Transcript
Page 1: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

northernProsPectorThe annual mining & exploration review

2013- 2014

An official publication of the Manitoba-Saskatchewan Prospectors and Developers Association

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Kate Rice: Canada’s first female prospector gets inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame.

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Colleen MunroPresident, Hugh Munro Construction ltd.

Let fear motivate you.

The Way colleen Works:

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GMR Electric Motors Ltd., Saskatoon,

SK was established (1979) as a 100%

locally owned and operated company,

whose purpose was to provide

industry in the prairie provinces with

complete repair facilities for a wider

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Since that time, we’ve grown to run

offices in both Saskatoon and Estevan

and become the most trusted repair,

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both local business and many of the

largest corporate entities that operate

in Saskatchewan today.

GMR ElEctRic MotoRs

Main Office, #817 – 46th Street East, Saskatoon, SK S7K 0X2 | PHN: (306) 931 – 8456 | FAX: (306) 668 – 2881

www.gmrelectric.com

Hugh Munro Construction Ltd.

“Partnering Opportunities for Aboriginal Communities”

www.hmcl.caFor more information please contact:Colleen Munro, President, or rob Forbister, P. eng.at 204 224-9218

“MORETHAN AN EARTHMOVING EXPERIENCE”Founded in 1959, HughMunro Construction Ltd. provides excavation and heavy construction services.

HMC operates as a heavy construction contractor specializing in:

HughMunro Construction Ltd. services government entities, utility companies and commercial developers.It has a substantial bonding capacity available for tendered projects.

Site Excavation • Seal Coating • Drilling & BlastingAggregate Processing • Base Laying • Surface TreatmentFibre-Optic Cable Laying • Heavy Equipment Repair

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KNOWLEDGE IS

NORTHERNWWW.UCN.CA

Located at the UCN Flin Flon Regional Centre, the Northern Manitoba Mining Academy (NMMA) provides access to mining-related training, specifically for Northern Manitoba residents, with the objective of creating a knowledgeable, skilled, and sustainable workforce. The NMMA allows students access to state-of-the-art training equipment and resources including mining simulators, mineral processing, and environmental lab equipment. The collaboration of UCN, HudBay Minerals, the Northern Manitoba Sector Council, and the municipal, provincial, and federal governments ensures students receive the best education and hands-on experience possible!

NORTHERN MANITOBA MINING ACADEMY

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 7

table ofContentsPresident’s Message 8

Manitoba Exploration and Development Highlights 16

Saskatchewan 2013 Exploration and Development Highlights 26

Saskatchewan Mining Association – Potash and Beyond 40

Manitoba Rocks! – Log on to Rock 44

Tribute To Jim Hawes A Life of Movement – Remembering Jim Hawes 46

Profile: Kate Rice “Swings On Her Own Gate” 48

PDAC 2013 Where the World’s Mineral Industry Meets 56

Mining Over Regulation Playing by the Rules 60

Moving With The Times Potash mining has become a high-tech busines 64

Possible Production Saskatchewan pushing ahead in oil sands development 68

Moving Forward La Ronge Gold Belt region continues to expand 70

Twinkle Of Hope Shore Gold continuing aggressive efforts to advance Fort a la Corne Diamond Project 72

Looking Ahead Snow Lake region 74

Port of Churchill Updated and Upgraded Reinvestment in the Port 76

Copper Reef Focusing On Gold And Base Metals 78

Continuing to Strengthen and Grow Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. 82

High-Grade Teamwork Manitoba’s new copper mine 84

Looking to Partner The Garner Lake projec 86

Basin Benefits Skyharbour Resources 88

Mining Essentials Creating mutually beneficial training partnerships 90

Corporate Social Responsibility Are miners fulfilling their obligations? 92

Low Flow Mitigating risk 94

Customer Driven Innovation Tracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc. 96

Hitting The Off-Road Setting the standard for off-road exploration drilling 102

The Right Deal Winacott Equipment Group 106

Building and Rebuilding BPT Components & Parts Inc. 110

Top Five Britespan Building Systems 113

From Mars To Earth Modern day instruments 115

Know Your Boundaries Learning the law of trespass 118

EPCM or E-P-CM? Strategies for optimizing project execution 120

New Method Technological advances key to discovery 124

TNR Industrial Doors Inc. Brings the Canadian touch to the international market 126

Building Strong Value Legacy Building Solutions 127

Going The Distance Pronto Airways 130

Think Differently MineSense™ 132

Service Stop Scott’s General Store 134

Working Harder Vermeer 135

Tools Of The Trade Atlas Copco 136

Customer-Driven Innovation Brookville Equipment Corporation 138

Putting Down Roots Di-Corp 141

What An Honour Fortis 142

Best In The West Westburne Electric Supply 143

The Amazing Eye Needs Protection Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists 144

Enhancing Mine Safety With Load Cells Massload 146

Unearthing The North On Wings Calm Air 148

Up-Lifting PKS Lifts 150

Coreboxes, Core Racks, and Customer Service Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd 152

All In The Family Argo 154

Location, Location, Location JENNMAR Canada 156

Whipped Into Shape Safety Whips 158

Getting Started NRB 159

Perfect Tool RAMROD Equipment 162

Change Is In The Air Venture Capital Markets Association 164

The Annual Mining & Exploration Review

Northern Prospector is published by DEL Communications Inc. Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3L 0G5 www.delcommunications.com

President & CEO DAVID LANGSTAFF

Publisher JASON STEFANIK

Managing Editor CARLY PETERS [email protected]

Advertising Sales Manager DAYNA OULION

Advertising Account Manager ROSS JAMES [email protected]

Production services provided by:� S.G. BENNETT MARKETING SERVICES www.sgbennett.com

Art Director / Design KATHY CABLE

Advertising Art CAITLYN HAIER DANA JENSEN ©Copyright 2013. Northern Prospector.

All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of the publisher.

The Manitoba-Saskatchewan Prospectors and Devel opers Association, as a body of members, is not responsible for statements made or the opinions offered in the publication. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained, and the reliability of the source, neither the publisher nor the association in any way guarantees nor warrants the information, and are not responsible for errors, omissions or forward-looking statements made by advertisers.

Opinions and recommendations made by contributors or advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher or the association, or the irrespective directors, officers or employees. Articles and advertisements in this publication are not solicitations to buy, hold or sell specific securities;� they are for information purposes only. Investors should be aware that risk is associated with any security, strategy or investment, and are advised to seek the counsel of a competent investment advisor before making any investment, or utilizing any information contained in this publication.

Subscription, advertising and circulation can be obtained from the publisher.

Publications mail agreement #40934510 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to:� DEL Communications Inc. Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road Winnipeg, MB R3L 0G5 Email:� [email protected]

PRINTED IN CANADA 10/2013

DELCommunications Inc.

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Well, what a year this has been. Last year I reported a falloff in exploration by Junior companies across the country as risk capital became harder to raise, only

to see further deterioration in exploration in the Junior sector but with a few notable exceptions. This downward trend does not appear to be reversing any time soon and could be with us for another 12 to 18 months or perhaps even longer. The small reversal we saw at the end of June 2013 was not sustained and we dipped further; it was not the bottom.

Globally, Funds for Junior Exploration are almost Nonexistent: the “Big Whammy”

Many Junior exploration companies are no longer active and are merely treading water. Most of those that are active have a much reduced exploration program. The “capital crisis” has worsened as the cash held by Juniors is further reduced and not replaced. Investment capital has gone into the best advanced exploration projects, producers, banks, and high value stocks but no grass roots exploration. The baby boomers are tired of having sleepless nights over exploration companies and watch-ing their investments and retirement capital go to pennies and then rolled back further, often 10 to 1 or 20 to 1, just so the company can raise money to survive. The 30 to 50 year olds are now into tech stocks or into the safer stocks. Risk capital has all but disappeared. The “flow-through funds”, intended to stimulate Juniors dependent on risk capital by sheltering inves-tor income from taxes, have all but dried up.

Available risk capital is being placed into the top 20 per cent of Junior exploration companies, leaving the rest to carry out meager private placements, or get delisted, or go bankrupt. Ge-ologist and technical staff are being laid off and many will not return. Many major drilling companies are struggling at a re-duced rate trying to hold on to key employees. Smaller drilling companies are drilling below costs just to keep their creditors at bay with many of the owners actually doing the drilling to reduce overhead.

Junior companies are sharing office space with a common secretary or have their officers working out of their homes. Company files are packed away in officers’ basements as, for some, offices become an unaffordable overhead. Junior com-

panies have laid off staff so that if an officer is not there, the phone is not answered or you reach an answering service. It has not been this bad in 40 years. Everything from analytical labs, geophysics contractors, drill companies, rental agencies, air transport, logistic services, etc. have all seen drastic reduc-tions to their bottom line.

The Elephant in the RoomThe elephant in the room is that there were just too many

Juniors anyway and a culling was necessary. Well, even if this was true in part, the monumental collapse of the Junior sector has gone way beyond a healthy weeding out of those weakened by poor management or bad projects. Many good companies with good management are trading at 1 to 3 cents which makes raising survival or exploration funds extremely dilutive to the original shareholders and there appears no easy alternative.

It is predicted that 400 to 500 exploration companies will hit the wall and disappear off the TSX Venture Exchange by the first half of 2014. From data gathered by Gamah International, the number of Junior company financings has fallen by 25 per cent since 2012 and the value of the financings carried out has fallen by 60 per cent. As of June 30th some 340 companies have less than $50,000 in their treasuries which is not sustainable and over 50 per cent of the TSX-V exploration companies were trading below five cents.

Come March, when the unpaid auditors of many Juniors re-quire that last year’s audit to be paid for in advance of under-taking a new audit; the result will be delistings. This will have a devastating effect on the amount of exploration carried out in Canada and it may not fully recover. It will further weaken and destroy investor confidence in exploration risk capital because not only have investors seen their Junior exploration portfolios reduced to pennies per share but some shares will be wallpaper if the company goes defunct or is delisted. Should this happen, and it seems likely that it will, many are predicting that this appetite for risk capital will never recover to the levels we have enjoyed in the past 20 years. Many in the retired and aging baby boomer population of investors are left with a bad taste in their mouth from where their money went and will not want to re-turn to this type of risk.

JUNIOR ExPLORATION INCRITICAL CONDITION:Buzzards CirclingThe Perfect Storm

COPPER REEF HAS OUTLINED at least 15 new base metal targets from the new high powered VTEM Airborne System on its large landholdings in the Flin Flon – Snow Lake Belt. The electromagnetic airborne system outlines at a number of new targets as well enhances some older targets which previously did not seem attractive. Some of these targets are associated with known Copper-Zinc Mineralization. Copper Reef will prioritize these targets and drill the best of these this coming winter. Shown on this page separately are selected anomalies from the east half of Albert’s Big Island survey.

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Aimee Lake Anomaly VTEM Anomalies / Alberts Lake

P.O. Box 306, 6 Mitchell Road • Flin Flon, Manitoba R8N 1N1 • Fax: 204.687.4762 • [email protected]

COPPER REEF DEVELOPS NEW BASE METAL TARGETS FROM AIRBORNE SURVEYS

Call us today at:

204-687-3500www.copperreef.com

FLIN FLON REGIONAL PROPERTY MAP

By Stephen Masson

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COPPER REEF HAS OUTLINED at least 15 new base metal targets from the new high powered VTEM Airborne System on its large landholdings in the Flin Flon – Snow Lake Belt. The electromagnetic airborne system outlines at a number of new targets as well enhances some older targets which previously did not seem attractive. Some of these targets are associated with known Copper-Zinc Mineralization. Copper Reef will prioritize these targets and drill the best of these this coming winter. Shown on this page separately are selected anomalies from the east half of Albert’s Big Island survey.

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Aimee Lake Anomaly VTEM Anomalies / Alberts Lake

P.O. Box 306, 6 Mitchell Road • Flin Flon, Manitoba R8N 1N1 • Fax: 204.687.4762 • [email protected]

COPPER REEF DEVELOPS NEW BASE METAL TARGETS FROM AIRBORNE SURVEYS

Call us today at:

204-687-3500www.copperreef.com

FLIN FLON REGIONAL PROPERTY MAP

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEThe high risk/high reward nexus that captures the motivating

essence of Junior exploration will be broken. Companies put out good results and the market does not care, the stock flounders; there appears only risk with little chance of reward. Pundits, such as Kevin O’Leary from Dragon’s Den or O’Leary –Lang exchange who has exposure to a large TV audience, preach that investors should stick to companies that pay dividends and actually produce something. From these Canadian media plat-forms such harangues create little appetite for investment in exploration companies who by their nature are high risk and have no production income.

The flight to low risk and safety in an unstable world market, which includes the world’s largest economy, leaves little capital for Juniors to make new discoveries or even prove up known ones unless they are exceptionally large and high grade. Once again, rational reduction of risk leads to delusional elimination of opportunity.

Major brokerage firms are now owned by the banks and the mid-tier and boutique brokers are being squeezed out. The ma-jor brokerage firms controlled by banks do not care for Junior exploration and actively promote investments away from ex-ploration. This is a paradigm shift devastated access to funds for Junior exploration, especially grassroots exploration. This ratio-nal has become a self-fulfilling truism as Junior stocks collapse.

The “Double Whammy” –Increasing Overhead Costs and Over-regulation

For many years now, Junior exploration companies have been struggling with the increased cost of overhead and over-regu-lation. Office rent, accountants, legal, exchange and securities fees have all increased, as has the cost of simply carrying out “best practices” related to environmental surveys, NI 43-101 reporting, the “duty to consult” related to informing and en-gaging in dialog with Aboriginal communities on the impacts and benefits of exploration, and a host of smaller incremental costs. These have increased the overall overhead of running a Junior exploration company. A new accounting standard IFRS (international financial Standards) has resulted in increased ac-counting and auditing costs. This was introduced last year at a time when few Juniors could afford it and, adding to the woe, as affordability is even worse.

The TSX raised fees rather than reduce them. These increas-es are now having such a drastic effect when capital is so hard to raise and “flow-through” funds can only be spent on explora-tion - not for head office costs, accounting, auditors, legal and property acquisition. Flow-through funds, even with their great tax incentives, are difficult enough to raise in this market but the non flow-through funds to pay for overhead costs are virtu-ally impossible to raise.

In the case where a Junior has managed to acquire a former

producer or outlined a new deposit in the past few years, the company has found capital is just not available to finance start-up which now includes drastic cost increases in materials and labour. We are now seeing companies who are close to being producers being considered by the market to be too risky be-cause of a lack of start-up capital. so they trade at under 10 cents per share. Carlisle Goldfields is a good example here in Manitoba with five million ounces of gold outlined.

So where are the Majors that can help or earn into and take over these projects? Many are cash strapped themselves with cost over-runs as the trend continues in building larger mines with huge start-up costs. Others, as a mid-tier producer execu-tive recently put it and I paraphrase “most Juniors are running on fumes and are ripe for the picking”. So, rather than help Ju-niors that could ultimately feed their mills and smelters by cre-ating vibrant exploration in their respective camps, many Ma-jors are simply waiting to pick clean the bones of Juniors when they run out of cash. Certainly all that investment, by share-holders in Juniors that financed the exploration stage, deposit definition and environmental hurdles, will not realize decent returns but instead just result in the opposite. Those low hang-ing fruits will go cheap to those with cash to take advantage. This you can say is just business but perhaps a business that will irrevocably destroy investor confidence for Junior exploration. It takes a lot of dollars spent on exploration to find and outline deposits and the Majors certainly haven’t done it all in the past. Short term, the bones will be picked clean; long term, fewer deposits will be found which will hurt everyone in our resource dependent economy.

The “Triple Whammy”- Access to Land (Over Parking and Under Permitting)Park Creation

The creation of huge amounts of park land in this country, which is not necessarily a bad thing if done correctly, has per-manently alienated, especially in Northern Ontario and Mani-toba, millions of hectares of land from exploration. Much of this is done at the expense of northern communities that de-pend on mining or whose only hope for economic development is exploration and mining. In the far north there is no logging or farming, and tourism is not a viable alternative for large com-munities or decent paying jobs. A large part of the funding for these parks comes from lobby groups in the U.S. who don’t need to earn their living here or delight in support from organi-zations like The Pew Charitable Trusts.

There is a good likelihood that whole mining camps are now lost forever from discovery and this park land grab process continues unimpeded. We are losing this battle and drastically need to counter this insanity with rational multi-use of land. In the north, life-giving economic development depends on find-

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Page 12: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector12

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEing and exploiting mining deposits where they are found; they cannot be moved.

Permitting and the Duty to ConsultPerhaps the largest impediment to access to land has been

with obtaining permits for exploration and or development due to the politics around the “duty to consult”. Some provinces such as Saskatchewan have found a balance based on consulta-tion tied to timelines. Others like Manitoba have seen many companies leave the province simply because they can’t work the land even though they raised funds to explore their proj-ects. Even Majors are choosing to not explore outside the estab-lished camps for this reason. Delays in permitting can result a substantial penalty paid by companies who raise “flow-through funds” because of the tax break they guarantee to investors. Generally they only have a short time to spend these funds.

Almost all exploration companies support northern commu-nities benefiting from resources developed in their area. This includes job training and development of skill sets that in future are transferable to jobs throughout the nation. We also believe that all communities and in particular Aboriginal communities should see a portion of the revenue that the province gets from mineral resources extracted in the region. Part of the problem is due to communication; part is due to education. Juniors and Majors like to toot their horn of the potential wealth as they compete for investor dollars to raise capital to move the project forward. One can understand why First Nations communities want a share of this wealth so touted and so they should. How-ever the reality is mines are expensive. Environmental stan-dards more rigorous, materials significantly more expensive, infrastructure lacking outside main camps , underlying NSR’s and reclamation costs, etc. eventually affect the bottom line as to whether the project will be viable. This is part of the educa-tion problem and it requires an understanding of what makes economic sense. Simply put, investors will not put up the cash if there is no return.

Some communities have been very proactive, understand-ing that if exploration is stymied there will be no exploration discoveries and there will be no economic benefits. Other com-munities have failed to see that the early stage exploration is only that, dollars being spent to find something. Statistically, few exploration projects, which are low impact, will discover a viable deposit. It takes over a 1000 drill programs to discover a significant deposit and, of those, many will not be viable due to grade, size and other factors. Our Association strongly endors-es that northern communities share in the benefits of explora-tion and discoveries at every stage and believes that impasses around these issues must be resolved for all to share the eco-nomic returns. When companies leave a province for political reasons they often seek to spend their dollars elsewhere where timelines have certainty. Once companies leave and dispose of

their properties they rarely return. This “triple whammy” in Manitoba has been crushing.

Good NewsManitoba and Saskatchewan have enormous mineral wealth

and much more to be discovered. In Manitoba we saw the de-velopment of two new Mines by Hudbay; Lalor and Reed Lake (in JV with VMS) which are now in production. The Uranium discovery in Saskatchewan by Fission and Alpha Minerals has been one of the darlings in the stock market with their large near surface high-grade deposit. This may well be Saskatch-ewan’s next uranium mine. This has been one of the few good stories for Juniors in central Canada resulting in a great stock price (as high as $7) for investors and it appears to still be grow-ing in size. The key here is that it is near surface, exceedingly rich and of a significant size. Whereas a stock like Foran Min-ing, with the large zinc-copper-silver-gold deposit at Hanson Lake, Saskatchewan, and a fair amount of cash, has traded un-der 20 cents and suffers the same woes as other Juniors.

The greatest news out there is that flow-through shares re-main a real tax benefit for investors coupled with the tax cred-its the provinces throw in, and create one of the few great tax shelters that is not capped. It is like going to Vegas and being able to deduct your expenses. Without this super flow through financial instrument to raise exploration capital most Juniors would cease to exist. The other good news is that exploration-ists tend to be a tenacious optimistic bunch known for their perseverance through adversity who would rather go down swinging than quit.

What are we Doing to Save Our Industry - Can it be Saved as we Know It?

Is there light at the end of the tunnel? Well, yes there is: “the long term” as Barrick’s Chairman, said “looks good”. China and India continue to grow and need metals as it is estimated that China alone will consume over half the world’s base metals by 2017. The U.S. is striving to become self-sufficient in oil which may ultimately make many things less costly. However, the tun-nel may be a lot longer than we think as the world economy remains shaky with ever-increasing debts in first world econo-mies. Investor confidence is low and remains risk adverse. Al-though there is little that various mining associations and pros-pectors associations can do here in Canada about the world economy, there has been a very serious effort to address some of the issues, spear-headed by the PDAC and the Mining Asso-ciation of Canada as well as various provincial prospector and mining associations. The Mining Associations have been very helpful but the real advocate for the Junior and prospector has been the prospector associations; the most prominent of these, by far, the PDAC.

The PDAC has had a number of committees working on the

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Page 14: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector14

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEproblems including the Capital Crisis committee chaired by MaryAnn Mihychuk, former Mines Minister of Manitoba. The committee did a great job gathering statistics and ultimately presenting a document offering some solutions to elevate, at least in part, the lack of capital for exploration. What they found was this:• During the first half of 2013, the price of shares on the TSXV

continued to plummet with the average share price falling to $0.13 from $0.21 at the end of 2012.

• By mid-year 2013 more than half (54 per cent) of all TSXV companies were trading at or below $0.05 per share. More than three quarters of companies (76 per cent) were trading at or below $0.10 per share. This percentage has steadily in-creased from a low of 19 per cent in 2010, to 40 per cent in 2011 and 60 per cent in 2012.

• As of mid-2013, only five per cent of companies had a share price exceeding $0.50 per share. This percentage has steadily decreased from a high of 26 per cent in 2010, to 14 per cent in 2011 and eight per cent in 2012.

• Of the 1239 issuers in common from year-end 2012 to mid-year 2013, 82 per cent ended with lower share prices including 16 of the 52 companies that carried out share consolidations during this time.The PDAC Securities Committee is also investigating this

issue. So far the TSX-V have only raised their fees. Although the Ontario Securities Commission did respond to a strong labby effort by the PDAC last year by eliminating a number of proposed fee increases. THE CSE on the other hand is offer-ing reduced fees and may become the Junior exchange of the future. Certainly Dundee investment in CSE is positive, think-ing perhaps they may be the future for exploration companies. Exploration Companies are partly to blame having bought into the NI 43-101 reports and best practices, as security regulators scrambled to deal with the fall out of Bre-X and weed out scam-mers. Although these were good in part, investors were given a false illusion that exploration could be made safe or safer and invested even some of their savings or RRSP money. Big Mis-take. Exploration is fraught with risk at every stage. It was actu-ally better with the good old VSX where, when people invested, there was some understanding that it was like going to Vegas: the odds were not in your favour.

The PDAC together with the Mining Association of Canada is also advocating for targeted Mineral Exploration Tax Credit focused on Canada’s remote regions, as well as an infrastruc-ture fund to support exploration in northern areas without in-frastructure. In addition, PDAC is proposing that the federeral government- and all jurisdictions, in fact-set up venture capital funds focused on grassroots exploration, modeled on Quebec’s SIDEX fund.

PDAC has been meeting with representatives from all juris-

dictions to ask for their support: a considerable effort has gone into these proposals for provincial and federal finance depart-ments to consider as the PDAC outlined the degree of peril our exploration community was facing. Both Ross Gallinger, the PDAC Executive Director, and Glenn Nolan, the President, have made presentations on finding solutions to various groups including the TSX.

Our Group, the Manitoba Saskatchewan Prospectors and Developers Association sent a brief to John Fox, the Manitoba Assistant Deputy Mines Minister, outlining certain problems related to the capital crisis and exploration permitting which are having a drastic effect on Junior Exploration Companies and Prospectors. It offered some constructive solutions for them to consider. So far there has been no response and the word out there is no extra grant money, which I suppose Treasury re-jected, but relief from assessment cost the province nothing and grants end up being net neutral to the province! We are more than just disappointed but are in disbelief that no support of any kind is being offered. Please note, that just before publishing the Minister phoned us and wanted to find out what he may be able to do. I appreciate this last minute overture by the Minister but the truth will be in the delivery. Also just of late, on permitting, a new round table has been set up between industry, govern-ment, and Aboriginal communities to tackle this issue. Hope-fully solutions can be found for all, but I suspect this will take some time and hopefully a few explorers can survive the wait, but it looks grim.

The following is what we recommended: A) A temporary doubling of the assessment credits for work

completed on claims or leases for the next two years. It is important that Juniors and prospectors do not lose their properties because of the present lack of available capital. Once Juniors lose their projects they rarely return to those jurisdictions because of shareholder resistance to this kind of destruction of their investment capital. This would be a huge benefit to our Junior Exploration sector at basically no cost to the province. Saskatchewan has done this in the past with great success. It is important to be able to present to potential investors a land package offering potential beyond any feasibility study.

B) A one year exemption from the annual assessment work re-quirements on claims or leases. Work requirements would continue to accrue but would not have to be completed or paid in lieu of for a year. Again it is important that Juniors and prospectors do not lose their properties. This would pro-vide immediate relief from the current crisis.

C) Modify the MEAP program with a temporary increase so that Junior Companies receive 50 per cent of the money ex-pended on a qualified project.

