mining companies contributed topic experts to this broad industry initiative: nine coal mining companies, more than 80 experts, and more than 400 days of individual time for knowledge-capture workshops.
strates souterraines, du contrôle du terrain à ciel ouvert, des explosions, des explosifs, des tâches manuelles et des pertes d’appui / des trébuchements/des chutes. Toutes les grandes compagnies minières australiennes de charbon ont prêté des experts sur divers sujets à cette vaste initiative de l’industrie : 9 compagnies minières de charbon, plus de 80 experts et plus de 400 jours de temps individuel pour des ateliers d’acquisition de connaissances. Dans le présent article, je résume les techniques de mesure de la densité, je donne des exemples, simples et complexes, de domaines de densité à teneur variable et je traite aussi d’approches améliorées pour minimiser les erreurs d’estimation de la densité.
Nanoparticle ţotation collectors for pentlandite S. Yang and R. Pelton, Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; M. Xu and Z. Dai, Vale Base Metals Technical Excellence Centre, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
ABSTRACT Hydrophobic polystyrene nanoparticles were evaluated as potential flotation collectors for pentlandite. The flotation of hydrophilic glass beads demonstrated the nanoparticles’ ability to induce flotation. Deposition of nanoparticles on glass surfaces increased the contact angle and enhanced adhesion of the beads to air bubbles. High flotation recoveries were achieved when 5–10% of the bead surfaces were covered with nanoparticles. Surface functionalization—the addition of vinylimidazole to polystyrene nanoparticle surfaces—caused the nanoparticles to selectively deposit onto pentlandite surfaces in the presence of Mg-Si slimes. Ongoing work includes attempts to identify specific applications where nanoparticle collectors might be cost-effective.
RÉSUMÉ Des nanoparticules de polystyrène hydrophobe ont été évaluées en termes de collecteurs potentiels lors de la flottation de la pentlandite. La flottation de billes de verre hydrophiles a démontré la capacité des nanoparticules à induire la flottation. La déposition de nanoparticules sur des surfaces de verre a augmenté l’angle de contact et a amélioré l’adhésion des billes aux bulles d’air. Des récupérations élevées par flottation ont été atteintes lorsque de 5 à 10 % des surfaces des billes étaient couvertes de nanoparticules. La fonctionnalisation de la surface – l’ajout de vinylimidazole aux surfaces des nanoparticules de polystyrène – a fait en sorte que les nanoparticules se déposaient de manière sélective sur les surfaces de la pentlandite en présence de schlamms fins Mg-Si. Les travaux en cours comprennent des essais pour identifier des applications spécifiques dans lesquelles des collecteurs de nanoparticules pourraient être rentables.
Evolution of a lakebed resulting from subaqueous tailings discharge: Coupling multibeam surveys and airborne LiDAR D. Turmel and J. Locat, Laboratoire d’études sur les risques naturels, Département de géologie et de génie géologique, Université Laval, Québec City, Québec, Canada; G. Parker, Ven Te Chow Hydrosystems Lab, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Department of Geology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, USA
ABSTRACT Since 1964, the Iron Ore Company of Canada has deposited iron ore tailings into Wabush Lake in western Labrador, Canada. From 1999 to 2008, the authors completed multibeam bathymetric and sampling surveys and an airborne LiDAR survey. These data were integrated to study the evolution of the tailings delta shoreline and lakebed elevation. Subaqueous channels evolved between surveys, influencing the tailings depositional pattern. With this analysis, it is possible to evaluate the effect of disposal strategies on the delta topset and tailings accumulation. This project uniquely couples marine and terrestrial techniques to follow the fate of tailings in a dispersal system. 92 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
RÉSUMÉ Depuis 1964, la Compagnie minière IOC a déposé des résidus de minerai de fer dans le lac Wabush, situé dans l’ouest du Labrador, Canada. De 1999 à 2008, la compagnie a entrepris des relevés bathymétriques multifaisceaux, des campagnes d’échantillonnage et un relevé LiDAR aéroporté. Ils ont intégré ces données afin d’étudier l’évolution de la ligne de rive du delta formé par les résidus et l’élévation du fond du lac. Les chenaux subaquatiques ont évolué entre les relevés, influençant le patron de distribution des résidus. Avec la présente analyse, ils peuvent évaluer l’effet des stratégies de déposition sur la couche sommitale du delta et l’accumulation des résidus. Ce projet joint, de manière unique, des techniques marines et terrestres pour suivre le sort des résidus dans un système de dispersion.
