CIM Magazine August 2018

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AUGUST 2018 | AOÛT 2018

cover story

46

Innovation rush in the oil sands Oil sands operators and suppliers alike are trying to find ways to reduce operational costs and cut emissions

By Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

37 Political risk and how to reduce it

By Mauro Chiesa

51 Emerging solutions for hazard monitoring in underground mines

54 Conference of Metallurgists 2018 Preliminary program

By Cecilia Keating

August • Août 2018 | 5

CIM MAGAZINE AUGUST 2018 • AOÛT 2018

in each issue

8 10 12

Editor’s letter President’s notes Chatter

tools of the trade

14

The best in new technology Compiled by Kevin Martine

developments

17

New, non-invasive hair screening method under development to monitor metal exposure in and around industrial workplaces

17

By Kylie Williams

23

mining lore

Industry limited in drug testing options as pot becomes legal

74

By Cecilia Keating

30

Review of B.C.’s professional reliance system calls for expanded powers for chief mines inspector

By Jordan Faries

contenu francophone

By Robert Hiltz

58 59 60 61

we are mining

33

Liane Boyer turned to prospecting for the flexibility to raise a family, and the thrill of the chase

51

By Kylie Williams

63

Regulatory trends in water discharge

By Jon M. Dinges

environmental management

38 40

Will Bill C-69 be able to balance politics with pragmatism?

By Mark Wittrup

42

UBC professor Greg Dipple aims to prove that tailings could be a mine’s secret weapon for reducing its carbon footprint

Lettre de l’éditeur Mot du président Comment atténuer le risque politique Selon les experts, il est peu probable que la légalisation du cannabis entraîne des modifications à la règlementation sur la sécurité en milieu de travail Par Cecilia Keating

How cold-adapted bacteria can benefit miners

By Christopher Pollon

Table des matières

Par Mauro Chiesa

columns

36

In Andean folklore, a goblin with mysterious motives roams through the tunnels of underground mines

65

42

La conférence Resources for Future Generations attire 2 000 personnes à Vancouver Par Kevin Martine

celebrating 120 years of CIM

44

CIM Archives capture the hardwork and determination behind the development of the Alberta oil sands

By Kevin Martine

article de fond

66

La ruée vers l’innovation dans l’industrie des sables bitumineux Par Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

By Cecilia Keating

Nous publions progressivement sur notre site Internet les articles du CIM Magazine en version française.

6 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

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editor’s letter

Fueled by innovation

T

he discovery of the Athabasca Oil Sands was no remarkable feat. Anyone travelling the Athabasca River could see the dark oily earth on the banks cut out by the flowing water. It was the development of the expertise to extract value from that vast resource that represents the great achievement. The task took decades of tireless work puzzling over the challenge of separating the bitumen from its sandy source material.

In 1944, Karl Clark, who by then had already spent many years of his career working on a practical solution to this problem, summarized, with a shade of irony, the progress made to that point. “There is little difficulty in recovering over 90 per cent of the oil from bituminous sand in a hotwater separation plant,” he reported in the CIM Bulletin, “especially if no importance is attached to the cleanliness of the recovered oil.” Ultimately, his research helped develop a method that did yield clean oil, laying the foundation for oil sands mine development in Northern Alberta.

The development of the deeper and far bigger deposits of the oil sands that could not be mined from the surface was the next frontier. The gravity drainage concepts proven out at the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority’s (AOSTRA) underground test facility near Fort McMurray in the late 1980s were the next great achievement of government and industry collaboration. A team of authors from AOSTRA confidently predicted in a 1990 CIM Bulletin that “horizontal well processes will prove to be a highly competitive source of heavy oil production; as markets improve, this

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This issue’s cover Suncor’s Fort Hills oil sands site in Alberta. Photo courtesy of Suncor

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8 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

approach can be expected to play a leading role in such development.”

The results of this work, built upon generations of research and development, are expressed simply and strikingly by the line graph from the United States Energy Information Agency that reports each country’s proved oil reserves over time. Canada’s appear as an enormous step up, as it tracks an astronomical rise in reserves from less than 10 billion barrels in 2002 to 180 billion barrels the following year.

What cannot be separated from the oil sands is the role that ingenuity and innovation plays in this sector. So, with the renewed focus on the oil sands, we took that as our cue to zero in on some of the latest developments and creative thinking animating the oil patch for this issue’s feature, “The innovation rush in the oil sands” (pg. 46).

Ryan Bergen, Editor-in-chief editor@cim.org @Ryan_CIM_Mag

Editor-in-chief Ryan Bergen, rbergen@cim.org Executive editor Angela Hamlyn, ahamlyn@cim.org Managing editor Michele Beacom, mbeacom@cim.org Section editors Tom DiNardo, tdinardo@cim.org; Kelsey Rolfe, krolfe@cim.org Web content editor Maria Olaguera, molaguera@cim.org Editorial intern Kevin Martine, kmartine@cim.org Contributors Mauro Chiesa, Jon M. Dinges, Jordan Faries, Robert Hiltz, Cecilia Keating, Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco, Christopher Pollon, Kylie Williams, Mark Wittrup Editorial advisory board Mohammad Babaei Khorzhoughi, Vic Pakalnis, Steve Rusk, Nathan Stubina Translations Karen Rolland and Cision Layout and design Clò Communications Inc., www.clocommunications.com Published 8 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; magazine@cim.org

Advertising sales Dovetail Communications Inc. Tel.: 905.886.6640; Fax: 905.886.6615; www.dvtail.com Senior Account Executives Janet Jeffery, jjeffery@dvtail.com, 905.707.3529 Christopher Forbes, cforbes@dvtail.com, 905.707.3516 Subscriptions Online version included in CIM Membership ($197/yr). Print version for institutions or agencies – Canada: $275/yr (AB, BC, MB, NT, NU, SK, YT add 5% GST; ON add 13% HST; QC add 5% GST + 9.975% PST; NB, NL, NS, PE add 15% HST). Print version for institutions or agencies – USA/International: US$325/yr. Online access to single copy: $50.

Copyright©2018. 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.

Printed in Canada

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president’s notes

A plan for our future

“If you haven’t had a chance to have your say, visit minescanada.ca and join the conversation.”

By now most of you should have heard of the Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP). Over the past several months, Canadians have been invited to be a part of the conversation, whether online, through social media or by participating in stakeholder focus groups.

The CMMP is a visionary action plan to position Canada as the world mining nation. Currently under development, the plan will focus on five pillars to capture the range of activities needed to support a world-leading industry. The pillars are: • Economic development and competitiveness; • Advancing the participation of Indigenous peoples; • Community and the environment; • Science, technology and innovation; • Global leadership.

To operationalize this vision, the plan will specify detailed actions to achieve the goal. The first action strategy will be released in early 2019 and will be backed by federal, provincial and territorial governments. A rich set of data, coupled with indepth research and analysis, will further support the implementation.

Specific quantifiable targets will guide the plan through to 2035. Some of the specific targets and actions that have been raised during engagement events include: incentives to support longer-term planning and competitiveness; infrastructure built to support Canada’s mineral development in the most promising regions; reduced permitting times; supplemental programs for a diverse, inclusive and skilled workforce; and a strategy to support the success of the Canadian mining supply and services industry. These and other strategic activities will support key goals such as increased investment, improved innovation, reduced environmental footprint, and enhanced policies and regulations.

Mining is a strategically important industry for Canada, a country built on natural resources. Through the informed and focused actions outlined in the Plan, Canada will be the global leader in social and environmental practices; regulatory clarity and predictability; clean technology innovation and best management practices; a skilled and diverse workforce; an attractive investment climate; and partnerships with Indigenous Peoples.

If you haven’t had a chance to have your say, visit minescanada.ca and join the conversation to help build a plan for our future.

Janice Zinck CIM President

10 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

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process control

Innovation gathers momentum As more performance and control technologies are added to the processing plant, the measure of what is possible continues to grow

Courtesy of Caelen Anderson/OceanGold

By Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

The metallurgical team managing the plant at South Carolina’s Haile gold mine, above, adopted an automated approach to metallurgical reporting, which frees them up to focus on process improvements.

here is a story developing in processing plants. It began slowly over the last decade as the high-grade material got mined and the sector wrestled with having to dig deeper and work harder to extract ore. Operating costs skyrocketed until global economic pressures put the squeeze on everyone. The resilient miners got smarter to improve their plants’ efficiencies and abilities to handle lower and more variable ore grades. They turned to instrumentation to measure and automate, step by step, control loop by control loop. But the tools that first gave marginal gains have begun to show a fuller potential. All this instrumentation – and the data it collects – does not just allow miners to improve their plant’s efficiencies within the same old way of doing things. It is a gateway to a whole new approach with faster, smarter, more productive and efficient processing that eliminates the manual guesswork and enables operators and metallurgists to run their operations with precision and accuracy. It is a digitalized future of opportunities in real time. And from needing much convincing to adopt new technologies, miners who have had the Eureka moment are suddenly developing the technologies themselves or seeking them out to improve their plant performance.

T

Analyze the feed with speed Sabia Inc. has been seeing a rush of interest recently in the Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis (PGNAA) slurry analyzer it developed in 2009 and installed in Glencore’s Sudbury Inte-

Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum

@cim_mag

Canadian Institute of Mining

RE: INNOVATION GATHERS MOMENTUM (MAY ‘18)

Nice to see operators adopting better in-plant analytical instruments. How about measuring the quality of the feed before it comes into the plant as well?

– Andrew Bamber “You need people with the right skillset to maintain the hardware, software and systems to capture the data and turn it into information to make a decision.” I agree; however, these people need to have a solid perspective of the business to properly integrate production with the rest of the business, including support departments and third-party service providers. Finally, there seems to be light at the end of the technology tunnel for the mining industry.

– Rolf Walther

May • Mai 2018 | 69

RE: THE FEMALE PIONEERS OF PROSPECTING (FEB ‘18)

Great article by @ckeating14 & @CIMorg. Lack of role models, prejudice, working harder, the focus on clothes rather than achievements – stable narrative from 1800's to 2018.

– Mafalda Arias, @MafaldaArias

Who were the first female pioneers in mining and prospecting? We enjoyed this article on a closer look at the first forays into the mining industry by women who pursued opportunity in a traditionally male dominated sector.

– Women Who Rock, @womenwhorockWWR

RE: IN DEEP AND ON TRACK (JUNE/JULY ’18)

I was just speaking with a colleague the other day who mentioned this technology. Very revolutionary.

– Zlatan Todorovic, zlatan.todorovic

RE: ATLANTIC PEARLS (SEPT/OCT ‘17)

A great feather in the cap for all involved!

– Ken Murray

12 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

RE: THE TIGHTROPE BETWEEN TWO WORLDS (MARCH/APRIL ‘18)

Rather than walking a tightrope, I see Martha as a master weaver. Bringing together different threads from which emerges a tapestry.

– Janice Fingler, @FinglerJanice

RE: SMART SUPPORT (MARCH/APRIL ‘18)

Definitely appears to have applications that will assist in identifying condition of installed bolts non destructively.

– Fred Harvey

RE: THE GROWING PAINS OF SUPPLY CHAIN CERTIFICATION (JUNE/JULY ‘18)

Binary pass/fail certification models push companies to avoid risk, not manage, while ignoring consequences of doing so. Almost inevitably fail sectors that need engagement and honest conversation about risk—like artisanal and small-scale mining.

– Michael Gibb, @GibbMichael

Courtesy of Michelin

Courtesy of Voith

tools of the trade

The data hub

More durable tires

With mines frequently using equipment and software from various manufacturers, managing and analyzing site data can get complicated.

Voith’s OnCumulus platform handles data from multiple sources: the processing plant, vehicles and mobile devices. It allows miners to review all of their activity in one place, and it can combine data from multiple mine sites. The data hub is then accessible on the cloud in near real time. OnCumulus also has features to help with data visualization and analysis. “OnCumulus enables our customers to intelligently benefit from this digital transformation – with optimized processes, improved use of resources, flexibility and security,” said Roland Münch, Voith’s head of digital solutions, in a press release.

Voith developed the platform based on open-source software to help ensure it is compatible with a variety of devices and systems.

Tires get a lot of wear and tear in underground mining, leading to downtime as miners replace them.

Michelin’s new X Mine D2 Pro and XSM D2+ Pro line of tires have been specifically redesigned with underground conditions in mind. The new models can bear an 18 per cent larger load than their predecessors. Michelin said the new tires will also have a longer life, thanks to new materials. The crossed nylon cords encased in rubber allow the treads to take more weight and tolerate more buffeting from rock and water without losing their integrity. Plus, new technology supports the sides of the tires to prevent caving from side-swipes.

Better haulage, same size

Courtesy of Sandvik

To improve on its TH540 haul truck, Sandvik has released a new model. The TH545i comes with increased capacity and engine power. Able to haul five tonnes more while maintaining the same

dimensions as its predecessor, the TH545i boosts productivity yet still fits in the same spaces. The truck has an increased engine power of 450 kilowatts (kW), up from 405 kW. The model comes with an intelligent control package, which includes live data transmission from the truck to an operator or supervisor elsewhere, allowing them to direct multiple vehicles simultaneously.

“We’re able to consolidate and record all the various inputs that are occurring on the machine, store them onboard and share them in real time,” said Dale Rakochy, business manager for Sandvik’s truck division. The TH545i is compatible with Sandvik’s remote operation and autonomous control software, giving operators the option of phasing into complete autonomous operation.

Compiled by Kevin Martine

14 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

DURABILITY TO THE EXTREME

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Vale goes ahead with underground mine at Voisey’s Bay

Industry limited in drug testing options as pot becomes legal

Canadian miners’ exploration spending on the rise, PwC says

Review of B.C.’s professional reliance system calls for expanded powers for chief mines inspector

21

23

27

30

Developments Hair to replace needles in lead monitoring New, non-invasive hair screening method under development to monitor metal exposure in and around industrial workplaces Courtesy of Jennie Christensen

Kylie Williams

TrichAnalytics CEO and founder Jennie Christensen in her lab near Victoria, B.C.

A toxicology laboratory near Victoria, British Columbia, has developed a novel hair screening tool to measure metal levels in the body with a single hair. A six-month pilot study involving 100 volunteers at Teck Resources’ zinc and lead smelting and refining complex in Trail, which concluded last month, determined that hair analysis is a sensitive and effective tool to screen for elevated blood lead levels – as well as being quicker and less painful.

“Our goal is to reduce the need for needles,” said Jennie Christensen, CEO and founder of TrichAnalytics. Christensen, a toxicologist, led the study.

“We can use hair lead levels as a proxy for what is happening in the blood. We can use any growing hair, as long as the root is intact.”

With sample collection as easy as using tweezers to extract three to five hairs and place them in an envelope, the non-invasive method was wel-

comed by those smelter workers who are anxious about blood tests using needles.

“As part of Teck’s values and policy, we work to identify and manage occupational health exposures for the protection of longer-term health,” said Corrine Balcaen, Teck’s director of occupational health and hygiene.

“We’ve been pleased to support this pilot project, which has the potential to reduce or replace blood sampling for August • Août 2018 | 17

occupational exposure and make it easier and more comfortable for our employees.”

The method could have community applications too, such as blood lead level monitoring of children and families close to industrial sites. Teck partners with the City of Trail and B.C.’s interior health authority on the Trail Area Health and Environment Committee (THEC) to monitor lead levels in children in the surrounding community, which currently collects samples via regular voluntary blood tests.

Trail has historically had high blood lead levels. In 1989, children aged six to 36 months in Trail were registering an average of 13.5 micrograms per decilitre. That is now down to four micrograms per decilitre in 2017, the lowest result to date, according to a THEC release from February. Currently, the Canadian

18 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

standard for intervention is if blood lead levels are 10 micrograms per decilitre or higher, though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States recommends testing for those with five micrograms per decilitre.

At the TrichAnalytics laboratory, once Christensen and her team have received the hair samples, they use Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICPMS) to analyze a three-millimetre section of the sample near the root, just below the skin, to eliminate contamination from the environment.

“We designed a statistical algorithm to help us find the sweet spot where blood and hair lead levels match,” said Christensen. “We’re the only lab that is doing it commercially.”

Monitoring industrial lead exposure is critical because at lower concentrations, it can impact the nervous sys-

tem, resulting in weakened limbs, anemia and increased blood pressure. At high concentration, lead exposure will severely damage the brain and kidneys.

In the past, said Christensen, hair samples have been used mainly for nutritional testing, but not for occupational health monitoring as it was viewed as inaccurate and unreliable because of contamination.

The pilot used lessons learned about contamination from the death of seaman John Hartnell during the illfated Franklin Expedition in 1845. For a previous study, Christensen was given access to a 170-year-old fingernail belonging to Hartnell. Using x-ray fluorescence, Christensen and her coauthors mapped the distribution of certain elements on the outer surface and underside of the nail, honing a technique to account for contamination in growing tissue and questioning the role of lead in his death.

developments

De Beers Canada acquires Peregrine for $107 million De Beers Canada is acquiring junior miner Peregrine Diamonds for $107 million and pocketing its Chidliak deposit in Nunavut, the company announced July 19.

Chidliak, a diamond deposit located 120 kilometres northeast of Iqualuit on Baffin Island, has 74 identified kimberlite pipes at the site so far, including the CH-6 and CH-7, which have been the focus of its phase one development program. Between the two pipes, Chidliak has an inferred resource of 12.45 million tonnes at 1.78 carats per tonne (ct/t).

In addition to CH-6 and CH-7, Peregrine has said an additional six pipes are expected to have economic potential.

According to Chidliak’s updated preliminary economic assessment (PEA), prepared by JDS Energy and Mining in May, the project is expected to have a 13-year mine life, and produce 16.7 million carats over that time, at an average grade of 1.8 ct/t.

De Beers Canada CEO Kim Truter told CIM Magazine that the “excellent work” Peregrine had done on Chidliak, including recent exploration work and the PEA, made it “increasingly obvious that this was the most attractive

70 per cent of the participants said they would be content with a hair test compared to only nine per cent who preferred a blood test. In the future, the non-invasive hair test could be used to monitor blood lead levels by proxy so, when a certain hair lead level is reached, it triggers a blood test.

TrichAnalytics received funding, inkind support and access to Trail workers from Teck for the pilot study, and a contribution from the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program. The response to the trial was positive and discussions are underway to expand the program at Trail and beyond, said Christensen.

“We’re looking for forward-thinking companies that are looking to change the way they monitor,” said Christensen, who hopes that with the ease and speed of collecting a single hair sample, the method may evolve into a preventive tool for mines, smelters, refineries, battery manufacturing and recycling plants, and welding facilities, and for the communities surrounding them.

“Instead of a [semi-annual] or annual blood test, we can test hair more regular, perhaps monthly, and see the trend creeping up over time,” said Christensen. “We can do something about it sooner.” CIM

undeveloped diamond resource in Canada.”

In a press release, Peregrine founder and executive chairman Eric Friedland called the announcement the “next step in the development of the Chidliak project,” adding that “it is particularly gratifying that the quality A selection of diamonds from a bulk sample of Chidliak's CH-7 kimof the diamond berlite pipe. resource we have defined is recognized by the world’s agreement in 2013. But Truter said in premier integrated diamond company.” the last five years De Beers had been Chidliak was discovered in 2008, “keeping an eye on [the project.]” and has previously attracted the atten“The global economic situation tion of BHP, which eventually left the wasn’t as favourable [in 2013] as it is diamond business, and of De Beers today,” Truter said. “The time just Canada. wasn’t right, and the project hadn’t In September 2012 De Beers and been developed to the point it is today.”

Peregrine completed an agreement that In 2019 De Beers will be down to gave De Beers the exclusive rights until one producing Canadian diamond December 2013 to enter into an earnmine – Gahcho Kué in the Northwest in and joint venture agreement for Territories, which went into commer50.1 per cent of Chidliak. The agree- cial production in 2016 – as its Victor ment would have required De Beers to diamond mine in Ontario closes. pay $58.5 million to earn its majority Truter said the decision to acquire stake.

Peregrine gave some consideration to De Beers paid $5 million for the the company’s Canadian project exclusive right, and a further $2 mil- pipeline. “We want to make sure lion for a work program on Chidliak, we’ve got a healthy portfolio, not just but ultimately walked away from the in Canada but across the group,” he August • Août 2018 | 19

Courtesy of Peregrine Diamonds

“The lesson we took from the Franklin study to the occupational health realm was how contamination affects results and how to get around it,” said Christensen, who published her study of the role of lead poisoning during the Franklin Expedition using fingernail analysis in the Journal of Archeological Science in December 2017. “We’re using the protected piece of the hair – protected by the scalp and follicle – so environmental contamination is less of an issue, and coloured, treated, or damaged hair can also be used.”

Christensen’s pilot study was run in parallel with Teck’s regular on-site blood monitoring program. More than

FROM THE WIRE Hecla Mining named Larry Radford its new COO in late May. Radford, who joined the company in 2011, was previously Hecla’s senior vice-president of operations.

Hudson Resources appointed Sam Yik as its new CFO, and named vicepresident of project development Jim Cambon to the board of directors in late June. In early July, Hudson also reported that commissioning at its White Mountain anorthosite project in Greenland is expected to start in October, with a first product shipment expected by the end of the year.

The Ontario ministries of energy, northern development and mines, and Indigenous affairs have been combined into one portfolio in Premier Doug Ford’s new cabinet. MPP Greg Rickford will head up the amalgamated department. First-time MPP Rod Phillips was named minister of environment, conservation and parks.

Eldorado Gold appointed Philip Yee as its new CFO and executive vice-president in July. Yee, currently CFO of Kirkland Lake Gold, will join the company in September. Eldorado has been without a CFO since Fabiana Chubbs left in April.

New Gold appointed James Gowans to its board of directors in July. Gowans is the CEO of Arizona Mining, and was previously a co-president of Barrick Gold.