In order to address the capital crises for Junior companies

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 15

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGENewfoundland has expanded their grant system to 66 per cent. The Junior Exploration companies need these grants for hard money (as opposed to flow through funds) to pay for auditors, overhead, rent, legal and exchange and security fees, etc.

D) A temporary suspension of grants to the large producers (most of which are enjoying the benefit of high metal prices and therefore profits). This would ensure that the Junior sector may have more funds available from the moneys available under the program without additional cost to the province. I have spoken to Hudbay and they are onside with foregoing MEAP grants for their exploration. Basically we temporarily need a bigger pie to help Juniors without the producers taking slices of it with their larger budgets.

E) We would also like to see the Prospector Grants temporar-ily increased to make it possible for prospectors and project generators to remain in the business during a time when few are able to option their properties. This will also help laid off geologists, victims of this down turn, to stay in the province. We need to keep these people around so they are available to explore here in the future. This would be a small budget item.

F) A temporary increase in the super-flow-through tax credit by the province to qualified exploration by the Junior sector. This would give Manitoba investors an incentive to provide flow-through funds for exploration in their own back yard, in a world that is currently very risk adverse to providing funds for Junior exploration. This would be a huge incentive for Junior exploration companies to move back into Mani-toba and would certainly put the province back in the stand-ings of a favoured jurisdiction to explore. We certainly have a high potential for new discoveries but we need to keep our mineral exploration companies here and alive. The Mining Association of Manitoba sent a similar letter to

the Mines Minister and as a group has been enormously helpful to explorationists, as is the Saskatchewan Mining Association who have served and steered their province well.

Overall are We Winning in our EffortsOn the capital crisis there is only so much we can do without

government help or help from the Security Commissions or the Exchanges. The Federal Government and their provincial coun-terparts don’t believe it is as bad as it is because they haven’t seen the carnage in the streets yet. Similarly the exchanges with the exception of the CNSX hold a similar view. The regulators however have allowed Juniors to finance at less than five cents if they can demonstrate they are in peril of not meeting their listing requirements, but that is causing enormous dilution as is the roll backs smugly suggested if the Junior wants to stay listed. Some Provinces such as Newfoundland have listened and have upped their grant money to 66 per cent of exploration expendi-

tures to provide much needed hard money for overhead. This is a type of gesture that is needed across the country.

On the “double whammy”, all I am hearing is more regula-tion, more fees , more accounting and auditing costs, with no relief in sight. They appear to not care!

On the “triple whammy”, of access to land we are losing this battle at an ever growing rate. Park creation continues unabat-ed to sterilize potential mining camps and we are not being supported in this effort to the extent we could be by our as-sociations. On the “duty to consult” and obtaining exploration permits some jurisdictions have worked out a solution, such as Saskatchewan that still enjoys a booming mining economy compared to much of the country. Others such as Manitoba and Ontario have failed their explorationists miserably out-side the main mining camps. This too is not given the gravity it should, either by governments or our associations. Even if Junior Exploration Companies by some miracle or strong ini-tiative managed to raise capital, they find themselves unable to spend the flow-through because they are unable to obtain permits. This issue if not addressed, will further devastate our exploration industry and perhaps will be more damaging, than the capital crisis in the long run, to the long term health of ex-ploration and development of resources for all Canadians in-cluding northern communities.

So What can Small Exploration Companies Do?For Juniors, the time is at hand for tough choices about: what

properties it is prudent to retain, what staff, how you spend your exploration funds and how to cut overhead. Even so, le-gal, auditors, accountants, claim renewal fees, Security and Ex-change fees, must be paid and with hard-to-raise hard money.

Hold on, don’t quit, find a way to raise the money, be inno-vative because there is both big and medium money out there that NEEDS tax shelter. We all need to knock on more doors because, even if we all cut to the absolute minimum and work for less or nothing, in the end the coffers still need refilling. Fill them. When the worse is finally over and the carnage of defunct exploration companies and destroyed shareholder eq-uity cannot be denied, only then will governments possibly pay attention. The damage to our industry may be only partially re-pairable. I suppose we can all hope that investors, like voters, have short memories but I wouldn’t count on it with the older groups.

I appreciate the help from Edgar Wright (Secretary to our Association), Barbara Hendrickson (PDAC Securities Com-mittee Chair), Nadim Kara (PDAC), Ed Hubert (VP Manitoba Mining Association), Robert Granger (QC) for their contribu-tions and I alone however, accept responsibility for the content as I feel it reflects the views of our association from the feed-back I received from members. 8

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16 2013-2014 Northern Prospector

MANITOBA EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Challenging equity markets, low commodity prices, and limited venture capital availability, have

contributed to a marked decline in ex-ploration expenditures. The instability of global economies continues to have a negative impact on mineral invest-ments. Junior exploration operations, in particular, have faced business crises. Companies have been forced to revise operational plans. Exploration and de-posit appraisal expenditures decreased

in 2012 to $93.9 million (M) – a 33-per-cent decline from 2011. A reappraisal of exploration programs is expected to im-pact negatively on exploration spending for 2013, currently estimated at $73.2M.

Capital investment delivers measure of growth to industry

In Manitoba, despite troubling mar-ket trends, the mineral production sec-tor has experienced a measure of growth

and success. Capital investments in ex-panded mines and new mine construc-tion have helped offset negative impacts on base and precious-metal explora-tion expenditures. Once these projects have been completed, Manitoba’s min-eral production is expected to rise sig-nificantly. The industry’s resilience and commitment to move forward by main-taining a healthy level of exploration activities continue to underscore the im-portance of the province’s considerable

Manitoba 2013 Exploration AndDevelopment Highlights Current as of October 1, 2013

Base and precious metals by Chris Beaumont-Smith, Minerals Policy and Business Development; Specialty/industrial minerals by Jim Bamburak, Manitoba Geological Survey, Manitoba Innovation, Energy and Mines.

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MANITOBA EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

mineral potential. Exploration remains a key driver for sustainability in the sector.

Base MetalsDespite the impact of challenging

economic conditions on low base metal prices, HudBay Minerals continues to deliver a historic level of capital invest-ment in Manitoba, specifically with the construction of two new mines, the Lal-or mine and the Reed mine, situated in the Snow Lake region.

The polymetallic Lalor mine project is proceeding on budget and on schedule, as it approaches the important mile-stone of main-shaft commissioning. The progress of the Lalor project will allow HudBay to increase production from the current 1,500 tonnes per day (tpd) to 2,700 tpd in the second quarter of 2014, contingent upon the environmen-tal licensing process being completed on schedule.

In order to accommodate an increase in production, while preserving capi-tal reserves, HudBay plans to delay the construction of a new 4,500 tpd concen-trator on the Lalor site, and to focus on refitting the existing Snow Lake concen-trator at a cost of $9M. Deferring the construction of the new Lalor concen-trator, the company expects to conserve $325M in capital.

HudBay has invested approximately $365M in the Lalor project. The compa-ny has committed an additional $63M, and has plans to continue concentrator engineering and optimization. Hudbay will release a reassessment of the tim-ing of concentrator construction follow-ing the completion of an updated Lalor mine plan in late 2013.

The Indicated base-metal Lalor re-source stands at 13.3M tonnes, grading 8.87 per cent zinc, with an Inferred re-source of 4.8M tonnes, grading 9.25 per cent zinc. The Gold Zone Inferred re-source is 5.4M tonnes, grading 4.7 grams per tonne (gpt) gold. Conceptual esti-mates indicate the potential for an ad-ditional 5.1 to 6.1M tonnes, grading be-tween 4.3 and 5.1 gpt for the Gold Zone.

The estimates also indicate an additional 1.8 to 2.2M tonnes grading 5.8 to 7.0 gpt gold and 3.2 per cent to 4.0 per cent cop-per for the Copper-Gold Zone. HudBay anticipates additional gold resources will be delineated with further explora-tion conducted from underground. The Copper-Gold Zone holds the greatest potential to add significant resources to the project.

HudBay’s 70-per-cent-owned Reed mine project, located 80 kilometres (km) south of Snow Lake, is also on budget and scheduled to reach commercial pro-duction in the fourth quarter of 2013. The $71M copper-gold mine will pro-duce 1,300 tpd at full production, with the ore trucked to Flin Flon for process-ing. Achieving full production is contin-gent upon the environmental licensing

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process ending on schedule. The Reed Lake deposit contains a National Instru-ment (NI) 43-101–compliant Indicated resource estimate of 2.5M tonnes, grad-ing 4.55 per cent copper.

Cost-cutting measures planned by HudBay include operational efficiencies and deferred sustaining capital invest-ments at its Flin Flon and Snow Lake production facilities. Hudbay is also planning a modest decrease in explo-ration spending in the Flin Flon-Snow Lake greenstone belt. In recognition of the mine-life estimate for HudBay’s 777 mine, the company plans to shift its ex-ploration focus to the Flin Flon region in support of the company’s metallurgical complex in the area.

HudBay also partnered with Halo Resources Ltd. on the Lost Lake joint-venture project in the Sherridon area. The company continues to explore the deposit, and has started pre-feasibility engineering work. Terms of the joint-venture agreement have been modified to reflect the current economic condi-tions, and will provide more flexibility on the project’s timelines.

Vale’s business strategy in response to weak and uncertain nickel prices was to review and challenge all aspects of its Thompson operations, engaging Vale

employees, contractors and suppliers to work together to achieve meaningful and significant operational savings of $100M. This decisive effort allowed Vale management to continue development activities at the Birchtree mine, and should ensure ongoing production. In keeping with cost-saving plans, Vale also deferred a capital commitment to the Thompson 1D deposit, which remains critical to the long-term sustainability of operations. Vale hopes to recommit to 1D in the near future.

Low nickel values had an impact on CaNickel Mining Ltd. (formerly Crow-flight Minerals). It forced a temporary suspension of production on the Bucko Lake mine, which was placed on care and maintenance in June 2012, but Ca-Nickel managed to increase the Proven and Probable reserves at Bucko by 145 per cent, to 3.71M tonnes. The company continues to explore its large portfolio of properties in the Thompson Nickel Belt area, and has experienced considerable exploration success at the nearby M11A and Bowden Lake deposits.

Intransigent and difficult equity mar-kets led to challenges for Victory Nickel in the Thompson Nickel Belt area. Fol-lowing the receipt in 2011 of an En-vironmental Act Licence, authorizing

the construction and operation of the Minago project north of Grand Rapids, Victory was unable to secure financing for the initial development of a proposed $600M nickel and frac sand mine. As a result, the company has been revising development plans, and continues to focus on potential frac sand production at Minago. The company is also looking into opportunities for new market devel-opment for frac sand. In addition, Victo-ry recently completed a feasibility study to develop and advance the Mel project, a small, high-grade nickel deposit, situ-ated north of Thompson.

In southeastern Manitoba, Mustang Minerals Corp. is moving forward with exploration and development on its Makwa deposit near Lac du Bonnet, and is conducting exploration at the nearby Mayville property. Mustang is re-evalu-ating the feasibility of developing both deposits by commissioning a scoping study with processing infrastructure planned at the Mayville site. The Makwa deposit comprises a NI 43-101-compli-ant resource of 9.855M tonnes in the Probable category. The deposit contains 0.541 per cent nickel, 0.113 per cent cop-per, and 0.433 gpt platinum group met-als (PGM). Mustang recently released a revised resource estimate for the May-ville deposit, increasing the resource to 24.3M Indicated tonnes grading 0.45 per cent copper and 0.19 per cent nickel (0.69 per cent copper equivalent).

Prophecy Resources Corp. and Cora-zon Mining Ltd. have nickel exploration projects underway. The companies are exploring past-producing nickel mines originally operated by Sherritt Gordon Mines in Lynn Lake. Using advanced exploration techniques and technology, both companies have discovered new mineralization and have expanded re-maining resources at the past-producing Lynn Lake and El mines.

Exploration for volcanogenic-associ-ated massive sulphide (VMS) deposits continues despite poor copper and zinc prices. VMS Ventures, a 30 per cent joint venture partner with HudBay Min-

MANITOBA EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Aerial view of the surface infrastructure at Hudbay’s Lalor project in Snow Lake, Manitoba, July 2012.

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MANITOBA EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

erals at the Reed mine, is aggressively exploring its numerous grassroots proj-ects in the Snow Lake region. As well, HudBay’s success at Lalor has encour-aged Callinex Mines to explore ongoing projects in the Chisel Basin, adjacent to HudBay’s holdings.

Beyond the Flin Flon–Snow Lake greenstone belt, the most advanced VMS exploration project in Manitoba is Rockcliff Resources Inc.’s Tower prop-erty, located north of Grand Rapids. The joint-venture project with partner, Pure Nickel, has outlined two zones of copper-gold mineralization (T1 and T2) within rocks of the Thompson Nickel Belt. An initial NI 43-101 compliant-re-source estimate for the T1 zone contains 1.1M Indicated tonnes grading 3.73 per cent copper, 1.05 per cent zinc, 0.55 gpt gold, and 1.3M Indicated tonnes grading 2.0 per cent copper, 1.02 per cent zinc, and 0.27 gpt gold.

A deep-penetrating electromagnetic (DPEM) geophysical survey outlined a large down-plunge continuation of the

T1 zone and identified two other untest-ed anomalies (T2 and T3). The first fol-lowup test drill hole of the T2 anomaly returned 2.77 per cent copper over 4.0 metres. The relationship between the two mineralized zones is not yet well un-

derstood. However, the T1 zone is char-acterized by mineral textures consistent with remobilization and a lack of associ-ated hostrock alteration, whereas the T2 zone is hosted within a well-developed alteration envelope.

Aerial view of Monument Bay, 2013.PHOTO:� G. KUNTz, MEGA PRECIOUS METALS INC.

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A subsequent DPEM geophysical survey of the T1 deposit identified ad-ditional targets near the deposit, which are awaiting future drill testing.

Rockcliff was successful testing geo-physical anomalies at the past-produc-ing Dickstone mine, west of Snow Lake. Initial diamond-drill testing for poten-tial deep mineralization returned 2.7 per cent copper over 2.5 metres. The fol-lowup downhole geophysics suggest the mineralization is associated with a large,

untested anomaly below the existing mine workings.

Precious MetalsPrecious metals exploration and de-

velopment activities experienced some level of slow-down recently due to a softening of gold prices, as well as con-tinuing equity market challenges. As a result, Manitoba producer San Gold has continued gold exploration at reduced levels. However, the company has also

improved operational performance due to exploration success at its Rice Lake and Hinge mines in Bissett. The devel-opment of high-grade, near-surface de-posits, has allowed San Gold to embark on a multi-year production expansion, targeting sustainable annual production of more than 100,000 ounces of gold.

San Gold produced a record 85,000 ounces of gold in 2012, and the company remains on target to produce 100,000 ounces in 2013. The company has also continued to improve operational per-formance through a lowering of cash-production costs to $850 per ounce gold, and by increasing quarterly mill throughput. San Gold has consistently maintained an aggressive exploration program, completing over 220,000 me-tres of diamond drilling during the 2012 fiscal year. Mine site and region explo-ration will continue in 2013 at slightly reduced levels due to eroding operating margins, resulting from declining gold prices.

The Rice Lake belt remains Manito-ba’s pre-eminent gold exploration camp, where efforts are dominated by junior explorers. Although financing remains problematic, a number of exploration companies are active in the region, in-cluding Bison Gold Resources Inc., (on its past-producing Central Manitoba property southeast of Bissett), as well as Wildcat Exploration Ltd, Strikepoint Gold and Harvest Gold.

The success of San Gold demonstrates the potential of past-producing gold mines to continue to yield impressive exploration results. To this end, a num-ber of past-producing gold mines have become the focus of renewed explora-tion efforts. Two projects in the Trans Hudson Orogen are advancing towards feasibility studies and potential redevel-opment.

QMX Gold (formerly Alexis Miner-als Corp.) recently sold the former New Britannia mine to Liberty Mines Inc. The $20M purchase paves the way to re-open the mine, and Liberty has the financial capacity to assemble the re-quired $50M in pre-production financ-

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ing. Liberty is committed to re-starting pre-production activities as soon as possible. If successful, the Liberty Snow Lake mine will produce between 80,000 and 90,000 ounces of gold per year. A 2010 feasibility study outlined a five-year mine life. Exploration efforts by QMX have added significantly to the resource base, and a revised life-of-mine estimate is pending.

The New Britannia mine produced 858,000 ounces of gold between 1995 and 2005, and 760,000 ounces of gold between 1949 and 1958, as the Nor Acme mine. The current reserve esti-mate stands at 336,700 ounces of gold grading 4.43 gpt and total inferred re-sources are estimated at 451,000 ounces of gold, grading 4.04 gpt. Surface and underground infrastructure have been maintained since the closure of the New Britannia mine in 2002, making the po-tential re-starting of mine production possible.

The theme of re-opening past-pro-ducing gold mines is further demon-

strated in Lynn Lake, with the advanced exploration activities of Carlisle Gold-fields Ltd. Carlisle has assembled a port-folio of past-producing gold properties, previously operated by Blackhawk Min-ing. The company has also successfully explored the MacLellan, Burnt Timber and Farley Lake mine sites, as well as adjoining properties, to assemble a re-source base of more than 4.8M ounces. The flagship MacLellan mine property contains measured and indicated re-sources of 2.7M ounces, and an inferred resource of 2.1M ounces. The bulk of the project is amenable to open-pit mining.

Carlisle has commissioned a Prelimi-nary Economic Assessment (PEA) in advance of feasibility studies. The PEA will assess the economics of the con-struction of a central processing facility drawing feed from the MacLellan depos-it, followed by satellite deposits under Carlisle’s control in the region. Carlisle holds a significant land position in the Lynn Lake greenstone belt, with rights to exploration drilling at the MacLellan

Mine, (which operated between 1986 and 1987); the BT mine, (which operated between 1994 and 1996); the Farley Lake mine, (which operated between 1997 and 2000); and the Lasthope deposit. A number of other deposits along strike from past-producers are expected to re-turn sufficient resources to proceed to a feasibility study.

Other past-producing gold mines in the Trans-Hudson Orogen that have been evaluated include Satori Resources’ Tartan mine, (east of Flin Flon), Au-riga Gold Corp.’s Maverick gold proj-ect, (south of Sherridon), and Callinex Mines’ Gossan Hill project (near Cran-berry Portage), which hosts the past-producing Gurney mine.

Interest in gold exploration in the Ar-chean age northeast Superior province, east of Thompson, is fuelled by the suc-cess of Mega Precious Metals Inc. at the Monument Bay project, situated north of Red Sucker Lake.

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large regional exploration property. The Twin Lakes deposit is the focus of a research project at the University of Manitoba, which will aim to identify an association between gold and tungsten throughout the deposit. The close as-sociation led Mega to include tungsten in the resource estimate, significantly increasing the value proposition of the project. The revised resource estimate contains a pit- constrained, Measured and Indicated resource of 2.8M ounces of gold at 1.4 gpt, with an additional 300,000 ounces of Inferred resources grading 1.2 gpt. The inclusion of tung-sten in the resource estimate will require additional data. Mega believes that the soon-to-be estimated tungsten resource is recoverable, due to the close associa-tion of scheelite and gold in the mineral paragenesis.

Mega continues with an aggressive in-fill and exploration drill program at Twin Lakes. A significant component of the exploration program is the sampling and analysis of drill core generated by previ-ous project operators. Mega plans to as-sess more than 40,000 metres of core in advance of a revised resource estimate that will include tungsten. To facilitate this process the company has estab-lished an on-site sample preparation and analytical facility. Mega also reports that the gold-tungsten association persisting across the Monument Bay property pro-vides optimism for additional regional exploration success.

The success of the Monument Bay project points to the favourable geology of the Archean northern Superior Prov-ince southeast of Thompson. The area has attracted a number of junior gold explor-ers, including Puma Exploration, Gossan Resources Limited, Alto Ventures Ltd., Callinex Mines, Canada Bay Resources, and Quantum Minerals Corp.

This under-explored, accretionary terrane represents the western strike-extension of proven gold-producing geology in Ontario, and is viewed by explorers as having the potential to host a number of gold deposits that forms a regional camp.

Specialty/Industrial MineralsIn October 2012, Westcore Energy

Ltd. announced the release of a National Instrument (NI) 43-101 coal resource evaluation for the Panther Coal Proper-ty, located in the Cretaceous Swan River Formation near The Pas, Manitoba. The property is jointly held by Westcore (60 per cent) and 49 North Resources Inc. (40 per cent). At the Quasar deposit, 14.2M tonnes of Measured, 4.3M tonnes of Indicated, and 9.1M tonnes of In-ferred, sub-bituminous coal were delin-

eated in 18 exploration holes. To March 31, 2013, a total $1.9M had

been expended on the Panther Coal Property. In November 2012, Westcore reported a NI 43-101 coal resource evaluation for the Black Diamond Coal Property (located immediately west of the Panther Coal Property). The Black Diamond Property, jointly held by West-core (75 per cent) and Goldsource Mines Inc. (25 per cent), comprises the Discov-ery, Cyclops, Ambit, Athena and Ca-lypso deposits. Total resources at these

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deposits are: 40.6M tonnes of Measured, 9.4M tonnes of Indicated, and 10.6M tonnes of Inferred, sub-bituminous coal, as delineated by 44 exploration holes. To March 31, 2013, a total $3.0M had been expended on the Black Diamond Coal Property.

Saturn Minerals Inc.’s wholly-owned Overflowing project lies immediately to the east of Westcore’s Panther Property. Saturn has made three coal discoveries along its eight-km-long, north-south, “Overflowing” geophysical trend. These discoveries are similar in size and shape to the deposits outlined by Westcore. They are also characterized by signifi-cantly low sulphur values, relatively low ash content, and moderate-to-high calo-rific values. Westcore and Saturn did not conduct drilling programs during the winter of 2012 or the spring of 2013.

In March 2013, Gossan Resources Limited announced it couldn’t reach an agreement with Dr. Douglas J. Zuliani to use his process in the production of mag-nesium metal. Raw material for Gossan’s proposed plant was to be obtained from a high-purity Silurian Fisher Branch Formation dolomite outcropping on 80 hectares, north of Inwood, Manitoba. At the proposed quarry site, a NI 43-101–compliant measured resource of 28 819 000 tonnes of dolomite was outlined by the company. The deposit, averaging

21.15 per cent magnesium oxide (MgO) and 30.91 per cent calcium oxide (CaO), to a depth of 12 to 15 m, had been de-termined from a 2006 drill program, and from 25 previously drilled, provincial government holes.

Claim Post Resources Inc. acquired 100 per cent interest in nine, contiguous, silica sand quarry leases (428 hectares) (ha), located southeast of Seymourville, Manitoba, from Char-Crete Limited.

The combined property will form the nucleus of Claim Post’s Seymourville Frac Sand Project. The company first in-tends to confirm the results of previous drilling by the Manitoba government and Gossan. The results had outlined two zones of silica sand, from five to 15 metres (m) thick and >400 m and >600 m long, in 41 of 60 drill holes. Ameri-can Petroleum Institute (API) test work on the sand showed its suitability for the production of good quality white frac sand in the 8,000-to-10,000 pounds per square inch (psi) compressive strength range. Next, Claim Post plans to com-plete a NI 43-101 report and scoping study – Preliminary Economic Assess-ment (PEA); and then carry out discus-sions with Hollow Water First Nation, and the villages of Manigotogan and Seymourville.

Victory Silica Ltd. (a subsidiary of Victory Nickel Inc.) has drilled a NI 43-

101–compliant, Indicated resource of 15M tonnes of Ordovician Winnipeg Formation silica sand (containing 84 per cent of marketable frac sand), located in the vicinity of the Minago River, south of Thompson, Manitoba. The deposit could produce up to 1.14M tonnes per year of premium frac sand. This would be a 20/40 sand product with a spheric-ity of 0.72; roundness of 0.78; acid solu-bility of 0.92 per cent; silt test (turbidity) of 24 Formazine Turbidity Units (ftu); and crush resistance of 11.5 per cent. It should be noted that the silica sand de-posit is situated above Victory Nickel’s Minago Nose nickel deposit, and must be removed before the nickel can be open-pit mined.

In September 2011, Victory Nickel received an Environmental Act Licence for the Minago mine, and the develop-ment (including a frac sand component) was approved by its board of directors. In July 2013, Victory Silica acquired the Seven Persons frac sand processing fa-cility, located southwest of Medicine Hat, Alberta. This the first phase of a multi-year process, which will culminate in the Phase 3 construction of a 1.1M tonnes-per-year frac sand plant in Win-nipeg. The Winnipeg plant will process and distribute imported and domestic sand, including the sand mined as a co-product of the Minago nickel project. 8

MANITOBA EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

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General OverviewIn 2012, Saskatchewan remained the

world’s leading potash-producing juris-diction and the second-largest producer of uranium. The province also produced coal, gold, salt, sodium sulphate, silica sand, and clays products. Deposits of other commodities such as diamonds, base metals, and rare earth elements are currently being evaluated.

