Mining in Ontario Toronto
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Mining in Ontario TABLE OF CONTENTS with a special report on: Introduction ............................................................ p68 Toronto The Golden Province …………………...........…………. p69 Interview with Minister Rick Bartolucci ................…. p70 World’s Mining Capital The Ring of Fire: Will it Ever Burn, Burn, Burn? ......... p85 Sudbury: Vive La Big Nickel ……….....……………… p89 Ontario Still Has Much More to Offer .....…………… p92 This report was researched and prepared by Global Toronto: World’s Mining Capital ....…………………… p95 Business Reports (www.gbreports.com) for Engineering & Interview with Kevan Cowan, TSX Markets ............... p103 Mining Journal. Toronto Roots, Global Reach ……………………….. p104 Editorial researched and written by Ramona Tarta, Karim The Silver Lining ………………………………………… p120 El Badrawy, Angela Harmantas, and Amanda Lapadat of Global Business Reports. For further information, contact Strategic Minerals ……....……………………………… p123 [email protected], or follow us on twitter: @GBReports Boom Times are Challenging Times ……......………… p127 The Service Sector ……......….....…........………… p132 Cover photo courtesy of Detour Gold. Conclusion: Continued Success in Ontario ..………… p146 A REPORT BY GBR FOR E&MJ MAY 2012 MINING IN ONTARIO Introduction Ontario, a fundamental mining province, is home to the renowned Sudbury nickel belt as well as the Timmins, Kirkland Lake and Red Lake gold camps. Sitting second behind Québec for overall mining production, and labor shortages and recently introduced regulations, such as the Far hosting the world’s leading mining financial center in the Toronto North Act, are seen by many in the mining business as stumbling Stock Exchange, Ontario is a premier destination for mining compa- blocks that could have negative implications for the sector. To sus- nies. Ontario’s mineral industry is currently valued at approximately tain growth, it is imperative that both the private sector and gov- C$8 billion. Nevertheless, explorers believe there is still much more ernment officials practice foresight, addressing these issues before to discover in the province’s sparsely populated north. their detrimental ramifications begin to have a significant impact Over the decades, the mining camps that sprawled throughout on the industry. Ontario have experienced their fair share of booms and busts. With the multifaceted nature of the sector in mind, E&MJ and Currently, while the world is experiencing one of the worst eco- Global Business Reports have undertaken this report to provide an nomic cycles since the Great Depression, mining and exploration overview of Ontario’s diverse mining industry. This report will pro- are revitalized. vide an in-depth review of all the interesting projects in Ontario, ex- Benefitting from global demand for precious metals, particularly amining the new developments taking place throughout the Abitibi gold, juniors and majors alike are reaping the benefits of this resur- greenstone belt, as well as shedding light on the new mining fron- gence. Increase in demand for precious metals resulted in a record tiers of the province, particularly the Ring of Fire. C$1 billion being spent on exploration in Ontario in 2011. Furthermore, we shall examine what is undoubtedly the back- In addition to precious metals, Ontario’s attractive geology pro- bone of Ontario’s industry — its service and supply sector — and vides opportunities for the extraction of a wide array of base met- shed light on the potential opportunities and challenges facing On- als, as well as industrial minerals. Looking to take advantage of tario’s mining industry. increased global demand, Ontarians are looking to produce every- Possessing both an exceptionally skillful, experienced labor force thing from iron ore to graphite in their own backyard. and an abundance of under-explored, sparsely populated land, it While Ontario’s mining sector is experiencing a period of pros- is an industry that boasts the necessary ingredients for continued perity, it is also facing its fair share of challenges. Anticipated future success and growth. 68 E&MJ • MAY 2012 www.e-mj.com The Golden Province Ontario is Canada’s leading gold-producing province, comprising 53% of the country’s output. Aerial view of Red Lake, Goldcorp’s top-producing mine, yielding in excess of 650,000 oz/y at low-costs. (Photo courtesy of Goldcorp). With low-grade gold deposits now feasible, A Rich History railroad worker from the Temiskaming and many in the mining community have looked Ontario’s modern mining industry can be Northern Ontario Railway serendipitously to Ontario’s established mining camps as traced back to the summer of 1903 in located a huge silver vein while expressing guaranteed moneymakers throughout this what is presently the small town of Cobalt. his annoyance with a local fox. While the opportunistic period. Red Lake, Kirkland Ironically, the mining industry in Northern authenticity of the story should certainly be Lake, and