Oskar Steffen, co-founder of SRK consulting passed away on June 27 in Johannesburg. He was 77 years old.

Steffen was born in Swaziland and studied civil engineering at Wits University. He co-founded SRK in 1974, and continued working there as it grew into an international mining firm.

Agnico Eagle received a Type A water license for its Whale Tail gold deposit in Nunavut from the federal government in July. Agnico said preliminary construction remains on track for 2018 and that it is on schedule to begin production in the third quarter of 2019.

Agnico’s Meliadine project is also on schedule to start production the second quarter of 2019.

20 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

said, “and that we take advantage of the fact that demand for jewellery has reached a record high.” A report commissioned by De Beers pegged global demand at US$82 billion in 2017, 0.3 per cent higher than the year before.

The acquisition is subject to the approval of Peregrine shareholders.

The company’s board of directors has unanimously recommended its approval.

– Kelsey Rolfe

Nevsun Resources says Lundin’s latest acquisition offer undervalues its assets Lundin Mining’s announcement that it would make an all-cash offer to acquire Nevsun Resources for $1.4 billion was met with a prickly response on July 17.

Nevsun advised its shareholders not to take any action in response to Lundin’s mid-July statement, and CEO Peter Kukielski said the offer was not representative of the company’s worth.

“This latest announcement from Lundin continues to ignore the fundamental value of Nevsun and its assets,” Kukielski said in a press release.

Lundin first expressed interest in acquiring Nevsun’s Timok coppergold project in Serbia in February. In May, it partnered with Euro Sun Mining Inc. to make a formal offer to acquire the company for $1.5 billion, or $5.00 per share. The offer would have given Nevsun’s European assets, including Timok, to Lundin, and its Bisha copper-zinc mine in Eritrea to Euro Sun. Nevsun rejected the proposal at the time, saying it did not reflect “the strategic value of our asset base.”

Lundin’s new offer is worth $4.75 per share, which the company said was an 82 per cent premium on Nevsun’s closing price on Feb. 6, when Lundin first reached out to the company.

“After having made a series of proposals and observing the recent changes in the political landscape

related to Eritrea, we have determined that the best course is now to make an all cash offer directly to Nevsun shareholders,” said Lundin CEO Paul Conibear in a statement. “Our offer will represent the clearest path for Lundin Mining to acquire the Timok project and for Nevsun shareholders to realize on the value of their investment without dilution and financing risk.”

Kukielski said that Lundin’s offer did not recognize the work that Nevsun has put into both its projects since February, including releasing a prefeasibility study for the Timok Upper Zone that reported an after-tax net asset value of US$1.82 billion, beginning construction on Timok, and extending Bisha’s mine life to 2022.

“The work we have been doing has also been noticed by several strategic parties that have expressed an interest in participating in the development of Timok,” Kukielski said.

Nevsun said that if it receives a formal offer from Lundin, it will consider it before making a recommendation to shareholders.

Timok has a Probable Mineral Reserve of 27.1 million tonnes grading at 3.3 per cent copper and 2.1 grams/tonne (g/t) gold, and an expected mine life of 10 years. Nevsun said it expects to begin commercial production in 2022.

According to a May report from Reuters, Lundin’s board of directors does not want to invest in Eritrea because of its poor human rights record, and initially brought in Euro Sun so it would not have to own Bisha.

The company’s announcement did not address what it would do with the Eritrean mine.

A human rights case, currently being heard in a British Columbia court, was brought against Nevsun by three Eritrean refugees who alleged that government-owned construction firms used them as slaves during the construction of the Bisha mine. The lawsuit alleges the refugees were conscripted into the military under Eritrea’s national service program and deployed at the mine.

– Kelsey Rolfe

Courtesy of Vale

developments

AngloGold appointed Barrick Gold president Kelvin Dushnisky as its new CEO in July. Dushnisky has been with Barrick since 2002, previously serving as copresident and vice-president of corporate and legal affairs, and was named president in 2015. He is expected to relocate to Johannesburg to head the South Africa-based company. Barrick did not immediately announce his replacement.

The Voisey's Bay mine and concentrator in northern Labrador.

Vale goes ahead with underground mine at Voisey’s Bay Vale will begin constructing its Voisey’s Bay underground nickel mine in northern Labrador this summer, with first ore expected by April 2021.

The announcement, made on June 11 by Newfoundland Premier Dwight Ball and Eduardo Bartolomeo, Vale’s executive officer for its base metals division, comes amid a boom in nickel prices.

Vale also reported it had signed deals with Wheaton Precious Metals and Cobalt 27 Capital Corp. for a total of 75 per cent of its future cobalt production at Voisey’s Bay. The company will get US$690 million up front – US$390 million from Wheaton and US$300 from Cobalt 27 – which will cover about 40 per cent of the mine’s US$1.7-billion construction.

Vale will also receive an average of 20 per cent of cobalt prices upon delivery to the two companies when the deal takes effect in 2021.

Ball called the development a “momentous announcement” for the mining industry.

The underground mine will extend the operation’s life by 15 years, and is expected to produce around 45,000

tonnes of nickel, 20,000 tonnes of copper and 2,600 tonnes of cobalt per year.

“We have always been intent on going underground [at Voisey’s Bay] as it is the natural evolution of our operations in Newfoundland and Labrador,” Bartolomeo said in a release. “We are excited to unlock the value of this great resource.”

Voisey’s Bay has been operating as an open pit since 2005. Development of an underground operation has been mired in uncertainty since Vale said last year that it planned to review its worldwide operations due to depressed nickel prices.

Nickel prices have improved since their slump last year, due in part to increased investment in electric vehicle technology. At his presentation at PDAC 2018, CRU Group director Paul Robinson noted that the nickel market is currently in a small deficit, and forecast a price of US$12,343 per tonne.

CRU expects nearly 30 per cent of the growth in nickel demand between 2016 and 2021 to be from the automotive sector. Nickel is a critical part of lithium-ion batteries.

Ore from the underground operations will be processed at Vale’s Long Harbour processing plant. The underground mine, once it is operational, will also generate 1,700 jobs at the mine and Long Harbour. – Kelsey Rolfe

Barrick and Autonomous Solutions Inc. (ASI) said they would partner to retrofit and automate haul trucks at Barrick’s Arturo mine in Nevada, a joint venture with Premier Gold. The project, announced in June, is the first major autonomous haulage project in the United States. ASI will retrofit five Komatsu 930-E haul trucks at Arturo in the initial phase of the project, and test them in primarily waste haulage applications.

Rio Tinto announced in mid-July a deal to sell its interests in the Grasberg mine in Indonesia for US$3.5 billion to state-owned Inalum. Inalum will also pay US$350 million to Freeport McMoRan. The two deals will increase Inalum’s stake in Grasberg to 51 per cent, up from 9.3 per cent. Indonesian legislation introduced last year requires all mines in the country to be majorityowned by the government.

Newmont Gold will buy NovaGold Resources’ 50 per cent interest in the joint-venture Galore Creek coppergold-silver project for US$275 million, the company announced in late July.

Newmont’s new stake will make it Teck’s partner in the joint venture. Galore Creek has Proven and Probable Reserves of 69 million tonnes at 0.59 per cent copper and 0.32 grams per tonne (g/t) gold.

Pretium Resources met its production targets for the first half of the year at its Brucejack mine after a fitful ramp-up.

The company recovered 111,340 ounces of gold at 14.9 g/t gold in the second quarter, a 47 per cent increase from the previous quarter, for a total of 187,029 ounces for the first half of the year. Pretium implemented a grade control program at the mine after struggling to increase production as quickly as expected since declaring commercial production last July.

Compiled by Kevin Martine

August • Août 2018 | 21

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developments

Industry limited in drug testing options as pot becomes legal Cannabis legalization not likely to prompt changes to workplace safety legislation, experts say

After more than a year of deliberation and months of legislative ping pong between the Senate and the House of Commons, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the country will federally legalize the consumption of recreational cannabis on Oct. 17, after the Senate approved the government’s legalization bill on June 19. What this will mean for those managing workplace safety, however, is still a work in progress.

The new law allows adults in Canada to The ore preparation plant at Suncor's Fort Hills operation. A recent ruling from the Alberta Court of Queen's legally possess and con- Bench sided with Suncor regarding random drug testing. sume small amounts of cannabis, and outlines the framework “Employers’ time is better spent trying testing employees is governed by a for the production, possession, safety to educate people about the problems patchwork of decisions outlined in standards, distribution, and sale of the with bringing drugs and alcohol into human rights tribunals and the courts, drug. It also creates new Criminal the workplace and offering employees’ and by labour arbitrators. Historically, Code offences for selling marijuana to assistance in preventing that from hapthe large majority of random drug and minors and sets the minimum age for pening.” alcohol testing policies have been struck legal consumption at 18 – although Goldcorp spokesperson Christine down by arbitrators as an infringement provinces can opt to raise it.

Marks wrote in an email that the comof employees’ privacy rights.

Despite concerns voiced by players pany is “planning to take a proactive Last January, Champagne worked on from heavy industries like mining, transapproach – educating ourselves, sharthe USW’s arbitration case against Teck portation and oil and gas – where ing information and providing educaResources, one of the newest additions employees must operate large, dangertion for employees.” She added that to the body of case law. An arbitration ous equipment – the lack of precise “impairment is still impairment, victory for the union put an end to a drug-testing methods for cannabis, whether it’s a legally prescribed medfive-year random drug and alcohol testexisting case law, and employees’ right to ication or a recreational substance. Safe ing regime at Teck’s coal mines in privacy mean any significant overhaul of production is our priority and that British Columbia’s Elk Valley. The case workplace safety regulations is unlikely. won’t change.”

– which ran over three years and “Employers always had the right to Currently, mining companies and involved 39 days of hearings, multiple prevent impairment, whether a drug is other employers in safety-sensitive expert witnesses and undisclosed legal like alcohol or illegal like mariindustries must adhere to provincial amounts of money – does not bode juana, so I don’t see the law changing,” workplace safety regulations and, if well for mining companies considering said Rob Champagne, legal counsel for dealing with unionized workers, collecimplementing random drug testing the United Steelworkers (USW) union. tive agreements. The law around drug policies once cannabis is legal.

August • Août 2018 | 23

Courtesy of Suncor

By Cecilia Keating

“At the end of the day, Teck pulled out the stops and wasn’t successful,” Champagne said. “It signals to other mining companies that they are unlikely to succeed with random testing policies.”

However, the uncertain outcome of another case between Suncor and labour union Unifor bouncing

through the courts in Alberta sends a more encouraging message to employers who want to implement random testing after Oct. 17. While a provincial arbitration panel ruled that the oil sands giant must stop randomly testing its workers because it was an invasion of privacy, Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench quashed the

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ruling on the grounds that the panel should have considered evidence of alcohol and drug incidents involving all workers, not just union employees, and ordered the case to be heard by a new panel. The province’s Court of Appeals upheld that judicial review. Unifor then took the case to the Supreme Court of Canada, which in mid-June refused to hear it. The case will go through a fresh round of arbitration. An injunction from the Court of Queen’s Bench preventing random drug testing while Unifor appealed to the Supreme Court is still in place.

The lack of new laws on drug testing in the workplace post-legalization is not for lack of trying from groups like the oil and gas safety association Enform, which lobbied the federal government for regulation that restricts employees from using cannabis “in close temporal proximity” to work as well as in the workplace itself, and the BC Trucking Association, who called for a regulatory framework that would allow employers to conduct random drug and alcohol testing.

Earlier this year, a federal committee tasked with looking at whether and how to impose random drug testing on workers in safety-sensitive industries reached no conclusions, according to a report from The Canadian Press last March, and the Liberals have not indicated since that they plan to federally sanction random drug testing in workplaces. (The only place such federal labour rules exist is in the military.)

Mine management can safely resort to the two forms of drug and alcohol testing that are generally approved by arbitrators and human rights commissions for industries deemed safetysensitive. The first is reasonable cause testing, where an employee can be justifiably tested if they look, smell or behave as if they are impaired. The other is post-incident testing, which applies when there is evidence that an employee’s condition may have caused a substantial accident on site.

Random drug and alcohol testing is permissible only if an employer can prove a problem of substance of abuse

developments in the workplace that needs to be controlled – something Teck failed to do in its arbitration case.

The issue of testing for cannabis is further complicated by the fact that, unlike for alcohol, no fair test exists yet. Current methods, through urine samples and saliva tests, are misleading. The psychoactive substance in cannabis that causes impairment, called THC, lingers in an infrequent user’s body for up to four days and a heavy user’s for eight weeks. The test therefore indicates prior consumption, not present impairment.

Champagne called current testing methods an “imperfect science,” and explained that a positive drug test cannot be the only indicator of impairment from cannabis. The failed test has to be matched with “something else, like slurred speech, staggered walking or glassy eyes,” he said.

Provincial health and safety organizations are working to update their

Cannabis in Canada, by the numbers POT USERS BY PROVINCE (%) Nova Scotia B.C./Alberta/Manitoba Newfoundland Saskatchewan Ontario/New Brunswick/PEI Quebec

2 1%

20 17 16 15 14 10

(Canada average)

As of June 2018 there were 112 licensed cannabis producers in Canada. Ontario has the most, with 60. Newfoundland and the territories have zero.

of Canadians say they might try cannabis or increase their consumption when it is legal

All figures from Statistics Canada

regulations in light of the difficulties surrounding testing and monitoring cannabis impairment. The Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission of the Northwest Territories and

Nunavut said that they are currently developing a new definition of impairment that “will likely not focus on amounts of any substance but rather the effect and signs of impairment.” CIM

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developments

Canadian miners’ exploration spending on the rise, PwC says Canadian mining companies spent 31 per cent more on exploration in 2017 than the year before, according to PwC’s Mine 2018 report. Exploration investment was at $620 million last year, up from $473 million in 2016.

“There’s just more healthy market speculation,” said Liam Fitzgerald, PwC Canada’s national mining lead.

“The market looks similar to circa 2007.”

But unlike a decade ago, Fitzgerald was optimistic that this run of investment would be more sustainable than past cycles, where he said companies overpaid on projects.

“The rate of approval for big projects is more cautious,” he said. “So I do think we’ve learned some things.”

The report also showed that average revenue rose 23 per cent among global firms, as a pick-up in demand for most metals pushed prices higher. PwC forecasts that this trend will continue into 2018, leading to higher profits for miners.

At the same time, PwC found that capital investments in new projects remained unchanged, although it expects that to rise over the next year.

Fitzgerald said executives were being careful. “They’re making sure there’s a very clear return on investment,” he said. “I expect that some projects will start to get approved. It’s just [taking longer] because they’re learning from prior mistakes.”

The report found that Canadian companies are investing significant amounts in digitalizing their operations and improving on cybersecurity.

Fitzgerald said cyber threats are growing in importance now that tech is more integrated. “It’s gone from being an IT problem to being a more holistic business problem,” he said.

PwC also pointed out some potential headwinds. The threat of a trade war from the United States, and changing regulatory regimes, particularly in Africa, are potential barriers to business.

Miners feeling the benefits of the upswing: mine 2018 report the increase in Canadian miners’ exploration spending.

Companies spent $620M in 2017, up from $473M in 2016

total annual revenue of global mining companies

$489B

2016

$600B

2017

$642B

2018 (expected)

The report also showed that six Canadian miners again made PwC’s list of the 40 largest global firms by market capitalization, with PotashCorp (which has since merged with Agrium to become Nutrien) at number 13 on the list, and Barrick close behind at 14.

– Kevin Martine

Canada announces $2 billion in support funding for steel and aluminum companies Canada’s federal government said in late June it will make a total of $2 billion in innovation, job training and work sharing funding available to the steel and aluminum industries.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains and Labour Minister Patty Hajdu also announced the government’s finalized list of retaliatory tariffs at the Stelco steel company in Hamilton, Ontario.

The tariffs, which went into effect on July 1, hit U.S. steel and aluminum products and other items such as maple syrup, yogurt, ketchup and whisky. The list is divided between those that receive a 25 per cent surcharge and those that get 10 per cent.

“Canada’s approach is and will be this: we will not escalate and we will not back down,” Freeland said. “We are acting very much in sorrow, not in anger, but the U.S. tariffs leave Canada no choice but to defend our industries, our workers and our communities.”

The tariffs constitute a $16.6-billion retaliation against U.S. import tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum and other products.

Freeland emphasized that the retaliatory actions to the “illegal and unjust tariffs” were permitted under NAFTA rules. “This is a responsive action. It is a perfectly reciprocal action,” she said.

“Canada has quite intentionally been measured and restrained in its response.”

Canada launched a case at the World Trade Organization and under chapter 20 of NAFTA after the U.S. tariffs went into effect on June 1.

The funding package for industry includes $250 million from the Strategic Innovation Fund to help steel and aluminum companies become more innovative; a combined total of $1.7 billion through the Business Development Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada to help companies prepare to export their products to other markets; and $50 million over five years to help businesses take advantage of recently signed trade agreements with the European Union and Asia.

“We have a fund in place, grants in place to support” both small and large companies, Bains said.

Hajdu said the federal government will also be contributing $25 million to extend the duration of work-sharing agreements to 76 weeks under the Employment Insurance program.

Work-sharing agreements are eligible to employees who are working reduced work-weeks while their employer deals with reductions in business activity. It is typically available for a maximum period of 38 weeks.

An additional $50 million will be made available to the provinces and territories to provide skills and job training for workers in the affected industries, Hajdu said.

August • Août 2018 | 27

In addition to the government’s funding package, it will introduce safeguards around specific products. Bains said the government will be consulting with both the steel and aluminum industries to discuss which products should be safeguarded. Safeguarding products would involve placing tariffs and quotas to prevent foreign steel or aluminum, previously bound for the U.S., from being deflected into Canada.

In order to impose a safeguard, the government must launch an investigation with the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, but can impose provisional safeguards for up to 200 days pending the investigation’s outcome if there are “critical circumstances” where delaying to implement safeguards could inflict difficult-to-repair damage on the domestic industry.

In 2017 Canada’s steel industry employed more than 23,000 workers –

about a third of them from Hamilton – and contributed $4.2 billion to the national GDP. The aluminum industry employed 10,500 workers and contributed $4.7 billion.

– Kelsey Rolfe

Brewing strikes at Chilean copper mines could impact price of metal Possible labour strikes at two of the largest copper mines in the world threaten to impact the price of copper.

Workers at Codelco’s Chuquicamata mine in the Antofagasta region of Chile are, as of press time, threatening to strike to protest the company’s plans to transition the existing open pit to an underground mine, which would eliminate up to 1,700 jobs.

As well, the union representing workers at BHP’s Escondida, the world’s largest copper producer, began new labour negotiations with the company in early June. The existing contract is set to expire on July 31.

Escondida, located in the northern part of Chile’s Atacama Desert, produces 1.1 million tonnes of copper annually, and Chuquicamata produces an additional 300,000 tonnes. Together they account for roughly seven per cent of global copper production, and 25 per cent of Chile’s copper output.

“I would say the effect on prices has already been very significant,” said Erik Heimlich, a Santiago, Chile-based analyst with CRU Group. “When the negotiations started earlier, the market reacted very strongly to the news.”

The union at Escondida is demanding a bonus equivalent to four per cent of 2017 dividends distributed to share-

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28 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Courtesy of BHP

developments

Escondida produces 1.1 million tonnes of copper annually, and makes up 2.5 per cent of Chile's GDP.

holders, or about US$34,000, and a five per cent wage increase for each worker. A previous strike at Escondida last year lasted 43 days and reduced the mine’s annual output by 7.8 per cent.

The union invoked a rarely used legal provision that allowed them to revert to their existing contract for 18 months and end the strike.

Escondida employs 2,300 people directly and makes up 2.5 per cent of Chile’s GDP. Chuquicamata employs about 5,600.

Escondida’s workers were emboldened last year by new Chilean labour laws that were enacted to strengthen the position of union groups after they were severely weakened during Augusto Pinochet’s nearly twodecade-long dictatorship. Heimlich said that now that markets are familiar with the new laws, it may influence how they react to labour negotiations this year.

Copper prices rallied in December and look set for growth this year and in 2019. Andy Blamey, S&P Global Platts’ associate editorial director of metals pricing, told CIM Magazine in February that due to the number of labour contracts up for renewal at copper mines in Chile and Peru, “the market may be factoring in a disruption risk premium.”

In 2018, Chilean mining companies will have to negotiate contracts with a total of 32 unions, according to a Bloomberg report. But Heimlich noted several of the labour negotiations that have taken place so far this year were

settled without disruption, including at Antofagasta Plc’s Los Pelambres, despite fears they would pile on each other.

– Kevin Martine

Vale and BHP sign agreement dismissing US$5.3-billion Samarco lawsuit Vale and BHP signed a final agreement with Brazilian authorities on June 25 that “extinguishes” a US$5.3-billion claim from federal and state governments against the companies for the 2015 tailings dam collapse at their jointly owned Samarco mine.

The agreement also sets a two-year timeline to negotiate on the US$55-billion civil claim from Brazilian prosecutors.

(The US dollar figures of the lawsuits have increased from our last report on the Samarco negotiations due to fluctuations in the currency exchange rate.)

The companies signed the agreement last year, but finalizing it was repeatedly delayed.

The dam failure killed 19 people, destroyed the small community of Bento Rodrigues, and severely polluted the Rio Doce watershed in November 2015.

The companies also agreed to give local communities two seats on the seven-member board of the Renova Foundation, which was set up by Samarco to manage the remediation

and rebuild communities. Previously, six were appointed by Samarco and one by a council of government agencies.

In a statement Vale said that the agreement “represents an important step towards solving the challenges caused by the Fundão tailing dam accident, especially by increasing the participation of the affected people in the governing bodies of the Renova Foundation.”