TECHNICAL ABSTRACTS
canadian metallurgical quarterly Excerpts taken from abstracts in CMQ, Vol. 52, No. 4. To subscribe – www.cmq-online.ca
Estimation of liquidus temperature for B2O3- and TiO2- containing ţuoride free mould ţuxes from activation energy for viscous ţow and DTA measurements Z. Wang, Q. F. Shu, and K. Chou, State Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallurgy, China Iron and Steel Research Institute Group, Beijing, China
ABSTRACT Liquidus temperatures of fluoride free mould fluxes simultaneously containing B2O3 and TiO2 have been estimated from two methods, the activation energy for viscous flow and the DTA technique. Generally, the liquidus temperatures determined from the two methods are in good agreement. With the increase in B2O3 and TiO2 content, the variation of liquidus temperatures for fluoride free mould fluxes estimated from the two methods is consistent. As the TiO2 content increases, liquidus temperatures of the slags initially decrease and then increase. With the increase in B2O3 content, the liquidus temperatures of the slags decrease. Further quenching experiments reveal that there is no crystal precipitation in the slag at the liquidus temperature determined from DTA, while some crystal can be observed in the slag at the liquidus temperature determined from the activation energy for viscous flow. Superheating and supercooling effects that could bring errors in determining liquidus temperature by using the two methods are discussed.
RÉSUMÉ On a estimé les températures du liquidus de fondants sans fluorure pour moule contenant simultanément du B2O3 et du TiO2, à partir de deux méthodes, l’énergie d’activation pour écoulement visqueux et la technique de DTA. Généralement, les températures de liquidus déterminées à partir des deux méthodes étaient en bon accord. Avec l’augmentation de la teneur en B2O3 et en TiO2, la variation des températures de liquidus des fondants sans fluorure pour moule, estimée à partir des deux méthodes, va de pair. À mesure que la teneur en TiO2 augmente, les températures de liquidus des scories diminuent initialement et ensuite, augmentent. Avec l’augmentation de la teneur en B2O3, les températures de liquidus des scories diminuent. Des expériences additionnelles de trempe révèlent qu’il n’y a pas de précipitation de cristal dans la scorie à la température de liquidus déterminée à partir du DTA, alors qu’on peut observer quelques cristaux dans la scorie à la température de liquidus déterminée à partir de l’énergie d’activation pour écoulement visqueux. On discute des effets de surchauffe et de surfusion qui peuvent conduire à des erreurs dans la détermination de la température de liquidus au moyen de deux méthodes.
Development of a model for copper converting A. Lennartsson, F. Engström, B. Björkman, and C. Samuelsson, Minerals and Metals Research Laboratory, Luleå University of Technology, Luleå, Sweden
ABSTRACT Building on previous work reported in the literature, a dynamic model of the operation of the Peirce-Smith Converter has been developed to describe the distribution of the major elements present. The fundamental principle of the model was a thermodynamic calculation. The situation of non-equilibrium conditions was considered by dividing the converter into different zones linked by predefined flow parameters. The model was verified against actual converter plant data, with the simulated results for the major elements being in good agreement with the plant data. The agreement between plant and calculated data for Pb, and Zn was not as good and more work is required regarding this aspect.
RÉSUMÉ En se basant sur des travaux antérieurs rapportés dans la littérature, on a développé un modèle dynamique de l’opération du Convertisseur de Peirce-Smith afin de caractériser la distribution des principaux éléments chimiques présents. Le principe fondamental de ce modèle repose sur un calcul thermodynamique. On a considéré la situation des conditions hors d’équilibre en divisant le convertisseur en différentes zones reliées par des paramètres d’écoulement prédéfinis. On a confronté le modèle à des données issues du convertisseur d’une usine existante, les résultats simulés montrant un bon accord avec les données de l’usine en ce qui concerne les éléments majoritaires. La concordance des données de l’usine et des valeurs calculées pour le plomb et le zinc n’était pas aussi bonne et, donc, une investigation plus poussée concernant cet aspect du modèle s’avère nécessaire.
