Established 1835 Nunavut mining-journal.com Unearthing the potential in Canadian exploration and mining A supplement to Mining Journal NUNAVUT Nunavut mining and exploration continues to progress despite challenging times A message from Brooke Clements, President of the NWT & Nunavut Chamber of Mines elcome to Nunavut and this special Mining Journal industry, and we continue to press on despite the rise and fall of com- supplement! The information enclosed illustrates that modity prices and the ebb and flow of investment dollars. the mining industry can create long-lasting and import- We are happy to report a number of major milestones in Nunavut Want benefits for Nunavut. this year with a new iron mine operating at Mary River and the federal There are now two mines in the territory and a number of government approval of the Meliadine gold mine proposal to pro- important advanced projects and earlier-stage exploration projects ceed to permitting and licensing near Rankin Inlet. that we hope to see progress to the mining stage in the These projects will provide much-needed growth opportunities coming years. And, given the vast areas of prospective through training, jobs, and business opportunities, building on geology, there is great potential to discover new ore- the solid foundation of success created by the Meadowbank Gold bodies. Mine. The year 2015 finds our industry in challenging Mining is a great industry, with many heart-warming stories of times. As summarised by the Conference Board of “people success”. Currently, there are 815 employees at Agnico Canada, the long-term outlook for Nunavut’s min- Eagle Mines’ Nunavut operations. ing industry is good. Exploration and deposit At the Meadowbank mine, 265 (34%) of the 775 employees are appraisal spending, which reached a record Inuit and over 100 are women. high of C$535 million in Nunavut in 2011, With the support of federal, territorial and aboriginal govern- dropped to C$148 million last year. ments and local communities, we will be able to keep our industry Current forecasts are for C$174 mil- and the many benefits it creates strong for generations to come. lion to be invested in 2015. The NWT & Nunavut Chamber of Mines is here to help Gold and iron prices were at achieve our vision of “a vibrant and sustainable exploration or near record highs three and mining industry in Nunavut which has the support of years ago, but they have now the peoples of the North”. dropped significantly. That is the nature of the minerals Brooke Clements, President “We are happy to report a number of major milestones in Nunavut this year” Editorial This supplement is published with Mining Journal, published Richard Roberts E [email protected] T +44 (0)20 7216 6089 weekly, which is available only as part of a subscription with CONTENTS Head of production / designer Tim Peters Mining Magazine, plus online and tablet access. Senior sub editor Jim Adlam Sub editor Woody Phillips Annual subscription – UK: UK: £489.00 excl. VAT (digital and print); £399.99 excl. VAT (digital). Europe: €684.60 excl. VAT Message from Brooke Clements, President of the Chamber of Mines 2 Editorial enquiries T +44 (0)20 7216 6060 F +44 (0)20 7216 6050 www.mining-journal.com (digital and print); €559.99 excl. VAT (digital). This is ‘Our Land’, Fast Facts 3 Advertising production Sharon Evans E [email protected] Australia: A$978.00 (digital and print); A$799.98 (digital). Rest of the world: US$757.95 (digital and print); Nunavut’s mining and exploration industry: a deeper look 5 US$619.98 (digital) Economic outlook, Mining approvals Advertising For Mining Magazine subscriptions, please contact Impact assessment, environmental review and monitoring 6 Sales director +44 (0)207 812 8448 E [email protected] Taxation and royalties Contact: Richard Dolan Published by Aspermont Media, 4th floor, Vintners Place, Minerals administration and policy 7 Aspermont Media, 4th floor, Vintners Place, 68 Upper Thames Street, 68 Upper Thames Street, London, EC4V 3BJ, UK. 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Infrastructure and geology 8 E [email protected] Subscription records are maintained at Aspermont Media Ltd, Diverse geology enhances mineral potential Chancery Exchange, 10 Furnival Street, London, EC4A 1YH, UK Archean, Proterozoic, Phanerozoic Sales manager – supplements Aspermont Media, publisher and owner of Mining Infrastructure 10 Alex Charnaud Journal (‘the publisher’) and each of its directors, Shipping, Roads, Airports, Geoscience support for minerals industry T +44 (0)20 7216 6068 officers, employees, advisers and agents and related Media E [email protected] entities do not make any warranty whatsoever as to the accuracy or reliability of Production and potential 12 any information, estimates, opinions, conclusions or recommendations Key exploration projects: Gold, Diamonds, Base Metals, Uranium contained in this publication and, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the