The companies had previously agreed to a settlement in 2016 with the state and federal governments, but that was vetoed by federal prosecutors, who demanded they pay more in damages.

It is not clear when the mine will reopen, as it still requires multiple permits to move forward, and Samarco has said it needs to renegotiate the terms of its debt. Before the dam failure, it was one of the world’s largest iron ore operations, producing 30 million tonnes of iron ore pellets annually.

A report on the dam collapse said poor drainage caused the sand used in the dam to liquefy, destabilizing the structure over time.

The agreement is still subject to approval from Brazil’s 12th Federal Court of Minas Gerais, the court representing the state in which Samarco is located.

– Kevin Martine

Inaugural Resources for Future Generations conference draws 2,000 to Vancouver Long-term planning and sustainable development were the focus at the inaugural Resources for Future Generations (RFG 2018) conference, from June 16 to 21. More than 2,000 people and 50 exhibitors attended the fourday event in Vancouver. The new event aimed to discuss the future of resource management within an interdisciplinary framework by bringing together a wide range of industry professionals and academics.

“When you set out to create something as broad as this and try to delve into problems that cut across many different aspects, it’s always difficult to August • Août 2018 | 29

Jon Benjamin Photography

really draw people together to open up and discuss,” said John Thompson, chair of RFG’s organizing committee. “I think we did that, and there’s a lot more that can be done going forward.”

Daily multidisciplinary plenary sessions brought together miners, environmentalists and social scientists to discuss the future sustainability and stability of natural resources, and the concept of using and recycling resources in a circular economy.

Ross Beaty, the founder and chairman of Pan American Silver, said during the opening plenary session that the current global focus on economic growth above all else is flawed, and that the trend of increasing resource use that many in John Thompson, chair of RFG’s organizing committhe industry and government plan tee, at the conference's opening ceremony. for is fundamentally unsustainable.

“It’s time to recognize that we can’t edging that we’re living in a warming assume the growth will continue,” world,” she said. “We have blinders on Beaty added. when we talk and plan about resource Tzeporah Berman, an environmenextraction.” tal advisor, added in the same session The six streams of technical sessions that when it came to the current, and also looked at sustainable and renewunsustainable, use of resources, “We able use of energy, minerals and water, can no longer plan without acknowland investigated ways of improving the

recycling of resources. Education and social outcomes were also highlighted.

Several of the invited speakers emphasized the importance of appealing to younger generations to help solve the challenges of resource management currently facing the world.

“Because technology is moving along so quickly, students need to learn how to unlearn,” said Richard Chuchla, director of the energy and earth sciences program at the University of Texas-Austin. Chuchla proposed universities start offering multidisciplinary degrees, rather than conventional one-subject programs. He argued such innovative approaches would help students keep pace with a continuously changing world.

Thompson said work on the next conference is ongoing.

“We had some fantastic discussion that was generated. I would argue that we’ve just begun the longer term dialogue,” Thompson said, “and hopefully there will be much more to come in the future.”

– Kevin Martine, with files from Tom DiNardo

Scaling back professional reliance Review of B.C.’s professional reliance system calls for expanded powers for chief mines inspector

By Robert Hiltz

British Columbia’s chief mines inspector should have expanded powers to add new conditions to mine permits and call for independent environmental engineering reports, according to recommendations in a new review of the province’s professional reliance system.

The report, released in June, recommended the government put professional requirements directly into legislation and suggested the province clearly define what a “qualified person” is, rather than leave it up to a mine manager.

The proposed changes to B.C.’s Mines Act are part of a sweeping review 30 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

of the province’s oversight of natural resource projects, called “professional reliance,” undertaken by University of Victoria environmental law professor Mark Haddock. The professional reliance system delegates certain oversight and regulatory tasks to certified professionals such as engineers, and has been in place in B.C. for about 15 years.

The review was promised as a part of the coalition agreement between the B.C. NDP and Green parties following the last provincial election.

The report calls for the scaling back of professional reliance, and the intro-

duction of a new body to regulate professional organizations in the province.

The recommendations, if implemented, could constitute sweeping change to B.C.’s mining industry and put more oversight power back in the hands of the government.

The changes to the Mines Act would give significant new powers to the chief mines inspector. “There is some uncertainty about the chief inspector’s authority to impose additional conditions or changes in the existing conditions in a mine permit without an application from the permit holder. This should be

developments resolved to ensure that the chief inspector has authority to respond to conditions as they arise,” Haddock wrote.

In recommending a clearer definition of a “qualified person,” Haddock wrote that the current definition relies on the mine manager’s opinion, and should instead be defined in the Act. “[Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources] staff have indicated this has been problematic in the past, particularly for smaller mines,” the report said.

The report also recommended putting professional requirements into the Mines Act. “Consider migrating some of the standard professional requirements into the Act itself, while reserving the authority to specify additional requirements in permits for mine-specific requirements. This could include new requirements for use of professionals in matters such as mine reclamation, and permit application requirements.”

The review calls for the creation of an “Office of Professional Regulation and Oversight,” which would oversee five different professional organizations in the province related to the resource and agricultural sectors: agrologists, biologists, foresters, applied science technologists, and engineers and geoscientists.

One of the main goals of the proposed oversight office would be to standardize the rules governing the different professional associations. It would also investigate and enforce codes of conduct and other rules governing the organizations. The report also recommended the province give professional organizations the ability to enforce its code of ethics not just on individual professionals but on firms, particularly consultancies.

“If the recommendations are accepted, it will be important that this work be carried out in close collaboration with the professional associations,” Haddock wrote.

Danielle Bell, a spokesperson for the province’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, said the recommendations are still under review, and that since receiving the report, the ministry has begun consultations with stakeholders. She said responses from

the consultations are expected to be completed by the end of this year.

“We want to make sure the actions flowing from this review will help to build confidence in the professional reliance model amongst the public, industry, and qualified professionals,” Bell said.

The report has so far been met with strong industry pushback. The president of the Mining Association of British Columbia (MABC), Bryan Cox, dismissed the report in a statement, saying it goes too far.

“MABC was hopeful the report would represent the substantive submissions received by important stakeholders like the mining industry and make recommendations focused on good governance and transparency,” Cox said in the statement. “Instead, the report strays beyond the terms of reference, proposing significant changes to the system without the necessary justification, investigation or reference to British Columbia’s best practices to support them.”

Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia (EGBC) agreed with some of the recommendations. EGBC said in a statement several of the proposed additional tools for associations are in line with their recommendations. “These tools include the ability to regulate engineering and geoscience companies, adding new tools to improve flexibility and responsiveness of regulators, and the ability to ensure competency of engineers and geoscientists through continuing professional development.”

However, the association said the creation of a provincial oversight office would not be necessary.

“We are concerned that the one-sizefits-all model proposed in the report does not account for the varied size and complexity of regulators,” the statement said. “At this point, the potential for unintended consequences has not been assessed.”

Ugo Lapointe, the Canada Program Coordinator for MiningWatch Canada, said the focus on putting the public interest at the heart of professional association codes of ethics will go a long way toward removing conflicts of duty for

professionals in B.C. “Their professional standards or opinions on different issues will often conflict with [their] company’s interests and priorities,” he said. “It often boils down to money, and cost, and needing a permit.”

He said by giving professional associations the ability to regulate smaller firms like consultancies, it puts everyone under the same ethics umbrella, which would further reduce conflicts.

While the mining-specific sections of the review are fairly narrow, Lapointe said that doesn’t mean there will be a narrow effect on the industry. “The core recommendations would affect mining too,” he said, “by restructuring … how professionals in the mining sector work and apply their standards.”

Andrew Gage, a lawyer in charge of the climate change division of West Coast Environmental Law, said in some industries the reliance model in effect outsources much of the oversight responsibility to professionals in the industry. In the mining sector, he said, there is a better balance between the needs of industry and the government.

“I think the report does a good job of recognizing the problems, both with the regulatory outsourcing and the more subtle [way that] professionals really have a responsibility to look not just at the interests of their employer, but the broader public interest.”

To Gage, the review offers an opportunity to rebalance the scales between industry and the government in a way that can increase the confidence in the public in the process.

“Public trust is something that’s important to the industry – social licence and the sense that the public is going to see approvals as valid and not merely as a result of a government that doesn’t actually have power to do anything because they’ve turned it all over to industry professionals,” he said.

“From that point of view there’s an opportunity here that I hope people in the mining industry and others are going to recognize that there does need to be a rebalancing and a realignment of how government has been working.” CIM August • Août 2018 | 31

Courtesy of Liane Boyer

Staking out a new career Liane Boyer turned to prospecting for the flexibility to raise a family, and the thrill of the chase.

By Kylie Williams

O

ntario exploration geologist Liane Boyer, 39, stands out in the province’s active prospecting scene. She is one of only a handful of women in a group largely populated by older men. According to David Murray, the executive director of the Ontario Prospectors Association, around two-thirds of the association’s roughly 900 members are over 35 years old, and many of them are over 50. Although the majority are male, it is not Boyer’s gender that makes her stand out. She is part of a wave of modern prospectors who are embracing online staking, devouring public geoscience data, and using open source GIS software to combine data-driven desktop prospecting with traditional boots-on-the-ground experience.

Boyer has worked on diverse projects around the world, from “secret” kimberlites in northern Alberta and Quebec during the height of the diamond boom to working underground in outback Australia. She has undertaken exploration for major companies, junior explorers and as a consultant. But when she made the decision to start a family and settle in Thunder Bay, Ontario, she found that prospecting was a great fit for her as a parent in need of a flexible lifestyle and as a geologist with an unstoppable drive for discovery.

CIM: When did you realize you wanted to be a geologist?

Boyer: I started an arts degree in classical studies and the student loans were piling up. I realized that I didn’t want to be a teacher or a lawyer, so I transferred to engineering because the chance of getting a well-paid job was higher. I attended a recruitment night and a geological engineer showed us photos of people in camps and travelling to remote destinations and I was hooked.

CIM: What drew you to prospecting?

Boyer: Since leaving the life of a field geologist, most of the work I have done as a consultant has been heavy on modelling and data analysis. And while those are aspects of geology where I have a lot of experience, my real passion is targeting and discovery.

The amazing thing about living in Thunder Bay is it really is the gateway to northwestern Ontario – an area that,

Liane Boyer is part of a wave of modern prospectors who are combining data-driven desktop prospecting with traditional boots-onthe-ground experience.

in my opinion, is underexplored. When I got past the fog of having very young children and started to sink my teeth into the geology of this region, the potential was exhilarating. I think when you’ve spent your career looking for mineral deposits, it’s hard to stop. Although I wasn’t free to head back to being a full-time field geologist, I realized that I could satisfy my drive for exploration through prospecting on my own terms.

CIM: How does it feel to stake and work on your own claims?

Boyer: Fieldwork is pretty amazing when I’m working the ground on my own claims, covering the ground, and breaking rocks. My company is called Broken Rock Resources because I feel like you need to break a lot of rocks to find a deposit. That, and often the good stuff is in the worst rock, hence broken rock.

Hopefully, if all goes to plan this summer, I’ll be drilling some targets.

CIM: How do you balance fieldwork and family?

Boyer: I have taken my two kids, now four and seven years old, out prospecting with me on a number of occasions.

Obviously, I have to have low expectations on what will be accomplished, but they love it. They love looking for gold and diamonds and are eager field assistants. There is the added bonus that a lot of the areas I work in have lots of blueberries in late summer.

I took them out prospecting for the first time when my son was only two years old. It’s basically a back-country camping trip with some hiking and rocks thrown in. My son is determined to be a rock hunter when he grows up and my daughter is the resident rock expert in her class.

When I need to get work done I obviously don’t take my kids, but they have helped me check out some easy-to-access targets. I like teaching them skills like how to read a map and canoeing. I’ve also taken my dad out prospecting with me.

August • Août 2018 | 33

The Organizing committee of the upcoming 17th North American Mine Ventilation Symposium (NAMVS 2019) in collaboration with The Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) is pleased to announce the NAMVS 2019 symposium, which will be held at the Montréal, Canada Palais des Congrès from April 28 to May 1, 2019.

The NAMVS 2019 is a peer-reviewed symposium. We invite you to submit an abstract on the NAMVS2019.org website before August 30, 2018.

Topics covered: Ventilation network analysis & optimization Main and booster fans Auxiliary ventilation Ventilation monitoring and measurement Ventilation on demand Mine gasses: hard rock mines Mine gasses: coal mines Mine dust monitoring and control Diesel particulate control Mine fires and explosion prevention Mine heating Mine cooling & refrigeration Renewable/alternative energy in mine ventilation, heating & cooling Computational fluid dynamics applications in mine ventilation Electric machineries in mine ventilation

IMPORTANT INFORMATION • Abstract submission limit: 300 words • Abstract submission deadline: August 30, 2018

Mine ventilation & automation Mine ventilation regulations & policy Occupational health & safety in mine ventilation Mine management and organization of ventilation

• Abstract decision to authors: October 1, 2018

Case studies

• Draft full paper deadline: December 15, 2018

Energy in mining

• Peer review decision: January 15, 2019 • Final paper deadline: March 1, 2019 • Authors registration deadline: February 1, 2019

NAMVS2019.org

Submit your abstract before August 30, 2018

we are mining CIM: Is there anything you miss about working for a company?

Boyer: I do miss the resources you have available to you with a company, like expensive software packages and helicopters.

As a prospector, I can’t often afford a helicopter and right now I’m studying canoe routes to access some difficult to reach areas on one of my new gold claims.

My passion is generative work and I’d work in exploration for a company again if the role had the flexibility we need right now. My husband is also an exploration geologist, it’s how we met. He is the vice-president of exploration at New Dimension Resources and often travels to their projects in Argentina. He is very supportive of my exploration goals, but I’m not interested in three-week stints in the field right now. I can walk my kids to school in the morning, I can do a workout midday, and if I need to put more time in on something I can work late without having to justify overtime to anyone. Flexibility is huge for me. It’s how I work best.

something that just didn’t fit. So I started working it up and realized that it had all the characteristics of a classic VMS. The freedom to follow my geological instincts is a huge plus.

CIM: How do you fit into the prospecting ‘scene’ in Ontario today?

Boyer: It is a diverse and eclectic space. I’ve met people who have been prospecting for a lifetime and others just out of school and looking to stake their first claim. Like myself, most of the prospectors I’ve met have other jobs both in the industry and outside of it to make ends meet.

I totally feel like I belong in the prospecting world. There are still quite a few more male prospectors than female prospectors. However, the Bjorkman dynasty here in northwest Ontario is certainly helping to sway that statistic. So there may not be a lot of people like me, but everyone is supportive and passionate about discovery. CIM

CIM: What is your approach to prospecting?

Boyer: I like to use a follow-the-data approach. I don’t decide

We Are Mining

to look for a certain commodity in a certain area – I just start working through data and see what sort of ideas it sparks. That’s how I found my Wishbone volcanic massive sulfides (VMS) property. I was looking through some data and noticed

Throughout 2018 CIM Magazine will feature the stories and experiences of women, Indigenous people and people of colour working in the mining industry. Do you have an idea for a story we should report? Reach out: krolfe@cim.org

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August • AoÝt 2018 | 35

Regulatory trends in water discharge

By Jon M. Dinges

T

he U.S. federal government and multiple states have been tightening water discharge standards over the past few years. Today, many jurisdictions are developing numeric nutrient criteria for nitrogen and phosphorous.

With this in mind, mining operations need to update their water management plans to meet these new standards once they are issued.

The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program in the U.S. regulates the discharge of pollutants into surface waters. Delegated to most states, the program establishes total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) for pollutants for surface water bodies to help determine whether waters are either meeting their standards or are impaired for certain pollutants.

Most regulated pollutants are quantitative – for example, no more than 3.7 micrograms per litre of copper in a body of water. But historically, water quality criteria for nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous have been governed by regulations that state that entities “cannot discharge nitrogen or phosphorous in amounts that will cause an imbalance in flora and fauna in the water body.”

Unsurprisingly, this has made it difficult to determine discharge levels and resulting impairment. To address this, the federal U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated the National Numeric Nutrient Criteria Strategy, and plans to work with states to develop specific numeric criteria for nutrients in water bodies.

Understanding numeric nutrient criteria Although nitrogen and phosphorus occur naturally in aquatic ecosystems, elevated levels can cause massive algal blooms that threaten water quality and impact streams, rivers, lakes, bays and coastal waters, resulting in serious environmental, economic and health issues.

Numeric nutrient criteria targeting nitrogen and phosphorus pollution are an important tool for protecting these water bodies, as the criteria can enable effective monitoring, facilitate the development of NPDES discharge permits, and simplify TMDLs for impaired waters.

Today, it is critical for states to work with the EPA to determine nutrient limits in discharge, to help water bodies move from impaired status to meeting water quality standards. The issue crosses international borders as well. To help combat the toxic algal blooms that plague the Great Lakes, Canada and the U.S. entered into the 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, which established phosphorous reduction targets for Lake Erie. The two nations are working together to outline strategies for meeting the new targets.

36 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Case study: phosphate mining in Florida According to the U.S. Geologic Society (USGS), the U.S. is the world’s third-largest producer of phosphate after China and Morocco/Western Sahara. Although Canada has not yet produced notable amounts of phosphate to date, significant igneous occurrences are located throughout the country, and in 2015, Quebec approved Arianne Phosphate’s $1.2-billion Lac à Paul phosphate mine in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region, expected to be the largest in Canada near an inhabited area.

In the U.S., phosphate mining is well-established in central and north-central Florida, where it has been a key economic driver for decades. The Florida Springs Initiative is a case study involving a large phosphate mine in Florida that operates in a very sensitive environment.

The nearby river is nutrient impaired, and the surrounding area is a designated water resource caution area, meaning water supplies are insufficient and water quantity is a concern.

The initiative is actively working to restore natural artesian springs across the state. Many springs are present in the area, requiring the mining company to be extremely cognizant of how they operate to avoid impacting those resources.

The mining company, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Suwannee River Water Management District came together to develop a unique US$3.6-million project.

They developed a solution that relied on a pump station and a pair of pipelines to redirect water from the point of discharge back to the mine to be reused in the mine’s surface water operations. The goal was to reuse discharge water, reduce mine discharge and associated nutrient load, and reduce groundwater pumped from the Floridan aquifer system, which feeds the natural springs in the area.

The project successfully reduced phosphorus by about 110,000 pounds per year, nitrogen by about 140,000 pounds per year, and groundwater use by about 20 million gallons.

Getting ahead of regulations Proactive, forward-thinking mining operations are committed to sustainable practices as they work to maintain their social licence to operate. Numeric nutrient criteria will continue to develop across the United States, greatly affecting how mines operate and discharge. Mining operations that have the foresight to cooperate with states proactively will benefit. For while the cost of compliance can be fairly significant, the cost for noncompliance is far more damaging. CIM Jon Dinges, P.E., is Senior Water Resources Planning Leader for Black & Veatch’s water business

column

Political risk and how to reduce it

By Mauro Chiesa

B

ank capital from here on out has to be more transparently allocated, especially for lending in fragile economies, now that Basel III is in effect. This international regulatory accord, a response to the 2007-2009 financial crisis, aims to strengthen regulation, supervision, and risk management for banks. This means that projectrisk financing from banks in politically and economically frail countries is going to be increasingly hard to find, putting the onus on mining companies to have a higher equity commitment. Having worked with many developing countries during my career at the World Bank Group, several New York City banks and Export Development Canada (EDC), I am frequently asked my opinion on political risk reduction, and, frankly, there is no silver bullet. With mining operations increasingly taking place in countries with uncertain political climates, it is more important today than ever before to think carefully about risk mitigation and management.

I have compiled a list of general guidelines below. It is important to remember that the strategies, or partial strategies, are not guarantees against political risk, but they can go a long way to mitigating it.

Hire locals whenever possible. Locals, especially in seriously impoverished countries, can provide invaluable and early political feedback. These workers can be the eyes and ears on the local or regional political situation. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), for example, where regional interests may be at odds with the capital, local hires have proven to be a valuable resource for many foreign mining companies in the outlying regions.

Hold semi-annual meetings with the locals. Invite local, regional and national stakeholders to provide feedback on the prevailing issues. Make sure your mining company’s senior management is represented at these meetings so the issues are heard and can be addressed directly, not via third-hand routes.

Ensure the permits and community relations (PCR) person is properly placed. The PCR person should answer directly to the COO, the CEO, or as high up in your organizational chart as possible. If your PCR person is answering to an internal department, such as legal or operations, that department may misinterpret the issue, in a purely legal fashion, for example, which may not reflect the nature of the grievance.

Or, because operations departments tend to focus on immediate operational results, quotas and budgets, it may simply sub-

ordinate the grievance. And always remain aware of your existing accords and permits and get all of your renewals in early; coups are seldom announced beforehand.

Optimize both resource sharing and issue minimization.

Share as much of your infrastructure as possible with the local population. Mining companies in the DRC have opened up their ex-pat-staffed schools and clinics to the whole community. Elsewhere in Africa, power lines are crossing the mining perimeter to help illuminate the surrounding towns. These kinds of goodwill actions may increase operating costs marginally, but they go a long way to reducing the political risks that can arise in a hostile environment. This is why many feasibility studies are actually infeasibility studies: They reduce the operating costs of the mine by excluding the surrounding community from power, drinking water and telephony, thereby cosmetically increasing the sustainability of the project. This only increases the political risk of social and/or local discontent.

Minimize the environmental footprint. If possible, choose affordable solar and wind power to reduce your energy costs.

This has the added benefit of reducing your dependency on the local power utility, thus reducing the associated political risk. Additionally, road sharing with a nearby extractive industry can reduce both the physical footprint and the permit red tape required (and, of course, the potential for political repercussions).