May 2014 | 93
TECHNICAL ABSTRACTS
canadian metallurgical quarterly Excerpts taken from abstracts in CMQ, Vol. 52, No. 4. To subscribe – www.cmq-online.ca
Electrodeposition of cobalt tungsten alloys from alkaline citrate containing bath as alternative for chromium hexavalent replacement N. Dadvand, G. Jarjoura, and G. J. Kipouros, College of Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
ABSTRACT Cobalt tungsten alloys have been considered as potential materials for various applications. This work investigates the wear and corrosion resistance behaviour of cobalt tungsten phosphorus alloys electroplated from alkaline citrate containing baths. The wear rates of the cobalt tungsten alloy electrodeposits were lower than those of the unalloyed cobalt electrodeposits. The wear rate was also lower than those of chromium plated from hexavalent chromium plating bath. It was also demonstrated that the addition of small quantities of phosphorus into Co W alloys improved the corrosion resistance of the alloy. In fact, the addition of phosphorus further improved the corrosion of the alloy exposed to immersion test in comparison to cobalt tungsten. The cobalt tungsten alloys without having any phosphorus component were subjected to further oxidation of tungsten component followed by dissolution in deionised water during the immersion tests.
RÉSUMÉ On a considéré des alliages de cobalt et tungstène comme matériaux potentiels pour diverses applications. Ce travail examine le comportement d’usure et de résistance à la corrosion d’alliages de cobalt, tungstène et phosphore déposés par électrolyse, à partir de bains alcalins contenant du citrate. Les taux d’usures des dépôts de l’alliage de cobalt et tungstène étaient plus faibles que ceux des dépôts non alliés de cobalt. Le taux d’usure était également plus faible que ceux de chrome déposés à partir d’un bain de dépôt électrolytique de chrome hexavalent. On a également démontré que l’addition de petites quantités de phosphore dans les alliages de Co W améliorait la résistance à la corrosion de l’alliage. En fait, l’addition de phosphore améliorait davantage la corrosion de l’alliage exposé à un essai d’immersion par rapport à l’alliage au cobalt et tungstène. Les alliages de cobalt et tungstène, sans la composante de phosphore, étaient sujets à davantage d’oxydation de la composante de tungstène suivie par la dissolution dans de l’eau déionisée lors des essais d’immersion.
Al electrodeposition from chloroaluminate ionic liquid L. P. Zhang, Z. W. Ge, X. J. Yu, Z. D. Zhao, and Y. H. Dong, School of Chemical Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo, China
ABSTRACT Cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used to investigate the mechanism of Al electrodeposition for an ionic liquid with a 2:1 molar ratio of AlCl3/[EMIM]Br (1methyl-3-ethyl imidazolium bromide) at room temperature 25±1°C. Results indicated that the Al electrodeposition from this ionic liquid is a quasi-reversible process. Instantaneous nucleation with diffusion controlled growth of the Al electrode was demonstrated. The constant phase element was present in the electrical double layer, with = 0·37. The kinetic complications during the reaction may be attributed to the controlled cooperative processes of electron transfer and mass transport. The potential effects on the characteristics of Al deposits were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Granular Al deposits could be obtained at a potential higher than −0·45 V. Cubic featured Al deposits were obtained within the range of −0·56 to −0·88 V. The rough deposits began to show dendritic morphologies at a potential less than −1·05 V.
94 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
RÉSUMÉ On a utilisé les techniques électrochimiques de la voltampérométrie cyclique, de la chronoampérométrie et des spectres d’impédance électrochimique pour examiner le mécanisme d’électrodéposition de l’aluminium (Al) à partir d’un liquide ionique d’AlCl3/[EMIM]Br de 2:1 (rapport molaire) à la température de la pièce (25±1°C). Les résultats indiquaient que l’électrodéposition de l’Al à partir de ce liquide ionique était un procédé quasi réversible. On a mis en évidence la nucléation instantanée avec croissance contrôlée par diffusion de l’électrodéposition de l’Al. L’élément à phase constante (EPC) qui se produisait dans la couche électrique double montrait une valeur de = 0·37. On peut attribuer les complications cinétiques pendant la réaction aux procédés contrôlés en coopérative du transfert d’électron et du transport de masse. On a évalué les effets du potentiel sur les caractéristiques des dépôts d’Al au moyen de la microscopie électronique à balayage (SEM) et du diffractomètre à rayons X allemand (XRD). On a également observé que l’on pouvait obtenir un dépôt granuleux d’Al à un potentiel plus élevé que 0·45 V. On a obtenu des dépôts d’Al à caractéristique cubique dans la gamme de potentiel de 0·56 à 0·88 V. Les dépôts obtenus à un potentiel de moins que 1·05 V devenaient rugueux et commençaient à montrer des morphologies dendritiques.