Subscriptions and circulation enquiries publisher disclaims all liability and responsibility for any direct or indirect loss or Contact information & Acknowledgements outside back cover Max Irwin T +44 (0)20 7812 8448 E [email protected] damage which may be suffered by any person or entity through relying on Or, E [email protected] anything contained in, or omitted from, this publication whether as a result of Cover design: Tim Peters. Photos supplied by Agnico Eagle Mines, Aspermont Media Ltd, 4th floor, Vintners Place, negligence on the part of the publisher or not. Reliance should not be placed on Peregrine Diamonds, Baffinland, Camnor, Adam Chamberlain and 68 Upper Thames Street, London, EC4V 3BJ, UK the contents of this magazine in making a commercial or other decision and all Elizabeth Kingston persons are advised to seek independent professional advice in this regard. Publisher Robin Booth Chairman Andrew Kent © Aspermont Media 2015 ISSN 0026-5225 2 Mining Journal special publication – Nunavut June 2015 NUNAVUT This is ‘Our Land’ Optimism is high for mining growth in Nunavut anada’s remote and sparsely popu- governments and progressive mining poli- lated Nunavut Territory is on a cies established by the territory’s majority traject ory to capture global attention indigenous population (the ‘Inuit’), Nunavut Cas a mining and exploration destination. And is attracting significant mineral investment. with its population explosion, it’s also gear- With robust exploration and a wide port- ing up to put that industry to work by creat- folio of mineral targets including gold, silver, ing jobs and business opportunities for its iron, diamonds, copper, zinc and uranium, residents. optimism is high for mining growth in With encouraging support for mineral Nunavut. Subject to market conditions and development from both national and local regulatory approvals, mining projects hold the potential to invest nearly C$7 billion in Tufted saxifrage (left): this beautiful high arctic Nunavut over the next 10 years in construct- flower is commonly found throughout the ing new mines and associated infrastructure. Canadian, Russian and Lapland Arctic Nunavut is young politically and demo- graphically. Created in 1999, Nunavut was carved out of Fast facts: Nunavut the Northwest Territories by referendum to create a new autonomous territory, which, in Total area Nunavut covers 1,877,787km2 (725,018sq mi) the Inuit language of Inuktitut, means: “Our of land and 60,935km2 (62,137 sq mi) of water Land”. The territory comprises nearly 20% of in Northern Canada Canada’s 9,970,610km2 land mass. Its capital city, Iqaluit (pronounced ee-kal-oo-weet) is its Neighbours Northwest Territories; Manitoba; Ontario; Quebec; Greenland largest community, with a population of 7,542. The “place of many fish”, Iqaluit is Population 36,687 (2014) located just south of the Arctic Circle, and approximately 2,000km north of Canada’s Main towns Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet, Cambridge Bay capital city, Ottawa. Languages Inuktitut; English; French; Inuinnaqtun “Mining projects hold the Created April 1, 1999 (Nunavut was carved out of the Northwest Territories via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement). potential to invest nearly C$7 billion in Nunavut over Government Parliamentary democracy; Nunavut elects a single member of the Canadian House of Commons. This makes Nunavut the largest the next 10 years in parliamentary riding in the world by area; the members of the constructing new mines and Legislative Assembly of Nunavut are elected individually; there are no parties and the legislature is consensus-based. associated infrastructure” Currency Canadian dollar (C$100 = US$81.21) Nunavut is flanked to the west by the GDP C$1.96 billion (real value), with C$333.2 million represented by Northwest Territories, to the east by Green- mining, quarrying, and oil & gas extraction. land, and to the south by the provinces of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. The climate is Unemployment rate 14.9% compared to 7.2% Canada-wide (May 2015) subject to large fluctuations in seasonal tem- peratures, from average -30° in January to 8° Demographics Nunavut has a young population. Estimated 11,389 people under in July, with less than 25cm of precipitation the age of 15, representing a third of the Territory’s population per year, mostly in the form of snow. Parts of (July 2014) the territory experience 24 hours of daylight in June and round-the-clock darkness in Natural resources Gold, iron, silver, uranium, diamonds, coal, base metals, rare December. Nunavut is treeless and mostly earths, soapstone uninhabited, although settlements stretch as far north as Ellesmere Island. Terrain Arctic tundra; treeless. As a virtually new political jurisdiction, the economy of Nunavut is, in many respects, still Elevation extremes Highest point is Barbeau Peak (2,616m; 8,583ft) on Ellesmere in a development phase.