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Welcome back to your weekly mining news recap, where we catch you up on some of the news you may have missed. This week’s headlines include COVID-19’s continued impact on the mining industry, heat recovery in remote locations and Rio Tinto reviewing its heritage management process.

A new report from PwC shows that while the British Columbia mining industry got off to a “solid start” in 2019, overall revenues declined throughout the year. The beginning of 2019 was assisted by rising prices of metallurgical coal and copper, according to the report, a weakened outlook for global economic growth even before the COVID-19 pandemic reduced those gains. Exploration and development spending for the year grew by $29 million to $277 million, which PwC credited to increased activity from gold projects.

Sudbury’s economic development department has determined that the local mining industry retained most of its workforce and softened the blow of unemployment due to COVID-19, as reported by CTV News. According to a report released by the department, most mining and supply companies in the sector retained their entire workforce while adopting protections against the virus. Unemployment has increased overall, however Sudbury maintains a lower unemployment rate of 8.4 per cent compared to Ontario’s 13.6 per cent.

Vale will be taking steps to restart operations at its Voisey’s Bay mine in Labrador after ramping down in March in order to protect the Nunatsiavut and Innu First Nations nearby. Vale will be partnering with a private testing lab in order to help identify, trace and stop the spread of any potential COVID-19 cases. Production is expected to resume in early July and reach full capacity in August.

Iamgold was compelled to suspend operations at its Rosebel mine in Suriname after seven employees there were diagnosed with COVID-19.  The Rosebel Union has begun a work stoppage which, according to the company, is due to a social distancing measure that would reduce the number of people sharing accommodations. These cases were the first confirmed at the mine and the company said contact tracing for them is underway.

Energy efficiency is paramount for mining operations, but even more so for mines in remote locations away from electrical grids. At Agnico Eagle’s Meliadine mine in Nunavut, every kilowatt is counted in order to get the most out of its available power sources. The design of the cogeneration plant, the implementation of load-shedding at its powerplant and the use of high-efficiency generators are all techniques used by the company to maximize its energy efficiency. 

Rio Tinto has launched a board-led review of its heritage management processes following the destruction of two 46,000-year-old indigenous caves near one of its mines in Western Australia in May. The review will focus on the events and appraise the company’s internal heritage standards, procedures, reporting and governance, as well as the company’s relationship with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people. Once completed, the review will be made public.

Kinross Gold reached an agreement with the government of Mauritania to obtain an exploitation licence for its Tasiast Sud exploration target south of its Tasiast mine. The terms of the agreement include Kinross paying the government US$25 million to resolve disputes regarding fuel use, tax exemptions and the licence, while the government will repay Kinross US$40 million through 2025 in value-added tax refunds. As well, the company will pay the government royalties on a sliding scale relative to the gold price.

Dominion Diamond is suing its partner in the Diavik mine, Rio Tinto subsidiary Diavik Diamond Mines (DDMI), for alleged breach of contract, as reported by Mining.com. According to the lawsuit, DDMI’s continued full operation of the mine during the COVID-19 crisis has left Dominion unable to pay for its 40 per cent share of the costs and with an inventory of diamonds it can’t sell. Rio Tinto says that it will be “vigorously” defending against Dominion’s claims in court.

Employees at Vale’s Thompson nickel mine in Manitoba are bracing for another set of layoffs as the company admits that it can’t afford to continue operation under its current conditions, as reported by CBC. In a letter to the media, Vale’s Manitoba operations manager said the company needed a “simpler and more nimble operation model” which would require a smaller workforce. Thompson previously lost hundreds of jobs in 2017 after the Birchtree mine was closed and its smelting and refining facilities closed a year later.

IBM iX and Royal Dutch Shell have teamed up to launch Oren, their effort to create a one-stop shop for mining services and a library of best practices for mining companies. Oren will offer services from Shell and IBM, as well as others such as smaller companies and start-ups. Currently Oren hosts 30 different services on its platform, with another 150 expected to join in the future. Service and solution providers pay a listing fee to be included in the marketplace as well as transaction fees on sales.

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