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Kathleen Rice: Trailblazing the Manitoba wilds By Jen Glanville
P
98 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 9, No. 3
St. Marys Museum, St. Marys, Ontraio
rivileged with comfort and beauty, self and sold pelts in order to buy the Kathleen Rice rejected the marmaterials needed to build a log cabin. ginalized existence offered to It was around this time when she met Canadian women in the early 20th Dick Woosey, a burly Boer War veteran century, instead choosing a life in the with coal-black hair. He had moved to wilderness. Her mineral discoveries in Canada with his wife, but upon arrival, northern Manitoba earned her the title of she rejected the idea of life in the bush Canada’s first female prospector. and promptly returned to England. Rice was born into a well-to-do famWoosey and Rice would soon become ily in St. Marys, Ontario in 1883. Her acquainted, but they defined their union grandfather was a forward-thinking man as a business partnership, even as Rice who founded a college for women in moved into his cabin on Chisel Lake. Hamilton. Rice’s father dreamed of The neighbours assumed that the two exploring the frontier but he sacrificed were “shacked up,” but Rice made no his aspirations for a teaching career. The indication of intimacy. She never importance of education trickled down revealed her living arrangements to the to Rice who excelled in mathematics at Toronto Star reporters who hounded her the University of Toronto and decided to due to her local celebrity whenever she follow in her father’s footsteps as a returned to visit her parents. teacher. In the following years, Rice and Upon graduation, Rice held a series Standing six feet tall with a head of golden blonde hair, Woosey travelled northeast to Herb of positions as a mathematics instructor, Kathleen Rice left a life of privilege in Ontario to Lake. Other prospectors had already first in Ontario, and then later out west. become a mineral prospector in northern Manitoba. staked its shores, but some abandoned Because she taught what was considered claims in the country caught Rice’s eye. a male discipline, she described herself as “constantly [being] In 1920, she settled onto Assessment Island, which was later up against a feeling that [she] ought not to be there.” It was renamed Rice Island. According to legend, while standing on during a vacation to the Canadian Rockies, after a teaching the shore, Rice saw a rainbow end on the island and, using a stint in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, when Rice made a life-chang- novel borax bead testing method, she confirmed the presence ing decision. Perhaps the mountain air cleared her mind, or of copper. In 1928, she arranged for drilling, and the copper the wild horizon beckoned; whatever the case, she decided to proved to be substantial. Rice subsequently discovered nickel, close the book on her teaching career. forming the Rice Island Nickel Mining Company, and a later Rice wanted to homestead near The Pas, Manitoba, but vanadium discovery earned her respect, as no other prospecwomen could not own property at the time. To circumvent tors had located vanadium in the area to date. this rule, her brother signed the required deed for her in 1913. Rice hoped to have her island claims diamond-drilled, and Gold was discovered by the Mosher brothers near Beaver Lake she was offered $500,000. But she held out for a million, and and prompted a prospecting buzz. Rice began studying min- the buyer eventually walked away. Ultimately, Rice would only eral assessments: she read everything she could on geology, receive $20,000 for those claims. As a complex legal dispute and she learned to hunt and trap – and also how to speak Cree between her and Woosey, and a third partner over the owner– by befriending local aboriginals. She would be referred to by ship of the claims wound its way through the courts, Inco the Cree as “Mooniasquao,” which means “white woman.” eventually acquired the lease in 1958, making the $20,000 In March 1914, Rice hired an aboriginal guide and sled payment to Rice, who subsequently liquidated Rice Island dogs and ventured off on her first prospecting trip. They trav- Nickel Mining Company. Vale, which acquired Inco in 2006, elled to Beaver Lake and continued on to Reindeer Lake, and still holds the Rice Island lease, and Rice’s claims are said to eventually reached Brochet, completing a 452-kilometre trek. have lured Inco to the region in the first place. She found zinc occurrences, but no claims were staked. Woosey died unexpectedly in the early 1940s, leaving Rice The following year, Rice set out on a solo trip. A friend from on her own. She remained on her island, gardening, prospectChicago grubstaked her venture. She staked gold and base metal ing and writing articles for the Toronto Star Weekly and scienclaims near Beaver Lake, and sent notes and pictures from her tific journals. She died in 1963 and was inducted into the adventure to her friend. She also hunted game to sustain her- Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 2014. CIM
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