Buoyed once again by strong potash sales volumes, provincial mineral sales were $7.4 billion (B) in 2012, down mar-ginally from the $8.1 B in 2011, but up from $6.9 B in 2010 and $4.6 B in 2009.

Expenditures for mineral exploration and evaluation projects in Saskatchewan in 2012 totalled $324 million (M), ex-ceeding the $293 M spent in 2011 and the $321 M in 2010. Preliminary estimates for 2013 showed companies plan to spend about $297 M, mostly on uranium and potash projects (Table 1). Natural Resources Canada estimates that in 2013 Saskatchewan will account for about 12.3 per cent of the spending in Canada on exploration and deposit appraisal, rank-ing fourth behind Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia.

As of August 31, 2013, active min-eral dispositions, issued pursuant to The

Mineral Disposition Regulations, 1986, totalled about 7.49 M hectares (ha). In addition, there were 167 active potash dispositions, issued pursuant to The Subsurface Mineral Regulations, 1960, comprising permits and leases, totalling about 4.35 M ha. The recent uranium discoveries at Patterson Lake South and the discovery of kimberlite north of De-schambault Lake have contributed to the increase in mineral dispositions.

Uranium1 Saskatchewan produced 15.4 per cent

(23.3 M lb of U3O8) of the world’s prima-ry uranium in 2012. Uranium was pro-duced from two operations: McArthur

River/Key Lake and Eagle Point/Rabbit Lake. The McArthur River mine, oper-ated by Saskatoon-based Cameco Cor-poration (Cameco), was once again the world’s largest uranium producer, yield-ing 19.5 M lb U3O8, or 13 per cent of the world’s supply. Production is anticipated to be 18.9 M lb U3O8 in 2013. The Eagle Point mine at Rabbit Lake, another Cam-eco operation, yielded a further 3.8 M lb U3O8. It is forecast to produce 4.2 M lb U3O8 in 2013. Construction at the Cigar Lake uranium mine is nearly complete. Although the operator Cameco had ex-pected to produce about 0.3 M lb U3O8 in the fourth quarter of 2013, delays com-pleting the underground ore storage in-frastructure have resulted in a minor pro-duction delay with mining now expected to commence in the first quarter of 2014. The AREVA Resources Canada Incorpo-rated (AREVA) operated McClean Lake mill will handle the processing of Cigar Lake ore. Necessary upgrades of the mill in advance of production will delay ore packaging until the end of the second quarter of 2014.

Nearly $116 M was spent on uranium exploration in 2012, mainly in or near the Athabasca Basin. It is estimated that a

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Saskatchewan 2013 ExplorationsAnd Development HighlightsBy Saskatchewan Geological Survey – Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy Information current as of September 10, 2013

2009 ($ M) 2010 ($ M) 2011 ($ M) 2012 ($ M) 2013 ($ M) (preliminary estimates)

Uranium 108.6 103.2 101.2 115.8 122.2Gold 3.0 9.5 10.5 13.1 7.5Base Metals1 3.0 6.5 13.3 13.0 9.9Diamonds 10.9 17.3 7.9 5.2 4.1Industrial Minerals2 151.1 184.0 160.3 176.5 153.5Total 276.6 320.5 293.2 323.6 297.21 Includes:� platinum group metals.2 Includes:� potash, coal, rare earth elements, and clays.

Table 1 – Saskatchewan mineral exploration expendituresas compiled by the Saskatchewan Geological Survey

from the annual survey of exploration spending intentions.

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 27

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

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further $122 M will be spent in 2013. Al-though expenditures remain robust, there are fewer companies actively exploring in the region due to difficulties raising mon-ey and consolidation across the industry. One company that has taken advantage of the climate in order to consolidate its holdings is Denison Mines Corp. (Deni-son). Denison has absorbed two junior companies, JNR Resources Inc. (JNR) and Fission Energy via all-stock trans-actions. Denison and JNR were already partners on several uranium exploration projects, however, the takeover allowed Denison to gain control of the Way Lake project that contains a small uranium/rare earth element deposit with a pub-lished NI 43-101–compliant Resource es-timate (Inferred Resource grades 0.03 per cent U3O8 and contains 6.96 M lb U3O8). Denison’s takeover of Fission Energy al-lowed it to gain control of the J-zone (60 per cent interest), which is the western extension of Rio Tinto’s Roughrider de-posit in the northeast Athabasca Basin. Prior to the takeover, Fission Energy pub-

lished an updated NI 43-101–compliant Resource for the J-zone that included an Indicated Resource grading 1.52 per cent U3O8 (10.3 M lb U3O8 contained) and an Inferred Resource grading 0.90 per cent U3O8 (2.75 M lb U3O8 contained). Deni-son has since upgraded the estimate to the Indicated Resource category, which grades 2 per cent U3O8 and contains 12.81 M lb U3O8. Denison also gained control of a number of other properties in the Fission Energy transaction, including several properties that were explored by Pitchstone Exploration in advance of its takeover by Fission Energy Corp. These properties contain a number of uranium occurrences discovered in Pitchstone Ex-ploration’s drilling that will require follow up. One project excluded from the Deni-son–Fission Energy transaction was Pat-terson Lake South, which was retained by spin-off company Fission Uranium Corp. (Fission).

Denison’s main exploration focus, however, has been at the Phoenix depos-its, about 35 kilometres southwest of the

McArthur River mine. Drilling concen-trated at the A and B deposits, which are about 400 metres below surface, and led to the publication of an updated Resource estimate. The bulk of the mineralization lies in the A deposit, which includes an Indicated Resource grading 15.8 per cent U3O8 and containing 46.5 M lb U3O8 with a further 7.2 M lb U3O8 in an Inferred Re-source that grades 51.7 per cent U3O8. The smaller B deposit includes Indicated and Inferred Resources containing 5.9 M lb U3O8 at a grade 14.1 per cent U3O8 and 0.4 M lb U3O8 at a grade of 3.5 per cent U3O8, respectively. The A deposit stands to be expanded, as Denison continues to report mineralized intersections from step-out drilling.

Fission and equal partner Alpha Min-erals Inc. (Alpha; formerly ESO Uranium) have had a great deal of drilling success at the Patterson Lake South property, locat-ed about 65 kilometres south-southeast of the Shea Creek deposits (see below). Four zones of mineralization have been discovered along a conductive trend over

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

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a strike length of 1.02 kilometres in the metamorphic rocks that form the base-ment to the nearby Athabasca Basin. In-tersections such as 54 metres (not a true width) grading 9.08 per cent U3O8, start-ing only 61 metres from surface, demon-strate the potential of the project, which is located only a few kilometres from provincial highway 955. To that end, Fis-sion made an all-stock takeover bid that was accepted by Alpha’s board. Pending shareholder approval, Fission will have full control of the Patterson Lake South property. The exploration success at Pat-terson Lake South initiated a staking rush with new dispositions radiating for tens of kilometres in all directions from the discovery. Most exploration projects in the newly claimed land are at grassroots stages, but a group of junior companies combined their efforts to form the West-ern Athabasca Syndicate, which has un-dertaken VTEM surveys with the inten-tion of identifying conductive trends that might be associated with mineralization.

AREVA and UEX Corporation (UEX)

continue to expand four deposits, Anne (southeast end), Kianna, 58B, and Colette (northwest end), along the three kilome-tre, northwest Shea Creek trend in the western Athabasca Basin. An updated NI 43-101–compliant Resource estimate for the deposits released in April of 2013 in-dicates that the combined Indicated Re-source for the four deposits grades 1.484 per cent U3O8 and contains 67.66 M lb U3O8 with the bulk of the Resource in the Kianna (34.8 M lb U3O8) and Anne (24.76 M lb U3O8) deposits. The deposits also contain a combined Inferred Resource that includes 28.2 M lb U3O8 with over half of the contained uranium in the Ki-anna deposit. Although the deposits are relatively deep (below 700 m) compared to those in the east Athabasca Basin, the total contained U3O8 is more than 30 M lb, more than the total production from the nearby Cluff Lake uranium mine (now decommissioned).

Grassroots uranium exploration con-tinues in various parts of the Athabasca Basin. Forum Uranium Corp. (Forum)

and Mega Uranium Ltd. (Mega) have renewed exploration near the historic Maurice Bay deposit northwest of Lake Athabasca in the far northwest of the province through an option agreement with Cameco and AREVA that could earn Forum and Mega 60 per cent inter-est in the property. The operator, Forum, has concentrated on new drill targets and has discovered several new zones of min-eralization near the Maurice Bay deposit. In the eastern Athabasca Basin, Cameco, AREVA, and International Enexco Lim-ited (Enexco) initiated a major drill pro-gram near Mann and Hughes lakes along the structural trend between the Phoenix deposits and the McArthur River mine. The joint venture partners report altera-tion and elevated uranium concentra-tions in the Athabasca Group near and above the unconformity (about 580 to 600 metres below surface). The altera-tion and elevated concentrations are of-ten indicative of a uranium mineralizing system. In order to meet its funding re-quirements for the project, Enexco issued

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a stock placement to which Denison was a major subscriber. The move has allowed Denison to gain some control of the drill project through an agreement with En-exco. Cameco and partner AREVA have planned another major drill program at the Read Lake project, west of McArthur River in 2013.

GoldProduction continued at two gold op-

erations in Saskatchewan in 2012. Claude Resources Inc.’s (Claude) Seabee mining operation, situated approximately 125 kilometres northeast of La Ronge, pro-duced 49,570 troy oz (oz) of gold in 2012 from 275 235 tonnes (t) of ore with an av-erage grade of 5.86 grams per tonne (g/t) Au. This production came from both the Seabee mine, including the recently dis-covered L62 zone, and the nearby Santoy 8 mine. An additional 20,520 oz Au was produced in the first-half of 2013 from 139 364 t of ore grading an average of 5.11 g/t Au.

As part of its La Ronge gold project, Golden Band Resources Inc. (Golden Band) produced gold from two mines over the past year, the Roy Lloyd and Ko-mis mines. For its fiscal year 2013 (ended April 30, 2013), Golden Band processed 110 326 t of ore with an average grade of 6.55 g/t at its central Jolu mill, yield-ing 23,263 oz Au. Golden Band initiated shrink-stoping mining methods at the Roy Lloyd underground mine and halted mining altogether at its Komis mine in order to make the operation more cost effective. Milling was suspended for just over five months during this process, re-

commencing in August of 2013.Both Claude and Golden Band also

continued to actively explore at and near their operations over the past year. Claude completed drilling at the Santoy mine complex, including the recently dis-covered Santoy Gap deposit. This drilling allowed for a new Mineral Resource Es-timate at Santoy Gap, with an Indicated Resource of 994 000 t grading 8.8 g/t (281,000 oz) and an Inferred Resource of 1 875 000 t grading 5.92 g/t (357,000 oz). Subsequent drilling increased the down-plunge extent of known mineralization by 400 metres at Santoy 8 and 650 me-tres at Santoy Gap. Claude also continued exploration at its Amisk Gold project on northern Amisk Lake, and is working towards a Preliminary Economic Assess-ment of this project.

Results from new surface and under-ground drilling at the Roy Lloyd mine (Bingo deposit) allowed Golden Band to update the Mineral Resource Estimate for the unmined portion of the deposit, including an Indicated Resource of 155 383 t grading 12.6 g/t Au (62,947 oz) and an Inferred Resource of 91 888 t grading 10.78 g/t Au (31,843 oz). Golden Band is now focussing on moving other de-posits towards production over the next two years, including the Golden Heart and Decade deposits and renewed pro-duction from Komis. Additionally, along with joint venture partner Masuparia Gold Corp. (Masuparia), Golden Band is nearing completion of a bulk sample from the Greywacke North deposit. The stockpiled ore from the sample will be processed and, along with the other

deposits, Golden Band is anticipating adding production from the Greywacke deposit within the next two years. The Masuparia–Golden Band partnership is also undertaking resampling of historical drill core at the North Lake deposit, lo-cated ~25 kilometres south-southwest of the Roy Lloyd mine.

There were several other active explo-ration projects in Saskatchewan in 2012-13. La Ronge Gold Corp. (La Ronge Gold) continued with drilling of its Preview SW deposit, located ~10 kilometres north of Lac La Ronge. Following completion of a drill program in late 2012, La Ronge Gold released a new Mineral Resource for the deposit, including an Indicated Resource of 1 958 400 t grading 2.12 g/t (138,100 oz) and an Inferred Resource of 3 714 600 t grading 2.09 g/t Au (257,300 oz). Additional drilling was subsequently completed in early 2013 which identified gold mineralization outside the defined Resource, and metallurgical testing was completed on two samples from the de-posit to provide a preliminary assessment of the gold recovery potential of gold-bearing materials.

Wescan Goldfields Inc. (Wescan) com-pleted an airborne geophysical (VTEM and magnetic) survey in the vicinity of its Jojay deposit, located ~125 kilometres north-northeast of La Ronge, to aid in identification of other possible mineral-ized zones in the area. Wescan also com-pleted an airborne geophysical (magnetic and EM) survey over its Munro Lake property, located ~4.5 kilometres north of Claude’s Santoy 8 mine, and completed four drill holes, one of which yielded an intersection of 67.1 g/t over one metre.

Galaxy Graphite Corp. initiated ex-ploration in the vicinity of historical gold showings in the Brownell Lake area, lo-cated ~100 kilometres east of La Ronge. The exploration program consisted of two phases, including an initial phase of detailed mapping, soil/outcrop sampling, and ground geophysics (VLF and magne-tometer), and a subsequent program of channel sampling over zones identified as prospective during the first phase. Assay results from the channel sampling includ-

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ed values of 25.1 g/t Au over 1.03 metres and 4.1 g/t Au over 5.1 metres in different areas of one of the historical showings.

The most significant gold project out-side of the greater La Ronge area is Brigus Gold Corp.’s Goldfields project (Box and Athona deposits), located in the Beaver-lodge Domain on the north shore of Lake Athabasca. A production decision on the project is pending.

Base MetalsAlthough there is currently no base

metal production in Saskatchewan, es-timates for exploration expenditures for 2013 are $9.9 M, which is on par with the $12.97 M spent for exploration in 2012. Foran Mining Corporation’s (Foran) Mc-Ilvenna Bay deposit in the western Flin Flon Domain continues to be the most advanced base metals exploration proj-ect in northern Saskatchewan. Transi-tion Metals Corp. (Transition Metals) have commenced preliminary explora-tion work on its Janice Lake project in the Wollaston Domain. Manicouagan Miner-

als Inc. has not reported any further work for its Brabant Lake deposit in the west-ern Kisseynew Domain. Unity Energy Corp. (Unity), a Vancouver-based junior resource company, has acquired two base metal properties in the province and has publicized plans for exploration work.

In October 2012, Foran announced a $5 M exploration and development bud-get focussed on its 100 per cent-owned copper-zinc-silver (Cu-Zn-Ag) McIlvenna Bay deposit, located 80 kilometres west of Flin Flon. Primary objectives of this work were to complete 2000 metres of infill drilling at McIlvenna Bay, 5000 metres of additional drilling on regional targets, and to calculate a new mineral resource for the deposit. In March 2013, Foran an-nounced a new and increased mineral resource estimate for the McIlvenna Bay deposit including an Indicated Resource of 13.9 M t (15 per cent increase) grading 1.28 per cent Cu, 2.67 per cent Zn, 0.49 g/t Au, and 17 g/t Ag, and an Inferred Re-source of 11.3 M t (18 per cent increase) of 1.32 per cent Cu, 2.97 per cent Zn, 0.43

g/t Au, and 17 g/t Ag. The regional drill-ing, carried out in February and March of 2013, discovered a new zone of high-grade copper mineralization at the Bal-sam deposit, which is located 7 kilome-tres southeast of McIlvenna Bay. One of the better intersections returned assays of 4.08 per cent Cu, 0.43 g/t Au, and 27.0 g/t Ag over 3.66 m, at a vertical depth of 205 metres (drill hole BA-13-77).

Transition Metals announced plans to spend $2 M on exploration in 2013 on its 100 per cent-owned Janice Lake property, which is located 55 kilometres southeast of Key Lake. Grab samples collected by the company confirmed previous reports of sediment-hosted mineralization and returned values ranging from 0.34 to 9.35 per cent Cu and 0.7 to 61.7 g/t Ag. The new exploration work will mainly consist of data compilation, mapping, ground geophysics, soil geochemistry, and rec-lamation and sampling of historical drill core.

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SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

the transition between the southern La Ronge Domain and neighbouring Rot-tenstone Domain, containing sediment-hosted sulphide mineralization that has been overprinted by a high-strain zone. Their Dinty Lake Ni property is located in the Beaverlodge Domain, within a small sill-like noritic intrusion containing up to 0.94 per cent Ni and 0.04 per cent Cu.

DiamondsShore Gold Inc. (Shore) is the operator,

and through its wholly owned subsidiary Kensington Resources Inc., the majority owner (67 per cent ownership; Newmont Mining Corporation of Canada Ltd., 33 per cent) of Saskatchewan’s most ad-vanced diamond prospect, the Star–Ori-on South kimberlite project. A Feasibility Study for the project concluded that 34.4 M carats, at an average value of US$242 per carat, could be extracted from the Probable Reserves of 279 M t of kimber-lite, which has a weighted average grade of 12.3 carats per hundred tonnes. Shore continues to work with provincial and

federal regulators through the Environ-mental Impact Assessment process and the company is actively seeking partners or potential investors to help fund the es-timated $2.5 B capital cost of the project.

This past summer, North Arrow Min-erals Inc. (North Arrow) undertook a 2002 metre diamond-drilling campaign north of Deschambault Lake to earn an interest in the Stornoway Diamond Corp. (Stornoway) Pikoo project located ap-proximately 120 kilometres east of La Ronge. North Arrow encountered kim-berlite in nine of 10 holes drilled with reported intersections ranging from centimetre-scale dykes up to 28.9 metres. The kimberlite is described as a dark grey hypabyssal facies with abundant olivine, common ilmenite, and orange to purple garnet with less common chrome diop-side and low (>5 per cent) country rock dilution and common mantle nodules ranging up to 10 centimetres in diameter. Micro-diamond analysis results are ex-pected sometime in October 2013. North Arrow is new to Saskatchewan, but its

board of directors include seasoned diamond explorers such as: D. Grenville Thomas (founder of Aber Resources, one of the discoverers of the Diavik Diamond Mine), Ken Armstrong (Rio Tinto, Aber Resources, Strongbow Exploration Inc.), and Christopher Jennings (SouthernEra Diamonds Inc., Aber).

These intersections represent the first discovery of kimberlites in Saskatchewan on the exposed portion of the Precam-brian Shield. Although these new discov-eries are not geographically proximal to the Fort à la Corne kimberlite field, both areas are underlain by the Archean Sask Craton. Exploration work on the Pikoo project started with regional till sampling in 2006. Well-defined indicator mineral trains containing G9 and G10 garnets were complimented with airborne geo-physical surveys to pinpoint the targets. Since the initial discoveries, there has been an increase in staking activity blan-keting an area of about 40 kilometres all around the Pikoo claims.

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PotashIn 2012, Saskatchewan potash miners

produced 14.4 M t KCl, down from 17.0 M t KCl in 2011 and 14.9 M t KCl in 2010. Saskatchewan’s three potash-producing companies, Potash Corporation of Sas-katchewan, The Mosaic Company, and Agrium Inc. combined for $6.0 B in pot-ash sales in 2012 compared to $6.85 B in 2011. All three producers reported higher sales volumes in the first half of 2013, but a decrease in the average price per tonne of potash sold. In late July, the world’s largest single supplier of potash, Uralkali, announced it was ending its participation in the Belarusian Potash Company sell-ing consortium. The announcement had an immediate impact on potash markets as shares of all major producers fell on speculation that the move would result in lower product prices and a supply sur-plus.

It is estimated that between 2004 and 2023, the province’s three produc-ers will invest about $13.9 B to upgrade and expand existing mining facilities to

increase provincial production capacity by over 90 per cent. Saskatchewan con-tinues to be the world’s largest producer of potash, typically accounting for about one-third of global production and 40 per cent of global trade. In addition to current producers, numerous companies are continuing to advance greenfield pot-ash projects that range from grassroots exploration to development stages. Over the past five years, potash projects have accounted for more than half of the total annual exploration and development ex-penditures in Saskatchewan and 2013 is anticipated to be the same.

K+S Potash Canada (K+S) is continu-ing with construction of Saskatchewan’s first new greenfield potash mine in near-ly 40 years. In April, the board of K+S reached a decision to increase the capital expenditures budget for the Legacy solu-tion mine to $4.1 B, up from the initially estimated cost of $3.25 B outlined in the Feasibility Study of November 2011. De-spite the cost increase, K+S maintains that the Legacy project still meets the

company’s requirement to earn a 15 per cent premium on the cost of capital be-fore taxes. K+S, already one of the world’s largest fertilizer producers, intends to use the new facility to reach new mar-kets in Asia, South America, and North America. Commissioning of the mine is anticipated in the summer of 2016 and the company expects to have a produc-tive capacity of 2 M t available by 2017, en route to reaching the full anticipated annual capacity of 2.86 M t. In July, K+S announced it had signed a long-term volume-based contract with Canadian Pacific Railways (CPR) for the transpor-tation of potash from the Legacy site to a yet-to-be-determined western Canadian port of export. The deal will also give K+S access to CPR’s extensive North Ameri-can rail network for product distribution to Canadian and American markets.

In August, BHP Billiton (BHP) an-nounced it will invest an additional US$2.6 B in the Jansen potash project, lo-cated approximately 140 kilometres east of Saskatoon. The new investment will be

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spread out over the next four years and should allow BHP to complete the exca-vation and lining of the production and service shafts as well as install basic infra-structure and utilities to the mine. BHP continues to work on engineering design studies required for the Jansen Feasibility Study, but the company has not given a timeline for a board approval on a pro-duction decision.

Contrary to the previously announced estimate of 2015 for initial production, BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie recently stated that the company prefers to retain flexibility as to when to enter the mar-ket and implied initial production from the facility could be closer to 2020. This recent investment brings total commit-ments by BHP on the project up to $3.8 B, still well short of the estimated $12 B in capital costs required to reach an 8 M t per year (tpa) capacity. The company also revealed that it may consider taking on one or more minority-stake joint venture partners, as it has with many of its other mining operations around the world.

BHP is also continuing exploration and evaluation activities on its Boulder, Young, Melville, and other project areas. The company recently completed an ex-tensive drilling program at Melville as well as 3-D seismic surveys on two prop-erties.

In April, junior potash company West-ern Potash Corp. (Western) received approval of its environmental impact as-sessment from the Saskatchewan Minis-try of the Environment for the Milestone solution mine project located approxi-mately 30 kilometres southeast of Regina. In June, China BlueChemical Ltd. (CB-CHC) and Benewood Holdings Corp. Ltd. (a subsidiary of Guoxin International Investment Corp. Ltd.) agreed to a strate-gic investment of nearly $32 M for a 19.9 per cent ownership position in Western. Should the project proceed to a mine, the agreement assures CBCHC an off-take entitlement for the purchase of the lesser of 30 per cent or 1 M t of annual potash production for a 20-year term. CBCHC is a majority owned subsidiary of China

National Offshore Oil Corp., China’s larg-est off-shore oil and gas producer. West-ern estimates that the proposed 2.8 M tpa mine would cost about $3.3 B in total and could be ready to start production as early as 2016.

Karnalyte Resources Inc. (Karnalyte) is continuing to work on its Wynyard proj-ect, where the company is attempting to be the first in Saskatchewan to produce potash from the potassium-bearing min-eral carnallite (KMgCl3·6H2O), rather than sylvite (KCl). Karnalyte is propos-ing an initial stage 625 000 tpa mine at a projected cost of $593 M. The operation is designed to be expandable up to 2.125 M tpa within five to six years at a cost of approximately $2 B. In January, Karnalyte and Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd. (GSFC) announced a strategic invest-ment agreement through which GSFC contributed $45 M to acquire a 19.98 per cent stake in Karnalyte in exchange for a committed off-take agreement of 350 000 tpa, increasing to 600 000 tpa, as produc-tive capabilities of the proposed project

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Page 37: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

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Page 38: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector38

increase. GSFC is a publicly traded India-based agri-business focussed on the pro-duction and sale of fertilizer.

First Potash Ventures, a partnership between Encanto Potash Corp. (Encan-to) and Muskowekwan Resources Ltd. is proposing to build and operate a so-lution mine on the Muskowekwan First Nation located approximately 100 kilo-metres northeast of Regina. In March, it was announced that the project had been accepted under the First Nations Com-mercial and Industrial Development Act,

which enables the Federal Government to enact regulations similar to the pro-vincial regime governing the potash in-dustry. Environmental impact studies are well underway and Proven and Probable Reserves combined with Measured and Indicated Resources for the project area suggest it could support a 2.8 M tpa solu-tion mine for at least 70 years.

Brazilian mining major Vale held open house events in July to inform the public of ongoing environmental studies and to provide a general update on the Kronau

project. Vale deferred the Kronau proj-ect in 2012, citing challenging economic times, but the company stated it remains committed to the fertilizer business, and is examining funding options for the proj-ect including joint ventures or an outright sale.