Get political risk insurance. The final point, and one that is often lost on many mining entities, is that political risk insurance, from, say, the EDC or the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency of the World Bank Group, is a good investment. Insurance is an effective deterrent against countries taking hostile action on a guaranteed investment, as doing so creates negative financial or political consequences elsewhere for the country. A gentleman’s agreement made on the golf course with a minister may seem secure, but the institutional shareholders of the future will need, and demand, more.

Political risk is here for a while. We must accept it, anticipate it and plan around it. By keeping the above strategies in mind, we will all sleep better. CIM

Mauro Chiesa has over 39 years of experience in financing and advising extractive and infrastructure projects. He has worked with multinational banks in New York City, at the World Bank Group and EDC.

August • Août 2018 | 37

Courtesy of Nadia Mykytczuk

Winter workers How cold-adapted bacteria can benefit miners

By Christopher Pollon

Laurentian University researcher Nadia Mykytczuk in the field

N

adia Mykytczuk, Industrial Research Chair in biomining, bioremediation and science communication at Laurentian University, spends a lot of time studying how micro-organisms like bacteria can be used to extract minerals and re-process legacy mine waste, all of which can reduce the environmental liabilities of mining.

As one of the few mining microbiologists focused on cold environments like Canada, she is working to create a Centre for Mine Waste Biotechnology that will nurture the next generation of scientists, companies and microbial mining tools.

CIM: What path led you to your current work at Laurentian University?

Mykytczuk: Very early on I was focused on how microbes work in various environments. While I was an undergrad at Carleton University, I got a co-op placement at the National Research Council looking at vaccine development for various pathogens; for my PhD at Laurentian, I looked at the adaptation of acid mine drainage (AMD) bacteria to acidic and cold environments. For my post-doc at McGill University, I worked in the Canadian Arctic, and I really got a sense of just how extreme bacteria can be, in that they can survive and work in environments where nothing else survives.

CIM: At what point did you make the jump to mining?

Mykytczuk: When I completed all that work, I realized there was a niche in understanding how bacteria worked in mining contexts in cold climates like Canada, and that’s what really got me interested. So that brought me back to Sudbury, where I got my Industrial Research Chair in 2016.

CIM: As far as the applications to mining, your work looks at bioremediation and biomining. How do both of these work?

Mykytczuk: With biomining or bioleaching, we are looking to apply microbial communities either in situ, so something 38 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

like a heap leach, or in a bioreactor to process mine waste.

The latter could be tailings, waste rock, or even slag. The goal is to use microbes to accelerate mineral weathering to extract some of the available metals that are still present postprocessing. The advantage of that process is that a lot of [historical] tailings are weathering slowly in the environment, leaching metals and toxic acidity into the environment. So if we can use bioleaching as a treatment step, it’s sort of the first step in a series of remediation steps that can clean up the site and make it less reactive. By oxidizing the iron and the sulfur, you are reducing the ability to generate AMD over the long term, and with it you are removing a lot of the metals that might be causing toxicity in downstream aquatic environments. The residue left over after the processing is less reactive and amenable to things like covers and establishing plants to clean up and close the site.

CIM: You have said it’s only now that technology has advanced to the point that we can understand microbial communities at a mine site.

How has the technology evolved?

Mykytczuk: We’ve known for 40 years that bacteria are catalysts – which can catalyze the reaction and the breakdown of minerals in the same way as smelting or chemical solvent extraction. But the challenge was that studying microbes is very difficult because over 90 per cent of microbes from the environment can’t be cultured, which means we couldn’t bring them into the lab to study them.

This has really only changed in the last 10 or 15 years, with the advent of genomic sequencing technology. What’s changed is that all the early studies and processes that we developed through leaching technology 30 to 40 years ago were based on a few key species we could grow in a flask in the lab. Now we can go to any mining environment, take a scoop of soil and sequence all the DNA in that material, and it gives us a library of the thousands of different bacterial species that are present. We can then get a sense of what they

environmental management are capable of doing, and hone in on the key organisms we need to break down a particular mineral, say chalcopyrite, for example. Now we have an ability to open up a black box, which we assumed we understood. It’s really been this ability to look at the community in real time and start asking, “What are these processes?” And with that, the ability to control the ecosystem.

to warm-adapted organisms. In this area of research, there are only a handful of [researchers] in the world focused on cold-active mineral weathering, but we are starting to tease apart the role of these organisms not only in AMD production in cold climates and alpine environments, but then applying these in biotechnology so it can be suited to cold temperatures.

CIM: Bioleaching is currently used in the world to extract things like copper, cobalt, nickel, and uranium – but are there still a lot of metals and minerals that we can’t use biomining for yet?

Mykytczuk: It’s exciting because for every mineral and

CIM: Can you tell me about your work with Laurentian University’s Living with Lakes Centre – what is your role there and what are you working on?

Mykytczuk: I was brought on as a research scientist at

environment out there, there’s a community of organisms that has adapted to it. The advantage now is that not only do we know there is a much greater diversity of organisms, but it allows us to start looking at very refractory materials. We can now see if there is something that can break down minerals that historically have been very difficult to process.

Laurentian University in late 2012. The Living with Lakes Centre includes a core of scientists who first came together decades ago from government and academia to better understand stressed aquatic ecosystems in places like Sudbury, where historical industrial emissions like sulfur dioxide have had a profound effect on lake ecosystems. [The Centre leadership] has more recently come around to understanding that microbial ecology is very important in understanding how systems recover and how nutrients can be reestablished in lakes that are struggling to get back to normal. As part of my broader research program, I’m working to better understand the microbial communities in these impacted environments, including peatlands, lakes and streams.

CIM: How can micro-organisms help miners deal with AMD? Mykytczuk: The bioleaching processes most of the time are oxidative processes, which means they are going to accelerate the generation of AMD. But if you’re doing it in a controlled environment, then effectively you are reducing that capacity over the long term. There is a whole community of bacteria that can run the reaction in the opposite way, so rather than breaking down and oxidizing the sulfides and causing the AMD, they can reverse the process and capture those sulfides and limit the amount of AMD they produce over time. These are the sulfate-reducing bacteria, which are dominant in places like wetlands; they can capture and sequester a lot of metals, are stable and do not leach out into the environment.

CIM: As far as commercializing microorganisms, particularly in cold climates like Canada, what kind of tools will miners be able to draw on 10 years from now?

Mykytczuk: There is an opportunity for many new

interested is that we’re behind in applying bioleaching technologies compared to the rest of the world, and we have a huge opportunity given the thousands of abandoned sites we have in Canada, and the value of metals just sitting in those deposits.

companies to develop optimized applied versions of this technology for all of the different mine wastes that we have.

Whether it’s going after silver, cobalt or gold, the opportunity is to have and apply these technologies as part of a tool set. So the challenge right now is to scale up these technologies, make sure they are robust and reproducible, and then apply them to different environments. Every tailings environment is different, so the technology has to be adaptable. And, making sure that that is available to companies that will start up and that they have microbiologists on their team is something I’d like to see develop in the next five to 10 years.

CIM: Why is Canada behind the curve using microorganisms in mining?

Mykytczuk: When you look at all the countries where

CIM: Can you tell us about the centre you’re working on setting up now?

Mykytczuk: I’m looking at developing a Centre for Mine

bioleaching is used right now, most are tropical or pretty temperate, without the [winters] we get in Canada. My research is looking at bacteria that can break down mine waste happily at cold temperatures. I started this work as my PhD thesis characterizing some of these cold-active bacteria.

Even at temperatures of 0 C and 5 C, these bacteria are still able to break down a lot of those minerals at a similar rate

Waste Biotechnology where we’d be advancing [technology] we have, bringing it up to full piloted-demonstration scale, and allowing and incubating new companies to take that technology out into the mining sector. We’re still at prefeasibility with this, which should be completed by this fall, but it’s something I’d like to see develop in the next five to 10 years. There are very few centres like this in the world. CIM

CIM: Early in your career you had worked in cold environments. From what I gather, this is still an area of focus for you?

Mykytczuk: Yes, absolutely. One of the things that got me

August • Août 2018 | 39

Courtesy of Mark Wittrup

Bill C-69 and its potential to affect new mine development Will the new bill be able to balance politics with pragmatism?

By Mark Wittrup

I

n February the federal government tabled Bill C-69, legislation to replace the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012), introducing changes that have the potential to affect the licensing of new mining and other natural resource developments that fall under the current federal environmental review process. The permitting of projects that require both federal and provincial approvals represents a worst case scenario for mine permitting in Canada. For instance, there is the potential that projects currently regulated only by provinces, such as potash developments, will end up captured by the federal process. We can expect an increase of these as more operations are captured by the revised, and likely expanded, Regulations Designating Physical Activities, all of which will require a new federal Impact Assessment (IA).

Despite the government’s IA reform promises of timeliness and predictability, the proposed legislation will deliver significantly more process at the front end to accommodate broader stakeholder input and alignment between the federal and provincial governments involved (and possibly the U.S. if the project is transboundary), as well as Indigenous groups. As of the third reading, the originally proposed 180day planning phase has been replaced by a more nebulous wording that the agency has to convene within 180 days.

While there is merit in getting issues on the table early so they can be considered in project design, the proposed process will only exacerbate the current state of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in Canada – plagued by timeliness and predictability issues due to an inability to properly scope projects and the power of interest organizations – unless there are responsibilities and timelines placed on all participants. Why should the proponent be the only one with responsibilities in this process? It is frankly naive to 40 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

expect that consensus can be achieved with so many different voices and agendas involved. It sets the stage for politics to override common sense and pragmatism.

Central to Bill C-69 is the creation of the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAA) to handle all federal impact assessments for projects on the Regulations Designating Physical Activities list or referred by the environment minister.

While most mining projects will likely not require an IA panel, it appears that new uranium mines and mills will require a mandatory IA panel with an initial timeline of up to 600 days (300 days for non-panel projects), not including the planning phase. These mandated times refer to “government time” only, as the proponent has up to three years to produce its IA document. Given the exemplary record of modern uranium mines and mills, it is not clear why they have been singled out, especially given the rigorous oversight of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC). Will the revised Regulations Designating Physical Activities list include more mines requiring a mandatory IA panel?

The proposed legislation also introduces cost recovery for IA, with no mechanism that allows the proponent to challenge the costs in a largely unmanaged and un-scoped process. It is not clear to what extent the proponent will be responsible for the participant funding costs. A mining proponent can expect to be responsible for cost-recovery from the agencies regulating the Fisheries Act, Impact Assessment Act, Navigation Protection Act, and, if it is a uranium project, the CNSC for licensing and IA work.

In many respects, the government has co-opted the participation of Indigenous groups by raising the expectation that they will have an effective veto under the free and informed consent model. Project proponents and Indigenous groups are both left with high expectations of success in the revised legislation but

environmental management no mechanisms to ensure it. As now, it may remain the responsibility of the proponent and the Indigenous group to pre-emptively fashion an agreement to get ahead of the IA process (e.g., an impact and benefit agreement or similar). While we recognize that successful partnerships are the result of mutual respect and relationships, Bill C-69 does not provide mechanisms to promote this as the IAA is expected to broker relationships.

The federal government promises that it will be a more efficient and timely IA process. As a long-time practitioner, it is difficult to see how this can happen with a larger audience for participation, increased participant funding, a mysterious planning phase, and all groups believing they have a veto, or at a minimum, the ability to manage the outcome. By giving everyone a say, the process is ripe for politics to enter the forum, and if so, all bets are off with respect to timeliness and reason. In fact, given the planning phase and its participation scope, the requirement for ministerial or cabinet approvals at the end of the IA process, the IAA appears specifically designed to allow for political interference. Additionally, the government can add delays at several crucial points in the process to reflect their level of political uncertainty.

Overall, the government is trying to fix what is not broken – CEAA 2012. What is broken is the government’s ability to act as the impartial brokers in the EIA process (arguably with the exceptions of the CNSC and the National Energy Board)

after decades of neglect created by political uncertainty that have led to an erosion of the effectiveness of the process that, in turn, has devolved decision making to vocal interest groups.

Nothing in the proposed Bill C-69 will likely improve this. If the promises of timeliness and efficiency do not materialize (e.g., with the Trans Mountain pipeline and others), proponents will look to other jurisdictions to invest in major projects with more certainty of return on their investment.

Broadly speaking, environmental protection is the result of a strong economy; and, despite the naysayers, economic development and environmental protection, including protection of human health and safety, are not mutually exclusive. Unfortunately, the new IA processes will strengthen the division between protection and development and continue to push the decision making to politics propelled by the most vocal. As currently envisioned, the proposed IA process will create significant delays, a confrontational environment, and missed opportunity, impacting those that need that economic development the most: northern and Indigenous communities. The tragedy is that all sides can likely agree on the outcomes: prosperity and economic development that protects the environment and human health and safety. CIM Mark Wittrup is the vice-president of environmental and regulatory affairs at Clifton Associates.

August • Août 2018 | 41

Courtesy of Greg Dipple

Tailings to the rescue UBC professor Greg Dipple aims to prove that tailings could be a mine’s secret weapon for reducing its carbon footprint

By Cecilia Keating

I

n order to avoid an increase of the global temperature by two and half degrees by 2100, the scientific consensus is that society must achieve net negative emissions – in other words, pull more planet-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air than we produce.

According to University of British Columbia Bradshaw Initiative for Minerals and Mining professor Greg Dipple, the mining industry could become a major player in helping society achieve this goal. For over a decade, he has been researching a process in which tailings waste naturally draws CO2 from the air and traps it into new stone formations.

Dipple’s focus has been on how to accelerate and optimize the phenomenon and recreate it on a large scale at mine sites.

Next year the findings of his research will be applied to active mines for the first time.

The research brings together five universities across Canada and Australia – UBC, the University of Alberta, Trent University, the University of Queensland and Bond University – and has been funded by mining companies, the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council, Carbon Management Canada, the governments of British Columbia and Yukon, and Environment Canada.

However, what we did discover was that, at every site we visited, chemical weathering was already happening; magnesium silicate rock in the tailings waste was reacting with carbon in the atmosphere and forming a magnesium carbonate material. Our research quickly changed from characterizing the reactive materials as feedstock for a reactor to trying to understand the process by which they were capturing CO2 from the air. We wanted to understand the process’s limits and see if we could accelerate it enough to significantly offset the total emissions of a mine.

CIM: How did you first notice carbon sequestration in mine tailings?

Dipple: It was total discovery science. Twelve years ago, we

for the reaction – in this instance, by optimizing CO2 transport to reactive minerals. And that one is easy, given that humans already know how to move air (e.g., for heating and air conditioning), and it’s not expensive. To do this, a mine can flow cooled exhaust from its powerplant into its tailings pile or integrate it into the tailings processing circuit. If a mine doesn’t have a powerplant, they can buy CO2 from companies that provide direct air capture services.

Another way is to capture CO2 from the air.

The second way to speed up the process is by increasing the reaction rate. In our research, we discovered a class of minerals that release magnesium much faster than anticipated, which we refer to as labile magnesium.

The reaction rate for labile magnesium is fast enough literally to change the world, if you have enough of it. We discov-

were visiting mine tailings piles to explore ways that waste could be used as a feedstock for high-temperature, highpressure chemical reactors that would be used for accelerating a natural process called chemical weathering. Chemical weathering is part of the long-term carbon cycle and is when minerals take the CO2 from the air to create carbonate rock.

The initial idea was that mine waste would be fed into an autoclave or other reactor linked to a point source of CO2 from power generation. The project fell by the wayside when we realized recreating the process on a large scale would be too energy-intensive and expensive to be beneficial.

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CIM: Carbon sequestration normally occurs over thousands or millions of years; why was it happening so quickly in tailings facilities?

Dipple: It is fundamentally linked to the mining process, because when you crush ore into a fine size to extract commodities like diamond or nickel, you increase the reactive surface area around a millionfold. And so, a reaction that takes a million years happens in one year.

CIM: How can the reactions in tailings facilities be accelerated?

Dipple: The first way is to increase the amount of material needed

environmental management ered that 10 or 20 per cent of the magnesium in a rock can be labile, and 10 per cent labile magnesium is enough to offset all the emissions associated with mining these rocks.

We are in the process of identifying what type of deposits have high labile magnesium content, using exploration reports and geochemistry at different mine sites to generate 3D mine models of reactivity to CO2. We’ve come to appreciate that the reactivity of a rock is highly variable in a single deposit.

CIM: What types of mines are likely to be most suited to this process?

Dipple: Nickel, platinum, diamond and asbestos are typically hosted in magnesium silicate rocks. There’s three billion tonnes of asbestos tailings and waste in southern Quebec.

Mines that are in hot and dry climates are best for air capture because at the end of the day, it’s the evaporation of the water off the surface of the tailings pond that drives mineral precipitation (because water blocks the tailings access to CO2). As we develop new approaches to accelerate these reactions, we will optimize processes for other climates.

CIM: What have been key findings along the way?

Dipple: In the laboratory environment, we fed air with 10 per cent CO2 – like you get from a power plant – to highly reactive material and made rock in 200 hours (a little over eight days).

In field tests, we discovered BHP’s Mouth Keith open-pit nickel mine in Australia was accidentally capturing 40,000 tonnes of CO2 per year by direct capture from air and turning it into minerals. That mine’s total emissions are about 350,000 tonnes – so it was unknowingly producing an 11 per cent offset on their total mine greenhouse gas emissions in their tailings pile!

We also demonstrated that a mine could significantly increase the amount of carbon sequestration in a tailings storage facility by simply turning the taps on and off in a different way. Mount Keith’s tailings facility had five alternating spigots spewing out waste. Often, two were open at once. Essentially, they were burying their reactant material – the labile magnesium – before it reacted. We demonstrated that if those taps were turned off and on more frequently, the individual layers of tailings were thinner, and those thin layers could react with the air, doubling the amount of carbon sequestration taking place.

We are hoping to help retrofit existing mines but also optimize mine tailings design for carbon capture and storage in future mines.

CIM: Why is this research important?

Dipple: As a society, we have already missed our chance to reach global warming targets by simply reducing our emissions.

Our grandchildren are going to have to pull CO2 from the air, and if we can identify the right materials, we can use existing technologies in mining to do that at the scale of billions of tonnes of CO2.

Of course, there’ll also be brand new technologies, but mining will probably be in the mix; it’s a proven technology, and the costs are not huge. And by 2100, mining will look much different.

This technology is going to fundamentally change the scale of mining and the face of the industry. In the future, mining may be viewed as something that’s essential for environmental sustainability.

CIM: What benefits does this technology have for mining companies?

Dipple: For mines operating in jurisdictions that have a carbon tax, this will be a revenue stream for them. While no jurisdiction currently recognizes carbon sequestration in mine tailings as a carbon offset, there is a protocol under review in one province for green cement, which uses many of the same processing techniques. Once that protocol is established, we can use it as a framework to quickly do a second protocol. Our belief is that once one jurisdiction does it, others will follow quickly because they have an example to go by.

There are also co-benefits to this science around dust production, stabilization and cementation of tailings that are often as big as or greater than CO2 sequestration.

Finally, there are obvious reputational benefits from running a mine that offsets its environmental impact and contributes to solving global warming. Mining probably has one of the worst reputations of any industry on the environmental side, and we need it to become a better operator and to be recognized for its contribution towards positive environmental impact.

CIM: What stage is the technology at now? Have you constructed any purpose-built systems?

Dipple: When the resource sector crashed, we had eight years

CIM: What’s the end goal?

Dipple: Right now, we want to prove that everything we can

where we lived off government funding and spent most of our time developing new approaches in the lab.

We’ve seen our research skyrocket in the last two years, given that the resource sector is now booming and there’s a stronger belief in a carbon tax. Next year we will begin testing our acceleration approaches in active mine sites.

De Beers recently declared that they want to be the first company to have carbon-neutral mines, and we are the primary people they have engaged to do this. We start field trials with them next year.

do in the lab we can do in the field. So far, we have published everything in the scientific literature; we have no patents, we have no protected intellectual property. If this continues to build, we would probably move in that direction, but it’s still very early days.

Given the huge competitive advantage this technology brings, we think it will get picked up quickly once one company invests. If we can be part of the first carbon-neutral mine – that would be a very important step. I’d love to be a part of that. CIM August • Août 2018 | 43

Bitumen and grit CIM Archives capture the hard work and determination behind the development of the Alberta oil sands

By Kevin Martine

he development of the Athabasca oil sands has reshaped the landscape of a once quiet corner of northern Alberta into an energy powerhouse. CIM was there every step of the way, from the earliest research and discoveries to the first commercial operation and beyond.

It was not until the turn of the century that researchers began to study the oily soil of northern Alberta in earnest, and it would be decades more before the bitumen mixture could be processed into oil.

One of the first practical uses was asphalt, as noted in the CIM Bulletin in 1928.

“In 1915 the Department of Mines experimented with the use of the crude sand as a paving material on several streets in Edmonton, with results that have been entirely satisfactory.”

T

44 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Back then, exploitation of the resources was hobbled by logistical challenges. A lack of adequate rail lines made shipping the asphalt to market difficult. Yet even with these barriers, it was a viable option.

CIM featured some of the pioneers of oil sands development, including Karl Clark, whose work was shared in a 1929 CIM Bulletin.

Clark noted that “the status of such oils as the bitumen content of the bituminous sands for gasoline manufacture has been completely changed. While refining depended on straight distillation, oils of this sort were worthless for this purpose. But with the new methods of cracking, these same oils can be broken up by heat and pressure into surprisingly large yields of motor fuel…There is no great technical

12

CIM celebrates

years

ued. In the 1990s, a new method introduced by Syncrude, dubbed hydrotransport, combined ore and hot water closer to the working face to create a slurry that was pumped to the upgrading plant. This innovation made the extraction process more efficient, though it demanded more comprehensive instrumentation and monitoring of the extraction process.

The mining process also shifted from bucket wheel excavators and draglines to hydraulic shovels for more selective mining. Add to that the successful development of in situ extraction, and the oil sands, through hard work and perseverance, have matured from an engineering puzzle to the foundation of this country’s energy reserves.