Timmins are undergoing revital- Ontario, a region known for its gold camps, questioned, the impact of this silver discov- ization and, in addition, mining companies was spurred on by the discovery of the pre- ery should not. Within a few years’ Cobalt have ventured off into less traditional ter- cious metal’s often underappreciated “little would emerge as one of the largest silver- ritory, exploring for gold and creating new brother,” silver. By most accounts, the producing areas in the world. Using skills mining frontiers. discovery of silver at Cobalt was a fluke; a acquired from the silver (cont. on page 6) www.e-mj.com E&MJ • MAY 2012 69 MINING IN ONTARIO Go North! Interview with Rick Bartolucci, Minister of Northern Development and Mines, Government of Ontario How has the government of On- move forward in a very aggressive, yet co- tario created an environment that operative, fashion. This is how we will have encourages investment in the prov- to conduct business in the future; ensuring ince’s mining sector? that no one is left out of the incredible op- The government of Ontario has harmonized portunity that we call mining in Ontario. its sales tax with that of 130 different coun- tries. This ensures that investors around the The mining sector is set to face a world will feel comfortable when coming labor shortage in the near future. and doing business in Ontario because of What steps is the government of their familiarity with the tax system. Sec- Ontario taking to address this prob- ondly, we have enacted a Mineral Develop- lem? ment Strategy that provides for sustainabil- Admittedly, the work force is getting older. ity and growth within the industry. To counteract this trend, the Government For lack of a better analogy, it is a blue- of Ontario has put established training pro- print for successful mining companies. In grams for First Nations youth. We have to addition, we have modernized the Min- make sure that our fastest-growing demo- ing Act to ensure that companies operat- exploration side, approximately C$1 bil- graphic in the province, our First Nations ing within our province have a certainty of lion were spent on exploration in Ontario youth, have the education necessary to be purpose. We are asking companies from in 2011. To gauge the overall benefits of able to compete for these very attractive, all over the world to come to Ontario to ex- the industry, one must also look at the sup- stable jobs. In my view, the best natural re- plore, develop, and produce mineral wealth. ply and services sector of mining. There source we have in the province of Ontario Achieving this goal requires substantial and are roughly 500 supply and services com- is our very competitive and knowledgeable ongoing investments. panies currently operating in Ontario, cre- workforce; the best trained workforce in the ating 23,000 jobs and generating C$5.6 world when it comes to mining. What steps is the ministry taking billion of revenue. Given these figures, one to facilitate the economic develop- can safely assume that the mining industry How important will new mining ment of Northern Ontario? produces approximately 27,000 direct jobs frontiers, such as the Ring of Fire, Being the Ministry of Northern Develop- and more than 50,000 indirect jobs. be to the economic development of ment and Mines, we are responsible for Northern Ontario? ensuring that there is economic opportu- How does the Far North Act play New mining frontiers, such as the Ring of nity in Northern Ontario. We established into the ministry’s overall strategy Fire, will be critically important to the eco- the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp., for northern development? What nomic development of the north. This is a C$100 million fund that provides eco- effects will it have on the mining? why we have to ensure that the region is de- nomic opportunity for industry, entrepre- The Far North Act will have a significantly veloped in a correct manner that takes into neurs, and emerging technologies. Since positive effect on the mining industry. Con- consideration the interests of all the parties 2003, the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund trary to what one often hears, the Far North involved. It is for this reason that commu- has created a little less than 18,000 jobs Act does not deter development; in fact, it nity development plans, and legislation like for Northern Ontarians. As pledged during encourages it. However, it encourages de- the Far North Act and the Mining Act, are the elections, our government intends to velopment in a fashion that guarantees that so important. increase the fund to C$110 million during First Nations help in the community devel- this mandate. We have leveraged billions opment plan. This is how it should be; we What is your vision for the Minis- of dollars into Northern Ontario that have want our First Nations partners to take part try of Northern Development and dramatically improved the sustainability in the mineral extraction cycle and to reap Mines? and opportunity of job creation.