In January, North Atlantic Potash Inc. (NAP), the Canadian subsidiary of Russia’s fertilizer producer JSC Acron, completed an 11-hole drill program and acquired seismic data for its Foam Lake project area, where the company is inves-tigating the feasibility of an underground mine in the Esterhazy Member. NAP also has a joint venture with Rio Tinto, which covers nine potash exploration permits spanning an area from Last Mountain Lake southeast to Broadview. Rio Tinto is the operator on the joint venture project, and has drilled numerous holes across the permits as the companies evaluate the so-lution mining potential of the potash de-posits in the area.

Gensource Potash Corp. and Canada Potash Corp. (CPC) entered into a joint venture to explore and evaluate a number of potash dispositions held by CPC across the potash region. Several other privately owned or foreign-owned companies such as M & J Potash Corp., Yancoal Canada Resources Co. Ltd., and Canada Royal Potash Inc. are at various stages of explor-ing and evaluating potash projects.

Rare Earth ElementsJNR released a NI 43-101–compliant

Inferred Mineral Resource for the Fraser Lakes Zone B on the Way Lake project, which included uranium and rare earth oxides. At a cut-off grade of 0.01 per cent U3O8, the Resource estimate is 10 354 926 t grading 0.03 per cent U3O8 (6,960,681 lb), 0.003 per cent La2O3 (681,325 lb), 0.006 per cent Ce2O3 (895,077 lb), 0.001 per cent Yb2O3 (304,762 lb), and 0.007 per cent Y2O3 (1,619,017 lb). The miner-alization is associated with circa 1800 Ma granitic pegmatite dykes.

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 39

Sand Limited (Winn Bay) which has a quartz frac sand mine in the Ordovician Winnipeg Formation at Hanson Lake. The 110 employees were retained. Frac sand is used by the petroleum industry for enhanced oil and gas recovery. Preferred Sands is the largest frac sand producer in Canada and one of the three largest in the U.S. Winn Bay now has a large land pack-age and had been preparing a new loca-tion northwest of their present operation, and closer to the highway for future de-velopment. Preferred Sands also plans to increase the plant capacity at the opera-tion this year.

Other Industrial MineralsThere has been no significant explo-

ration reported for the other industrial mineral deposit types in the province in this past year; however, there is signifi-cant production. There are six producing salt operations, four as by-product from potash production and two as primary producers. The Canadian Salt Co. Ltd. produces by-product salt at Belle Plaine. Compass Minerals International, Inc. (Compass) produces by-product salt at Esterhazy and primary salt at their sub-sidiary Sifto Canada Inc. mine at Unity. ERCO Worldwide produces primary salt at their Saskatoon operation. NSC Min-erals produces by-product salt at Rocan-ville and Vanscoy.

Saskatchewan Minerals Inc.’s long-standing operation at Chaplin remains the only primary sodium sulphate pro-ducer in the province. Big Quill Resources Inc., a subsidiary of Compass, produces value-added potassium sulphate at their plant near Wynyard.

Canadian Clay Products, Inc. excavates and processes bentonite at their operation near Wilcox. Following some production in 2012, Whitemud Resources Inc. cur-rently has their value-added metakaolin plant at Gollier Creek on care and main-tenance. Colored Shale Products Inc. mines clinker on a campaign basis from their quarries near Willow Bunch for use as landscaping material. Premier Tech Horticulture produces horticultural peat from bogs in the Carrot River region and

processes it at their plant near the town. Wapa Bay Resources produces leonardite on a campaign basis from a small quarry

near Wapawekka Lake. Leonardite is used as an organic soil additive and fertilizer. 8

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION& DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Jason Berenyi, P.Geo.,Assistant chief Geologistsaskatchewan Geological survey, Minerals, Lands, and resource Policy Divisionsaskatchewan Ministry of the economy200 – 2101 scarth streetregina, sK s4P 2H9(306) 787-2579 • [email protected]

Gary Delaney, Ph.D., P.Geo.,chief Geologistsaskatchewan Geological surveyMinerals, Lands, and resource Policy Divisionsaskatchewan Ministry of the economy200 – 2101 scarth streetregina, sK s4P 2H9(306) 787-1160 • [email protected]

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SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

Saskatchewan’s mining industry employs over 30,500 people who work in over 20 different mining

operations across Saskatchewan. The province supplies a variety of minerals in Canada and internationally. It is best

known for being the world’s leading pro-ducer of potash, producing roughly one third of the world’s supply.

“Saskatchewan is also the world’s sec-ond-leading producer of uranium, sup-plying roughly 15.4 per cent in 2012,”

says Pam Schwann, the executive direc-tor of Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA).

Saskatchewan’s mining industry also produces minerals such as lignite coal, which supplies over 50 per cent of the

Potash And Beyond

A Message from theSaskatchewan Mining Association.

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 41

SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

province’s baseload power. Gold, salt, so-dium sulphate, silica sand, bentonite, and other clays are also mined.

“One of the key advantages Saskatch-ewan has over other jurisdictions [to pro-duce these minerals] is its geologic frame-work,” says Schwann.

Both the potash-bearing Prairie Evapo-rite Formation, and the uranium-bearing Athabasca Basin, host world-class depos-its in terms of tonnage and grade.

Saskatchewan also has an advantage because of a positive policy environment. Schwann explains the annual Fraser Insti-tute Survey identified that Saskatchewan ranked 13 out of 96 global jurisdictions in terms of offering overall policy attrac-tiveness for investment. Saskatchewan’s post-secondary institutes including the Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission also lend a hand.

“[They] provide an educated and skilled workforce for the mining sector, although industry expansion and retirement demo-graphics will challenge these institutions to provide a sufficient number of gradu-ates to fill emerging career opportunities,” she says.

These advantages would mean little without the support of Saskatchewan peo-ple. Schwann cites a recent public opinion survey that found over 90 per cent of the Saskatchewan population either very strongly or strongly supports mining.

“Saskatchewan’s mining companies are ensuring that local communities benefit from the extraction of resources through activities including sponsorship of events, scholarships, and supporting community infrastructure, and being a leading em-ployer of First Nation and Métis people,” says Schwann.

Investing in Saskatchewan is a smart choice for a variety of reasons. Large

companies look for large deposits and, as the province hosts the largest deposits of potash and the highest grade deposits of uranium, Saskatchewan is the playing field where companies want to be. Technology advancements also allow companies to ex-plore for minerals at a greater depth and with greater accuracy. New deposits con-tinue to be discovered in areas that were not formerly considered highly prospec-tive.

“Mineral development is a high-risk venture, with millions and billions of dol-lars being invested in the ground without a guaranteed return on investment for many years, if ever,” says Schwann, adding Saskatchewan’s stable and predictable fis-cal regime also attracts investment. “Com-panies are confident that if they are suc-cessful in identifying a deposit, they will be allowed to responsibly develop it and recover and profit from their investment.”

Saskatchewan minerals are “great trav-ellers,” and one of the reasons the province is a leading exporting jurisdiction. The key export regions for potash are United States, China, India, South East Asia, and South America. Saskatchewan’s uranium travels to the Americas (U.S., Canada, Lat-in America), Europe and the Far East.

With over $13 billion invested in ex-pansions of existing potash mines by Pot-ashCorp, Mosaic, and Agrium, Saskatch-ewan’s share of global potash production will continue to increase. Greenfield pot-ash investments by companies including K + S Potash Canada, and BHP Billiton are also posed to increase the amount of potash being produced in Saskatchewan. Potash has been Canada’s top-ranked commodity by production value for the past three years, followed by coal, and gold. In 2012 alone, potash sales from Canada were valued at nearly $7 billion,

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector42

with Saskatchewan production valued at $6.2 billion.

“Additionally, the importance of potash to the province, and Canada as a whole, will continue with investments over the next 50 to 100 years,” says Schwann. “Which means in spite of short term market volatility, they are making invest-ments for the long term.”

A large portion of this confidence comes from the significant role that Sas-katchewan potash plays in global market, with over 30 per cent of the world’s pro-duction coming from the province. This position allows Saskatchewan to profit from growing demands for potash, which are driven by the need to increase agri-cultural productivity around the globe. Resulting projections indicate a three per cent growth per year. While this will en-sure continued profitability, the reliability of the potash industry also continues to attract investment within the province by producers themselves.

Uranium production is another miner-al that will see increased production lev-els. The high-grade Cigar Lake Mine that is now set to come into production in the first quarter of 2014 and once ramped up,

will almost double the current uranium production from Saskatchewan.

While the current uranium market has slowed, the longer term picture for nucle-ar growth is more positive, with annual growth projections in the range of three per cent.

“The recent signings of the nuclear cooperation agreements between Can-ada and the governments of the world’s largest growing economies, China and India, open up important new markets for Saskatchewan uranium exports,” says Schwann.

Both countries are highly reliant on potash and uranium exports. They have limited to no indigenous deposits of potash or uranium, and a large/growing industrialized population that desires a better quality protein diet, and increased energy consumption.

On the supply side, secondary sources of uranium continue to diminish as the stockpile of highly enriched uranium from Russian weapons that is being con-verted to nuclear fuel is reduced. Com-pounding this secondary reduction in supply, the sustained low uranium spot prices resulted in a number of primary

mine development projects being can-celled or deferred in 2012.

“Together, a growing, long-term de-mand for uranium, coupled with a di-minishing secondary and primary source of production offers favourable condi-tions for continued uranium develop-ment from Saskatchewan,” she says.

Schwann adds coal will continue to provide the baseload power for Saskatch-ewan. The successful testing and imple-mentation of the clean coal power gener-ating station at Boundary Dam will have significant implications for the long-term future of coal mining in Saskatchewan.

Gold mining reached a positive mile-stone in 2012, with the Seabee Mine be-coming the province’s first one million ounce primary producer. “This success is anticipated to grow as other deposits in the area are developed.”

Schwann predicts that the fundamen-tals of the world’s steadily increasing pop-ulation coupled with a limited land base, will continue to increase the demand for mineral resources, resulting in stronger commodity prices, additional produc-tion, and increased investment activity in Saskatchewan’s mining sector. 8

SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

“The recent signings of the nuclear cooperation agreements between Canada and the governments of the world’s largest growing economies, China and India, open up important new markets for Saskatchewan uranium exports,” says Schwann.

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432013-2014 Northern Prospector

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MANITOBA ROCKS!

Manitoba Innovation, Energy and Mines (MIEM) launched an exciting new Manitoba Rocks! mineral education website in October 2013.

www.Manitoba Rocks.info is a dynamic online learning tool for kids, teens, and anyone interested in exploring or expanding their knowledge about Manitoba’s diverse geological landscape and history. The website features a wide variety of geosciences and earth sciences information. Young Manitobans can ‘dig deep’ and learn more about the importance of minerals and petroleum in daily life.

The new website features two key information areas:• Kids Rock! – a children’s “Fun Zone” with memory and word

games, puzzles, colouring and activity books, and geo-myster-ies. Younger students can learn about the rock cycle, examine a geological time chart, explore facts and legends on topics rang-ing from nickels and arrowheads to chunks of gold, space rocks, and fossils, and gain knowledge of the Aboriginal perspective about Mother Earth and Turtle Island.

• Teens Rock! – offering teenage students a more in-depth look at the history of mining and exploration in Manitoba. Teens can take a video-guided geo-tour around the province, visit the Legends of Rock section to learn about some of the early explorers, geologists, and prospectors whose spirit of adven-ture helped launch exciting discoveries around Manitoba, and explore Opportunity Rocks, a web section devoted to informa-tion on mining-related careers. The Mineral Resources Division (MRD) and Manitoba Geo-

logical Survey (MGS) extends appreciation to everyone who par-ticipated in the website launch, including Oak Hammock Marsh, The Children’s Museum, The Manitoba Museum, and the Cana-dian Geoscience Education Network.

The Manitoba Rocks! mineral education program includes pre-booked school tours which take place during the annual No-vember Manitoba Mining and Minerals Convention. For more information please call 204-945-6500 in Winnipeg, (toll free, 1-800-223-5215), or visit www.ManitobaRocks.info. 8

Log On To RockManitoba Rocks! launches new “geo” website for kids and teens.

‘Directions’ and ‘EarthWise’ areas will help to expand knowledge of Aboriginal perspective about ‘Mother Earth’ and ‘Turtle Island’.

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 45

MANITOBA ROCKS!

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Page 46: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector46

TRIBUTE TO JIM HAWES

Jim Hawes, founder and former president of Custom Helicopters, passed away suddenly on Septem-

ber 15, 2013. In his 68 years, Jim lived a life of movement – one that was full of love, passion, kindness, and success.

Boyhood Dream Leads to Success

Born in Kenora, Ontario in 1944, Jim moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1960. He began working with MidWest Air-lines and achieved his dream of getting his pilot’s licence, along with his aircraft maintenance engineer licence.

In 1977, Jim took the leap and, along with two business partners, formed his own company. The trio purchased the helicopter division of Manitoba-based Lamb Air and dubbed it Custom Heli-copters.

His work with Custom Helicopters combined Jim’s family history in the

prospecting business – his father and uncles were prospectors in Ontario and throughout Canada – and his boyhood passion for planes.

“As a young person there were float planes in Kenora at the docks, so he would always go down and try to help with float planes and he developed an interest in aviation,” says Brian Hawes, Jim’s son and current president of Cus-tom Helicopters.

Jim’s vision for Custom Helicopters was to supply mining companies and utilities in Manitoba and the north with dependable, high-quality helicopter transportation services and support, which he did for over 30 years.

Custom Helicopters began as a simple two-craft operation. Today, it operates a large, versatile fleet of 22 helicopters. This allows the company to provide a variety of services, including mineral exploration, seismic support, power line maintenance, diamond drill support, corporate transportation, aerial inspec-tion, and more.

Under Jim’s guidance, Custom Heli-copters has earned the reputation of be-ing one of the best helicopter operators in the country.

“I spent a lot of time with him in my childhood,” says Brian. “I would go on the road with him and it was always a little more interesting… he was doing more interesting things than anybody else. It was a little more exciting to be

around him than not.”Having been involved in the business

from a young age, Brian also became a commercial helicopter pilot and eventu-ally went into business with his dad.

In February 2012, Jim and Brian sold Custom Helicopters to Exchange In-come Corporation, which operates sev-eral other Manitoba airlines, including Perimeter Aviation, Bearskin Airlines, and Calm Air, among others.

Jim was still very much involved in the company after the sale. Father and son retained management of Custom Helicopters, acting as vice president and president respectively.

Through his passion and dedication to the business, Jim built a solid founda-tion that will ensure Custom Helicopters continues to thrive.

“It’s much the same,” Brian says of the company post-sale. “It’s under solid ownership. It’s still the same long-time employees here. The business will con-tinue to prosper and grow. It will remain solid for many years to come.”

A True GentlemanJim was well known and admired in

the prospecting and aviation commu-nity.

“Jim, Brian, and the Custom crew al-ways did a great job for us in Nunavut. During the busy times of those explora-tion seasons, it was always good to meet up with Jim. He was never without his calm demeanor, kind words and a pock-

A Life Of MovementRemembering Jim Hawes

“ To me, if life boils down to one thing, it’s movement. To live is to keep moving.” – Jerry Seinfeld

Page 47: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector 47

TRIBUTE TO JIM HAWES

et full of jokes,” says past client Janice Fingler.

Jim was a very private person, but he touched so many lives through his work at Custom Helicopters and his various passions, including car collecting and coaching and watching sports.

Friends, family, and clients knew him as a true gentleman and a gentle giant. Jim was kind, generous, hard-working, and honest. Those who came into his life personally or professionally consid-ered themselves fortunate to know him.

“He spent a lot of time helping people and he was sort of everybody’s go-to

guy for whatever issues they had,” says

Brian. “He was a very kind person. He

had time for everybody.”

First and foremost, Jim made time for

his family – his wife of 45 years, Pauline,

their three children and eight grand-

children. He adored spending time with

his grandkids and they adored him.

If movement is life, then Jim is still

very much alive in the lives of his fam-

ily and friends, the continued success

of Custom Helicopters and the passion

and dedication that he showed in ev-

erything he did. 8

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“I would go on the road with him and it was always a little more interesting… he was doing more interesting things than anybody else. It was a little more exciting to be around him than not.”

Page 48: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector48

PROFILE: KATE RICE

Before the word feminist was ever spoken (or even existed consid-ering women in Canada weren’t

“people” until 1929), there was a six-foot-tall attractive blond, who “bobbed her hair,” donned overalls, carried a 12-gauge, and set-out on a journey into the man-centric industry of mining.

Kate Rice can certainly assert own-ership over the title of Canada’s first female prospector, exploring from Bea-ver Lake to Brochet and over to Burn-twood/Thompson area, staking claims on a mineral-rich island in northern Manitoba starting as early as 1914. Not only did she pioneer the way for other women explorers, she in fact put towns like Snow Lake on the mining map, with her discovered property still producing

profit for companies such as Inco and Vale to this day.

Yet, accounts of Rice and her accom-plishments are slim, and subject to hear-say, and opinions of the times. Articles written in the late 1920s usually question her motives, while a biography by Helen Duncan, which seems to be the most comprehensive collection of informa-tion on the “Lady of the Lake,” can have its accuracy and tone questioned.

What is for certain is Kathleen (Kate) Creighton Starr Rice was born in St. Marys, Ontario on December 22, 1882. She came from a family marked by mon-ey, and a heritage of pristine. Her fa-ther’s linage included The Reverend Dr. Samuel Dwight Rice, a minister respon-sible for the building of the Method-

ist Church in 1879 (the present United Church), and has been claimed to have ties to Abraham Lincoln. Her mother’s father, George Carter, was one of the richest families in St. Marys, owning St. Marys Milling Company.

The father, Henry Lincoln Rice, was a Classics instructor at the famous Dr. Tassie’s School in Galt, Ontario, known as one of the best secondary schools in Canada. It was there he met Charlotte Carter, Rice’s mother. When the couple married, Henry took over the operations of his father-in-law’s milling company. The family lived in an upper-class home, where her mother enjoyed hosting teas for local socialites.

While her mother could be a moody character, hard to related to, Rice and

“Swings On Her Own Gate”The history of Kate Rice, Canada’s first woman prospector, who in 2014, will get inducted into the Canada Mining Hall of Fame.By Carly Peters

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PROFILE: KATE RICE

her father were very close. He believed in raising an educated woman, yet he also saw it prudent to teach his daughter life skills and an appreciation of nature. He helped Rice learn about the stars, how to canoe, set-up a proper camp, and how to shoot a rifle (this particular skill would come in handy later in life). He also engaged her imagination by telling her stories of Daniel Boone, and the wild frontiers.

Those adventures were never far from her mind, and certainly influence her life goals, as can be interpreted in Helen Duncan’s book, Kate Rice, Prospector, “Kathleen understood she wanted some-thing exciting for herself. She would know what to do when the time came. And it was the twentieth century when everything would be new and stimula-tion and she would embrace it all. She’d be another Kit Carson or Margaret Full-er. She’d scale the heights of the wilder-

ness, or open new frontiers, something grand and heroic, bold and free. A new type of woman. No little piggling life for her.”

This “new type of woman” made her way to the University of Toronto, where she entered the facilities of of Math and Physics, areas of study not usually taken up by females. In 1902, as an entering student, she was awarded two scholar-ships, the Edward Blake Scholarship in classics and mathematics and the Ed-ward Blake Scholarship in mathematics, and graduated in 1909.

There have been tales that while at university she met a man, fell in love, and was to be married. Tragically, as the romantic tale goes, this mystery man, named Ken in Duncan’s novel and known as a university professor in another version, suddenly passed away. University of Toronto archives have no record of this romance or his death.

Since this event is not necessary rooted in fact, one might assume it was more rumour, or explanation as to why a good Victorian lady would leave the lap of luxury, and eventually fling herself into the bush.

After university she began a teaching career where she worked at Albert Col-lege, and Wingham High School in On-tario instructing mathematics. She then moved out west to a high school in Tees, Alberta, and finally another high-school in Yorkton, Saskatchewan.

During her time in Yorkton it seems her passion for adventure began to grow. She spent her vacations climbing the Rocky Mountains with her brother, which earned her a membership in the Canadian Alpine Club. It was on top of Cacade Mountain that Rice decided to through off all trappings of “school-marm” life and throw her life into pros-pecting based out of The Pas, which was

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the service centre of the new “gold rush.”In 1911, she made her way to Mani-

toba to homestead a quarter section four miles north of The Pas. Since she was not considered a person by law, she had to do it under her little brother Lincoln’s, name, who was in fact in university at the time and was later sent to war with the first Canadian contingent.

During the next two years Kate cleared and built her homestead, along with feverishly studing geology, assess-ment reports, and the science of the earth, as well as learning Cree in order to reach out to aboriginal guides to learn the profession of prospecting.

In 1914 she secured a grubstake from a college friend and travelled north with the help of her Aboriginal guides. One in particular, “Old Isaac” taught her many survival skills, such as how to trap, hunt, mush dogs, and make a home in the wild. Mooniasquao, her First Nations name, made lasting connections with the Cree, who knew the lands better than any white man, never mind a white woman.

There were many things to learn in those first years. An article written by Fredrick Griffin of The Toronto Daily Star in 1928, might give some indication on her reasoning for eventually cutting

her hair, and putting on pants: “On her first real prospecting trip in 1914, which was a some trip since it took her to Bro-chet and Reindeer Lake 500 miles north of The Pas into what was those days vir-gin territory, she wore her hair long and her skirts longer. Once, when getting out of a canoe, she almost broke her neck.”

Yet, within two years Rice quickly found her footing. During the aforemen-tioned Brochet-Reindeer Lake trip she discovered zinc and vanadium, while in March 1915 she prospected and staked claims for gold and base metals in Bea-ver Lake, and built her own prospecting cabin at Sturgeon Weir.

In 1916, she took on a prospecting partner, which was the practice of all prospectors working in the remote bo-real, retired army officer Richard (Dick) Woosey. Naturally there was gossip about their relationship, but consensus was it was purely business.

Not that she wasn’t pursued by men, given her good looks, and that fact that women were rarely seen in the north-ern bush. As one humorous story goes, she was sharing a one room cabin with a somewhat amorous, burly gentleman, who while laying in a bedroll a few feet away began to inch toward Rice’s bed. Without missing a beat, she whipped out her axe and rifle from her bedding, and placed the axe on the floor between them. “If you touch my axe, I’ll shoot you,” claimed the steely blue-eyed blond.

In the interview with Griffin of The Toronto Daily Star, he posed the ques-tion of whether she ever “thought of matrimony?” To which she replied, “I think of it all the time. But to tell you the honest truth, I have been thinking more about business.”

With her platonic partner, Rice set out for Herb Lake (now known as Wekusko Lake) where she made her gold Starr Claims along the east shore in 1917, and staked her nickel and copper claims on Assessment Island (renamed Rice Island) 1920 and 1922. Feeling there was much more to discover, Rice and Woosey built a home, cited as one of the finest in the area, in 1925 on Woosey Is-

PROFILE: KATE RICE

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“If women could understand the thrills of prospecting there would be a lot of them doing it... No woman need hesitate about entering the mining field because she is a woman – it isn’t courage that is needed so much as perseverance.”

– Kate Rice (Source: 100 More Heroines, Merna Foster, 2011)

PROFILE: KATE RICE

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PROFILE: KATE RICE

land near the community of Snow Lake.In 1928, Rice formed the Rice Island

Nickel Mining Company, and accepted a grubstake from C.E. Herman of St. Louis in order to allow diamond drilling to begin on her claims. That year Rice reported high grade ore in her Rice drill core, stating a value of $42.60 a ton of copper nickel.

Her findings caused quite a stir, even drawing international attention – “Woman Finds Copper in Northern Manitoba,” claimed the Schenectady Gazette, July 16, 1928. “The island, which has serves as a landing place for thousands of prospectors, was known to contain ore, but mining men had doubted its value.”

Almost as intriguing as the drill re-sults was the fact they were under the claim of a woman, and an self-sufficient, strong one at that. “Kathleen Rice is one of those ‘girls of the great open spaces who tote guns,’ seen often on the screen as being typical Canada, but very rare indeed in the Canada of real life,” stated The Pittsburgh Press, July 15, 1928.

When the drilling completed, Her-man filed a lawsuit against Woosey and Rice, claiming they owed him half-interest, rather than the third the pros-

pecting pair was offering of the valued $5 million dollar property. They battled in the courts for nearly two years, with Herman in the end winning his case, and receiving 50 per cent of fully-paid up shares. While Woosey and Rice both received 25 per cent, they felt a great in-justice had been done to them, and that the property was theirs.

Rice continued to prospect, even working in Scoopin’ Rapids, Saskatche-wan couple of times, until Woosey sud-denly passed away in 1940. This certain-ly was a blow to her life on Rice Island, but she decided to stay in her cabin, alone, and live with the nature she loved so much.