Further reading These CIM Bulletin papers are available on CIM’s technical paper library Bituminous Sands of Northern Alberta by S. Ells and A. Swinnerton, 1937 Hot-water Separation of Alberta Bituminous Sands by K. Clark, 1944 Pilot Plant Investigations on Cold Water Separation of Bitumen from Alberta Bituminous Sands by L. Djingheuzian, 1952 Current Exploratory Techniques in the Athabasca Bituminous Sands Area

By W. Gallup, 1960 This drawing, originally published in the 1929 CIM Bulletin article “The Separation of the Bitumen from Alberta Bituminous Sands” by Karl Clark, depicts a hot water separation plant as it was configured in 1925 at a test site in Edmonton.

difficulty about using any oil or bitumen for gasoline manufacture. Whether it is practical to use them is almost entirely a question of economies.”

Over decades Clark invented and refined a method of using hot water to separate the bitumen from the sand, by liquefying the mixture and filtering the oil out, which is still the basis of modern oil sands operations today. He also followed others’ work to solve the puzzle of the oil sands with interest, and in a 1948 CIM Bulletin observed a common frustration among his processing peers.

“Full-scale design of bituminous sand separation plants has been considered and attempted mainly by mining men experienced in the concentration of minerals. Such men just naturally turn to watery pulps and pronounced aeration as in flotation cells. Unfortunately, such pulps and degrees of aeration do not work properly in the case of bituminous sands.”

Commercial operations began in the 1960s, and the innovation in the oil sands that was started by Clark contin-

Development of the Heavy Minerals Potential of the Athabasca Tar Sands

by L. Trevoy, R. Schutte, and R. Goforth, 1978 Technology transfer and acceptance key to increased productivity in oil sands mining by R. Singhal, 1989 AOSTRA underground test facility: progress and potential by J. Hasten, R. Luhning and S. Gittins, 1990 Improving reliability and productivity at Syncrude Canada Ltd. through materials research: past, present, and future by M. Anderson, S. Chiovelli, and S. Hoskins, 2004

August • Août 2018 | 45

INNOVATION RUSH IN T H E

OIL SANDS

By Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

D

ozens of emerging technologies for almost every facet of oil sands production could be paving the way for solutions to the most significant environmental and operational challenges faced today. In fact, according to a study by the Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI), these emerging technologies are establishing a foundation for the industry to reduce its operational costs by 40 per cent and its emissions by up to 80 per cent. There is an innovation rush in Alberta’s oil sands and the impacts could be far reaching.

An innovative environment “Most of us think of innovation in terms of technology but innovation can happen in lots of different ways,” said Dan Wicklum, chief executive of Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA), formed in 2012 by 10 oil companies that account for 90 per cent of oil sands production. “The COSIA model itself is probably one of the biggest innovations in the oil sector.”

Instead of treating innovation as a means to gain a competitive advantage, the COSIA companies collaborate in developing new technologies to improve their environmental and operational performance, said Wicklum. They have already shared $1.4 billion worth of intellectual property for some 985 technologies and innovations. Two years ago, COSIA also launched the international US$20 million NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE for CO2 emission-reduction technologies that can convert CO2 into usable products.

“A good innovation system needs good people, good ideas and good funding, but it also needs the testing infrastructure,” said Wicklum. To this end, COSIA partnered with the federal and Alberta governments to create the Alberta Carbon Conversion Technology Centre (ACCTC) in Calgary, which opened in May. Built adjacent to the Shepard Energy Centre, which provides flue gas emissions from a natural gas-fired power plant, the new facility enables innovators with the capabilities to test, refine and scale-up technologies for commercialization that convert CO2 into usable products.

In April, COSIA announced the 10 finalists for the Carbon XPRIZE. Each will receive a US$500,000 award to take their technologies to a commercialization-ready stage. Five of the finalists are focused on gas-based CO2 conversion and will be the ACCTC’s first tenants. (The teams focused on converting coal-based CO2 will go to Wyoming’s Integrated Test Center.)

Using CO2, Carbicrete turns steel slag industrial waste into cement-free concrete, CERT creates value-added fuels and feedstocks, Newlight fabricates bioplastics, Carbon Upcycling Technologies builds graphitic nanoparticles and graphene derivatives, and C2CNT manufactures nanotubes. Along with the finalists in Wyoming, they will be scaling up their technologies for commercialization as they compete for one of the two $7.5 million grand prizes, which will be awarded in 2020.

Autonomous haul systems With oil sands haulage fleets as big as they are, the potential for automation is obvious, but its implementation has Opposite page: Komatsu has worked with Suncor since 2013 to adapt the OEM’s autonomous haulage systems to the Alberta oil sands.

Courtesy of Komatsu

demanded creative thinking to contend with the difficult conditions in the region.

For Komatsu, which has worked with Suncor since 2013 on adapting the OEM’s autonomous haulage systems (AHS) that it has rolled out in the Pilbara iron range of Western Australia, the oil sands posed unique challenges, namely the cold winters and the soft underfooting of the ore bodies. Winterizing and the development of a multi-trajectory system to prevent the trucks from damaging the roads resolved the challenges.

Suncor is planning to add 150 AHS units at its oil sands mines over the next six years, starting with the North Steepbank mine. It is not the only oil sands mining company considering the new technology. Canadian Natural Resources is planning a small pilot project for 2019.

Komatsu’s AHS combines autonomous trucks with manned support equipment and shovels. “We have five layers of safety to allow humans to interact with the autonomous trucks,” said Brian Yureskes, director of Komatsu’s business development for the oil sands. “Some of those are virtual layers of safety so the system is able to see and anticipate what humans are doing around the trucks. Some are physical layers such as lasers and radar. The final layer is that every single piece of equipment that is manned and operated in the area has a big red button that, when you push it, stops all the autonomous trucks.”

According to Scott Schellenberg, senior manager of AHS for SMS Equipment, the Canadian distributor for Komatsu, the autonomous technology itself has increased safety.

“Humans working around the autonomous haulers can see on their screens where the trucks are and know where they are headed versus with a human driving the truck,” he said.

The digital oil sands The oil sands are increasingly adopting machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies, said Dinara Millington, vice-president of research at CERI. “I’m noticing it’s happening faster now that these technologies have been in the commercial space for a little while,” she said.

Marty Reed, CEO of Evok Innovations, a partnership between Canada’s oil and gas companies and the BC Cleantech CEO Alliance, points to two innovative companies with technologies that have powerful benefits for the oil and gas sector as well as the oil sands. One is Kelvin, which has an artificial intelligence system that has been deployed in BP’s oil and gas fields in Wamsutter, Wyoming. There, hundreds of inexpensive sensors have been installed in the wells where they gather data that is transmitted via the cloud to powerful computers.

These identify patterns and form predictions, which are used to create optimization tweaks that are sent back down to the controls in the field.

“The days of one shift coming in and tweaking all the dials is going to go away,” said Reed. “Computers do it better.”

The second company is Expeto, founded in Victoria, B.C., which offers a software-based solution that securely connects LTE devices. “If you can’t get that data up to the cloud, it doesn’t really do us any good,” said Reed. “Expeto is giving a platform to provide enterprises much greater control for all their internet devices. They’re working in oil and gas and mining.”

August • Août 2018 | 47

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48 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

The oil sands industry currently emits some 70 megatonnes of CO2 a year. In 2030, an Alberta government cap on allowable CO2 emissions of 100 megatonnes per year will come into effect. If the industry wants to keep growing, it has a relatively small window of time to cut its CO2 intensity.

In 2015, Shell Canada opened the world’s first commercial-scale carbon capture and storage facility for an oil sands operation, named Quest Carbon Capture and Storage facility and located at the company’s Scotford bitumen upgrader near Edmonton. Three years later, the plant has captured and stored more than three million tonnes of CO2. The system, designed by Shell, uses amine to absorb CO2 from the gas flue. It then separates the CO2 from the amine and pressurizes it into a liquid, which is transported 65 kilometres north by pipeline where it is injected two kilometres into the ground.

Another technology that has been developed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is Quebec-based CO2 Solutions’ enzymatic CO2 capture technology. The process is currently being demonstrated within a $30-million carbon capture and utilization project at Chimie Parachem, a paraxylene facility in Montreal that is 51 per cent owned by Suncor. Construction is underway for the first commercial unit, destined for, a Resolute Forest Product pulp mill in Quebec. It is expected to be commissioned by the end of the year and will feed captured CO2 to a nearby greenhouse. The company has worked extensively with the oil sector to demonstrate its technology, which can be scaled up and comes with a lower capital and operating cost than amine-based technologies, according to Evan Price, CO2 Solution’s president and CEO. The core of the technology is a carbonic anhydrase enzyme, which is also used in human and animal lungs to manage CO2 in their bodies. CO2 Solutions compares its technology to the equivalent of an industrial lung. “We’re using a very simple carbonate salt solution that generates no aerosols and no toxic wastes,” said Price. “The heat required for our technology comes from hot water drawn from the host plant, as opposed to steam, which is required for amine processes. As steam has a lot of value, the use of hot water provides our technology with an advantageous and important cost differential.”

Accelerating the reclamation of the oil sands mining operation is also a pressing project that has sparked an array of approaches from both inside the industry and out. Among the many contenders is Calgary-based Technika Engineering, which observed the issues with conventional mature fine tailings (MFT) reclamation technologies using dredges and barges with submersible pumps.

“We thought there had to be a better approach,” said Radé Svorcan, the company’s president. “So we set out to design it.”

Technika has developed what it calls the Tailings Recovery System (TRS). Oil sands MFT have considerable shear strength and viscosity that increase with the depth of the ponds, which typically reach 30 metres deep. Due to debris in the MFT and its rheology, conventional technologies using dredges and barges with submersible pumps encounter MFT dilution at the suction point, and clogging. TRS technology uses a caisson-type telescoping shell structure located at the pond surface that can go down to a 15-plus metre depth to

leverage the principle of hydraulic pressure balance to bring MFT to the surface. “Because the MFT is on the surface within the TRS, it’s much easier to recover it and the challenges of MFT dilution and pump clogging are addressed. We are using the natural hydraulics to draw the MFT up,” said Svorcan.

The benefits of the technology, which has already been successfully deployed at an oil sands operation, is that it allows for year-round reliable clogging-free recovery. It is fully winterized and can be remotely operated. On a 2,500 m3/h MFT supply system, TRS results in $10 to $20 million savings in capital costs and $5 to $10 million in annual operating costs compared to barge or dredge technologies, according to the company.

Innovating in situ extraction When two imaging technology entrepreneurs, Stephen Robinson and Graham Manders, partnered with an oil and gas veteran, Osman Malik, and started asking oil companies in Alberta’s oil sands about their needs, their response to the feedback was to create DarkVision Technologies. “Everyone wanted to be able to see inside their wells,” said Robinson.

“Wells are quite complicated and operators want to see inside them to fix problems and optimize production, yet wells are deep, dark and filled with opaque fluids.”

In 2013, DarkVision developed a high-resolution acousticbased imaging technology that allows operators to see inside their wells through murky fluids. Last year, the company expanded its offices to Calgary and now has five different customers, including Suncor, MEG and ConocoPhillips. “We have many more complementary products to develop, so we’re not anywhere near done,” said Robinson.

In the world of in situ oil sands extraction, there is a lot of buzz about solvent-based technologies to replace water and gas-guzzling conventional steam-injection technologies to make the bitumen that is too deep to be mined less viscous so it can be collected and pumped to the surface.

One of these is HeatWave, developed by U.S.-based Harris.

The system uses the Enhanced Solvent Extraction Incorporating Electromagnetic Heating (ESEIEH) process, a combination of solvent dilution and electromagnetic heating with a radio frequency antenna placed into the ground that heats the bitumen.

Another company, Calgary-based Nsolv, has developed a waterless solvent-based system that was piloted for three years in the oil sands. That project ended in 2017 after successfully producing 130,000 barrels of oil. The technology is now ready for commercial deployment.

Nsolv injects pure, heated propane vapour from a low pressure plant into the bitumen reservoir. When the vapour reaches the bitumen, it condenses and mildly heats the bitumen. “Liquid propane and slightly mobile bitumen mix readily,” said Joseph Kuhach, Nsolv’s CEO. That liquefies the bitumen enough to bring it up to the surface.

Compared to steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD), the process reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 70 to 80 per cent and eliminates the need to build a large water plant, said Kuhach, which results in a 40 per cent savings in capital costs.

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August • Août 2018 | 49

Courtesy of Technika

Courtesy of DarkVision

Courtesy of CO2 Solutions

Left to right: CO2 Solutions’ enzymatic CO2 capture technology; DarkVision imaging scan of broken production tubing inside of a casing; Technika Engineering’s Tailings Recovery System (TRS)

Additionally, Kuhach said, the Nsolv process sequesters asphaltenes in the reservoir.

This partially upgraded bitumen requires less than half the diluent necessary to meet pipeline specifications compared with typical bitumen production. Currently in Western Canada pipelines require a 20 to 22 degree American Petroleum Institute gravity rating. Most bitumen today has an 8 to 10 degree rating while Nsolv-produced bitumen rates at 13 to 14 degrees.

Cutting the amount of diluent in pipelines has far more important implications for the oil sands than a reduction in diluent costs alone. Some 30 to 40 per cent of bitumen transported through pipes is not actually oil. It is diluents, an inefficiency that is more pronounced given the frustrated attempts to expand the pipeline network.

Pushing more oil through the bottleneck “If no new pipelines are being built, how can you increase the throughput?” asked Millington. “One way is to reduce the amount of diluent that all bitumen requires in order to meet pipeline specifications so the diluent doesn’t take up valuable pipeline capacity.”

Oil sands companies and innovators have been working on the development of partial upgrading technologies that can increase the amount, quality and value of bitumen transported from the oil sands.

Quebec-based Fractal Systems, for example, has developed and tested a system called Enhanced JetShear partial upgrading technology. In February, the company announced that JetShear can reduce diluent by 50 to 60 per cent and increase bitumen capacity in the pipeline by 20 to 25 per cent. The JetShear system relies on hydrodynamic cavitation and mild thermal cracking to structurally modify the bitumen’s asphaltene molecules at the extraction site and reduce its viscosity and bulk density.

Fractal has said its technology, which includes proprietary jet nozzles, is now ready to be commercialized.

50 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

As well, Alberta Innovates has partnered with a number of companies whose partial upgrading technologies are at the demonstration scale, which requires an operation of 1,000 barrels per day, said Murray Gray, senior technical advisor of bitumen partial upgrading at Alberta Innovates.

One company is MEG Energy, whose system will deliver pipeline-ready partially upgraded bitumen without using any diluents. Called HI-Q, the technology uses a combination of thermal cracking and deasphalting. Another is Nexen Energy, whose process, BituMax, also combines deasphalting with thermal cracking but in the reverse order of HI-Q. Husky Energy is taking a different tack. Its system blends the bitumen with some synthetic crude then processes the mixture.

“We expect that in two to three years’ time, we’ll have several new partial upgrading technologies that will be available for commercial deployment,” said Gray.

In these times of uncertainty, commercialization becomes challenging. According to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, total capital spending at the oil sands shrunk to about $15 million in 2016, down from about $34 million in 2014.

“How do you invest capital in something that hasn’t been commercially proven?” said Millington. “The first company that comes out the gate with the new technology takes the most risk. So the question is how to de-risk some of this and speed up the process to commercialization.”

In February, the Alberta Government announced at least a partial solution: $1 billion in loans and grants over the next eight years to help build partial upgrading facilities in the province. “We see the government’s partnership as being very important to help these technologies get over the barrier of demonstration at sufficient scale,” said Gray.

No one technology can solve all the oil sands challenges but “the potential is there for innovative technologies to dramatically transform the oil sands,” said Millington. CIM

ground control

Smarter, cheaper, faster Emerging solutions for hazard monitoring in underground mines

Courtesy of National Research Council of Canada

By Cecilia Keating

A suite of technologies – including real-time data collection from sensorequipped rock bolts, shown above – are making ground condition and support monitoring simpler and more effective.

S

ince the 1950s, scientists have been working to demystify the complex field of rock mechanics (the science of rock stress and how it is impacted by micro seismic events and mine activity). Over the past couple years, advances in machine learning and improvements in sensor and scanning equipment have driven the emergence of new forms of ground monitoring technologies.

The development of long-term hazard monitoring systems is critical as mine companies turn to deeper deposits, said Mira Geoscience president John McGaughey, because “with increased depth comes increased rock stress.” He added that while some pillars of ground control, such as mine design and support design, are “reasonably well understood,” hazard monitoring is “an area that is crying out for innovation.”

In late 2017, Mira released Geoscience Integrator, a data management software that computes the risk of a future ground control incident, such as a rock burst, by pulling together and holistically analyzing disparate data sets and variables already being collected on a site. These include rock mass quality, mine infrastructure and design, and geological and seismic data.

Typically, explained McGaughey, ground control engineers rely on “one or two data streams –predominately microseismic data and stress models in rock-bursting August • Août 2018 | 51

mines” – forsaking quantitative integration with other variables like geological structure and the particularities of the rock they are mining. Important data streams are often isolated within different departments in the mine operation or divided up between separate databases and software systems.

Geoscience Integrator remedies this disconnect. In order to be able to accurately assess the risk of future hazard occurrences, it measures a “couple of dozen” data types and variables – some of which evolve with time, some not – continually in order to create a near real-time hazard risk assessment.

Each data set crunched by the software is initially weighted and analyzed using a “knowledge-driven” formula – one that combines the expertise of mine staff with expertise gained through decades of industry research into how different criteria relate to ground hazards. Once more data is collected at a particular site (especially after the occurrence of rock bursts or other hazards), the mathematical model will become more sophisticated, using “data driven” machine learning algorithms. Depending on the mine operators’ preference, the software will generate daily, weekly or monthly reports.

The software was borne out of a 10-year, $6.7-million multidiscipline, multi-institution research project called Smart Underground Monitoring Integrating Technologies (SUMIT), which aimed to prevent and reduce the hazards of rock bursts in Canadian hard rock mines. The group was led by the Centre for Excellence and Mining Innovation (CEMI), which partly funded Geoscience Integrator through four separate projects, starting with SUMIT and continuing under the Ultra-Deep Mining Network (UDMN) umbrella. The software has since been deployed successfully in two operations – a Russian phosphate operation with three mines and a miner in Western Canada that is also initially deploying at three mines. Proofs of concept have been completed in half a dozen other mines around the world.

“People have struggled long and hard to combine these data sets in a quantitative way. Now we’ve shown it can be done,” said McGaughey. “Over the next decade, any mine that has a serious geotechnical hazard problem will want a system like the one we have developed.”

Budget-friendly LIDAR “When rock fails, it doesn’t just fall or burst. It tends to let go slowly at first, making tiny precursor movements. The rocks

Courtesy of Norbert Maerz/Missouri University of Science and Technology

The availability of inexpensive solid state LIDAR scanners allows precise scanning at a reasonable price point, and expands the possibilities for low-cost hazard detection networks.

52 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

slowly deform, before accelerating until they either burst or fall out of the ceiling or off the pillar wall,” explained Norbert Maerz, geological engineering professor and director of the Rock Mechanics and Explosives Research Center at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T).

Light detection and ranging (LIDAR) is a tried-and-true technology borrowed from the surveying industry that delivers highly accurate measurements of rock displacement by measuring the time it takes for a laser beam emitted from a scanner to bounce off the wall and back and comparing that with previous readings. While precise, this approach is not cost-effective for mines – a medium-range LIDAR laser scanner can cost anywhere between $40,000 and $500,000 and can monitor only one area of the rock surface at a time. They are manually operated, so a miner must physically lug the scanner to a different location in the mine if a new area needs to be investigated.

But thanks to a new class of inexpensive LIDAR scanners, Maerz and his colleagues at the Center have, with support from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, successfully created a prototype for a low-cost hazard detection network that can pick up on rock displacement as low as 0.3 millimetres.

The system uses a network of mesh radios honeycombed throughout the mine to transmit data received from the lowcost LIDAR scanners to the surface. The system is completely automated, with each scanner fixed in place and “measuring more or less continuously,” explained Maerz.

The scanners are cheap, so miners can invest in many and dot them across at-risk areas. “You can get 75 to 300 inexpensive scanners, depending on model, for the price of a moderately priced surveying scanner,” said Maerz.

The Xbee radios, used to transmit the data, cost about US$46, and their batteries last roughly 180 days before needing a replacement. One dead radio does not debilitate the whole system – “as long as the radios are spread out in the mine, they will find their own pathway to get the signal to where it needs to go. If one breaks or runs out of battery, the network will reroute itself to get that signal out,” said Maerz.

The prototype is being tested in two Missouri mines this summer and the Missouri S&T researchers will be able to monitor the results remotely. For one mine, they will do this by logging into the mine’s computer network, and at the other, the signal will be transmitted to a cellular modem at the surface.

Video monitoring Engineering consulting firm RESPEC has been developing applications for video monitoring technology in underground mines for years by repurposing a video measurement tool called Video Gauge that was initially designed by U.K. firm Imetrum for the monitoring of bridges. Having successfully applied the technology to monitor the stability of underground mine equipment like conveyors and to measure the deflection of underground structures like bridges, the company is now working to incorporate the technology into a long-term ground hazard warning system to predict areas susceptible to roof falls.

ground control Courtesy of RESPEC

The technology is currently being tested at the Sanford Underground Research Facility and at a potash mine in New Mexico.

Inside information

LED-lit targets line a drift in the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota.

Amy DiRienzo, a RESPEC engineer based in South Dakota, said Video Gauge is “cheaper and easier” than other ground control monitoring systems. “It’s a way to make a lot more measurements than conventional instrumentation like extensometers. It is also a lot less obtrusive.”

