 |
|
|
PDAC e-News and Activities, December 17, 2009 - No. 69
Page Index
Opposition to Bill C-300 heats up
Flow-through share supplement published by G&M
on Dec 15
Ring of Fire discoverers among the 2010 annual
awards winners
Registration for PDAC Convention 2010 is now
open
Dispute between Platinex, the Ontario government, and
KI has been resolved
PDAC people out and about
PDAC president looks forward in a speech to
Finnish audience
International Council on Mining &
Metals publishes climate change policy
Free seminar on moving from GAAP to IFRS ●
January 26 ● Toronto
Last call for this year’s Fraser Institute survey
Office space for rent ● Exchange Tower, Toronto
Opposition to Bill
C-300 heats up
The fight to oppose Bill C-300, An Act Respecting Corporate
Accountability for the Activities of Mining, Oil or Gas in Developing
Countries, is intensifying. On November 17, Tony Andrews, executive
director, Bernarda Elizalde, program director, sustainable development,
and Robert Wisner, a specialist in international law with McMillan LLP,
presented the PDAC’s position on the bill to the Standing Committee on
Foreign Affairs and International Trade, in Ottawa. Tony’s speaking
points are
here.
Bill C-300 was one of the principal topics during Mining Day on the
Hill, a lobby event organized through the auspices of Mining Works for
Canada. The Mining Association of Canada developed two excellent
documents about the bill and reasons for the industry’s opposition to
it. Bill
C-300 Myths and Facts sets out each of the arguments of the bill’s
proponents and then refutes each in turn.
Bill
C-300 Briefing Note provides a short history of events leading up to
the bill’s introduction and then sets out the industry’s position on the
proposed legislation. Both documents are two pages long and well worth
reading.
The standing committee has recessed for the holiday period. In the
meantime, the PDAC is working with other industry associations and
companies to develop the next steps of a strategy to oppose the bill.
This will be announced in the New Year.
Flow-through
share supplement published by G&M on Dec 15
If you didn’t see the PDAC’s supplement on flow-through shares that was
published with the Globe & Mail on Tuesday, December 15,
here’s a copy
in pdf format. The six-page insert appears to have been well received,
judging by the number of requests coming in to the office for our
brochure on flow-through shares. In her congratulatory note on the
piece, NRCan Minister Lisa Raitt notes that it is ‘very informative and
good advocacy.’
Ring of Fire
discoverers among the 2010 annual awards winners
John Harvey, Don Hoy, Richard Nemis, Neil Novak, and Mac Watson,
credited with the discoveries in northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire, have
won the Bill Dennis Award for a Canadian discovery or prospecting
success, the PDAC board of directors has announced. The chromite, zinc,
and copper discoveries made in the James Bay Lowlands have opened up a
previously overlooked area of the country to new exploration. Other
winners include longtime prospectors Perry Durning and Bud Hillemeyer
(Thayer Lindsley Award), Ross J. Beaty (Viola R. MacMillan Award), Nick
Carter (Distinguished Service Award), Willie Keatainak (Skookum Jim
Award) and De Beers Canada and Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (Environmental &
Social Responsibility Award).
Click here for full details.
Registration for
PDAC Convention 2010 is now open
Plans are well advanced for next year’s convention, and registration
facilities are now open. Members should be receiving a copy of the
convention brochure in the mail any day now, together with the latest
issue of PDAC in Brief. It looks as if the convention will be buoyed by
the price of gold, which continues to move higher, and the early signs
of an economic recovery. Both luncheon speakers are well known industry
commentators. Don Drummond is senior VP and chief economist for the TD
Bank Financial Group, and Don Coxe is strategy advisor for BMO Financial
Group. It will be interesting to hear their predictions for the industry
going forward.
Click here to get to the registration link.