She was a renowned gardener, dog-musher (it was said she developed a technique that didn’t require a lash), and a writer, authoring pieces for The Toron-to Star Weekly, and scientific journals. Her paper entitled “Under The Cosmic Rays” for the Journal of Canadian Astro-nomical Science poetically describes her encounters with the Northern Lights, perhaps as a homage to the star lessons she once learned from her father.

Her 16 claims, which were converted to mining lease by Rice Island Nickel Company in 1932, were optioned by Inco Ltd. in 1948, and in 1950 exercised their option and made a final payment which Rice refused. Despite being fi-

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PROFILE: KATE RICE

nancially drained, Rice managed to pay the taxes on the property for 1951. Yet, since Inco had purchased the option, the money was put back into her account, and it was ordered that Rice Island Nick-el Mining Company be wound up. Rice received the balance of Woosey’s estate, and her own shares, amounting to a pay-

out of $20,000. In May 1951, Rice Island Nickel Mining Company was liquidated.

With what appears to be very little need for money, lore has it that Rice buried her money near her cabin on Rice Island. She had become somewhat of a legend herself, being called “Lady of the Lake” since, despite having worn out

clothing, and a run down cabin, would pull out a lace tablecloth, and her moth-er’s silver for the few guests she let in. But, she never did let go of her shotgun.

Finally, in 1960 Rice came out of the bush and made her way to Brandon’s mental hospital, believing she was crazy. After careful consideration, the hospital

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released her, seeing no reason to hold her under insanity, she was “just a prospector.”

Yet, when Minnedosa’s Lady Minto Hospital was converted into a nursing home, Rice decided to become a resident, spend-ing her last years intriguing nurses, and the other inhabitants alike. She walked into town everyday wearing stripped overalls, and spent her afternoons out on the hospital’s verandah rub-bing the whiskers off her chin with sandpaper. Having lived the larger portion of of her life outside, she also chose to sleep there in the fresh air, rather than her bed in her room.

While she was in the home, it was believed she was still re-ceiving payments and cheques in the mail from her mining claims, and legend has it, much like the rumoured cash stash on the island, she buried some of it on the Lady Minto grounds.

That secret died with Rice on January 3, 1963. Less than a dozen gathered at the local funeral chapter to celebrate her life, and she was laid to rest an unmarked grave near the entrance to the Minnedosa cemetery.

Yet, in August 2009, another small group of people gathered in the same spot to finally pay small tribute to this pioneer prospector. Marc Jackson, a Snow Lake history student, who

felt a headstone was long overdue for the woman who in real-ity paved the way of the mining industry in his town. Jackson, who also wrote for the Underground Press put up $200 of his own money, and set out to raise $1,700 for headstones at both Rice’s plot, as well as Dick Woosey’s in Lakeview Cemetery in The Pas. Rice’s black granite marker proclaims, “Prospector and Pioneer of the North, Extraordinary Woman of the Wilds.”

And now, her position as a true prospector will be solidified as Kate Rice will be inducted into the Canada Mining Hall of Fame in January 2014.

“Exploration as a venture, then as now, is not for the faint of heart. At a time when men barely tolerated women in the industry, Kate Rice shattered the preconceptions about what a woman could achieve in the mineral industry,” states MaryAnn Mihychuk, president, Women in Mining. “Although there are those who would downplay the relevance of her gender with re-spect to her accomplishment, it can be clearly appreciated that she accomplished what no woman had done before in Canada. We can finally restore Kate Rice to her iconic status in our na-tional’s proud mineral history.” 8

NEWSPAPER AND MAGAZINE ARTICLES:Brawn, Dale. “‘Lady of the Lake’ Carried a Shotgun.” The

Brandon Sun, Thursday July 3, 2008Eskritt, Rayanne. “Kate Rice: Woman of the Wilds.” Cottage

North, May-June 2013Ferguson, Bessie. “First Woman Prospector ‘Swings on Her

Own Gate.’” [192-]Griffin, Frederick. “College Women Prefers a Life in the

Wilds.” The Toronto Daily Star, Friday December 21, 1928

Holyk, Darryl. “Grave of Pioneer Prospector Deserves Headstone.” The Minnedosa Tribune, Friday February 6, 2009

Rice, Kathleen. “Woman Prospector Travels Alone Through Manitoba Wilds.” The Toronto Star Weekly, Saturday October 5, 1929

“Canadian Girl Works Island Claim As Miner.” The Pittsburgh Press, July 15, 1928

“Woman Finds Copper In Northern Manitoba.” Schenectady Gazette, July 16, 1928

“Toronto Woman Grad is Now Prospecting.” The Toronto Daily Star, Monday February 12, 1934

“Nickel Co. Pays $20,000 to Manitoba Hermit Lady” [ 196-]

BOOKS:Duncan, Helen. Kate Rice, Prospector. The Treehouse, Toronto:

Simon & Pierre, 1975Fraser, Hugh S. A Journey North: The Great Thompson Nickel

Discovery. Inco; First Edition edition, 1985Tiltman, Marjorie Hessell. Women in Modern Adventure.

London: George G. Harrap and Co. Ltd., 1935

References:

PROFILE: KATE RICE

While she was in the home, it was believed she was still receiving payments and cheques in the mail from her mining claims, and legend has it, much like the rumoured cash stash on the island, she buried some of it on the Lady Minto grounds.

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PDAC 2013

Always in Toronto, always in March; a lot to do, a lot to see – the world’s largest mineral exploration convention, as hosted by the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC),

can be akin to “the Oscars” of industry, a definite not-to-miss event.“The PDAC convention has become the showcase for mineral

exploration and development around the world,” shares Ross Gallinger, executive director for PDAC. “It has become the

must-attend event for everyone who has or wishes to con-nect with the exploration and mining community. It truly is the world’s gathering place and remains an important showcase of the industry.”

Each year, over 30,000 attendees from 125 countries congregate in Toronto for the four-day convention. Close to 200 educational opportunities were offered at this year’s event, which kicked off March 3, 2013, at the Metro To-ronto Convention Centre (South Building), with over 500 speakers and 1,200 booths present between the Investors Exchange and trade show. Social and networking events rounded out this exceptional conference.

An added perk to the 2013 PDAC festivities was Mobi, the official mobile convention guide. Launched in 2012,

Mobi was designed to offer attendees a richer conven-tion experience, says Gallinger, by enabling participants to download everything from program schedules to exhibits and technical sessions, as well as the online interactive floor plan, in real time.

“We’ve had tremendously positive feedback on our mo-

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bile convention guide,” he boasts. “Our delegates tend to live on their smartphones, so we designed a mobile offering to help improve their experience by making it more convenient than searching through the printed convention program.”

The core foundations of the convention, which include pro-fessional development, networking, information exchange, identifying good practice, innovation, and sourcing new ideas, have been well-maintained at the Toronto staple since its inau-gural kickoff in 1932. New to this year, however, was the PDAC’s recent rebranding, which Gallinger describes as “multi-faceted, geographical, flexible and modern,” a “perfect reflection of our organization and the role we play within the industry.”

For over 80 years, the city of Toronto has been the heart of the annual PDAC convention. In turn, the event has proven to be an important revenue generator for the city. A 2011 study conducted by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism estimated that

the event contributed nearly $72 million to the local economy (27,700 people attended the convention that year). Overall, as the PDAC executive director suggests, hosting more than 30,000 people for the second year in a row, especially in a down market, is a “major success.”

“People don’t often think of Toronto as a ‘mining town’ but it really is,” says Gallinger, highlighting the city as the global fi-nancial capital for the exploration and mining sector (with 60 per cent of all public mining companies listed on the TSX and TSX-V). “Toronto is a world-class city and provides a fantastic backdrop to the PDAC Convention.”

This year, the PDAC event hosted more than 600 self-identi-fied Aboriginal delegates. The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Series also experienced growth, providing an exceptional opportunity for important dialogue among stakeholders. Po-litically, more than 50 Members of Parliament (MP’s), includ-ing six cabinet ministers, as well as senators, premiers, provin-cial cabinet ministers and a number of other elected officials attended the 2013 event. International delegates maintained a strong interest, with more than 7,500 attendees representing 126 countries, including 60 exhibiting governments.

“The success of this convention really can really be attributed to the people that put the event together,” he concludes. “The PDAC convention team, the committees and volunteers who help ensure that the event goes off perfectly are at the heart of success. Together they design and execute a program that no other industry event in the world can rival in terms of educa-tional offerings, companies and countries present and overall, the number of delegates attending.”

For more information, please visit the PDAC’s website: www.pdac.ca. 8

PDAC 2013

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MINING OVER REGULATION

There is a strange perception which has been accepted by many mem-bers of the general public. Just as

multitudes blame “de-regulation” for the financial crisis of 2007-2009, many peo-ple, but NOT those in the mining indus-try, also seem to believe that the world of mining is some sort of free-for-all ex-isting under minimal government over-sight. In fact, few industries on earth are as hamstrung by excessive regulation as the world of mining exploration, devel-opment, and production.

It can be truly stated that many of these regulations tend to increase the costs and complexities of the entire process of moving a mineral discovery through to eventual production. As a result, in recent years, fewer metals dis-coveries are being made, fewer projects are being advanced to actual production, and the danger of a future serious met-als supply shortage is steadily increasing.

The enormous variety of laws relating

to mining is truly mind-boggling, but I would suggest that this trend is indica-tive of actions within the general societ-ies of Canada, the U.S., and other “ad-vanced” nations. An examination of the number, complexity and intrusiveness of many laws, some containing more than 2,000 pages, could easily lead to the conclusion that most people believe that societal problems can only be solved ei-ther by new laws and regulations or by adjusting existing ones.

The situation has grown so perilous to many the Wall Street Journal recently carried two articles entitled “Red Tape Record Breakers” and “Government Gone Wild”, while noted economist Niall Ferguson recently authored a piece not-ing that historically, America was truly the land of the free while France was the land of intrusive socialist government. However, after examining recent trends relating to regulation in America, Fergu-son concluded, “...at some point between

1833 and 2013, France must have con-quered the United States.”

Our main interest, of course, is in rela-tion to metals prospecting, exploration, and development and to say there is no shortage of regulations impeding mining operations would be a substantial under-statement. Because of an abundance of available information on the subject, we focus this article on Canadian mining laws and regulations.

A short list of federal agencies in-volved directly or peripherally in regulat-ing mining would include Environment Canada, the Canadian Environmen-tal Assessment Agency, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Natural Resources Can-ada, and Health Canada.

After examining reams of printed materials and numerous federal and provincial information sites, it is reason-able to report that the total body of laws, rules, and regulations relating to mining in Canada is almost beyond comprehen-sion. Taking as our pattern the flow of work from original discovery to mine closure, what follows is a partial listing of associated legal intrusions into the mining processes.

Prospecting The act of recording a discovery is

called “staking a claim” and involves placing physical “stakes” to mark the area involved, although in recent years sev-eral provinces have turned to electronic recording of claims. Once the claim has been recorded, various laws come into play relating to the work which must be done in order to maintain the claim in good standing.

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Excluded Areas

Numerous laws are in effect which define those areas in which any form of mining cannot take place. These areas include national parks, national park re-serves, national wildlife areas, migratory bird sanctuaries, protected watershed areas, and United Nations biosphere re-serves.

Indigenous Peoples Consultation

If there is one area of mining law that has the capacity to confound industry entrepreneurs, it is Aboriginal law. The Canadian Constitution Act defines Ab-original and treaty rights. The United Nations Declaration of Rights specifies Free Prior Informed Consent proce-dures to be followed with First Nations peoples. Numerous land claims agree-ments specify Aboriginal privileges.

Permit Approval Review Processes

Mining permit approval processes involve numerous laws originating with both the federal and provincial governments. These include the Cana-dian Environmental Assessment Act, the Nunavut Impact Review Board, the Mackenzie Valley Review Board, Health, Safety and Reclamation Code, Fisheries Act, Environmental Assessment Act, Metals Mining Effluent Regulations, and the Canadian Environmental Protec-tions Act.

Assuming a company eventually en-ters production and actually makes a profit, there are likewise numerous taxation and income redistribution laws which lie in waiting. These include: Nunavut and N.W.T. sliding-scale royal-ty laws, Ontario Mining Tax, Manitoba Mining Tax, royalties to indigenous peo-ples defined by agreements like the Nun-avut Land Claim Agreement and the

Inuit Impact Benefit Agreement. These are all in addition to the “normal” federal and provincial corporate tax laws.

Reclamation Upon Mine Closure Laws

These require such measures as the creation of a mine closure plan as specified in the National Orphaned and Abandoned Mining Initiative, posting of guarantees to ensure financial capacity to follow-through with such plans, and an elaborate array of regulations requir-ing protection of water resource purity following reclamation.

Sometimes the specific wording of laws implies a standard which might be impossible to meet, such as the Depart-ment of Fisheries and Oceans require-ment that mining companies which use ponds for tailings storage are required to “recreate the lost habitat” without de-fining exactly how this is to be accom-plished.

MINING OVER REGULATION

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We have used Canada as our primary example, but rules and laws are similar in both nature and complexity in other important mining nations such as the U.S. and Australia.

It is also worth noting that regulations in far-flung nations are having their im-pact on North American miners, as well. Kinross Gold recently pulled out of a major project in Ecuador because of that country’s tax laws. Barrick Gold recently took a huge write-down on its Chile/Argentina Pascua-Lama project, citing environmental laws and government in-terference.

Going forward, there is little indica-tion that the overall situation is improv-ing. Canada just announced that tougher new regulations for mining companies operating in foreign lands are in the process of being written, following con-sultation with the provinces, territories, First Nations groups, the mining indus-

try, and various interested civil groups. And Quebec has just imposed their new, complex Bill 43 which will replace their existing Quebec Mining Act of 1987.

Somehow the public must realize that almost every facet of our modern exis-tence is dependent upon a steady and reliable flow of an enormous variety of metals which must be mined to come into usable existence. Unless the pres-ent situation is reversed and new mining ventures are quickly brought to produc-

tion, it is relatively easy to forecast se-rious, perhaps crippling future metals shortages as old mines play out.

The situation has become so perilous for small miners that a new organiza-tion, the Venture Capital Markets As-sociation has been formed with the ral-lying cry of “Zealous over-regulation by a multitude of governing organizations is rapidly bringing venture funding to a halt.”

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MINING OVER REGULATION

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HIGH TECH POTASH

When it comes to advances in the potash industry, one thing is for certain – size matters. Fifty years ago when Mosaic’s Esterhazy K1 and K2 operations

were being built, no one could guess that the demand for the crop nutrient would more than quadruple in half a century. Nor could anyone guess that the infrastructure used to mine this mineral was going to see the longevity that it did. Esterhazy’s potash operations were the first of its kind to successfully with-stand long-term mining, but this didn’t come without adapta-tion to technological upgrades as the years wore on.

Before Mosaic’s Esterhazy mines were built, conventional mining practices were foiled by one major element – water. Underground flooding was posing a huge problem for mining companies and was turning underground potash mines into solution mines. When the International Minerals and Chemi-cal Corporation (IMC Co.) wanted to sink a conventional mine

near Esterhazy in the 1950s, they looked to German engineer-ing. These engineers had created a freezing process for shaft sinking which meant that underground water sources could be kept at bay while grout was poured and tubbing and bolts were installed. According to John Nightingale, a retired mechani-cal engineer who spent six years as general manager of Mosaic (formerly IMC Co.) from 1979 to 1985, the practices used 50 years ago to sink the Esterhazy shafts are still the practices used today. In fact, the building of the new K3 shaft already has the large freezing plant in place that will be used to harden the lay-ers going down underground.

But as much as the shaft-sinking process has stayed the same, virtually everything else about potash mining has been advanced. As it turns out, the world demand for soil nutrients is what has led the industry forward in means of technology and production. Potash mining has had to keep up with the

Moving With The TimesPotash mining has become a high-tech business.

By Jaime Rieger

PHOTO CREDIT JAMIE RIEGER

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HIGH TECH POTASH

demand by creating bigger and more efficient machinery. The information highway has opened doors to fast-paced computer networking systems, and Saskatchewan has become a world-leader in conventional potash mining capabilities. Creating im-proved operational efficiencies has meant fewer accidents and less lag time during production times. Mosaic’s Esterhazy pot-ash mines have increased their production capacity from about three million tonnes per year (TPY) in 1967 to 5.3 million TPY today. With the expansion projects underway, Mosaic is pro-jecting an additional capacity increase of 800,000 TPY at the K2 mine site, as well as adding 900,000 TPY when K3 is completed. However, the way in which Mosaic will achieve these goals has changed in the last 50 years.

Behind every great company there is a story and a start, and Mosaic’s Esterhazy mines have come a long way from when production started in 1962. When underground exploration discovered that southern Saskatchewan was sitting on a bed of potash, there were not a lot of mining principles derived spe-cifically for this mineral. Since the Esterhazy mines were the first of their kind to be built, they are unique in their construc-tion. Being one of the first successfully operating underground potash mines in the province, they were constructed using insufficient knowledge of longevity in the field. Their unusual feature is that they get their workers underground by means of a cage in the production shaft. Every other mine in the province has both a service shaft built strictly for employees, as well as

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HIGH TECH POTASH

a production shaft built only for product. The Esterhazy mines were the only ones constructed without both shafts, but then again, they are also the only mines that have an underground tunnelling system joining K1 to K2. By doing this, the mines not only share underground entrance and exit points, which are needed in emergency situations, but they also share a ven-tilation system. The building of Mosaic’s K3 operations will see both service and production shafts built, as well as assume its own ventilation. It will not be joined underground to its sister mine tunnels at K1 and K2.

When potash mining began, coal mining practices were tak-en largely into account and were the go-to method of produc-tion. The two rotor miners used at the time created large chunks of potash, some were donut shaped. In the 1970s, the bits and the spacing of the bits on the rotor miners were changed to create a more efficient practice of extracting the potash. This created smaller, more workable chunks of potash and also less dust. Minimizing dust is not only beneficial during mining but in the milling process as well. All things considered, it was cost-effective for the mining machines to be changed. These bits are still used to this day. The miners were also upgraded to having four rotors instead of two, which meant more potash could be extracted in one pass.

Mosaic also evolved their mining machines with state-of-the-art technology. Originally, workers would have admin-istered each pass of the machine by sitting in the miners and literally controlling and driving the machine by hand. Now the mining machines can be computer operated with the machine operators using electric/hydraulic joysticks to move the ma-chines around. Workers are still there, but the machines can run independently, relying on computer read outs for direction.

The conveyor system has also undergone innovation. During its inception phase, after the potash was mined workers would use a loader to scoop up the potash and load it onto a shuttle car. The shuttle car would then zip back and forth to the con-veyor belt and dump the potash on to the belt to be carried to the skip which would then hoist it to the surface. Today, the shuttle car system is obsolete, and the potash is transported by means of an extensible conveyor system which is attached to each mining machine. This change took place in the 1970s and helped make the operation continuous. The conveyor belts were also widened for increased capabilities and the skips used to hoist the product to surface were broadened. The hoists are now able to pull heavier loads, and the entire production pro-cess runs at a more efficient pace. According to Nightingale, the original K2 shaft was built for 27 tonne skips. Now it has nearly doubled its capacity and operates with 50 tonne skips.

Despite all the advances in the operations of these mines, one thing has remained consistent and clear: all of Mosaic’s Ester-hazy 1,170 employees must make it home safe at the end of the day. In the beginning, it was almost an acculturation to a lot of the employees who had grown up on farms and had seen their families through the Great War. Safety was not a priority in their lives, and missing fingers and deceased family members due to farming accidents were considered commonplace. Working at a mine where safety was of utmost importance helped keep em-ployees on the job, as well as attracted new workers to the site. They were instructed to not only be safe at work, but to make it part of their daily lives at home. To this day, Mosaic is a world leader in safety procedures and in its wake has created an envi-ronment of healthy families, and safer communities. 8

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector68

SASKATCHEWAN OIL SANDS

For more than a century, rapid world industrialization combined with enormous population growth has served to continually increase the international demand for

readily-available energy sources. This situation is also com-pounded by economic progress now being achieved by for-merly poor but heavily-populated nations such as China, India, and Indonesia.

Even though strenuous efforts are being expended to satisfy this ever-expanding demand through the use of renewable or “green” categories such as wind turbines or solar panels, the single greatest available source of ready energy remains the pe-troleum complex. Accordingly, the search for additional fossil-fuel reserves continues unabated and one of the primary targets for such reserves has been the field of oil sands exploration and development.

Without doubt, Canada remains the primary nation for oil sands development thanks to enormous proven reserves in the province of Alberta, but most interestingly a new entrant onto the scene has now emerged. We are referring to oil sands devel-opments within the neighbouring province of Saskatchewan.

Saskatchewan has actually been doubly blessed when it comes to evaluating its petroleum production future. Not only is there growing interest in oil sands exploration, but thanks to development of the enormous Bakken Formation which ex-tends across eastern Montana, northern North Dakota, and into southern Saskatchewan, the province has substantial on-going investment in that area of advancing oil development as well.

Oilsands consist of sand, bitumen, mineral rich clays, and water with each grain of oilsand consisting of water surround-ing a grain of sand and a coating of bitumen surrounding the water. The bitumen content in these deposits can vary widely, ranging from one per cent to 18 per cent with 12 per cent con-tent rated as “very good” while bitumen content of less than six per cent is generally considered to be uneconomical.

Oil sands production normally follows either of two meth-ods. Open-pit mining methods are preferred for those depos-its located near the surface with the material being moved by trucks and shovels while those at deeper levels normally use in-situ recovery. The Saskatchewan government has estimated that approximately 80 per cent of that province’s oil sands de-posits would use various forms of in-situ recovery.

Even though the majority of Canada’s oil sands proper-

ties are located in the neighbouring province of Alberta, Sas-katchewan’s oil sands potential remains significant. According to previous environmental studies, it has been estimated that approximately 27,000 square kilometres of northwestern Sas-katchewan – an area the size of Lake Erie – has some level of oil sands potential. These areas are located within the Manville Group of the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (WCSB) along the McMurray Formation.

Geologically speaking, WCSB deposits can be broadly sub-divided into a pre-Late Jurassic miogeocline platform stage during which sediment was sourced from the North American craton to the east, followed by a Late Jurassic to early Eocene foreland basin stage when sediment was derived from the Cor-dilleran Mountain Belt to the west. Siliciclastic rocks of the Manville Group were deposited in a variety of environments ranging from open-marine, shallow shelf to fluvial systems, and in a network of incised valleys filled with deltaic, brackish hay, and estuarine deposits.

The possible existence of oil sands deposits in Saskatchewan was first reported by Professor Walter Kupisch of the Univer-sity of Saskatchewan in 1954. An initial burst of commercial exploration activity followed from 1972-1979, but a lack of fa-vourable results led to the cessation of efforts until 2004 when Powermax Energy acquired permits for about 570,000 hectares north of the Clearwater River along the Saskatchewan/Alberta border in order to explore for oil sands. Oilsands Quest Inc. then acquired these permits in 2005 and conducted an initial Phase One drilling program in 2006.

In an effort to increase interest in the province’s oil sands activities, the province held its initial public offering of crown oil sands rights under a competitive bidding system. Six explo-ration permits were sold with five going to Oilsands Quest and one to Petrobank Energy and Resources. The province con-ducted another such auction in 2012 and sold two additional oil sands permits for land involved in the northern part of the province close to the Primrose Lake Air Weapons Range along the Saskatchewan/Alberta border. These permits are contin-gent upon the buyers carrying out minimum work expenditure requirements.

From an economic point of view, oil sands developments hold the potential for adding to Saskatchewan’s already impres-sive growth profile. Not only would the province continue to receive a stream of revenues from permitting fees, taxes, and

Possible ProductionSaskatchewan pushing ahead in oil sands development.

By Leonard Melman

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 69

other fees, but the potential direct impact on the province’s First Nations population could be very positive.

Aboriginal considerations carry great weight in terms of Sas-katchewan’s oil sands developments since the majority of oil sands prospective areas lay in regions which have seen continu-ous aboriginal occupation for several thousand years. Among the tribal peoples with a long history in these regions are the Talthelei and the Dene, while those who arrived during the past few hundred years include the Athabaska Cree and vari-ous Métis people. All of these groups have a special interest in maintaining archaeological sites, as well as protecting those places where traditional aboriginal land use living styles are still maintained.

Oil sands development requires a number of highly-trained workers in such fields as electrical technology, quality audit-ing, piping design, electrical designing, document controls, and various mining engineers. It would appear quite likely that fi-nal agreements between eventual developers and First Nations people would require substantial training of aboriginal youth for these well-paid occupations.

In a recent interview, Blaine Favel, an aboriginal attorney and oil and gas entrepreneur, as well as past Grand Chief of the fed-eration of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, strongly endorsed oil and gas development as long as high environmental standards are maintained, and noted that oil sands offer, “...opportunities for the aboriginal groups for employment, training and busi-ness development...Many are doing well in the oil industry...The oil industry, despite perceptions of being run by ‘cowboys’ and of ‘intolerance,’ has created more opportunities for Aboriginals than all other sectors combined.”