Dust- and moisture-resistant cameras, each one around the size of a pack of cards, are permanently bolted in a stable position across from each LED-illuminated surface that needs to be monitored for displacement. The cameras are set on a timer, and measurements are taken at pre-determined intervals and sent in to the camera controller via ethernet cables laced throughout the mine. The data is then processed in real time by the Video Gauge software, which correlates the sequential digital images it receives to calculate displacement. An alert is sent if the software detects displacement beyond the threshold set by the mine. The system can detect movement as small as 0.1 mm from 100 metres away.

The software focuses on regions in the video image, or “target positions,” instead of the whole picture, meaning despite the cameras being low-resolution, the technology can make high-resolution measurements. This also means that the images can be processed quickly. The data are stored in the cloud and can be accessed through a website.

If one of the defined targets measures high displacement, new targets can be added remotely, provided that they are in the camera’s sightline, and the recorded video can be postprocessed to focus on those new targets. This “keeps the longterm data set manageable and saves on set up time, but still provides the ability for specific monitoring of precursor movements,” said DiRienzo.

While RESPEC and Missouri S&T’s efforts are focused on measuring displacement on the rock surface, the National Research Council of Canada’s (NRC) new rock bolt monitoring technology sheds light on what is happening in layers of rock beneath the surface.

The group has developed a new range of instrumented rock bolts equipped with ultrasonic sensors it has dubbed RBS, and is currently testing them at Agnico Eagle’s LaRonde mine in Quebec. The sensors measure the total stress load and condition of the bolt. In addition, they can also determine which sections of the six- to 10-foot bolt are under stress. This allows ground control engineers to know when and where the bolts have deformed or broken without having to manually pull them out to check. While the sensors do not take direct measurements of the rock, monitoring the stress load on the rock bolt in its different sections provides an interesting snapshot of rock activity beneath the surface.

“When blasts or microseismic events happen, we can now see how far, fast and extensive the change in the rock is and where these changes occur. You can get immediate feedback of local conditions using the signal coming from the sensor,” explained Yves Quenneville, lead business development officer for the project.

For the rock bolt sensors to be able to give a good picture of rock movements, quantity is key – which is why the NRC plans to ensure that the finished product will be marketed with a price below $100. “The point of the technology is not to have only a few sensors. Once you deploy dozens or hundreds of these bolts with sensors, you start to have a more complete view of what is going on throughout the mine,” Quenneville said.

The test run at LaRonde this summer has proven that, as hoped, data can be collected manually, using a telescopic perch, and remotely, using a real-time multichannel recorder that collects data from up to 16 sensors and sends the information to the surface via Wi-Fi or LTE. Both recording systems allow data to be downloaded, viewed and integrated with other rock surface monitoring instruments such as LIDAR and video monitoring.

The NRC is currently talking to potential partners to see how it can integrate the data from its rock bolt sensors with other ground control monitoring data sets. “There’s a lot of interest in correlating what is going on inside the rock and what is happening on the surface, or in relation to microseismic events. Of course, there’s a lot of factors at play, so the association of this complementary information will be very valuable to better understand the geomechanics at work in a mine,” said Quenneville.

“But for now, we have a new tool that is already proving its usefulness in mines,” he said, “and we are looking forward to exploring its application in ground control management.” CIM August • Août 2018 | 53

Register before September 12 for a discount rate.

REGISTER NOW FOR COM 2018!

And be sure to reserve your social activity tickets; limited quantities are available. http://www.matscitech.org/

Co-Sponsor:

ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL PROGRAM Additive Manufacturing

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Biomaterials

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Ceramic and Glass Materials

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Electronic and Magnetic Materials

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Energy

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Failure Analysis

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Fundamentals, Characterization, and Computational Modeling

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International Symposium on Defects, Transport and Related Phenomena

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Iron and Steel (Ferrous Alloys)

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Materials-Environment Interactions

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Nanomaterials

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Processing and Manufacturing

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METSOC SPECIAL SYMPOSIUM

FROM DIVERSITY TO INCLUSION In recent years, the science and engineering communities have begun to realize that embracing diversity in our field is just the beginning. The next step is inclusion, which involves bringing together and harnessing the resources represented by diverse scientists and engineers. Inclusion puts the concept of diversity into action by creating an environment of involvement, respect, and connection. Organizations need both diversity and inclusion to be successful. While diversity in organizations is increasingly respected as a fundamental characteristic, this respect has not always led to truly inclusive workplaces.

This symposium will explore how we can create inclusive science/engineering landscapes at all points in the pipeline (from K-12, to university programs, to our workplace and profession) that will cultivate inclusive science/engineering identities and demonstrate how the profession benefits from diversity.

From Diversity to Inclusion cocktail reception Following the symposium’s lively discussion and learning experience, we invite attendees and presenters to connect over drinks and hors d’oeuvres at our informal reception.

Special Topics

PLENARY Advanced Materials and Manufacturing for Extreme Environments ACerS Edward Orton Jr. Memorial Lecture Regenerative Engineering: Materials in Convergence Cato T. Laurencin, University Professor and Van Dusen Distinguished Professor; Director, The Raymond and Beverly Sackler Center, The University of Connecticut

AIST Adolf Martens Memorial Steel Lecture John G. Speer, John Henry Moore Professor of Physical Metallurgy, Colorado School of Mines; Director of the Advanced Steel Processing and Products Research Center

ASM/TMS Joint Distinguished Lectureship in Materials and Society The Ecosystem of Research, Education, and Community Lynnette D. Madsen, Program Director, National Science Foundation

www.metsoc . or g/ c om2 0 1 8 -ms t1 8

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August • Août 2018 | 55

LEARN

SOCIAL PROGRAM We’re more than just a technical conference Updates to this schedule can be found online.

Sunday WELCOME RECEPTION All delegates are welcome.

Monday METSOC AWARDS & AGM BANQUET 2018 The Metallurgy and Materials Society of CIM will honour its outstanding members by presenting the MetSoc Awards and inducting our new President for 2018-2019.

A three-course meal with wine and reception is included with purchased tickets.

SHORT COURSES Titanium and Titanium Alloys Date: Saturday, October 13-Sunday, October 14, 1.5 days Presenter: Carsten Siemers, head of Titanium Research Group at the Institute for Materials of TU Braunschweig Target Audience: Master level students, PhD students, engineers and technicians. Basic knowledge in materials science is required.

“Titanium and Titanium Alloys” aims at a providing scientists and engineers a better understanding of the development and application of tailored titanium alloys. The course includes titanium’s metallurgy as well as the complete route from ore winning and dressing, melting, processing, heat treatments, machining and recycling.

Sponsored by

Show your Canada Pride!

Tuesday CANADA STUDENT-INDUSTRY MIXER An opportunity for Canadian industry representatives to meet and support the student conference attendees in an informal setting.

Wednesday HISTORICAL METALLURGY LUNCHEON, FEATURING THE FATHI HABASHI LECTURE K. Sharvan Kumar, Professor, School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, will speak on the fascinating history of materials development in passenger flight in “Metals and Alloys in Commercial Aircraft.”

56 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

www. ma ts c i te ch . o r g

Visit us at the MetSoc Lounge for your free Canada Pin!

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STUDENTS Your career starts here!

Sunday • Undergraduate Student Speaking Contest • So Many Choices Yet So Little Time – Planning Your Next Move After Graduation • Student Networking Mixer

NOTICE TO MEMBERS | AVIS DE CONVOCATION

Monday • Emerging Professionals Symposium • Ceramic Careers Mentoring Roundtable • Student Tours Nucor Steel – Marion

Tuesday • • • • • •

Ceramic Mug Drop Contest Ceramic Disc Golf Contest ASM Geodesic Dome Design Competition “DomesDay” Student Awards Ceremony Undergraduate Student Poster Contest Display Canada Student-Industry Mixer

Student monitors Students may partially defray expenses by serving as session monitors.

Find out more: http://www.matscitech.org/students/ Financial assistance from MetSoc Are you eligible for travel funding? Visit our website for details: www.metsoc.org/com2018-mst18

Exhibit at MS&T / Professional Recruitment & Career Pavilion Interested in recruiting?

Reserve your booth in the Professional Recruitment & Career Pavilion to gain premier access to seasoned veterans, young professionals, graduate or post-doc candidates, all primed for the job market.

www.metsoc . or g/ c om2 0 1 8 -ms t1 8

The Annual General Meeting of the members of the Metallurgy and Materials Society of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum will be held on Monday, October 15, 2018 at 7pm at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Columbus, Ohio, USA. L’Assemblée générale annuelle des members de la Société de la métallurgie et des matériaux de l’Institut canadien des mines, de la métallurgie et du pétrole aura lieu à Columbus, Ohio, USA le lundi 15 octobre à 19h à l’hôtel Hyatt Regency Hotel.

Sponsors Several sponsorship opportunities are still available.

Contact Engin Ozberk at eordit@gmail.com or metsoc@cim.org

Booth includes: • One (1) full conference technical badge • Post-Conference Attendee List (emails NOT included) • Free digital Expo Only passes for your guests • UNLIMITED Exhibitor booth personnel badges • 10 ft. by 10 ft. booth with draped 8’ back wall and 3’ side rails • 7” x 44” B&W one-line ID sign • Company and product listing in printed & online show directories • $3,050 USD | $100 USD per corner charge

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SECTION

FRANCOPHONE AOÛT 2018

63

59 Lettre de l’éditeur 60 Mot du président 61 Comment atténuer le risque politique Par Mauro Chiesa

63 Selon les experts, il est peu probable que la légalisation du cannabis entraîne des modifications à la règlementation sur la sécurité en milieu de travail Par Cecilia Keating

65 La conférence Resources for Future Generations attire 2 000 personnes à Vancouver Par Kevin Martine

article de fond

66 La ruée vers l’innovation dans l’industrie des sables bitumineux Par Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

Nous publions progressivement sur notre site Internet les articles du CIM Magazine en version française.

lettre de l’éditeur

Animé par l’innovation « Dans le secteur des sables bitumineux, l’ingéniosité et l’innovation sont indissociables de la valorisation. »

L

a découverte des sables bitumineux de l’Athabasca n’avait en soi rien de remarquable. En effet, quiconque naviguait sur la rivière Athabasca aurait remarqué le sol noir huileux sur les rives découpées par les flots.

L’accomplissement majeur dans cette aventure a plutôt été le développement des compétences nécessaires pour valoriser cette vaste ressource. Pendant des décennies de travail acharné, des chercheurs ont tenté de trouver comment séparer le bitume de la matière sablonneuse.

En 1944, Karl Clark, qui, à cette époque, avait déjà consacré nombre d’années de sa carrière à chercher une solution pratique à ce problème, a résumé avec une pointe d’ironie les progrès réalisés jusque-là. « Il n’est pas trop difficile de récupérer plus de 90 % du pétrole contenu dans les sables bitumineux à l’aide du procédé d’extraction à l’eau chaude, raconte-t-il dans le CIM Bulletin, surtout si l’on n’accorde pas trop d’importance à la pureté de la matière récupérée. » Ultimement, ses recherches ont aidé à créer une méthode de production de pétrole propre, jetant les bases de l’exploitation des sables bitumineux dans le nord de l’Alberta.

Il y avait cependant une autre étape à franchir, soit de trouver le moyen de mettre en valeur les gisements plus profonds et beaucoup plus gros de sable bitumineux, impossibles à exploiter à ciel ouvert. Les concepts de drainage par gravité conçus et éprouvés dans l’installation souterraine d’essai du Bureau de recherche et de technologie des sables bitumineux de l’Alberta (AOSTRA), près de Fort McMurray, à la fin des années 1980, furent une autre grande réussite issue de la collaboration entre le gouvernement et l’industrie. Une équipe d’auteurs de l’AOSTRA avait prédit en toute confiance, dans un numéro du CIM Bulletin, en 1990, que les procédés utilisant des puits horizontaux allaient devenir une source de production du pétrole lourd très concurrentielle et qu’à mesure que les marchés se redresseraient, cette méthode jouerait certainement un rôle majeur dans l’exploitation de cette ressource.

Les résultats de ces travaux, fruits de plusieurs décennies de recherche et développement, sont remarquablement et simplement illustrés par un graphique linéaire de la United States Energy Information Agency qui fait état des réserves de pétrole confirmées de chaque pays au fil du temps. La progression du Canada est colossale : on observe une hausse phénoménale des réserves, de moins de 10 milliards de barils en 2002 à 180 milliards de barils l’année suivante.

Dans le secteur des sables bitumineux, l’ingéniosité et l’innovation sont indissociables de la valorisation. Compte tenu du regain d’attention accordé aux sables bitumineux, nous avons décidé de nous pencher, dans notre article de fond en page 66, sur certains des derniers développements et des courants d’idées créatives qui foisonnent dans le secteur pétrolier.

Ryan Bergen, Rédacteur en chef editor@cim.org @Ryan_CIM_Mag

August • Août 2018 | 59

mot de la présidente

Un plan pour l’avenir du secteur minier « Si vous n’avez pas encore eu l’occasion de vous exprimer, consultez minescanada.ca et joignez-vous au débat. »

J

e pense qu’à ce jour, la plupart d’entre vous avez entendu parler du plan canadien pour les minéraux et les métaux (PCMM). Ces derniers mois, que ce soit en ligne, par le biais des plateformes de réseaux sociaux ou en participant à des groupes de discussion constitués d’intervenants, les Canadiennes et les Canadiens ont été invités à prendre part au débat.

Le PCMM est un plan d’action visionnaire dont l’objectif est de faire du Canada la plus grande nation minière au monde. Ce plan, qui est en cours d’élaboration, s’articulera autour de cinq piliers cernant l’éventail d’activités nécessaires au soutien d’une industrie de classe mondiale, à savoir : • le développement économique et la compétitivité ; • la participation accrue des peuples autochtones ; • la communauté et l’environnement ; • les sciences, la technologie et l’innovation ; • et le leadership mondial.

Pour concrétiser cette vision, le plan spécifiera des actions détaillées permettant d’atteindre l’objectif fixé. La stratégie adoptée pour la première action sera publiée début 2019 et bénéficiera du soutien des gouvernements provinciaux, territoriaux et fédéraux. Un ensemble étoffé de données, associées à des recherches et à une analyse approfondies, viendront appuyer la mise en œuvre de ces actions.

Des cibles quantifiables spécifiques amèneront le plan jusqu’en 2035. Parmi les cibles et les actions caractéristiques qui ont été évoquées durant les activités de sensibilisation figuraient des mesures d’incitation pour soutenir la planification à long terme et la compétitivité ; la construction d’une infrastructure encourageant la mise en valeur des minéraux dans les régions les plus prometteuses ; des délais plus courts d’attribution de permis ; des programmes supplémentaires en faveur de la main-d’œuvre pour s’assurer qu’elle soit qualifiée, diversifiée et inclusive ; ainsi qu’une stratégie pour appuyer le succès de l’industrie minière canadienne en matière d’approvisionnement et de services. Ces activités stratégiques et d’autres soutiendront des objectifs importants tels qu’un surcroît d’investissement, une amélioration des capacités d’innovation, une réduction de l’empreinte environnementale ainsi que des politiques et réglementations renforcées.

Pour un pays comme le Canada qui repose sur ses ressources naturelles, l’exploitation minière est une industrie extrêmement importante sur le plan stratégique. Grâce aux actions éclairées et ciblées présentées dans ce plan, le Canada deviendra le chef de file mondial en matière de pratiques sociales et environnementales ; de clarté et de prévisibilité des réglementations ; d’innovation dans le domaine des technologies propres et de pratiques de gestion exemplaires ; de main-d’œuvre qualifiée et diversifiée ; d’un climat d’investissement favorable ; et de partenariats avec les peuples autochtones.

Si vous n’avez pas encore eu l’occasion de vous exprimer, consultez minescanada.ca et joignez-vous au débat afin d’apporter votre contribution à l’élaboration d’un plan assurant un avenir serein au secteur minier.

Janice Zinck Présidente de l’ICM 60 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

chronique

Comment atténuer le risque politique Par Mauro Chiesa

M

aintenant que le dispositif réglementaire Bâle III est entré en vigueur, les banques devront attribuer leurs fonds propres de manière plus transparente, notamment lorsqu’elles prêtent à des économies fragiles. Cet ensemble de mesures réglementaires convenues à l’échelle internationale, que le comité de Bâle sur le contrôle bancaire a élaboré en réponse à la crise financière de 2007-2009, vise à renforcer la réglementation, le contrôle et la gestion des risques encourus par les banques. En d’autres termes, le financement de risque par les banques pour des projets établis dans des pays fragilisés sur les plans politique et économique impose aux sociétés minières de renforcer leurs obligations remboursables en actions. Durant ma carrière au sein du groupe de la Banque mondiale, de diverses banques de New York et d’Exportation et développement Canada (EDC), j’ai eu l’occasion de travailler avec des pays en développement. Ainsi, on me demande souvent mon avis, surtout en ce moment, en matière de réduction des risques politiques ; je n’ai de cesse de répéter qu’il n’existe pas de solution miracle. L’exploitation minière se développe de plus en plus dans des pays au climat politique plus qu’incertain, aussi il est très important de nos jours de bien penser à l’atténuation des risques ainsi qu’à leur gestion.

Vous trouverez ci-dessous une liste de conseils généraux que j’ai compilée. Il faut bien se rappeler que ces stratégies, ou stratégies partielles, ne constituent en aucun cas des garanties contre le risque politique, mais elles peuvent grandement contribuer à les atténuer.

Dans la mesure du possible, embauchez votre personnel dans la région. Les habitants d’une région, particulièrement dans les pays gravement touchés par la pauvreté, seront une source d’informations précieuses sur la situation politique dès votre installation dans le pays. Ces travailleurs, parfaitement au fait du climat politique local ou régional, constitueront pour votre société un atout supplémentaire de grande valeur.

En République démocratique du Congo (RDC) par exemple, où les intérêts régionaux ne cadrent souvent pas avec les capitaux, les embauches au niveau local se sont avérées être des ressources précieuses pour de nombreuses sociétés minières étrangères établies dans les régions périphériques.

Organisez des réunions semestrielles avec les habitants de la région. Invitez les parties prenantes locales, régionales et nationales à vous faire part de leurs impressions quant aux questions prédominantes. Assurez-vous que la haute direction de votre société minière soit représentée lors de ces réunions, de manière à ce que les questions importantes soient enten-

dues et puissent être traitées directement, et non par le biais d’intermédiaires.

Assurez-vous que le ou la préposé(e) aux relations communautaires et à l’attribution de permis soit bien placé(e), à savoir qu’il ou elle travaille sous l’autorité directe du directeur de l’exploitation, du chef de la direction ou de la personne la plus haut placée dans l’organigramme de votre société. Si ce/cette préposé(e) dépend d’un département interne, par exemple la section du contentieux ou des opérations, la question soulevée pourrait être mal interprétée, car envisagée d’un point de vue purement juridique par exemple, ce qui pourrait ne refléter en rien la nature du différend. Le département des opérations peut par ailleurs avoir tendance à se concentrer sur les résultats immédiats de l’exploitation, les quotas et les budgets, aussi il pourrait tout simplement reléguer au second plan le différend. Gardez toujours bien en tête vos accords et permis existants, et obtenez les renouvellements avant leur échéance ; les coups d’État sont rarement annoncés à l’avance.

Optimisez le partage des ressources et la minimisation des problèmes. Autant que faire se peut, partagez votre infrastructure avec la population locale. Les sociétés minières implantées en RDC ont donné libre accès à la communauté aux écoles et cliniques initialement réservées à leur personnel expatrié.

Dans d’autres régions d’Afrique, les lignes électriques s’étendent au-delà du périmètre de l’exploitation minière pour éclairer les villes environnantes. Certes, ce genre de bonnes actions peuvent légèrement augmenter vos dépenses, mais elles réduiront considérablement les risques politiques pouvant émerger dans un environnement hostile. C’est la raison pour laquelle de nombreuses études de faisabilité se transforment en études d’infaisabilité ; elles cherchent à réduire les dépenses d’exploitation de la mine en ne partageant pas les réseaux électriques et téléphoniques ou l’eau potable avec la communauté environnante, ce qui renforce sur la forme la durabilité du projet, mais ne fait qu’augmenter en parallèle le risque politique lié au mécontentement social et/ou des populations locales.

Minimisez l’empreinte environnementale de votre exploitation. Dans la mesure du possible, choisissez des énergies moins coûteuses telles que le solaire et l’éolien pour réduire vos dépenses énergétiques. Ceci présente l’avantage supplémentaire de réduire votre dépendance envers le service public de distribution d’électricité de la région, diminuant ainsi le risque politique associé. En outre, le partage du réseau routier avec une industrie extractive voisine permettra de réduire votre empreinte physique ainsi que les formalités administraAugust • Août 2018 | 61

tives nécessaires pour obtenir vos permis (et bien entendu, la possibilité de répercussions politiques).

Souscrivez une assurance contre les risques politiques. Ce dernier point est souvent omis par les entités minières ; pourtant, souscrire une assurance couvrant les risques politiques auprès d’EDC ou de l’agence multilatérale de garantie des investissements (AMGI) du groupe de la Banque mondiale, par exemple, est un bon investissement. L’assurance aura un effet dissuasif puissant dans les pays prenant des mesures hostiles envers un placement garanti, car les répercussions financières ou politiques dans le reste du pays seront négatives. Un engagement d’honneur établi pendant une partie de golf avec un

ministre peut vous paraître sûr, mais gardez à l’esprit que les futurs actionnaires institutionnels auront besoin, et ne manqueront pas d’exiger d’autres justifications.