Dispute between
Platinex, the Ontario government, and KI has been resolved
Lands around Big Trout Lake in northern Ontario will be withdrawn from
staking and mineral exploration as a result of an agreement between the
Ontario government and Platinex Inc. The company has agreed to drop its
lawsuits against the Crown and the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI)
First Nation and to surrender all mining claims and leases at Big Trout
Lake. In return, Platinex will receive $5 million and a potential future
royalty interest. In an interview with CBC Thunder Bay, President Jon
Baird noted that the agreement has resolved the conflict but that
Ontarians are the losers: the possibility of a mine that would provide
jobs and generate taxes has been lost; ground has been withdrawn from
prospecting; and the taxpayer will have to foot the bill for $5 million.
Jon also mentioned the uncertainty that has arisen because of the
revisions to the Ontario Mining Act and the province’s Far North Act.
PDAC people out
and about
Autumn is the season for regional meetings, and PDAC people attended
many of them this year. At the beginning of November, Scott Jobin-Bevans,
incoming president, brought greetings on behalf of the association to a
well attended Mineral Resources Review 2009 in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Later the same month, Dennis Jones, chair of the association’s CSR
committee, gave a luncheon presentation on e3 Plus at the Mining Matters
Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He also participated in a panel
discussion on sustainable development at the same conference.
Also in November Philip Bousquet, senior program
director, attended the Geoscience Forum in Yellowknife. The event
attracted 750 delegates and had over 100 exhibitor booths. The Manitoba
Minerals Convention in Winnipeg was the destination for Jason Wilson,
our program director, community & resource development, and Barbara
Green Parker, student liaison/PDAC Mining Matters. Jason was a panelist
at the 6th annual aboriginal mining workshop and Barbara was there to
talk about Mining Matters, the association’s educational program for
school children.
Later that month, Jon Baird delivered a well
received presentation on e3 Plus to Québec Exploration 2009. The
conference, held in Quebec City, attracted 2,145 participants. PDAC team
members accompanying Jon had an unplanned meeting at the airport with
Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff as they were leaving Quebec City. Jon
took the opportunity to speak to Mr. Ignatieff about the mineral
industry and industry concerns about Bill C-300.
PDAC president
looks forward in a speech to Finnish audience
PDAC President Jon Baird was keynote speaker at the 7th Fennoscandian
Exploration and Mining Conference in Roveniemi, Finland, in early
December. The conference is one of the largest exploration and mining
meetings in Europe. Jon spoke on the topic Mineral exploration: A
look forward, and reported that Canada is flying high in Finland
with juniors exploring, Agnico Eagle producing, and First Quantum
announcing a project that will boost the economy of Lapland by 20%. For
a copy of his presentation, please contact
Brenda Dalglish.
International Council on Mining & Metals publishes climate change
policy
A statement on climate change has been published by the International
Council on Mining & Metals (ICMM). The PDAC is a member association of
the ICMM. The first of the seven points contained in the document
states, “ICMM members are committed to making a contribution to
developing and implementing a global solution to managing climate change
that recognizes the need for a measured transition to a low emissions
global economy reconciled with the imperative for energy security,
global economic growth, and improved living standards and poverty
alleviation.” The full statement is
here.
Free seminar on
moving from GAAP to IFRS ● January 26 ● Toronto
Still pondering the implications of moving from GAAP to IFRS? You might
want to attend a free seminar on the topic, to be held on Tuesday,
January 26, 2010, from 8 to 11.15 a.m. at the 1 King West Hotel, at the
corner of Yonge and King West streets in downtown Toronto. Presenters
will go through a GAAP issued statement and demonstrate how adjustments
can be made to convert it to IFRS. Full details are
here.
Last call for this
year’s Fraser Institute survey
The Fraser Institute is closing off its annual survey of mining
companies on December 20. If you haven’t yet done so, please take a
quarter of an hour to complete the survey. This research, which you
support through your membership fees, has become more authoritative over
the years and attracts the attention of governments in Canada and
offshore. The results, which rank jurisdictions by how friendly their
investment climate is to mining, are published every spring. The names
of respondents this year will be entered into a draw for $1,000. The
survey begins
here.
Office space for
rent ● Exchange Tower, Toronto
Newly renovated office space is available in the Exchange Tower, 130
King Street West, Toronto. Seven offices are available. These may be
rented as a block or individually. More information is
here.
|
|