Because of the intense focus of environmental groups re-garding Alberta’s extensive oil sands recovery operations, the province of Saskatchewan is very sensitive to this segment of the overall process of developing their oil sands reserves and has enacted the Oil and Gas Conservation Act in order to en-sure high environmental protection standards are defined and maintained.

However, given their already expressed animus toward oil sands developments and in spite of such regulations, environ-mental groups are determined to hold the industry to the high-est standards within Saskatchewan’s oil sands developments. Several environmental organizations regularly refer to tar sands as “dirty” and frequently declare that any successful recovery of oil from the sands as “unethical.”

To date, commercial work to recover bitumen from the oil sands has encountered more than its share of difficulties. One

of the first companies to expend significant amounts of capital and work was Oilsands Quest Inc. and they had progressed suf-ficiently between 2006 and 2010 at their Axe Lake property to file permit application with the Saskatchewan government to produce bitumen at the rate of 30,000 barrels per day.

Unfortunately, the company began to run into a variety of serious problems and by 2011 issued the following statement, “There is substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern and without additional funding, we may not be able to maintain operations beyond October, 2011.” The com-pany did manage to make temporary financing arrangements, but was eventually closed in 2012.

Several other companies are currently working in Saskatch-ewan oil sands developments including Petrobank Energy at their Kerrobert project near the town of the same name in western Saskatchewan where they are recovering oil via their “THAI” process and another entrant into the field, although in an indirect manner, is AMEC Oil Sands & Mining which does not own oil sands projects but instead provides staffing and technical support for Saskatchewan oil sands developers.

Admittedly, developing oil sands projects in Saskatchewan presents particular problems such as the fact that, unlike Al-berta, most oil sands deposits are at depth rather than near sur-face and to date, most Saskatchewan projects tend to be smaller than those across the border into Alberta.

However, recent statements by the government of Saskatch-ewan clearly indicate that the province believes in the future of the industry. Premier Brad Wall stated firmly in 2011 that he was committed to expanding the Saskatchewan oilsands in-dustry, paying particular attention to the potential for satisfying export demand. During a recent address to a group of Regina business leaders he declared, “Our oil sands could offer tremen-dous opportunities for economic growth if they are properly developed.”

Economically the petroleum demand picture appears to point toward relentless future growth. As described in a recent book Three Billion New Capitalists the demand for energy in the far east is growing explosively, particularly in the ever-expanding number of motor vehicles, and North American oil sands de-velopment, despite evident difficulties and environmentalist opposition, appears to be the most likely source for satisfying those growing demands.

If Premier Wall and his government have their say, resource-rich Saskatchewan is determined to participate to the fullest possible extent in oil sands development and production. 8

SASKATCHEWAN OIL SANDS

In an effort to increase interest in the province’s oil sands activities, the province held its initial public offering of crown oil sands rights under a competitive bidding system.Six exploration permits were sold with five going to Oilsands Quest and one toPetrobank Energy and Resources.

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LA RONGE GOLD BELT

Moving ForwardLa Ronge Gold Belt region continuesto expand exploration and development.By Leonard Melman

Growing numbers of visitors are finally learning that the area sur-rounding Lac la Ronge and the

community of La Ronge is a region of unsurpassed beauty, but fine vacations are only one aspect as the region is also famous for the extensive “La Ronge Gold Belt.”

Mineral interest in the La Ronge Gold Belt began in the early part of the 20th century and, with the help of the Geolog-ical Survey of Canada, several prospec-tive areas were discovered. Historic in-cidents of active gold production include the Box Mine from 1930-42 (42,000 ounces gold production), Prince Albert Mine from 1937-42 (>4,800 oz Au), plus additional producers such as Jolu, Star Lake, and Jasper Mine.

Mining activity in the region abated for some time until a new boom erupted in the 1980s coincident with the great gold rally of that era. At the height of that boom, approximately 60 to 80 companies were actively prospecting and exploring on the ground and several hundred thou-sand ounces of gold were produced. As the 1980s progressed, metals prices de-clined and mining activity diminished.

However, during the past several years, thanks to a sustained bull market in gold which peaked above $1,900 per ounce in mid-2011, a much more sustained era of active exploration and production devel-oped. However, prices for the precious metals entered a period of decline from mid-2011 through mid-2013, a period in which gold lost over $700 per ounce in value.

This decline caused serious financial difficulties for many companies, but

despite these problems, strong devel-opment work has continued at several important projects and it has also helped that the government of Saskatchewan continues to show strong support for the mining industry, making the province one of the leading mining jurisdictions around the globe.

A partial list of these developments and recent work would include:

Claude ResourcesClaude Resources has been focused

on their major producing asset, the Sea-bee Gold Operation located some 125 kilometres northeast of the town of La Ronge. Since entering production about two decades ago, the operation has pro-duced over 1,000,000 ounces of gold with annual production steadily increas-ing from a current rate of approximately 50,000 oz Au in 2013 to an estimated 80,000 oz Au by 2016.

Claude is also actively developing their Santoy 8 Gold Mine about 14 kilome-tres distant from the Seabee Operation’s Central Milling Facility. Processing of ore from Santoy Gap is expected to begin during 2014.

Infrastructure in the area is favourable with a direct line to the Saskatchewan Power Corporation’s provincial power grid and an all-weather road directly into the project area.

Golden Band ResourcesAfter more than 18 years of develop-

mental work at the company’s La Ronge projects, Golden Band joined the ranks of actively producing mines when the Roy Lloyd underground and Komis

open-pit projects entered production in early 2011 with processing at their Jolu mill. Roy Lloyd is part of the Bingo De-posit where historic production dated back to the 1930s era.

Highlights from the reporting year 2013, which ended April 30, 2013, in-clude gold sales of 23,283 ounces, cash flow from operations of $2,136,325, and 110,326 tonnes of ore processed at the Jolu mill. Results were hampered by re-duced ore grades at the Komis open-pit mine where production was finally sus-pended and an economic resource re-view is planned. The company continues to stress compliance with all safety rules, as well as ongoing concern for the envi-ronment at all its operations.

The company’s published goal is to ramp up production to the 70-100,000 ounces per year area and then maintain that rate through years one to five. Com-pany geologists plan on production for 10-plus years based on existing resources and Golden Band is continuing explora-tion and development work on its 12 known deposits which encompass four former mines spread over 870-square-kilometres of land.

Golden Band is also five per cent own-er in a joint venture with another com-pany to explore and develop the Grey-wacke Lake North Zone deposit and is also working to advance the Golden Heart project.

La Ronge Gold Corp.La Ronge Gold Corp. is actively work-

ing to further development of their two La Ronge Gold Belt area projects known as Preview SW Gold Project and Wedge

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LA RONGE GOLD BELT

Lake Gold Project. Of the two, the Pre-view SW project is the company’s most advanced property.

La Ronge was able to publish an up-dated resource estimates at the Preview SW Deposit in late 2012 which showed a considerable gain from older historic es-timates. The 2012 estimates showed an Indicated Resource of 1,958,400 tonnes of ore grading 2.12 grams per tonne (gpt) containing 138,100 ounces of gold (Au), and an Inferred Resource of 3,714,600 tonnes grading 2.09 gpt and containing 257,300 ounces Au. Previous historic estimates (not NI 43-101 qualified) had show a resource of 195,912 ounces of gold grading 12.34 gpt. Mineralogical studies have been a primary recent focus and economic studies for Preview SQW are planned.

Attention is also focused on the Twin Deposit at Wedge Lake where explora-tion dates back to 1951. The company is reviewing an array of historic data in order to plan potential exploration and drilling programs. Wedge Lake sits en-tirely within the La Ronge Domain of the Reindeer Zone which is a complex region of volcanic, plutonic, and sedi-mentary rocks.

Wescan Goldfields Inc.Attention at Wescan Goldfields Inc. is

involved with two current projects – Jo-jay, which is located in the west central portion of the La Ronge Domain, and Munro Lake where results of a winter 2013 drill program are currently being evaluated. Like many other junior min-ers, further exploratory and develop-ment progress will be dependent upon successful fundraising.

In addition to those companies active-ly working the region, Explor Resources has an interest in several La Ronge gold properties including Scriver Lake, Bielby Lake, Jepson Lakes, West Side, and Pipe-stone Bay but their primary focus for the

time being is accelerating development of their West Timmins, Ontario project.

A relatively recent entrant into the La Ronge gold mining picture is Hi Ho Silver Resources and they have recently completed a two-hole drill program de-sign to confirm previous historic drill re-

sults at their English Bay Gold property. Despite present difficulties caused by

the decline in gold’s price, the Lac La Ronge Gold Belt area continues to be alive with mining activity and it appears likely that interest in this dynamic region has nowhere to go but up. 8

Mineral interest in the La Ronge Gold Belt began in the early part of the 20th century and, with the help of the Geological Survey of Canada, several prospective areas were discovered.

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FORT A LA CORNE

Twinkle Of HopeShore Gold continuing aggressive efforts to advance Fort a la Corne Diamond Project.

One of the province of Saskatchewan’s best known areas is the “Fort a la Corne” forest region, an area of both his-toric and recreational interest. And, while visitors may

be enjoying the area’s boreal forests, they should also be aware than an important diamond mining development is taking place named Star-Orion South Diamond Project, owned by Saska-toon-based Shore Gold Inc. The fort itself is one of the oldest Saskatchewan landmarks, having been built in 1753.

Initial indications of diamond potential in the area began with an unconfirmed report filed in 1948, but the actual initiation of serious exploration started 40 years later when a large kimberlite pipe was discovered. Kimberlite formations known as “pipes” are frequently associated with being carriers of diamonds.

Corporate involvement in the Fort a la Corne kimberlite area started in the early 1990s with the formation of a tri-party con-sortium including Cameco Corporation, De Beers Canada Ltd., and Kensington Resources before Shore Gold Inc. entered the area picture in 1995.

Shore Gold’s interests in the Fort a la Corne area involve two specific projects; the Star Diamond Project which is 100 per cent owned by Shore, and the Orion South Diamond Project which is owned by a joint venture named FALC-JV of which Shore Gold is the major partner and Newmont Canada the lesser.

The Star Diamond kimberlite is located about 60 kilometres east of Prince Albert in an area with excellent mining infrastruc-ture. Prince Albert itself is a major supply centre for northern Saskatchewan and regional paved highways, a gravel road grid system, and a network of forestry roads provide excellent year-round access to the project area. Electric power would be avail-able through the nearby Saskatchewan power grid and mining supplies and personnel can be found in nearby cities.

The “Star Kimberlite” itself averages almost 88 metres in thick-ness and encompasses an area over four square kilometres while being covered by 90 metres of overburden. After completing airborne and ground magnetic surveys in the late 1990’s, Shore began a series of extensive programs which eventually saw the drilling of three NQ (48 millimetre diameter) holes; 268 PQ (85 millimetre diameter) holes; one large diameter (24 inch) reverse circulation hole and 88 larger (48 inch) reverse circulation holes.

A Mineral Resource Estimate for the total project areas was prepared in July 2011, and showed Star Project reserves in the Probable category amounting to 165,890,000 tonnes grading 12.3 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht), and containing 20.386 million carats. Reserves in the probable category at Orion South amounted to 113,090,000 tonnes grading 12.4 cpht containing 13.994 million carats. Total reserves in the “probable” category for the combined projects amount to 278,980,000 tonnes with an average grade of 12.3 cpht containing 34.380 million carats of diamonds.

A Feasibility Study was also prepared at the same time which assessed the viability of developing and operating the project as open pits with on-site ore processing. The proposed processing plant would process ore at the rate of 14.3 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), just short of its nameplate capacity of 16.4 mtpa. The Feasibility Study also includes plans for a 20,000 tonne per hour (tph) capacity in-pit crusher and conveyor system to strip overburden and waste rock.

In terms of geology, based on surface and underground core drilling and underground mapping data, the Star and Orion South Kimberlite deposits contain two distinct types of kim-berlite; eruptive kimberlite phases, and kimberlitic sedimentary rocks.

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FORT A LA CORNE

The overall project now faces two specific areas of focus. In the first case, an uncertain financial background for virtually all mining ventures during the past 18 months has created some difficulties for Shore in terms of obtaining total production fi-nancing. However, there are reasons for solid optimism includ-ing the forecast that diamond demand could rise substantially in future years as both China and India, with their combined population of 2.6 billion people, continue to place growing em-phasis on diamonds in terms of protecting family wealth. Also, since the world of mining finance is just one portion of the to-tal mining outlook, recent improvements in precious and base metals pricing could also be indicators of an improving mining finance background.

The overall plan for the Star-Orion South Project is for a mine, which would take four years to bring into production and then have a mine life of approximately 20 years. However, an important part in the process is obtaining an environmen-tal permit and Shore is working hard toward that objective. In fact, a strong indication of support for environmental goals is contained within a company policy statement which notes, “Shore recognizes and respects the inherent value of the envi-ronment and is committed to reducing our effects on the en-vironment through strategic planning (and) implementation of best management practices and innovations.”

They filed their initial Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) with both the Province of Saskatchewan and the federal

government. The EIA contained not only detailed environ-mental information, but also noted some of the economic ben-efits to groups including nearby communities, First Nations, and Métis people in the region and the province as a whole.

Shore recently reported that they had received an Environ-mental Effects Summary document which includes both the governments’ and public response to the original EIA. The public next had thirty days to add their input after which time the government will prepare a Comprehensive Study Report which will outline their conclusions regarding the potential en-vironmental impacts of the project.

Once financing is put into place and a final environmen-tal permit is received, there is little doubt that the Star-Ori-on South Project could become a major source of economic growth for the region, with particular benefits for the region’s total aboriginal communities in the form of general employ-ment, youth training, and community support. It is estimated that several hundred jobs would become available during the production construction phase and the number of employees required for mine operations over the proposed 20-year life is estimated at more than 500.

The Fort a la Corne area has come a long way since the days of the fur traders and if the Star-Orion South project can be brought forward into production, the region’s finest days may well extend far into the future. 8

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SNOW LAKE

Looking AheadSnow Lake region looks forward to a bright mining future.

During the past few years, with the government of Manito-ba providing steadily increasing levels of support, mining throughout Manitoba has gained significant momentum

and one area showing a particularly high level of activity is the region centreed on the Town of Snow Lake, located within the prolific Flin Flon – Snow Lake greenstone belt.

Thanks to the surrounding scenery and abundant fishing op-portunities, the tourist industry has provided some basis for economic growth, but unquestionably mining has been the prime economic driver throughout Snow Lake’s history.

The town itself is located approximately in north central Manitoba, about 685 kilometres north of Winnipeg and lies between two major mining communities with Flin Flon to the west and Thompson to the east. Infrastructure is excellent with a paved trunk highway leading directly into the town and excel-lent power availability. Mining supplies and personnel are avail-able locally in Flin Flon and in Thompson.

A unique feature of Snow Lake mining activity since the first important discovery in 1913 has been the emergence of impor-

tant producing mines which remain active for some time and then play out – leaving Snow Lake, which was formed as a Local Government District in 1947, with a history of alternating eco-nomic booms followed by periods of decline.

This pattern is demonstrated by a list of area mines which have opened and then closed, with the years of opening and closing in parentheses: Rex Mines (1917-45); Nor-Acme Mine (1949-58); Stall Lake Mine (1964-94); Osborne Lake Mine (1968-83); Anderson Lake Mine 1968-88); Ghost Lake Mine (1973-88); Spruce Point Mine (1981-92); Rod Mine (1984-91); Chisel Pit Mine (1988-94); New Britannia Mine (formerly Nor-Acme) re-opened 1995, closed 2004, and Chisel North Mine (2001-09).

As might be noted, since the 1950s, there has been an almost continuous pattern of exploration, development, and produc-tion and a primary reason for this sustained level of intense activity is the favourable geology of the region. The Flin Flon – Snow Lake greenstone belt has been described as one of the largest Paleoproterozoic volcanogenic massive sulfide ore de-posits (VMS) in the world from which more than 183 million tonnes of sulfide ore have been mined.

The belt is 250 kilometres long by 75 kilometres wide and is bounded by metasedimentary gneisses and metavolcanics of the Kisseynew Domain to the north and extends to the south where it is unconformably overlain by Ordovician Age dolomite.

Without question, the company with the longest history of Snow Lake area mining activity is Hudson Bay Minerals which is known affectionately as “HudBay.” The company has engaged in active mining at Snow Lake for more than one-half century and as a result of their economic contributions, the town has seen the construction of dormitory buildings, two retail stores, a school, a hospital, curling rink, hardware store, bank, hotel, transport company, and a cafe.

An important source of HudBay revenues during the period 1960 through 2012 came from operations at the Chisel and Chisel North mines, but production from those sources came to an end in 2012. However, HudBay is now developing an im-portant new property.

HudBay’s current major project is the Lalor Deposit, which is of sufficient size that when it enters full commercial opera-tion, currently scheduled for 2014, it will provide the town with the demand for a significant stable work force for decades to come, thereby helping to eliminate the previous historic pattern of “boom and bust” cycles.

Production at Lalor began on a limited basis earlier in 2013, and is expected to increase in 2014 with the recovery of ore from

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SNOW LAKE

the main production shaft by the second half of 2014, subject to receipt of required regulatory permits. The company also plans to invest $9 million at the existing Snow Lake concentrator to double production capacity to approximately 2,700 tonnes per day by mid-2014.

Other mining companies with involvement in the Snow Lake area include:

Calinex Mines Inc.Calinex’ Snow Lake area property is named Sneath Lake and

covers nine claims spread over 1,430 hectares. One of the at-tractive features of the project is that it lies in close proximity to HudBay’s Lalor Project, thereby taking advantage of one of mining’s oldest adages, “if you want to find a new mine, search in close proximity to an existing one.”

In addition to reviewing significant historic accumulated dur-ing past development work, Calinex has conducted VTEM sur-veys at Sneath Lake, as well as a Deep Penetrating Electromag-netic Survey (DPES), both of which have shown some indicators related to Volcanogenic Massive Sulfide (VMS) deposits. Com-pany geologists are specifically searching for quality deposits at depth.

Jiminex Inc.Jiminex’s Snow Lake projects named Parres One and Parres

Two are also located relatively close to the Lalor project. The total area controlled between the two properties is 49.8 square kilometres and spans a four kilometres section of mine rock stratigraphy between the past-producing Stall/Rock and Os-borne copper/zinc mines.

The company has flown VTEM surveys over both properties and during 2010 conducted an eight-hole drill program. How-ever, much of the company’s work subsequently turned to their Ontario projects, but the company noted in its recent Manage-ment Discussion that, “...when feasible, it is the intent of Jiminex to conduct...possible ground follow-up surveys and subsequent diamond drilling.”

One recent newcomer to the area is Liberty Mines Inc. (TSX; LBE) which recently entered into an agreement with QMX Gold Corporation to acquire their Snow Lake gold project. Liberty plans to develop the Snow Lake property into a mine with a pro-duction target of 80,000 ounces of gold per year with an esti-mated cash cost of $852 per ounce.

According to Property Resource Estimates filed in 2010, the property contains Measured and Indicated (M & I) resources of 5.471 million tonnes grading 4.14 grams per tonne gold (gpt

Au) containing 728,000 oz Au; Inferred resources of 2.367 mil-lion tonnes grading 4.43 gpt Au containing 336,700 oz Au and Proven and Probable Reserves of 3.477 million tonnes grading 4.04gpt Au containing 451,900 oz Au.

Murgor Resources Inc.

Murgor`s Snow Lake assets consist of the Wim and Hudvan copper-gold deposits where the company has outlined a 4.6 mil-lion tonne resource of copper and gold with zinc and silver.

According to the company`s latest fact sheet on the two proj-ects, Murgor is considering selling their Manitoba assets to pro-vide needed capital.

Given the body of geologic knowledge of the area, the lengthy history of past and present production, the continuing support of the Manitoba government and the general attractiveness of the region, it appears likely that the Snow Lake can look forward to many years of active mining endeavours. 8

As might be noted, since the 1950s, there has been an almost continuous pattern of exploration, development, and production and a primary reason for this sustained level of intense activity is the favourable geology of the region.

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CHURCHILL GATEWAYDEVELOPMENT CORP.

Last year was one of the most capital intensive seasons for the Hudson Bay Port Company (HBPC) over the past 15 years, in order to prepare for a busy 2013 season and be-

yond.Four major projects were undertaken at the Port of Churchill

in 2012 including concrete restoration, wharf and harbour sur-vey, cleaner enhancement, and an engineering study on the Churchill Marine Tank Farm.

Buildings and structures were resurfaced and waterproofed in a major interior and exterior concrete restoration project. Approximately $1 million was invested to prevent any future concrete deterioration or product spoilage through moisture accumulation. The work was successfully completed before a long Churchill winter set in, which provided as one of the best tests for the quality of work.

In August 2012, an independent engineering firm conducted an inspection of the wharf surface below and above the water-

line while a dive team conducted a hydrographic survey of the har-bour and shipping channel. The survey outlined areas of improve-ment to extend the life span of the wharf and approximately $1.5 mil-lion of improvements identified by the survey will be undertaken dur-ing the 2013 shipping season.

Last season, the Port started a two-pronged cleaner enhancement project. Cleaners were overhauled, doubling cleaning capacity, from 330 to 660 metric tonnes per hour. Additionally, the cleaning equip-ment was upgraded to enable the cleaning of canola, a new capability for the Port. Approximately 70 per cent of the project was completed in 2012, and the remainder of the $1.6 million project will be com-pleted this season.

Near the end of 2012, an independent engineering firm conducted a facility survey of Churchill Marine Tank Farm (CMTF). After an extensive review process, the team of engi-neers produced two reports; one report identified the recom-mended repairs and improvements, and the other report out-lined the requirements to use the CMTF as a transload facility. The reports are currently under further analysis in order to de-termine a strategic plan for future development.

Along with other improvement projects, HBPC employees are busy this season replacing windows, fixtures, and painting at the Port in support of a $250,000 Port revitalization invest-ment.

Aside from the Port, the Northern Trade Corridor has also undergone significant investment. The $60 million Hudson Bay Railway Line Rehabilitation has increased efficiency on the rail line, connecting The Pas with Churchill. Investment in this

Port Of ChurchillUpdated And UpgradedReinvestment in the Port provides newcapabilities for the 2013 shipping season.

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CHURCHILL GATEWAYDEVELOPMENT CORP.

critical link greatly improves the transportation channel to the north.

HBPC recognizes it is vital to invest in the infrastructure at the Port to provide a safe and efficient working environment for employees and visitors. HBPC has taken the opportunity to upgrade its facilities and invest in projects that will diver-

sify the commodity and products shipped through the Port of Churchill.

For more information about the Port of Churchill and the in-vestments being undertaken, please visit www.portofchurchill.ca or contact the Churchill Gateway Development Corporation at (204) 947-0033. 8

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COPPER REEFMINING CORPORATION

Copper Reef FocusingOn Gold And Base Metals

Copper Reef Mining Corporation, based in Flin Flon, Manitoba, holds exploration properties throughout the Lynn Lake and Flin Flon greenstone belt both in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Shown above in various colours are Copper Reef ’s Base Metal Properties in the main camp. Shown in red are the gold properties. Copper Reef plans to drill some of

the better targets in Main Camp while it considers various offers on “earn ins” on its gold properties both in the Main Camp and at Gold Rock in the Snow-Reed Lake Camp. More information on any of the active projects can be found at our website www.copperreef.com.

Gold PropertiesCopper Reef has six main gold properties, three of which are inactive. The three active projects include the: Otter Lake on

the Gurney –Century Gold Mine Trend and the Alberts Lake both in the Main Flin Flon Camp, with the Gold Rock and North Star Projects in the Snow Lake Camp. Copper Reef will concentrate mainly on its high grade Gold Rock Group.

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COPPER REEFMINING CORPORATION

Alberts Lake VTEM TargetsThree VTEM targets in the Alberts Lake area have been chosen for drilling this winter and include the Alberts, Aimee Lake and

Z4 anomaly. The Alberts Lake is the largest and lies in felsic volcanic rocks just north of Pine Bay, North Star and Don Jon Mines as well as the Leo Lake and xxxx deposits. The Leo lake deposit for scale barely shows as a blip on the VTEM survey representing a small (70,000 tonne high grade zinc-copper deposit) compared to very large Alberts Lake Anomaly. See diagrams below.

Gold Rock Group (Gold Rock and North Star Properties)

 

The North Star Gold Property is located 36 kilometres west of Snow Lake, Manitoba.Gold mineralization hosted in gabbro within a typical Proterozoic shear zone system – gold-rich quartz veins are in an exten-

sional domain and weak mineralization are along a contractional domain. Gold in both The North Star and The Gold Rock property occurs in similar structure and quartz veining.

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COPPER REEFMINING CORPORATION

 

The North Star Gold Property is located 36 kilometres west of Snow Lake, Manitoba. Gold mineralization hosted in gab-bro within a typical Proterozoic shear zone system – gold-rich quartz veins are in an extensional domain and weak mineraliza-tion are along a contractional domain. Gold in both The North Star and The Gold Rock property occurs in similar structure and quartz veining.