Le risque politique n’est pas prêt de disparaître ; nous devons l’accepter, l’anticiper et planifier nos actions en conséquence. En gardant à l’esprit les stratégies présentées ci-dessus, nous dormirons tous sur nos deux oreilles. ICM

Mauro Chiesa a à son actif plus de 39 ans d’expérience en matière de financement et de services-conseils dans le domaine des projets d’extraction et d’infrastructures. Il a notamment travaillé avec des banques multinationales à New York, avec le groupe de la Banque mondiale et chez Exportation et développement Canada (EDC).

Racontez-nous votre histoire sur

120.cim.org/fr Groupe de mineurs à l’orifice de puits de la mine Copper Cliff a Sudbury, 1933.

Notre histoire en photos

62 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Les actualités en bref Les options de l’industrie en matière de tests de dépistage de drogue seront limitées à la suite de la légalisation du cannabis Selon les experts, il est peu probable que la légalisation du cannabis entraîne des modifications à la règlementation sur la sécurité en milieu de travail.

Après plus d’un an de délibérations et de plusieurs mois de ping-pong législatif entre le Sénat et la Chambre des communes, le premier ministre Justin Trudeau a déclaré que le gouvernement du Canada légalisera la consommation de cannabis à des fins récréatives le 17 octobre, après l’adoption ce mardi par le Sénat du projet de loi sur la légalisation du cannabis.

Cependant, les conséquences de cette légalisation pour les gestionnaires de la sécurité en milieu de travail restent toujours à déterminer.

La nouvelle loi autorise les adultes canadiens à posséder et à consommer en toute légalité de petites quantités de cannabis, et définit le cadre applicatif en matière de production, de possession, de distribution et de vente de cette drogue, et des normes de sécurité associées à celle-ci. Cette loi met aussi en place de nouvelles infractions au Code criminel relatives à la vente de cannabis aux mineurs, et établit l’âge légal pour consommer du cannabis à 18 ans, bien que les provinces puissent choisir de l’augmenter.

Malgré les préoccupations formulées par des acteurs d’industries lourdes comme les mines, le transport et le secteur pétrolier, dont les employés doivent manipuler des équipements lourds et dangereux, l’absence de méthodes précises de dépistage de drogues pour le cannabis, la jurisprudence et le droit à la vie privée des employés signifient qu’une

Avec l'aimable autorisation de Suncor.

Par Cecilia Keating

L’usine de préparation du minerai aux installations de Suncor, à Fort Hills.

refonte importante de la règlementation sur la sécurité en milieu de travail est peu probable. « Les employeurs ont toujours eu le droit d’empêcher leurs employés de travailler avec les facultés affaiblies, que ce soit par une drogue légale comme l’alcool, ou illégale comme le cannabis. Donc, je ne crois pas que des modifications seront apportées à la loi, a déclaré Rob Champagne, avocat-conseil pour le Syndicat des Métallos. Les employeurs auraient plutôt avantage à consacrer leurs efforts à tenter d’éduquer leurs employés au sujet des prob-

lèmes causés par la consommation d’alcool ou de drogue en milieu de travail, et à offrir de l’aide à leurs employés afin d’empêcher que de telles situations se produisent. » La porte-parole de Goldcorp, Christine Marks, a écrit dans un courriel que la société « envisage d’adopter une approche proactive : c’est-à-dire nous renseigner, partager l’information et éduquer nos employés. » Elle a ajouté « que la notion de facultés affaiblies demeure la même, que celle-ci soit causée par un médicament prescrit ou par une substance récréative. Notre August • Août 2018 | 63

priorité demeure d’assurer une production sécuritaire. » À l’heure actuelle, les sociétés minières, à l’instar d’autres employeurs au sein d’industries impliquant un risque pour la sécurité, doivent adhérer à la règlementation provinciale en matière de sécurité en milieu de travail.

De plus, si elles font affaire avec des travailleurs syndiqués, elles doivent respecter les conventions collectives.

La loi concernant les tests de dépistage de drogues auprès des employés est régie par une mosaïque de décisions définies par les tribunaux des droits de la personne, les tribunaux et les arbitres en droit du travail. Historiquement, la vaste majorité des politiques en matière de tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogues et d’alcool ont été invalidées par des arbitres, car elles représentaient une violation du droit à la vie privée des employés.

En janvier dernier, Rob Champagne a travaillé sur le cas d’arbitrage opposant le Syndicat des Métallos à Teck Resources, qui est l’un des plus récents ajouts à la jurisprudence. Une victoire arbitrale du Syndicat des Métallos a mis fin à un programme de tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogues et d’alcool en place depuis cinq ans dans les mines de charbon de Teck Resources, à Elk Valley, en Colombie-Britannique. Ce cas, dont la durée aura été de trois ans et qui aura nécessité 39 journées d’audience, la présence de nombreux témoins experts et des sommes d’argent non divulguées, n’augure rien de bon pour les sociétés minières qui évaluent la possibilité de mettre en place des politiques en matière de tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogue à la suite de la légalisation du cannabis. « Teck Resources a remué ciel et terre, et, au bout du compte, a échoué, a déclaré Rob Champagne. Cela indique aux autres sociétés minières qu’elles ont peu de chances de parvenir à mettre en place des politiques en matière de tests aléatoires de dépistage. » Toutefois, le résultat incertain d’un autre cas qui oppose Suncor au syndicat Unifor, et qui rebondit d’un tribu64 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

nal de l’Alberta à un autre, envoie un message plus encourageant aux employeurs qui souhaitent mettre en œuvre des tests de dépistage aléatoires après le 17 octobre. Bien qu’un groupe d’arbitrage provincial ait conclu que le géant des sables bitumineux doit cesser de faire passer des tests de dépistage aléatoires à ses employés parce qu’il s’agit d’une violation du droit à la vie privée, la Cour du Banc de la Reine de l’Alberta a annulé la décision au motif que le groupe aurait dû tenir compte des incidents liés à l’alcool et aux drogues impliquant l’ensemble des travailleurs, et non seulement les employés syndiqués, et a ordonné que l’affaire soit entendue par un nouveau groupe. La Cour d’appel de la province a maintenu la révision judiciaire de cette décision. Unifor s’est par la suite tourné vers la Cour suprême du Canada. À la mi-juin, celle-ci a refusé d’entendre l’affaire. Ce dossier devra être soumis à un nouveau processus d’arbitrage. Une injonction imposée par la Cour du Banc de la Reine interdisant les tests aléatoires de dépistage pendant qu’Unifor portait la décision en appel auprès de la Cour suprême est toujours en vigueur.

L’absence de nouvelles lois relatives aux tests de dépistage de drogues en milieu de travail après la légalisation ne résulte pas d’un manque d’efforts de la part de groupes comme Enform, l’association de la sécurité du secteur pétrolier, qui a fait pression auprès du gouvernement fédéral afin que celui-ci mette en place une règlementation interdisant aux employés de consommer du cannabis « en étroite proximité temporelle » du travail, et sur les lieux de travail. La BC Trucking Association a aussi réclamé l’imposition d’un cadre réglementaire qui permettrait aux employeurs d’effectuer des tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogues et d’alcool.

Plus tôt cette année, un comité fédéral dont le mandat était d’étudier la possibilité d’imposer des tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogues aux travailleurs œuvrant au sein d’industries impliquant un risque pour la sécurité, et la manière de s’y prendre, n’est pas

parvenu à tirer des conclusions, selon un rapport de la Presse canadienne publié en mars dernier. De plus, le Parti libéral n’a depuis fourni aucune indication selon laquelle le gouvernement du Canada envisageait d’imposer des sanctions aux employeurs qui effectuent des tests aléatoires de dépistage de drogues en milieu de travail. (Le secteur militaire est l’unique secteur au sein duquel de tels règlements fédéraux sont mis en place.)

Les gestionnaires de mines peuvent se tourner en toute quiétude vers les deux types de tests de dépistage de drogues et d’alcool généralement approuvés par les arbitres et les commissions des droits de la personne pour les industries considérées comme impliquant un risque pour la sécurité.

Tout d’abord, le test mené pour une raison valable, dans le cas où il pourrait être justifié de faire passer un test de dépistage à un employé dont l’apparence, l’odeur ou le comportement permettent de croire que ses capacités sont affaiblies. Le deuxième type de test est le test de dépistage après un incident, qui est justifié lorsqu’il existe des preuves évidentes que la condition d’un employé pourrait avoir causé un accident grave sur le site. Le test aléatoire de dépistage de drogues et d’alcool n’est autorisé que lorsqu’un employeur est en mesure de démontrer la consommation problématique de substances d’un employé en milieu de travail qui doit être contrôlée, ce que Teck Resources n’a pas réussi à faire au cours de son cas d’arbitrage.

Le problème avec le test de dépistage du cannabis est complexifié par le fait que, contrairement à l’alcool, il n’existe pas encore de test objectif. Les méthodes actuelles, qui utilisent les échantillons d’urine et les tests de salive, portent à confusion. Le THC, la substance psychoactive contenue dans le cannabis et qui cause l’affaiblissement des facultés, demeure dans l’organisme d’un utilisateur occasionnel jusqu’à quatre jours, et jusqu’à huit semaines dans le cas d’un grand consommateur.

Par conséquent, ce test indique une consommation antérieure, et non un affaiblissement actuel des facultés.

les actualités en bref démarche vacillante ou des yeux vitreux. » À la lumière des difficultés entourant le dépistage et la prévention des risques associés à la consommation de cannabis, les organismes de santé et sécurité provinciaux travaillent en vue de mettre leur règlementation à jour.

La Commission de la sécurité au travail et de l’indemnisation des travailleurs

La conférence Resources for Future Generations attire 2 000 personnes à Vancouver

sur « la croissance économique avant tout » abordée durant la séance plénière d’ouverture présente un point faible ; par ailleurs, la tendance à l’utilisation croissante des ressources que beaucoup envisagent dans l’industrie et au sein du gouvernement est fondamentalement non durable. « On ne peut supposer que la croissance va se poursuivre ; il est grand temps de se rendre à l’évidence », ajoutait M. Beaty.

Lorsqu’on aborde la question de l’utilisation actuelle non durable des ressources, « on ne peut plus planifier sans admettre que l’on vit dans un monde con- John Thompson, président du comité organisateur de la RFG 2018, lors de la cérémonie d'ouverture de la naissant un réchauffement », conférence. déclarait Tzeporah Berman, conseillère en environnement, durant la directeur du programme Énergie et scimême séance. « C’est se voiler la face ences de la Terre de l’université du que de parler d’extraction des Texas à Austin. M. Chuchla proposait ressources et de la planifier. » que les universités commencent à offrir Les six volets de sessions techniques des diplômes pluridisciplinaires plutôt de la conférence portaient également que des programmes traditionnels se sur l’utilisation durable et renouvelable cantonnant à une seule matière princide l’énergie, des minéraux et de l’eau, pale. Selon lui, ce genre d’approches et essayaient de trouver des moyens innovantes pourraient aider les étudid’améliorer le recyclage des ressources. ants à maintenir le rythme imposé par La question de l’éducation et de son un monde en constante évolution. incidence sur la société ont aussi été M. Thompson indiquait que la préabordés. paration de la prochaine conférence est Plusieurs des conférenciers invités en cours. ont insisté sur l’importance d’encour« Nous avons eu des discussions ager les jeunes générations à aider à fascinantes. Nous venons à peine d’enrésoudre le problème difficile de la gesgager un dialogue qui se poursuivra tion des ressources que connaît sur le long terme », déclarait-il. « Il est actuellement le monde. à souhaiter que nous ayons devant « La technologie progresse si rapidenous de belles années de débat. » ment que les étudiants doivent appren– Kevin Martine, dre à remettre en question ce qu’ils ont avec des fichiers aimablement appris », indiquait Richard Chuchla, fournis par Tom DiNardo

La planification à long terme et le développement durable étaient au cœur de la conférence inaugurale Resources for Future Generations (RFG 2018, des ressources pour les générations futures), qui s’est tenue du 16 au 21 juin dernier à Vancouver. Plus de 2 000 participants et 50 exposants étaient présents à cet événement de 4 jours ; son objectif était de débattre de l’avenir de la gestion des ressources au sein d’un cadre interdisciplinaire en réunissant une vaste gamme de professionnels de l’industrie et du monde universitaire. « Lorsqu’on décide d’organiser une rencontre de cette ampleur et qu’on essaie d’aller au fond de problèmes qui touchent tant d’aspects différents, il est toujours difficile de réunir des gens qui acceptent de s’ouvrir au débat », déclarait John Thompson, président du comité organisateur de la conférence RFG 2018. « Nous y sommes parvenus, et nous avons encore beaucoup à faire pour les années à venir. » Des sociétés minières, des défenseurs de l’environnement et des spécialistes en sciences sociales ont pris part aux séances plénières pluridisciplinaires quotidiennes afin de discuter de la viabilité et de la stabilité futures des ressources naturelles, ainsi que du concept de l’utilisation et du recyclage des ressources dans une économie circulaire.

D’après Ross Beaty, fondateur et président de Pan American Silver, la priorité mondiale actuellement axée

des Territoires du Nord-Ouest et du Nunavut a affirmé qu’elle élabore actuellement une nouvelle définition de la notion de « facultés affaiblies » qui ne sera probablement pas axée sur la quantité d’une substance consommée, mais plutôt sur les répercussions de cette consommation et les signes montrant qu’une personne a les facultés affaiblies. ICM

Jon Benjamin Photography

Rob Champagne considère les méthodes de dépistage actuelles comme une « science imparfaite », et a expliqué qu’un résultat positif à un test de dépistage de drogues ne peut être l’unique indicateur des facultés affaiblies par le cannabis. Il ajoute que le résultat positif à un test de dépistage doit être jumelé à « autre chose, comme des troubles d’élocution, une

August • Août 2018 | 65

LA RUÉE VERS

L’INNOVATION

DANS L’INDUSTRIE DES

SABLES BITUMINEUX Par Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco

D

es dizaines de technologies émergentes destinées à pratiquement toutes les facettes de la production des sables bitumineux pourraient bien aider l’industrie à trouver des solutions aux enjeux environnementaux et opérationnels les plus importants qu’elle rencontre actuellement. De fait, d’après une étude menée par le Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI, l’institut canadien de recherche énergétique), ces technologies émergentes posent aujourd’hui les bases qui permettront à l’industrie de réduire de 40 % ses coûts opérationnels et jusqu’à 80 % de ses émissions. En bref, les sables bitumineux de l’Alberta connaissent une ruée vers l’innovation, et les répercussions pourraient être considérables.

Un environnement innovant « La plupart d’entre nous envisagent l’innovation comme une technologie, mais elle peut se traduire de diverses manières », expliquait Dan Wicklum, directeur général de la Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA, l’alliance canadienne pour l’innovation dans le secteur des sables bitumineux), formée en 2012 par 10 sociétés pétrolières qui représentent à elles seules 90 % de la production de sables bitumineux. « Le modèle de la COSIA constitue probablement l’une des plus grandes innovations dans le secteur pétrolier. » Plutôt que d’appréhender l’innovation comme un moyen de se tailler un avantage concurrentiel, les sociétés membres de la COSIA collaborent en développant de nouvelles technologies qui leur permettront d’améliorer leurs performances environnementale et opérationnelle. Elles ont déjà partagé des droits de propriété intellectuelle d’une valeur de 1,4 milliard de dollars pour quelque 985 technologies et innovations. Il y a deux ans, la COSIA a également lancé le concours NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE, d’une valeur de 20 millions de dollars américains. Ce concours, mené à l’échelle internationale, récompense les équipes découvrant des technologies permettant de réduire les émissions de dioxyde de carbone (CO2) et de convertir le CO2 en produits utilisables. « Un bon système d’innovation repose sur des personnes créatives, de bonnes idées et un financement solide, mais il requiert également l’infrastructure d’essai adaptée », déclarait M. Wicklum. Ainsi, la COSIA a établi un partenariat avec les gouvernements fédéral et de l’Alberta pour créer à Calgary l’Alberta Carbon Conversion Technology Centre (ACCTC, un centre de recherche dédié à la mise à l’essai de nouvelles technologies de conversion du CO2 en Alberta), qui a ouvert ses portes en mai. Construit à côté du Shepard Energy Centre (le centre pour l’énergie de Shepard), dont les émissions de gaz de combustion émanent d’une usine électrique au gaz naturel, cette nouvelle installation offre aux innovateurs les capacités requises pour tester, perfectionner et approfondir les technologies qui convertissent le CO2 en des produits utilisables en vue d’une commercialisation.

En avril, la COSIA a annoncé la liste des dix finalistes du concours Carbon XPRIZE. Chacun des finalistes recevra 500 000 dollars américains afin d’amener sa technologie Page gauche : Komatsu travaille de concert avec Suncor depuis 2013 pour adapter les systèmes de transport autonome des fabricants d’équipement d’origine à l’industrie des sables bitumineux en Alberta.

Avec l’aimable autorisation de Komatsu

jusqu’à la phase de commercialisation. Cinq des finalistes s’intéressent à la conversion des émissions de CO2 provenant du gaz, et ils seront les premiers à utiliser le nouveau centre ; les équipes s’intéressant à la conversion du CO2 émanant du charbon seront envoyées au Wyoming’s Integrated Test Center (le centre d’essai intégré du Wyoming). Avec du CO2, Carbicrete transforme les résidus industriels issus des scories d’acier en béton sans ciment, CERT crée des combustibles et des matières premières à valeur ajoutée, Newlight fabrique du plastique biologique, Carbon Upcycling Technologies développe des nanoparticules graphitiques et des dérivés du graphène, et C2CNT fabrique des nanotubes. Aux côtés des finalistes du Wyoming, ces sociétés prépareront leurs technologies à la commercialisation et entreront en lice pour remporter l’un des deux premiers prix de 7,5 millions de dollars, qui seront décernés en 2020.

Des systèmes de transport autonome Avec un parc de véhicules de transport aussi imposant, le potentiel de l’automatisation se fait indéniablement ressentir dans l’industrie des sables bitumineux. Cependant, sa mise en œuvre requiert une certaine créativité afin de se préparer aux conditions difficiles de la région.

Pour Komatsu, qui travaille de concert avec Suncor depuis 2013 pour adapter les systèmes de transport autonome (AHS, de l’anglais autonomous haulage systems) des fabricants d’équipement d’origine (FEO) que la société a lancés dans le district ferrifère de la région de Pilbara en Australie-Occidentale, les sables bitumineux posaient des problèmes particuliers, notamment en raison des hivers froids et de l’aspect visqueux des corps minéralisés. La préparation à l’hiver et le développement d’un réseau de trajectoires multiples pour les camions afin qu’ils n’endommagent pas les routes ont résolu les problèmes.

Suncor prévoit d’ajouter 150 unités d’AHS dans ses exploitations de sables bitumineux au cours des six années à venir, en commençant par sa mine de North Steepbank. Il ne s’agit pas de la seule société d’exploitation des sables bitumineux qui envisage d’adopter cette nouvelle technologie. En effet, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd prévoit de lancer un petit projet pilote pour 2019.

Les AHS de Komatsu associent des camions autonomes aux équipements et pelles de soutien commandés par des hommes. « Nous disposons de cinq couches de sûreté qui permettent aux humains d’interagir avec les camions autonomes », expliquait Brian Yureskes, directeur du développement des entreprises pour les sables bitumineux à Komatsu. « Certaines sont des couches virtuelles de sécurité, qui permettent au système de voir et d’anticiper ce que les hommes font autour des camions. D’autres sont des couches physiques, par exemple les lasers et les radars. Quant à la dernière couche, chaque équipement actionné par un humain et exploité dans la région dispose d’un gros bouton rouge sur lequel on peut appuyer pour arrêter tous les camions autonomes. » D’après Scott Schellenberg, dirigeant des AHS auprès de SMS Equipment, le distributeur canadien de Komatsu, la technologie autonome a elle-même énormément renforcé la sécurité. « Les employés travaillant autour des camions de August • Août 2018 | 67

transport autonome peuvent voir sur leur écran où se trouvent les camions, et savoir où ils se dirigent, ce qui n’est pas le cas avec un humain conduisant le camion », indiquait-il.

Les sables bitumineux passent au numérique Les exploitations de sables bitumineux adoptent de plus en plus les technologies d’apprentissage automatique et d’intelligence artificielle (IA), déclarait Dinara Millington, viceprésidente de la recherche au CERI. « L’adoption est plus rapide depuis que ces technologies ont été commercialisées il y a quelques temps », expliquait-elle.

Marty Reed, chef de la direction d’Evok Innovations, un partenariat entre des sociétés du secteur pétrolier et gazier canadien et la BC Cleantech CEO Alliance (l’alliance des dirigeants des principales sociétés de technologies propres de la Colombie-Britannique), évoque deux technologies innovantes générant des avantages considérables pour le secteur pétrolier et gazier ainsi que pour celui des sables bitumineux. L’une des sociétés, Kelvin, possède un système d’IA déployé dans les champs gaziers et pétroliers de BP à Wamsutter, dans le Wyoming. Des centaines de capteurs peu coûteux ont été installés dans les puits où ils recueillent des données qui sont transmises par l’intermédiaire du nuage vers des ordinateurs performants. Ces données identifient des modèles et font des prévisions, qui sont utilisés pour générer de petites modifications à des fins d’optimisation ; ces modifications sont ensuite renvoyées vers les salles de commande dans le champ. « L’ère où l’on devait remanier toutes les données dès la moindre modification sera bientôt révolue », indiquait M. Reed. « Les ordinateurs sont plus adaptés à ce genre de tâches. » La deuxième société, Expeto, a été fondée en ColombieBritannique (C.-B.) et propose une solution logicielle qui met en relation tous les dispositifs technologiques de l’évolution à long terme (LTE) en toute sécurité. « Si l’on ne parvient pas à envoyer les données dans le nuage, cette technologie n’a plus aucun sens », expliquait M. Reed. « Expeto propose une plateforme offrant aux entreprises un bien meilleur contrôle de tous leurs dispositifs reliés à Internet. La société évolue dans les secteurs pétrolier, gazier et minier. »

Réduire l’empreinte environnementale À l’heure actuelle, l’industrie des sables bitumineux est responsable de l’émission de 70 mégatonnes de CO2 par an.