Royalty Holdings (Hanson Lake Belt, Saskatchewan)Copper Reef Mining Corporation has an underlying royalty of $0.75/t from the McIlvenna Bay Deposit (currently with a ton-

nage of 12.5 million tonnes of Zn-Cu-Silver rich resource and 13.9 million tonnes of Cu –Gold stringer resource) and a 2% NSR on Foran’s two-million-ton Bigstone copper deposit and the Balsam deposit as well as other small properties. The properties on which Copper Reef holds Royalties are shown in yellow. The 100% owned Hanson Lake Property on strike with the McIlvenna Deposit is shown in red and which is the former site of the Hanson Lake Mine (produced 147,000 tons of 10 per cent Zn, 5.8 per cent Pb, 0.5 per cent Cu and 137 g/t Ag). Copper Reef in the past three years has been drilling off the South Bay Zone on its Hanson Lake Property.

Corporate Information12 Mitchell road, P.o. Box 306, Flin Flon, Manitoba r8A 1N1

Tel: 204-687-3500 • Fax: 204-687-4762Email: [email protected] • URL: http://www.copperreef.com

Listing date: Friday, February 22, 2008Auditors: McGovern, Hurley, Cunningham LLP, in Toronto • Solicitors: Taylor McCaffrey LLP, in Winnipeg

Share Informationtransfer Agent: equity transfer and trust co., in toronto

Investors relations 204-687-3500shares Issues and outstanding: 110,571.300

Warrants Outstanding: 4,570.000 • Options Outstanding: 7,070.000

Selected drillholeS from Gold rock 2010 WiNter drilliNG

hole # Au (g/t) length (m) from (m) to (m)

GR-10-114 14.41 3.3 23.0 26.3

GR-10-115 15.65 1.5 65.0 66.5

GR-10-119 7.79 2.1 114.3 116.4

16.31 0.9 119.2 120.1

GR-10-122 2.94 3.65 249.05 249.45

GR-10-125 7.01 2.3 143.4 145.7

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COPPER REEFMINING CORPORATION

 

Provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. No stock exchange or securities regulatory authority has reviewed or accepted responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Some of the statements contained in this release are forward-looking statements, such as estimates and statements that describe the Company’s future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature, they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. 8

Directors and Officersrobert N. Granger, Qc – chairman and Director

stephen Masson, Msc., P. Geo – President, ceo and DirectorDavid W. Kendall, FCA – CFO and Treasurer

Laara Shaffer – Corporate SecretaryWilliam J. Jackson, B.A.Sc. – Assistant Secretary

Harry Barr – DirectorDavid s. Kennedy – Director

edward G. Thompson, P. Geo – DirectorWilliam J. Phillips – Director

James Pickell, P. Geo – Director

sYMBoL: cZc: cNsX

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POTASHCORP.

The name PotashCorp is synony-mous with Canada’s world-class potash industry. The company,

with its headquarters in Saskatoon, is the largest potash producer in the world by capacity and the third largest produc-er of nitrogen and phosphate.

The nutrients potash, nitrogen, and phosphate act as an essential part of sustainable agriculture. As plants grow, they take nutrients from the soil and those nutrients need to be replaced by farmers – the nutrients do not replace themselves naturally.

So as the world’s population keeps growing, the demand for essential nutri-ents is expected to grow. And, as a com-pany, PotashCorp is positioned to play an important role in helping farmers get more from their land.

As an employer, in 2013 PotashCorp has been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers and a Top Employer in Sas-katchewan. Providing a long-term ca-

reer path for its employees is important to the company’s strategy, as evidenced by its low employee turnover rate and industry-leading benefits program.

“PotashCorp focuses on potential em-ployees that want to live and work in Saskatchewan. As a company, we are a big part of the community so we hope our employees will also be engaged. High levels of employee involvement in initiatives such as our charitable Match-ing Gift Program only serve to strength-en our ties to the community,” says Lee Knafelc, PotashCorp’s vice president of Human Resources and Administration.

PotashCorp is currently placing its re-cruitment emphasis on employee readi-ness and preparing for changing demo-graphics within the province, including the upcoming retirement of long-term mine and mill employees.

There is a particular focus on antici-pating workforce needs such as skilled labor (mine and mill operators), jour-

neyperson trades (mechanics and front line supervisors), mining engineers, and geologists.

To fill future workforce needs, Potash-Corp is actively involved in career fairs at colleges and universities with related technical and academic programs. The company also provides a wide range of scholarships and bursaries for applicable programs.

The company continues to focus on strengthening working relationships with Aboriginal organizations and in-creasing First Nations and Métis repre-sentation, both as PotashCorp employ-ees and suppliers. As the fastest growing demographic in Saskatchewan, First Nations and Métis individuals are an important part of the company’s recruit-ment focus.

PotashCorp is committed to building strong relationships and improving the well-being of all communities in which it operates. In 2012, the total value of the

Continuing To Strengthen And GrowContinuing To Strengthen And GrowPotash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. (PotashCorp) is a Saskatchewan success story – from a Crown corporation until1989 to a global industry leader publicly listed on the TSX and NYSE.

Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. (PotashCorp) is a Saskatchewan success story – from a Crown corporation until1989 to a global industry leader publicly listed on the TSX and NYSE.

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POTASHCORP.

Where great careers growPotashCorpjobs.com

13-102-242 – Where Great Careers GrowTuesday, September 5, 2013 – Northern Prospector Magazine Ad7” x 4.625” 4C w/bleed

company’s corporate philanthropy program was $28 million company-wide.

PotashCorp continues to invest in the province of Saskatchewan to improve the lives of those that play a role in the sustain-ability of its business – from the customers who rely on its essential nutrients, to the employees who proudly play a role in global food security, and the communities that pro-vide the talent and support for its business.

To find out more, PotashCorp has devel-oped a series of mine tour videos that lets users explore a potash mine, see how potash is produced, and meet some of the people behind the scenes at its facilities. Please visit www.PotashCorp.com/minetour. 8

As an employer, in 2013 PotashCorp has been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers and a Top Employer in Saskatchewan.

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VMS VENTURES INC.

When geologist John A. Rozendaal positioned his drill at a plot of land near Manitoba’s Reed Lake, he se-cretly hoped for something big. Little did he know

that a familiar, yellow mineral (chalcopyrite) would soon rock his world, and that of many fellow Manitobans.

“When I was in university, I dreamed about going out and being part of a discovery and seeing a mine created in Mani-toba. Almost 20 years later, that’s exactly what happened,” says Manitoba-born Rozendaal, president and director of VMS Ven-tures Inc. and director of North American Nickel. “I was very lucky to get this opportunity, but I can’t emphasize enough that it takes a whole team of people.”

After the 2007 Reed Copper discovery, a joint venture be-tween VMS Ventures Inc. (formerly Rare Earth Metals Corp.) and Hudbay Minerals Inc. quickly ensued. To facilitate the partnership, Hudbay Minerals agreed to finance 30 per cent of VMS Ventures’ project costs with a budget of $72 million in developmental costs, a financial agreement that “proved great foresight on [VMS’s] part,” adds Rozendaal, particularly in the current market “where capital can be difficult to raise for min-ing projects.”

“We are two very different companies; [Hudbay is] much larger than we are, so we were a little uncertain at first about how that relationship would work,” he says. “But to this point we’re very appreciative of how well they worked with us and

understand our requirements and needs as a smaller company, with this being our sole mine going into production.”

As the VMS Ventures president reports, the new Manitoba copper mine on the Snow Lake-Flin Flon greenstone belt is on track and on budget with an anticipated reserve of 2.16 mil-lion tonnes of high-grade copper. The next critical step for the near-surface mine will be first production, which is planned to begin in the fourth quarter of 2013 and set to ramp up to full production towards the end of the first quarter of 2014. From that point forward, an estimated 1,300 tonnes of copper will be extracted daily from the site.

Surface development and initial infrastructure construction were completed prior to the official ground breaking in August 2012. A year later, surface infrastructure is now complete and all equipment is onsite – a development that is rather excep-tional, as the company president suggests, specifically when dealing with new mines and their unforeseen obstacles.

A major highlight for Rozendaal and his team is the mine’s minimal footprint. The seven-hectare site is a modest size (the equivalent of a city shopping mall), thereby considerably reduc-ing the area of land the projects covers. Moreover, any cleared trees will be replanted and minerals taken from the ground will either be transported to Flin Flon for processing or replaced underground, accordingly.

“I think it is amazing because mining can get a pretty bad

High-GradeTeamworkManitoba’s new copper mineis on track and on budget.

By Jillian Mitchell

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 85

VMS VENTURES INC.

Invest Today:

VMS.TSX.VVMS Ventures Inc.301-260 West Esplanade, North Vancouver, BC, Canada V7M 3G7www.vmsventures.com, 1-866-816-0118, [email protected] @VMSVenturesInc

Manitoba’s next copper mine

Reed Copper PROJECT in production 2013

rap, mainly from the historical practices,” he says. “Let’s face it – there’s no one in a modern economy who can exist without copper. This is our lifestyle. If you’re going to have to have min-ing done, why not do it in a place where you have great laws and regulations in place where we actually care about the land?”

Mining is the second largest revenue source for the province of Manitoba and critical to basic infrastructure development. As such, the new Reed Copper development proves favourable amongst the communities that are directly impacted by the mine, namely Snow Lake and Flin Flon, a development that the VMS president cites as “an important deal.”

“When Reed Copper was discovered, the last mine operating at Snow Lake was about to go out of production and a large mine in Flin Flon was nearing its end of life,” he recalls. “These two communities have contributed tremendously to the econo-my of Manitoba and been a big part of the province for the last 60 to 80 years now. The exploration and development of new

mines is essential to the future of Northern Manitoba, and we are very proud to have contributed to its future, especially at such a critical time.”

Looking to the future, after full production the next step for VMS Ventures will be looking for additional mineralization to add to the site’s resource base and reinvest into Manitoba, ex-plains Rozendaal.

“Basically, every day that goes by is one less day left to mine, so our next big job is to extend the life of the mine,” he con-cludes. “It’s really vital that companies are comfortable and feel welcome to explore in Manitoba. With as much as a 10-year lead time, for mines from discovery to development and pro-duction, that doesn’t give much time for the much-needed new mines to get going before the older ones are exhausted.” 8

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THE GARNER LAKE PROJECT

The Garner Lake project is located in the historic Rice Lake gold camp 150 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg. The property is 35 kilometres southeast of Bissett, and

is accessed by boat, winter road, and trails. Six claims cover the 1,164 hectare property just three kilometres south of the former Gunner and Solo-Oro Grande mines that produced 104,000 ounces of gold combined.

This underexplored area is host to one of the most geo-logically complex parts of the Rice Lake Belt with transecting north-south shear zones cutting east-west formations of vol-canic, sedimentary, and intrusive rocks. Recent discoveries in-clude a high-grade sample of 153 grams per ton gold (5.4 oz/ton) in veins west of Garner Lake.

Hosted in the centre of the Beresford Lake shear zone, nu-merous gold showings were mapped along a 500 metre miner-alized structure open on strike at both ends. Gold occurs in as-

sociation with sulphides in grey quartz-carbonate veins within an envelope of chlorite, sericite, and ankerite alteration.

Underlying the east end of the property is the layered Gar-ner Lake ultramafic intrusion. The gold-bearing Portage vein is hosted in sedimentary rocks near the faulted south contact of the Garner Lake sill. Grab samples from the Portage vein have yielded up to 11.62 g/t gold and 14.45 g/t silver. Anomalous nickel, copper, and PGE values suggest potential for reef-type mineralization within the Garner intrusion as well.

Further work such as stripping, soil sampling, IP surveys, and drilling are recommended to pursue mineralization along the strike length and width of these significant high grade veins.

A joint venture partner is being sought for the Garner Lake Project contact: Dave Meek: [email protected] or Bill Hood: [email protected]. 8

Looking To PartnerThe Garner Lake project offers potential and requires a joint venture to proceed.

We build futures.

At Northlands College we provide high quality education and training programs and services that meet the development and employment needs of Northerners, enhance the social and economic condition, prepare Northerners to participate in the labour market, and help industry meet its labour force needs.

Cooperation, collaboration, accountability and responsibility guide our day to day decisions about how we offer programs and ways in which we can improve and adapt to meet the needs of our students, our communities and our industry partners.

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Page 87: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

We build futures.

At Northlands College we provide high quality education and training programs and services that meet the development and employment needs of Northerners, enhance the social and economic condition, prepare Northerners to participate in the labour market, and help industry meet its labour force needs.

Cooperation, collaboration, accountability and responsibility guide our day to day decisions about how we offer programs and ways in which we can improve and adapt to meet the needs of our students, our communities and our industry partners.

Visit us today at trainnorth.ca

Page 88: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector88

SKYHARBOUR RESOURCES

Skyharbour Resources is a uranium exploration company actively advancing projects totalling over 709,500 acres in the prolific Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan. The

properties are strategically located near Alpha Minerals, and Fission Uranium’s Patterson Lake South (“PLS”) high-grade uranium discovery which includes drill results of 9.08 per cent U3O8 over 54.5 metre in hole PLS 13-075. This new discov-ery demonstrates the potential for high-grade uranium on the margins of the western side of the basin where significantly less exploration has been carried out compared to the eastern side. Skyharbour’s properties were acquired for their proximity to the PLS discovery and interpreted favourable geology for the occurrence of PLS style uranium mineralization.

In 2013, the company announced the formation of the West-ern Athabasca Syndicate consisting of Skyharbour, Athabasca

Nuclear, Noka Resources, and Lucky Strike Resources. The goal of the strategic partnership is to explore a 709,513 acre uranium property package which is the largest mineral claim position along the geologically prospective margin of the western Atha-basca Basin controlled by a single group. Under the terms of the agreement each of the four companies have an option to earn 25 per cent of five uranium properties in the Western Atha-basca Syndicate Property Package by making cash payments, share payments, and incurring exploration expenditures over the two-year earn-in term of the agreement. The agreement includes $6,000,000 of exploration expenditures on the prop-erties over the next two years of which Skyharbour will fund $1,000,000 with the three partner companies funding the re-maining $5,000,000.

The syndicate is carrying out exploration on its properties

Basin BenefitsSkyharbour Resources advances projects in Saskatchewan.

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Page 89: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector 89

SKYHARBOUR RESOURCES

Skyharbour Resources is a uranium exploration company and a member of the Western Athabasca Syndicate which controls a large, geologically prospective land package consisting of five properties (287,130 hectares) in the Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan. $6 million in combined exploration expenditures over the next two years is planned on these properties, $5 million of which is being funded by three partner companies. Skyharbour’s goal is to maximize shareholder value through new discoveries and developing exploration projects

in geopolitically favourable jurisdictions.

SYMBOL AND SHARE STRUCTURE:Stock Symbol: SYH on the TSX VentureTotal Outstanding: 43.6 million shares

Fully Diluted: 75.8 million shares

Director, Chairman: Jim PettitDirector, President, CEO: Jordan Trimble

Director: Amanda ChowDirector: Donald Huston

Director: Don Myers

Head Technical Advisor: Richard Kusmirski, PGeoCompany Geologist, QP: Bob Marvin, PGeo

Suite 1610, 777 Dunsmuir StreetVancouver, BC, V7Y 1K4, CANADA

Tel: (604) 687-3376, Fax: (604) 687-3119Toll Free: 1-800-567-8181

starting with extensive airborne geophysical surveys (4,840 line kilometres of VTEM and 4,400 line kilometres of radiometrics) and a follow-up field program on the road-accessible Preston Lake Property. The VTEM survey succeeded in mapping many graphitic basement conductors and cross-cutting features and flectures. The radiometric data has identified areas with el-evated uranium counts coincident with EM conductors which may indicate the presence of radioactive boulder trains or in-situ uranium mineralization. The recently completed Phase 2 fieldwork included the collection of 291 water samples in which nine returned radon values in excess of 23 pCi/l with a peak of 98 pCi/l. Radon anomalies coincident with basement conduc-tors and structures are primary drill targets. Anomalous radon in water readings are values above the background of three pCi/l. Radon anomalies were instrumental in identifying drill targets at PLS and helped vector in on most of the high-grade discovery zones. By the end of this summer/fall field program in mid-October, a total of approximately $1.5 million will have been spent in exploration on the property. 8

Robertson Trading Ltd.

Box 360La Ronge, SK S0J 1L0

PH: (306) 425-2080FAX: (306) 425-3222

[email protected]

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ART SILVER, VP / DIRECTOR LiDAR Services International Inc.

400, 3115 - 12 St. N.E., Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2E 7J2Phone: 403-517-3132 | Fax: 403-291-5390Email: [email protected] | Web: www.lidarservices.ca

Celebrating 11 Years of LiDAR Operations in 2013

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Page 90: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector90

MINING INDUSTRY HUMANRESOURCES COUNCIL (MiHR)

Despite the current economic slowdown, Canadian min-ing companies continue to invest in effective and sus-tainable training programs to address the skills shortage.

Retirement eligibility and the lack of new entrants into the min-ing sector are just two of the factors contributing to the nearly 150,000 workers across many mining occupations that will be needed by 2023. With over 40 per cent of the workforce being 50 years or older, the industry will need a matrix of training, at-traction, retention, and knowledge transfer strategies.

To meet the long-term HR needs of the sector, one of the most important strategies will involve the recruitment of a di-verse workforce including immigrants, women, and Aborigi-nal peoples. Recent research indicates that six per cent of the mining workforce self-identify as being Aboriginal. This young and growing population represents a key group for training and employment opportunities in the mining industry, through the creation of community and employer partnerships which are mutually beneficial.

Collaboration from Education to EmploymentAccording to a recent report from the Mining Industry Hu-

man Resources Council (MiHR) entitled “Lessons Learned: A Report on HR Components of Aboriginal Community and Mining Company Partnership Agreements,” one of the most important aspects of any agreement between industry and community is for both parties to set concrete and realistic goals pertaining to the hiring of local talent. Despite recent improve-ments, communities and companies often have trouble meet-ing hiring requirements that are outlined in impact and ben-efit or partnership agreements. This can occur due to a lack of communication or unrealistic expectations on the part of either group involved.

In fall 2012, MiHR held the Aboriginal Mining Education Fo-rum in order to improve the understanding of issues related to Aboriginal education, as they apply to HR management in min-

Mining Essentials

Creating mutually beneficial training partnerships for the community and mining industry.Creating mutually beneficial training partnerships for the community and mining industry.

SOURCE: SOUTHEAST REGIONAL COLLEGE

SOURCE: SOUTHEAST REGIONAL COLLEGE

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 91

MINING INDUSTRY HUMANRESOURCES COUNCIL (MiHR)

ing and mineral exploration, and to the economic development of Aboriginal communities. Delegates from government, edu-cation, industry, and Aboriginal communities had the opportu-nity to network and share their viewpoints in facilitated round-tables. A number of recommendations were created as a result of these discussions, including, but not limited to: the building of trust through cross-cultural understanding, examining and improving basic needs for education and building customized solutions based on each community’s needs.

When focusing on training, forum delegates highlighted the need for community based solutions and reinforced the value of “Mining Essentials: A Work Readiness Training Program for Aboriginal Peoples.” The program was created with the input of companies and Aboriginal communities to help them meet their joint hiring and employment targets through the deliv-ery of training in the community. It provides opportunities for Aboriginal peoples to develop the non-technical skills and the confidence needed to achieve rewarding careers and enables companies to benefit from a local, skilled, and empowered workforce whilst also fostering economic development. Min-ing Essentials is unique in that skills are taught using workplace examples (workplace documents, scenarios, etc...) through traditional and cultural teaching methods (sharing circles, in-volvement of Elders, etc...). The program is divided between classroom curriculum training and enrichment opportunities (on-site industry visit/work experiences, safety certificate train-ing), to deliver a well-rounded approach to learning. Employers recognize that Mining Essentials prepares graduates for imme-diate entry into the mining workforce for certain positions, and instills a drive for a long-term career in the mining industry.

Todd Standing, manager of Aboriginal Engagement with Mosaic, has spoken to the effectiveness of Mining Essentials, in light of the recent delivery in Whitewood, Saskatchewan. He explains that, “Graduates finishing the program begin to con-sider the diverse career opportunities mining has to offer them, as opposed to simply getting them a job. They are able to see the

possibilities they just didn’t know of before and it is great to see their confidence grow as they learn.” In the case of this delivery, learners were able to visit a Potash mine in Esterhazy, Saskatch-ewan, thanks to the partnership with Mosaic. Mine site enrich-ment activities enabled the learners to not only grasp the im-portance of safety and diligence, but to really understand what it is like to work on-site. Participants in this particular delivery were able to discover how potash is mined and processed, as well as the various ways in which Canadians use it in everyday products. More importantly, they discovered the potential role they could play within the mining industry.

Implemented across CanadaEntering its third year of delivery, Mining Essentials has been

implemented across Canada in British Columbia, Ontario, the Northwest Territories, and Saskatchewan. Through support from Employment and Social Development Canada, the pro-gram has also been customized for Métis and Inuit communi-ties, in partnership with the Métis National Council and the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. E-Learning components are also cur-rently under development to offer a blended learning approach to delivery.

Since program inception, approximately 70 per cent of Min-ing Essentials graduates have secured employment or furthered their mining education within the first six months of gradua-tion. While getting employed is one ideal scenario for Mining Essentials learners, many of them also choose to continue their education or training after they complete the program.

MiHR will continue to expand Mining Essentials across Canada, with future program deliveries under development through emerging partnerships in Manitoba, Quebec, and Newfoundland.

For more information on Mining Essentials, or how to be-come a training partner, please visit www.aboriginalming.ca or contact Melanie Sturk, Director of Attraction, Retention and Transition at [email protected]. 8

SOURCE: SOUTHEAST REGIONAL COLLEGE

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MILLER THOMSON LLP

Corporate social responsibility (or CSR) has been loosely defined as voluntary activities undertaken

by an organisation to operate in an eco-nomically, socially, and environmentally friendly manner. While this definition is accurate, it does not fully take into account shifts regarding the degree to which CSR in mining is becoming more of a requirement than a voluntary action.

Formerly, CSR was viewed as an obli-gation to be addressed outside of binding contracts – it was voluntary, as the ob-ligations did not form part of the terms of a binding agreement with stakehold-ers. However, due to changes how CSR is viewed by miners and other stake-holders, legally binding contracts are being negotiated, drafted, and executed primarily to address CSR obligations or with CSR provisions contained within them. CSR is now an important aspect of most stages of development of a mining project.

This shift in miners’ understanding of the benefits and willingness to engage in CSR is affecting stakeholders such as First Nations and Metis in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. In Manitoba, a Memo-randum of Understanding (MOU) is the preferred form of agreement and three MOUs have been executed with five different First Nations on three mining projects in the province. In Saskatch-ewan, there is much variation in the approximately 30 different agreements which have been executed with at least 20 different First Nations and Metis in-cluding: Surface Lease Agreements, Ex-ploration Agreements, Letters of Intent,

Cooperation Agreements, MOUs, Im-pact and Benefits Agreement, Participa-tion Agreements and Socio-Economic Agreements. Due to signs of increasing exploration activity in Manitoba, it is expected that miners, government, and First Nations in Manitoba will be looking at Saskatchewan to establish best prac-tices and move forward with CSR initia-tives and agreements.

Most, if not all, miners in Saskatch-ewan and Manitoba have as part of their formal aboriginal strategy the goal of engaging more First Nations and Metis persons in their mining operations. A key component of these strategies has been education funding grants to First Nation and Metis students, as well as infrastructure upgrades to benefit First Nations and Metis. Saskatoon-based Cameco has set a very high bar for CSR – the goal being to be recognized glob-ally as a leader in CSR by proactively ad-dressing the social, environmental, and financial aspects of their business with their key stakeholders. Cameco is largely already recognized as a global leader in First Nations and Metis engagement in mining but PotashCorp, Areva, BHP Bil-liton, Mosaic, all active in Saskatchewan, have comprehensive aboriginal strategies in place to undertake CSR, with the aim of executing some type of binding agree-ment.

Lawyers can assist in bringing clar-ity to the issues that arise in achieving free, prior and informed consent of local residents for mining projects. In this re-gard, both in-house counsel and external counsel are important in implement-

ing CSR strategies to help limit legal li-ability and manage risk at all phases of a mining project’s development. A host of complex issues arise in this process and expert counsel can be beneficial in ad-vancing such discussions. For example, there has been an increase in interna-tional treaties and agreements, or parts thereof, being incorporated into binding contracts. This includes not only envi-ronmental treaties related to resource extraction processes, but also interna-tional human rights treaties which touch on human security, economic, social, and environmental aspects of human rights. Provisions acknowledging these rights have been included in mining con-tracts executed in foreign jurisdictions which may not protect human rights with robust domestic laws such as those we enjoy in Canada. Given the current trends in CSR, it seems likely that such rights-based contractual language will be included in different types of contracts negotiated and executed in the mining sector in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

HudBay, a stalwart of mining in Mani-toba for nearly 85 years, has recently at-tracted attention regarding their former operations in Guatemala. HudBay ac-quired the Fenix property in 2008 from Compania Guatemalteca de Niquel (CGN) and was fully divested in 2011. Recently, HudBay was named in lawsuits in Ontario which make serious allega-tions of wrongdoing by CGN security personnel in relation to illegal land oc-cupations at the Fenix property. In 2009, a binding agreement was negotiated and executed to facilitate the return of the il-

Corporate Social ResponsibilityAre miners fulfilling their obligations in Saskatchewan and Manitoba?