En 2030, un système gouvernemental de plafonnement des émissions sera instauré en Alberta et fixera la limite d’émissions acceptables de CO2 à 100 mégatonnes par an. Si l’industrie souhaite continuer de croître, il lui reste relativement peu de temps pour réduire l’intensité de ses émissions de CO2.

En 2015, Shell Canada a ouvert la première installation de captage et stockage du dioxyde de carbone (CSC) à l’échelle commerciale pour une exploitation de sables bitumineux, l’installation Quest de CSC, située sur les lieux de l’usine de traitement du bitume Scotford de la société, près d’Edmonton.

Trois années plus tard, l’usine a capté et stocké plus de trois millions de tonnes de CO2. Ce système, conçu par Shell, utilise de l’amine pour absorber le CO2 émanant de la combustion des gaz. Il sépare ensuite le CO2 de l’amine et le pressurise en un liquide, qui est transporté à 65 kilomètres au 68 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

nord par le biais d’une canalisation, puis est injecté à deux kilomètres dans le sol.

Parmi les autres technologies visant à réduire les émissions de gaz à effet de serre (GES) figure la méthode de captage du CO2 par une enzyme, mise au point par la société québécoise CO2 Solutions. Ce procédé est en cours de démonstration dans le cadre d’un projet de captage et d’utilisation du CO2 de 30 millions de dollars à Chimie Parachem, une installation de paraxylène (PX) située à Montréal, détenue à 51 % par Suncor.

La construction d’une unité commerciale destinée à l’usine de pâte à papier Resolute Forest Product au Québec est en cours ; elle devrait être opérationnelle d’ici la fin de l’année et injectera le CO2 capté dans une serre voisine. La société a étroitement collaboré avec le secteur pétrolier pour démontrer le bienfondé de sa technologie. D’après Evan Price, président et chef de la direction de CO2 Solutions, cette technologie peut être adaptée, et le capital et les coûts d’exploitation ne sont pas aussi élevés que pour la technologie à base d’amine.

Cette technologie repose sur l’anhydrase carbonique, une enzyme également utilisée par les poumons des humains et des animaux pour assimiler le CO2 dans le corps. CO2 Solutions compare sa technologie à un poumon industriel. « Nous utilisons une solution saline carbonatée très simple qui ne génère ni aérosols ni déchets toxiques », expliquait M. Price. « Nous puisons la chaleur nécessaire à notre technologie dans de l’eau chaude provenant de l’usine, et non de la vapeur comme c’est le cas pour les procédés à base d’amine. La vapeur a une grande valeur ; ainsi, utiliser de l’eau chaude et non de la vapeur confère à notre technologie une grande différence de coût, très avantageuse. » Accélérer la remise en état des exploitations de sables bitumineux est aussi un projet pressant qui a engendré tout un éventail d’approches de la part de l’industrie et d’autres secteurs. Parmi les sociétés en lice figure Technika Engineering de Calgary, qui s’est penchée sur les problèmes rencontrés avec les technologies traditionnelles d’assainissement des résidus fins mûrs (RFM) à l’aide de dragues et de chalands équipés de pompes submersibles. « Nous étions convaincus qu’il existait une meilleure approche », expliquait Radé Svorcan, président de la société. « Aussi nous avons décidé de la concevoir. » Technika a développé ce que la société appelle un système de récupération des résidus (TRS, de l’anglais Tailings Recovery System). Les RFM provenant des sables bitumineux présentent une résistance au cisaillement et une viscosité élevées qui augmentent en fonction de la profondeur des bassins, lesquels atteignent généralement 30 mètres. En raison des débris dans les RFM et de leurs propriétés rhéologiques, les technologies traditionnelles d’assainissement à l’aide de dragues et de chalands équipés de pompes submersibles rencontrent des problèmes d’obstruction et de dilution des RFM au point d’aspiration. La technologie TRS utilise une structure en coque télescopique de type caisson située à la surface du bassin et pouvant descendre jusqu’à plus de 15 mètres de profondeur, qui permet d’exploiter le principe de l’équilibre de la pression hydraulique afin de ramener les RFM à la surface. « Les RFM se trouvant en surface dans le TRS, il est bien plus facile de les récupérer et les problèmes liés à la dilution des RFM et à

Avec l’aimable autorisation de DarkVision Technologies

Avec l’aimable autorisation de Technika Engineering

Avec l’aimable autorisation de CO2 Solutions

De gauche à droite : La méthode de captage du CO2 par une enzyme, mise au point par la société québécoise CO2 Solutions ; la technologie d’imagerie acoustique à haute résolution permet aux opérateurs de voir à l’intérieur de leurs puits au travers des fluides épais ; le système de récupération des résidus (de l’anglais Tailings Recovery System) de Technika Engineering.

l’obstruction des pompes sont résolus. Nous utilisons la pression hydraulique naturelle pour faire remonter les RFM vers le haut », indiquait M. Svorcan.

Cette technologie, qui a d’ores et déjà prouvé son bien-fondé dans une exploitation de sables bitumineux où elle a été déployée, présente des avantages ; elle permet notamment une récupération fiable sans obstruction tout au long de l’année. Elle est totalement préparée aux conditions hivernales et peut être actionnée à distance. D’après la société, avec un système d’alimentation en RFM de 2 500 mètres cubes par heure (m3/h), le TRS permet de réaliser des économies de l’ordre de 10 à 20 millions de dollars en coûts d’investissement, et de l’ordre de 5 à 10 millions de dollars en coûts d’exploitation, par rapport aux technologies reposant sur les dragues et les chalands.

Une extraction in situ innovante Stephen Robinson et Graham Manders, deux entrepreneurs spécialisés dans la technologie de l’imagerie, ont décidé de faire équipe avec Osman Malik, un vétéran du secteur pétrolier et gazier, et ont commencé à demander à des sociétés pétrolières de la région des sables bitumineux de l’Alberta quels étaient leurs besoins. De leurs retours est née la société DarkVision Technologies. « Tout le monde souhaite voir ce que contiennent les puits », déclarait M. Robinson. « Ce sont des environnements complexes ; les opérateurs veulent voir ce qu’il se passe à l’intérieur pour pouvoir régler les problèmes et optimiser la production, mais les puits sont profonds, sombres et remplis de fluides opaques. » En 2013, DarkVision a mis au point une technologie d’imagerie acoustique à haute résolution permettant aux opérateurs de voir à l’intérieur de leurs puits au travers des fluides épais.

L’année dernière, la société a installé des bureaux à Calgary et compte désormais cinq clients, dont Suncor, MEG and ConocoPhillips. « Nous avons encore beaucoup de produits complémentaires à développer, et nous sommes très loin du but », déclarait M. Robinson.

Dans le monde de l’extraction in situ des sables bitumineux, on parle beaucoup des technologies à base de solvants, qui pourraient remplacer les technologies traditionnelles d’injection de vapeur requérant beaucoup d’eau et de gaz afin de rendre moins visqueux le bitume trop profond pour être extrait, de manière à le recueillir et à le pomper vers la surface.

La société américaine Harris a développé HeatWave, une technologie qui repose sur la méthode avancée d’extraction par solvant au moyen de chaleur électromagnétique (ESEIEH, de l’anglais Enhanced Solvent Extraction Incorporating Electromagnetic Heating) associant des solvants, de la chaleur électromagnétique et une antenne radio placée dans le sol qui réchauffe le bitume.

Nsolv, une autre société basée à Calgary, a mis au point un système à base de solvants sans eau qui a été testé pendant trois ans dans les sables bitumineux. Ce projet a pris fin en 2017, après avoir permis la production de 130 000 barils de pétrole. La technologie est prête au déploiement commercial.

Nsolv injecte dans le dépôt de bitume de la vapeur pure et chauffée de propane provenant d’une usine à basse pression.

Lorsque la vapeur atteint le bitume, elle le condense et le réchauffe légèrement. « Le propane liquide et le bitume légèrement mouvant se mélangent très bien », expliquait Joseph Kuhach, chef de la direction de Nsolv. Cette vapeur permet de suffisamment liquéfier le bitume pour le faire remonter en surface.

Par rapport au drainage par gravité au moyen de vapeur (DGMV), expliquait M. Kuhach, ce procédé présente l’avantage de réduire les émissions de GES de 70 à 80 %, et la construction d’une grande centrale hydraulique s’avère inutile.

Ceci permet de réaliser des économies de 40 % en termes de coûts d’investissements.

Par ailleurs, ajoutait M. Kuhach, le procédé développé par Nsolv élimine les asphaltènes et les séquestre dans le dépôt.

Par rapport à une production classique, ce bitume partiellement valorisé requiert moins de la moitié du diluant nécesAugust • Août 2018 | 69

saire pour répondre aux spécifications relatives au transport par canalisation. À l’heure actuelle, les canalisations de l’Ouest canadien doivent respecter un indice de gravité établi par l’American Petroleum Institute (API, l’institut américain du pétrole) de 20 à 22 degrés. De nos jours, le bitume affiche généralement un indice de 8 à 10 degrés API ; les indices du bitume produit par Nsolv sont de 13 à 14 degrés API. Pour les sables bitumineux, les répercussions d’une réduction de la quantité de diluant dans les canalisations vont bien au-delà d’une simple réduction des coûts des diluants. De fait, entre 30 et 40 % du bitume transporté par ces canalisations n’est pas du pétrole, mais des diluants, une pratique inefficace qui est encore plus prononcée étant donné les tentatives infructueuses de développer le réseau de canalisations.

Augmenter le débit de pétrole pour réduire le goulet d’étranglement « Comment peut-on augmenter le débit si l’on ne construit aujourd’hui aucune nouvelle canalisation ? », déclarait Mme Millington. « L’une des façons d’y parvenir est de réduire la quantité de diluant que requiert le bitume afin de répondre aux spécifications relatives au transport par canalisation, de manière à ce que le diluant n’utilise pas outre mesure la capacité précieuse des canalisations. » Des sociétés d’exploitation des sables bitumineux et des innovateurs œuvrent au développement de technologies de valorisation partielle qui permettent d’augmenter la quantité, la qualité, et par là même la valeur du bitume transporté à partir des gisements de sables bitumineux.

La société québécoise Fractal Systems, par exemple, a mis au point et testé une technologie de valorisation partielle baptisée Enhanced JetShear. En février dernier, la société annonçait que le système JetShear permet de réduire la quantité de diluant de 50 à 60 % et d’augmenter la capacité de transport de bitume par canalisation de 20 à 25 %. Le système JetShear repose sur le craquage thermique léger et par cavitation hydrodynamique pour modifier la structure des molécules d’asphaltènes du bitume sur le site d’extraction et réduire sa viscosité ainsi que sa densité apparente. Fractal Systems indiquait que sa technologie, qui inclut des tuyères d’éjection propriétaires, est prête à être commercialisée.

En outre, la société Alberta Innovates a établi un partenariat avec des sociétés dont les technologies de valorisation partielle se trouvent en phase de démonstration. Cette étape requiert l’exploitation de 1 000 barils par jour, expliquait Murray Gray, conseiller technique principal de la valorisation partielle du 70 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Avec l’aimable autorisation de Komatsu

Pour Komatsu, qui a déjà lancé ses systems de transport autonome dans le district ferrifère de la région de Pilbara en Australie-Occidentale, les sables bitumineux posaient des problèmes particuliers, notamment en raison des hivers froids et de l’aspect visqueux des corps minéralisés.

bitume à Alberta Innovates. L’une de ces sociétés, MEG Energy, possède un système qui fournit un bitume partiellement valorisé prêt à être transporté par canalisation sans utiliser de diluant. Cette technologie, baptisée HI-Q, associe le craquage thermique au désasphaltage. Une autre société, Nexen Energy, propose un procédé baptisé BituMax, qui associe le désasphaltage au craquage thermique, mais dans l’ordre inverse de la technologie HI-Q. La société Husky Energy, quant à elle, adopte une approche différente ; son système amalgame le bitume à du pétrole brut synthétique, puis traite ce mélange. « Nous espérons que d’ici deux ou trois ans, plusieurs technologies de valorisation partielle seront prêtes à être déployées dans le commerce », déclarait M. Gray.

En ces périodes d’incertitude, la commercialisation devient difficile. D’après l’association canadienne des producteurs pétroliers (ACPP), les dépenses totales en capital dans les sables bitumineux ont considérablement chuté, de 34 milliards de dollars en 2014 à environ 15 milliards de dollars en 2016. « Comment investir des capitaux dans une technologie qui n’a pas fait ses preuves à l’échelle commerciale ? », indiquait Mme Millington. « La première société à présenter une nouvelle technologie est toujours celle qui prend le plus de risques.

Ainsi, la question est de savoir comment éliminer les risques inhérents à cette technologie pour accélérer la commercialisation du procédé. » En février, le gouvernement de l’Alberta proposait au moins une solution partielle au problème ; il injectera au cours des huit années à venir un milliard de dollars en prêts et subventions dans la construction d’installations de valorisation partielle dans la province. « Nous considérons ce partenariat avec le gouvernement comme une étape très importante qui permettra de propulser ces technologies au-delà du rang de la démonstration à une échelle suffisante », indiquait M. Gray.

Une voie parsemée d’innovations Aucune technologie ne peut à elle seule résoudre les problèmes liés à l’exploitation des sables bitumineux ; cependant, « le potentiel des technologies innovantes à révolutionner l’industrie des sables bitumineux est indéniable », indiquait Mme Millington. ICM

technical abstracts

CIM Journal Abstracts from CIM Journal, Vol. 8, No. 4

Development of the Cigar Lake jet boring mining method M. L. Wacker, Cameco Corporation, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

Cigar Lake high-grade uranium mine in Saskatchewan is operating after 25 years of test mining, construction, and mine flood remediation. Factors include ground stability, groundwater control, radiation exposure, and ore handling. A 10-year test program resulted in validating “jet boring”, a non-entry mining method involving artificially freezing the orebody and surrounding rock; tunnelling to develop access crosscuts below the orebody; installing cased pilot holes through ore; extracting ore using rotating high-pressure water jets within pilot holes; and cavity concrete backfilling. Ore slurry is prepared underground, pumped to surface, and trucked to McClean Lake mill for processing to uranium concentrate.

Valorization of low-grade copper-cobalt ore from the Mukondo mine by heap leaching and solvent extraction M. B. Kime, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa, and E. K. Kanowa, Université de Lubumbashi, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo

Heap leaching of low-grade copper-cobalt oxidized ore and solvent extraction of copper, cobalt, manganese, and zinc were investigated. Heap-leaching parameters were optimized using agitated and tray batch leaching tests, capped by tests on a pilot semi-continuous heap-leach plant. The optimum pregnant leach solution yielded 2,350 mg/L Cu, 3,800 mg/L Co, 3,600 mg/L Fe, 130 mg/L Mn, 25 mg/L Zn, and 0.58 g/L solids in suspension, with pH and acidity of 1.27 and 3.66 g/L, respectively. Copper, cobalt, and impurities (Mn and Zn) were extracted using (v/v) 30% CP-150, 20% IONQUEST® 290, and 20% D2EHPA, respectively. Overall recoveries of copper, cobalt, and impurities were 98, 99, and 70%, respectively.

Effect of redox conditions and copper ions on pyrite depression by sodium metabisulfite and sodium sulfite in seawater L. Uribe, Department of Mining Engineering, University of Talca, Curicó, Chile, L. Gutiérrez, Department of Metallurgical Engineering, University of Concepción, Concepción, Chile, S. Castro, Water Research Center for Agriculture and Mining (CRHIAM), University of Concepción, Concepción, Chile; J. S. Laskowski, Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Use of lime in seawater as a pyrite depressant decreases Mo recovery in flotation of Cu-Mo sulfide ores. When technology that uses sodium metabisulfite (MBS) to depress pyrite is applied, the process is carried out at pH 6.5–7.5, the range where Mo recovery is higher than the usual pH 11.0–12.0 when lime is applied. Redox conditions and chemical reactions involved in depression mechanisms of pyrite by MBS, or sodium sulfite, in seawater are investigated and discussed based on the acidifying effect of MBS, oxidation of sulfite ions by dissolved oxygen, and the role of catalyst of some metal cations (e.g., copper ions) adsorbed on pyrite’s surface.

Subscribe at www.cim.org

technical abstracts

Canadian Metallurgical Quarterly Papers in CMQ, Vol. 55, No. 1

Hot corrosion behavior of Cr-modified NiAl coatings on 310 stainless steel produced by a gas tungsten arc cladding process M. Atapour, S. Pourmohammadi, and F. Ashrafizadeh, Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahah, Iran

Dry sliding wear behaviour of a novel 6351 Al-Al4SiC4 composite at high loads M. Kumar Mondal, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, National Institute of Technology Durgapur, Durgapur, West Bangal, India; K. Biswas, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, West Bengal, India; and J. Maity, Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, National Institute of Technology Durgapur, Durgapur, West Bangal, India

Recyclability assessment of Al 7075 chips produced by cold comminution and consolidation using spark plasma sintering P. Hendrickx, M. M. Tünçay, and M. Brochu, REGAL Aluminum Research Centre, Materials Engineering Department, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

An experimental investigation of the gasification of graphite by carbon dioxide J. Zhang, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; G. Zhang, School of Mechanical Materials & Mechatronic Engineering, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia; O. Ostrovski, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Three-dimensional discrete element method simulation of the effect of bottom structure on solid flow in COREX shaft furnace H. F. Li, H. Zhou, Z. G. Luo, T. Zhang, Y. You, and Z. S. Zou, School of Materials and Metallurgy, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China

Physical simulation of converter steelmaking with powder injection B. Tang, X. Wang, Z. Zou, and A. Yu, Key Laboratory of Ecological Utilization of Multi-Metal Intergrown Ores of Education of Ministry, Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China

www.maneyonline.com/loi/cmq

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August โ ข Aoรปt 2018 | 73

MINING LORE The mischievous Muki

By Jordan Faries

I

74 | CIM Magazine | Vol. 13, No. 5

Thom95/Wikimedia

t is not hard to imagine the effect helpful figure who can lead miners that dark, sprawling underto productive ore deposits or warn ground workings can have on them of dangers underground. superstitious miners. And in the One common theme in Muki lore heart of the Andes mountain range – is the tendency for the creature to which stretches over several South make deals with miners. The Muki is American countries – a piece of folksaid to trade valuable mining knowllore has been passed down from genedge or help in exchange for luxuries eration to generation, taking on a life such as alcohol or coca. However, of its own. The mysterious Muki, a the Muki plays the part of a trickster small, elf-like creature dressed in or demon, and these deals can backmining gear, is said to roam the caves fire badly for miners who are greedy and tunnels of underground mines and indiscreet about their luck. One in the region. such story involves two Peruvian Legends of the Muki have been miners, Demetrio and Anastacio. consistently shared over the years in Demetrio, a poor, hard-working isolated mining camps as far north as miner, notices his coca leaves mysteColombia, as far south as Bolivia, riously disappearing, and one day and in the Peruvian Andes in decides to hide and wait for the thief. between. However, its name differs The thief, of course, is the Muki, a from region to region – people in the terrifying discovery for Demetrio.

Moquegua region in the south of But the Muki promises to help Peru speak of a chinchiliku, and Yerupajá mountain in the Peruvian Andes Demetrio with his work in exchange those in the northern Cajamarca for more coca, provided he tell no region call it the jusshi. The word muki originates from the one about the deal. Demetrio gladly accepts, and immediately Quechuan language of the indigenous ethnic groups in South his rusted equipment is restored to a gleaming condition. Over America. the next weeks, Demetrio begins to get richer and richer, as According to oral tradition, the Muki is no more than two does his companion Anastacio, who brags to Demetrio that he feet in height, yet is disproportionately muscular, with a deep has met the Muki. Demetrio, remembering his deal, says nothvoice. His skin is described as ghostly pale, with long blond ing and continues to work hard, using his newfound wealth to hair framing dazzling eyes that reflect the light, like the metals help his family and purchase a new house. On the other hand, in the mines he inhabits. The Muki dresses in traditional min- Anastacio and other miners who also met the Muki do the ing garb, which varies from era to era: according to legend, he opposite, loudly bragging about their luck and spending their used to roam the darkness wearing a poncho and carrying a money foolishly on luxuries. After a few weeks, Demetrio lantern, but nowadays he prefers modern mining clothes with again runs into the Muki, who sternly warns him to leave the boots and a flashlight. His feet are said to be abnormally large, mine and never return. Demetrio heeds the advice and shortly resulting in a strange, duck-like waddle. afterwards a sudden tunnel collapse kills Anastacio and his While the description and belief in the Muki is consistent greedy friends. with Andean folklore regarding creatures and demons from The most plausible – and unfortunate – explanation for the the underworld, the exact nature and motivation of the mys- rise and spread of Muki legends involve the creature as a perterious mine-dweller is less certain, as are the origins of the sonification of the dangers and risks miners accept in their line legend. Most agree the Muki is a solitary creature. And while of work. The word muki comes from the Quechua word some legends paint him as something of a predatory goblin murik, which means “to smother” or “to strangle,” a reference searching for unsuspecting children or isolated miners to to the often lethal dust and silica that would fill miners’ lungs. attack, in general the existence of the Muki has become a sort In this explanation, the stories of bargains and deals passed of catch-all for the mysterious goings-on underground. Mining down from miner to miner represent the risks that came with equipment disappeared? Blame the Muki. Strange noises or trying to make a living from the often dangerous work. It was movement in the dark? It is probably the Muki. Some stories truly a devil’s bargain for some, as the harder they worked to paint the creature in a more positive light, as a mysterious but escape poverty, the more dangerous dust they inhaled. CIM

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