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 93

MILLER THOMSON LLP

legal occupants to their homes and con-struction of schools, water systems, and improved road access. In addition, Hud-bay has adopted the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, as well as the United Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials. For oth-er Canadian miners active abroad, this should serve as a reminder to ensure that CSR is an important component of any due diligence process being undertaken as part of a proposed transaction.

Vale, operating in Manitoba and Sas-katchewan, is a member of ICMM’s Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). In Sas-katchewan, Vale is proactively addressing First Nation concerns at an early stage of development of their Kronau potash project. Like other current and prospec-tive potash miners in Saskatchewan, Vale has recognized a long tradition of volun-teerism and contribution back into local communities in Saskatchewan. Vale has recently rolled out the $50,000 Educa-tion Challenge in Saskatchewan to posi-tively benefit First Nations communities. Vale’s nickel operations in Thompson, Manitoba have faced challenges on the CSR front, due in large part to the fact the operations will be placed on care and maintenance and the smelter and refin-ery closed in the short term.

Operations nearing their end of life, pose particular challenges from a CSR perspective. What obligations, if any, do miners have to continue to support com-munities after operations cease? Can an agreement with the local community be negotiated in the twilight days of opera-tion to ensure survival of a community established largely as a result of a mine?

Other examples of Canadian miners embracing CSR include Barrick Gold. Notwithstanding recent changes, Bar-rick Gold has formed a Corporate Social Responsibility Advisory Board in 2012 to act as an external sounding board on a range of corporate responsibility issues, including community relations, sustain-able development, water, energy, climate change, security, and human rights. One of these board members is the former

Canadian Ambassador to the United Na-tions and served as the Foreign Policy Advisor to three Canadian Prime Minis-ters. The Advisory Board’s Special Con-sultant is a leading expert on internation-al law, and for six years served as the U.N. Secretary General’s Special Representa-tive for Business and Human Rights. This miner understands the importance of CSR and has invested correspondingly.

However, not every miner needs to make such an extensive investment to

obtain good advice on CSR-related is-sues. Many Canadian law firms, in-cluding Miller Thomson LLP, the only national law firm in Saskatchewan, can provide effective CSR counsel to min-ing companies, First Nations, and other stakeholders in order to maximize their investment. Considering the legal and business risks associated with ignoring CSR, appointing good external counsel to scrutinize the project makes excellent business sense. 8

TruckingLumber Yard Fuel SalesCommercial Repair and WeldingScheduled LTL Freight Service Equipment and Vehicle RentalsFreight and StorageAccommodations and Meals

Points North Landing Located in the Heart of the Athabasca Basin

Proud to serve the North for over 28 years

pointsnorthgroup.caP 306-633-2137 E [email protected]

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector94

GOLDER ASSOCIATES

Low FlowMitigating the risk of underground mine and shaft inflows.

Tunnels and water just don’t mix. The underground mines and abun-dant surface and ground water in

Saskatchewan can lead to water control issues in shaft sinking and underground development. Many uranium mines have experienced challenges with water in-flows that have significantly delayed or halted production. When it comes to shaft sinking or underground mine de-velopment, it is important for mining companies to understand the geology and hydrogeology of the area and have a strategy in place for mitigating the inflow risks that accompany development.

Inflow RisksThe Athabasca basin can be hydrogeo-

logically characterized in terms of four major hydrostratigraphic units: the post-glacial overburen, saturated sandstone, alteration in vicinity of the orebody (un-conformity), and basement rock (Figure 1). Some of the world’s largest high grade uranium resources are unconformity deposits in Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Basin (Figure 2). The unconformity is the point of contact where sandstone and basement rock meet, which is at depths anywhere from 100-1,000 metres deep. Normally hydraulic conductiv-ity decreases with depth, but saturated sandstone has the unusual relationship of increasing hydraulic conductivity with depth, pore pressure can reach anywhere between 4.5-6.0 MPa depending on the depth of sandstone. The hydraulic con-ductivity in the vicinity of the orebody is largely controlled by the presence of open fractures. With increased hydrau-lic conductivity and fractures around unconformity deposits, companies are challenged to control groundwater flow from the saturated sandstone and man-age issues of weak rock mass that require proper ground support.

Mine Shaft

Underground Mine Tunnels

Water Table

Existing Lake

Unconformity

Basement Rock

Water SaturatedSandstone

Uranium Deposit

Shaft Headframe

Water pore pressure ranges between 4.5-6 MPa depending on the depth of sandstone

Post-Glacial Overburden

Exploratory Boreholes

Schematic Hydrogeological Cross Section of Athabasca BasinFigure 1

Figure 2

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GOLDER ASSOCIATES

Water can enter underground mine tunnels through two routes – bore-holes that are either cased or uncased, or through geological structures such as fractures. Prior to underground devel-opment in new areas, loss of pressure control during or after drilling can result in exploratory geotechnical investiga-tion holes channelling water into the existing developed mining areas. Simi-larly, if bore holes drilled from the sur-face are not properly grouted they can act as a water conduit if intersected in underground development. The second route of inflow results from a mine tap-ping into existing geological structures such as saturated sandstone, which are hydraulically connected to large water sources. Compared to boreholes, water can persist at much higher rates in these geological structures and can cause greater disruption to mining activities.

When sinking shafts in the Athabasca Basin, extensive cementitious grouting ahead of the excavation has been used to minimize the amount of water that can be encountered. This approach has been successful for many shafts sunk to date. However, there are cases where cementitious grouting has not been ef-fective in reducing hydraulic conduc-tivity and associated inflows due to the presence of unconsolidated material in the water bearing sandstone. In such instances ground freezing is a preferred method to control inflows.

Inflow MitigationThe best method to reduce the risk of

water inflow is through hydrogeological studies. These studies can help identify hazardous areas on mine sites and aid in calculating the volume of potential in-flows. Estimation of uncontrolled inflow rates for shaft sinking or underground development allows mining companies to develop appropriate pumping capac-ity and excess water storage. During un-derground mine development, ground freezing, grout covers or controlled drainage are the best tools to mitigate in-flows in areas of high risk. For pre-shaft

sinking geoscientific investigations, hy-drogeological testing is essential. This testing needs to be augmented with down-hole geophysical testing, map-ping of orientation of major structures, and joints using acoustic and optical televiewing. A complete and thorough geoscientific investigation program is essential to provide assurance for suc-cessful shaft sinking projects.

Overall, inflow mitigation can be ac-complished through proper a geoscien-

tific program prior to any development work. Golder Associates has been work-ing with mining operations in Saskatch-ewan for over 30 years and has teams of experienced hydrogeologists, geophysi-cists, and geotechnical engineers able to help mining companies identify poten-tial risks and develop mitigation strate-gies. For further information on Gold-er’s services to mitigate inflow, please contact Dr. Rashid Bashir at [email protected]. 8

WATER AND MINE WASTE CHALLENGES?JUST ASK GOLDER.

Canada + 800 [email protected]

Water and mine waste challenges can arise at any point during a mine’s lifecycle. Trust Golder to develop integrated engineering and environmental management plans to mitigate water and mine waste challenges to help you achieve pragmatic solutions, accountability and effective regulatory risk management.

Through reliable site characterization and environmental effects monitoring, Golder can provide a solid foundation of credible information that decision makers and stakeholders can rely on. So when it comes to thinking about your mine’s future and ultimate legacy, just ask Golder. Engineering Earth’s Development, Preserving Earth’s Integrity.

Page 96: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector96

Heavy equipment section

With decades of experience and a diverse product line the MineMaster® mine utility vehicle has developed a strong presence throughout the mining industry.

Products are a modular design allowing our customers to “build” their own machine to fit their unique situation, while the design team works together with the customer to custom-ize the end product to suit the task at hand.

Unique designs are often requested for a specialized task and Tracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc. enjoy the opportu-nity to be creative in designing equipment for the “perfect fit.” The company’s MineMaster® design team will take into consid-eration the specific needs of the project and work onsite with the customer to get a complete understanding of what exactly will be required to complete the task. Communication between both the company’s design team and the customer is crucial as the final design may be simple or very complex. The team is constantly on the lookout during the design phase to seek out problems and solve them before they become an issue. Customers count on the MineMaster® design team as problem-solvers, and in the end working together they are able to work out a solution to the problem.

Collaborating in the design with customers has resulted in the newest members in their MineMaster® line being intro-duced this year - the MineMaster® Cable Pusher, the MineMas-ter® Sweeper, and the MineMaster® Tire Manipulator.

The MineMaster® Torquematic GEN III Cable Pusher was custom designed to install cables in underground mines, and is

hydraulically controlled offering greater accessibility into con-fined areas. The front loader offers a reach height of over 12-feet, and can be raised or lowered as required from the basket.

The Cable Pusher is designed to be a one-person operation. Operators are able to control all functions from the basket with ease saving time and man hours. The Rear Forklift Mast is used to carry the Cable Reel Assembly as a full spool of cable will have the weight of 2,000 pounds. This unit is currently in op-eration underground in Timmins, Ontario.

The MineMaster® Torquematic GEN III Sweeper was custom designed for underground specific tasks in mine operations. The primary function is to control dust and collect high grade ore fines. This unit features a modular design with a 35-inch diameter poly/steel brush and the sweeping path is a full 72 inches. The sweeper is hydraulically controlled, angles up to 30 degrees right or left and can sweep within inches of walls and objects. The quick attach feature allows the broom to be quickly switched out for the cable reel attachment, pallet forks, bucket, or manbasket.

The cable reel attachment is of heavy duty steel construction, hydraulically controlled with a maximum capacity of 2,083 pounds. The rear backhoe attachment is the staple of all mines to promote safe and effective lifter cleaning and effortless ditch and sump hole maintenance. The GEN III frame is built of heavy duty, solid steel construction with an industry leading loader capacity of 4,400 pounds.

The MineMaster® R520S F-TM Tire Manipulator was de-

Customer Driven InnovationTracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc.offers MineMaster® quality and specialization.

Page 97: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector 97

Heavy equipment section

Specializing in New and Used Machine Tool Sales, and in business since 1960, we are one of the largest machine tool dealers in Canada. Modern Tool Ltd. is your best source for metal processing equipment.

www.moderntool.com

Ph: 1-800-456-0964 1-800-499-5199 1-877-898-8665 1-306-203-2910 1-902-220-5658

HYD-MECH S-20III Bandsaw

DURMA PLASMA & LASER

We stock hundreds of machines, including: CNC Machining and Turning centers, Hydraulic Shears and Brakes, Drill presses, Hydraulic Ironworkers, Bandsaws, Manual Lathes and Milling Machines, Radial Arm Drills, Plate Rolls, Hydraulic Presses, Benders, Surface Grinders, Sheet Metal Equipment, Contact Us: MODERN TOOL LTD. 11488 - 70th Street S.E. Calgary, AB, T2C-4Y34820 - Eleniak Road, Edmonton, AB, T6B-2S1103 Northport Road, Unit #1, Port Perry, ON, L9L-1B2Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Halifax, Nova Scotia

Calgary, AB Edmonton, AB Port Perry, ON Saskatoon, SK Halifax, NS

DURMA PRESSBRAKES& SHEARS

MODERN TOOL LTD.

Prospectors fall 2013.indd 1 10/9/2013 9:21:53 AM

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector98

signed to take the struggle out of changing industrial tires. Designed with safety in mind, the tire manipulator can quick-ly, efficiently, and safely change tires on industrial vehicles. The articulated design of the R520S allows the operator to easily guide the forks of the Tire Manipulator into position and then firmly grip the tire for installation or removal. The replacement tire can be picked up from the ground, racking, or a stack of tires and be quickly manipulated from a horizon-tal position into a vertical position to mount on the vehicle.

The hydraulic fork design allows the operator to rotate the tire 95 degrees clockwise or counter clockwise to line up the bolts with the rim and the valve stem using the infrared cam-era and waterproof monitors to allow the operator to guide the tire into place precisely and easily.

The Tire Manipulator can handle tires up to 3,000 pounds and pick up tires 32 to 85-inches in diameter, 30-inches wide, and stack tires up to 90-inches high. The strength and design of the Tire Manipulator allows tires to be transported in a horizontal position offering the operator a clear line of sight while operating the vehicle. Complete with a hydraulic driven impact wrench and you have a complete one-man tire han-dling system. This unit is currently working underground in Sudbury, Ontario.

Tracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc. excellence in quality is achieved through the commitment of highly-skilled staff and the selection and continual updating of equipment, components materials, processes, and manufacturing meth-ods.

MineMaster® is proudly marking 34 years of success in the mining industry providing equipment around the world, of-fering solutions with its every growing fleet of mine utility vehicles. Tracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc. have seen Cats, Mules, Bulls, Gators, and Cobras and nothing compares to, or outlasts, a MineMaster®. 8

Heavy equipment section

Page 99: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

DEEPLY INVESTED IN MINING.

Above ground or below, Brandt designs, manufactures, sells, and services quality mining equipment nationwide.Brandt’s mission is to deliver value to our customers through our core values of quality, innovation, commitment, and customer focus. We’re committed to meeting the needs of our mining customers by helping you increase uptime and lowering your operating costs. From proven performers like John Deere’s loaders, dozers, and excavators to Brandt manufactured bolters, lube trucks, graders, and transporters Brandt delivers the products you want and the service you need. Now with 27 branches nationwide, we’re always nearby to support you, when and where you needs us. That’s Powerful Value. Delivered.

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brandt.ca

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Page 100: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2 3 41 PKS MOBILE COLUMNS

MINING LIFTS

PKS SCISSORPLATFORM LIFTS

PKS IN-GROUNDPISTON LIFTS

PKS 4 POSTPLATFORM LIFTS

If versatility AND portability is what you need, then PKS Mobile columns lifts are the answer.

Versatile lifting for the entire fleet with uniquemounting options.

When the shop floor must be free and clear ofobstruction, there is no better choice than a PKSIn-Ground Piston Lift.

A cost effective solution for routine maintenanceon your entire fleet.

• With smooth, powerful hydraulic lifting, PKSmobile columns are available in per columnlifting capacities of 12,000 to 40,000lbs., and tirediameters up to 72 inches.

• High capacities are possible through use of highstrength 7/8” fork lift mast main lifting columnsand steel roller bearing on the carriage.

• PLC controlled carriage location on each columnensures synchronized lifting and dual valveleveling ensures smooth operation.

• Unique to the PKS mobile column is the abilityrest the load on the mechanical locks while notin use. The load is supported mechanically andnot exclusively on the hydraulic system. Locksincrements are every 3 inches.Additionally, each hydraulic cylinder incorporates a hydraulic velocity fuse.

• All columns for mining are galvanized and 24Vcontrols are standard. Explosion proof controls are optional.

• No installation, just plug-in and start working.

• The PKS Scissor platform lifts straight up, with nohorizontal movement like other hinged lifts. Compactand no wider that the vehicle being lifted, the PKSScissor Lift maximizes bay space.

• Access to the vehicle’s underbody is greatlyenhanced with no cross beams or torsion barsconnecting the platforms.

• With a tall 78” rise, the PKS Scissor Platform liftcan be mounted in any one of three configurations:

• directly bolted to the floor in a “surface”configuration with ramps to access the lift

• installed in a “recessed” pocket with thecenter between the platforms open to maximize working height

• “flush” to the floor with the center solid.

• The lift platforms are electronically equalizedside-to-side for even amd smooth lifting. As with allPKS products, each scissor mechanism incorporatesindependent mechanical locks and hydraulic velocity fuses on the cylinders.

• Custom platform lengths are available, withcapacities to 160,000 lbs.

• With no obstructions around the vehicle and the tiresor tracks free for removal as soon as the vehicle raisesoff the floor, the PKS In-Ground is the choice for brakeand tire work or track removal. When the lift is not inuse, the lift stows below the work shopfloor.

• Available with multiple configurations of movable orfixed pistons with capacities to 75,000 lbs per piston.

• Every PKS piston has standard chrome plated pistonsand fiberglass coated cylinder casings for maximum life.

• Example of use in mining: lifting bulldozers forservicing tracks, track frames, idlers, and welding of ice lugs.

• PKS is the only company that can offer both traditionallow pressure pistons, as well as high pressure, lowvolume pistons.

• With minimal set-up time, the PKS 4-post can lift up to160,000 lbs in a multiple column configuration,handling the heaviest vehicles with ease.

• Each column features integrated locking latch with alock position every 3 inches. Additionally, each vertically lifting hydraulic cylinder has an integrated velocity fuse.

• Another advantage of the PKS 4-Post is customplatform lengths, allowing you to get exactly the liftto fit your shop.

• Every 4-post lift built for mining is galvanized foryears of durable use.

• As an option, the lift can be built with an open frontthat eliminates the cross beam and facilitates personnel ingress and egress.

PKS Equipment & Engineering Inc. 1240 Osprey DriveAncaster, Ontario L9G 4V5Canada

Tel: 905-648-7797 | Fax: 905-648-7186Toll: 1-888-465-0755www.pkslifts.com

Engineered Lift Solutions, LLC160 Prospect Street, P.O. Box 193Balston Spa, NY 12020-0193

Tel: 518-463-3243 Fax: 518-463-3241www.liftechequip.com

Page 101: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2 3 41 PKS MOBILE COLUMNS

MINING LIFTS

PKS SCISSORPLATFORM LIFTS

PKS IN-GROUNDPISTON LIFTS

PKS 4 POSTPLATFORM LIFTS

If versatility AND portability is what you need, then PKS Mobile columns lifts are the answer.

Versatile lifting for the entire fleet with uniquemounting options.

When the shop floor must be free and clear ofobstruction, there is no better choice than a PKSIn-Ground Piston Lift.

A cost effective solution for routine maintenanceon your entire fleet.

• With smooth, powerful hydraulic lifting, PKSmobile columns are available in per columnlifting capacities of 12,000 to 40,000lbs., and tirediameters up to 72 inches.

• High capacities are possible through use of highstrength 7/8” fork lift mast main lifting columnsand steel roller bearing on the carriage.

• PLC controlled carriage location on each columnensures synchronized lifting and dual valveleveling ensures smooth operation.

• Unique to the PKS mobile column is the abilityrest the load on the mechanical locks while notin use. The load is supported mechanically andnot exclusively on the hydraulic system. Locksincrements are every 3 inches.Additionally, each hydraulic cylinder incorporates a hydraulic velocity fuse.

• All columns for mining are galvanized and 24Vcontrols are standard. Explosion proof controls are optional.

• No installation, just plug-in and start working.

• The PKS Scissor platform lifts straight up, with nohorizontal movement like other hinged lifts. Compactand no wider that the vehicle being lifted, the PKSScissor Lift maximizes bay space.

• Access to the vehicle’s underbody is greatlyenhanced with no cross beams or torsion barsconnecting the platforms.

• With a tall 78” rise, the PKS Scissor Platform liftcan be mounted in any one of three configurations:

• directly bolted to the floor in a “surface”configuration with ramps to access the lift

• installed in a “recessed” pocket with thecenter between the platforms open to maximize working height

• “flush” to the floor with the center solid.

• The lift platforms are electronically equalizedside-to-side for even amd smooth lifting. As with allPKS products, each scissor mechanism incorporatesindependent mechanical locks and hydraulic velocity fuses on the cylinders.

• Custom platform lengths are available, withcapacities to 160,000 lbs.

• With no obstructions around the vehicle and the tiresor tracks free for removal as soon as the vehicle raisesoff the floor, the PKS In-Ground is the choice for brakeand tire work or track removal. When the lift is not inuse, the lift stows below the work shopfloor.

• Available with multiple configurations of movable orfixed pistons with capacities to 75,000 lbs per piston.

• Every PKS piston has standard chrome plated pistonsand fiberglass coated cylinder casings for maximum life.

• Example of use in mining: lifting bulldozers forservicing tracks, track frames, idlers, and welding of ice lugs.

• PKS is the only company that can offer both traditionallow pressure pistons, as well as high pressure, lowvolume pistons.

• With minimal set-up time, the PKS 4-post can lift up to160,000 lbs in a multiple column configuration,handling the heaviest vehicles with ease.

• Each column features integrated locking latch with alock position every 3 inches. Additionally, each vertically lifting hydraulic cylinder has an integrated velocity fuse.

• Another advantage of the PKS 4-Post is customplatform lengths, allowing you to get exactly the liftto fit your shop.

• Every 4-post lift built for mining is galvanized foryears of durable use.

• As an option, the lift can be built with an open frontthat eliminates the cross beam and facilitates personnel ingress and egress.

PKS Equipment & Engineering Inc. 1240 Osprey DriveAncaster, Ontario L9G 4V5Canada

Tel: 905-648-7797 | Fax: 905-648-7186Toll: 1-888-465-0755www.pkslifts.com

Engineered Lift Solutions, LLC160 Prospect Street, P.O. Box 193Balston Spa, NY 12020-0193

Tel: 518-463-3243 Fax: 518-463-3241www.liftechequip.com

Page 102: Northern Prospector 2013-2014

2013-2014 Northern Prospector102

Heavy equipment section

Many years of field experience and continuous product improvement have made Foremost Exploration Series drills the standard for off-

road exploration.

Mobile, Versatile, and EconomicalBuilt on a proven Foremost articulated carrier, the

Prospector W750 is highly mobile in off-road appli-cations. In addition, it is capable of on-road speeds up to 22 mph (35 kilometres/h). On road or off, the result is quick mobilization between holes or mine sites. Reduced travel time means increased drilling productivity.

The Prospector W750 is a versatile machine: The low pressure terra-tires or sure grip earth mover tires allow it to travel to remote sites with minimal envi-ronmental impact. The unique mast pivots laterally through 180 degrees for increased productivity when drilling in the pit or against a wall.

Explorer 1500The Explorer 1500 is the ideal machine for the early

stages of exploration, where roads are not built and even small environmental damage must be restored.

The rubber tires also enable the Explorer 1500 to travel at reasonable speeds between different mine sites or holes. The integral Foremost designed carrier features a hydraulic levelling deck for safe operation on sloped terrain. The front dozer blade aids in quick site preparation and in stabilizing the rig during drill-ing operations make the Explorer 1500 a leader in tracked off-road exploration drilling

Discoverer MPD 1500The Discoverer MPD 1500 offers the same drill

components and specifications as the Explorer 1500 with the added benefit of a tracked undercarriage. The MPD 1500’s tracked configuration provides the ultimate in climbing ability on steep grades and side slopes.

Like its terra-tired sibling, the MPD 1500 comes equipped with a hydraulic levelling deck and front doz-er blade. The optional sampling cyclone enables safe monitoring of cuttings and collection of samples. 8

Hitting the Off-RoadSetting the standard for off-road exploration drilling.

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Box 27033, 278 Sherwood Road, North Industrial Park, Regina, Saskatchewan S4R 8R8Office 306-522-2211 • Direct 306-585-8230 • Fax 306-522-9860

Transport of Overdimension Loads Throughout North America

www.richardstransport.com

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The Western Star 6900XD is designed to minimize cost-per-ton hauled as compared to traditional articulated dump trucks (ADT) and rigid frame off-road dumps. These sav-

ings are achieved by lower acquisition and maintenance costs with optimal hauling performance and productivity. The effi-cient and purpose-built design of the 6900XD hauler allows for speed and stability while providing outstanding fuel efficiency. The end result is increased productivity per cycle and maxi-mum profit per ton hauled.

Built for the Long Haul

The longer the haul the better the Western Star 6900XD per-forms when compared to traditional off road haulers. On main-tained terrains and hauls that exceed eight kilometres (1/2 mile) the Western Star 6900XD is up to 35 per cent more fuel efficient than competitive ADT and rigid dumps in the same payload

class. On longer hauls in excess of 20 kilometres (12 miles) the fuel efficient 6900XD has posted average fuel consumption of 7.13 gallons/hour (27 liters/hour).

Key Design FeaturesDrivetrain Simplicity: The heavy-duty Allison 4500RDS au-

tomatic transmission, in combination with robust Axletech planetary gear drive axles, provides for efficient power shifting and optimal axle ratios between 10 and 12:1. This results in less reduction gearing, power loss and heat increase in the transmis-sion compared to inefficient and high maintenance drop boxes and transfer cases typically used in ADT’s and rigid haulers.

High Pressure Tires: (10) 14R25 tires with earthmoving tread provide maximum stability allowing the 6900XD to comfort-ably travel at a top speed of 43 mph or (70kph). The smaller diameter tires with a reduced rolling resistance provide for su-perior fuel efficiency and cycle speed when compared to larger diameter low pressure flotation tires. All for about 40 per cent of the replacement cost.

Braking System: The 6900XD employs a durable and low cost dry drum brake design as compared to wet disc brakes that con-sume higher amounts fuel due to the inherent drag from rotat-ing discs. The 6900XD is equipped with a standard Jacobs com-pression brake. An optional hydraulic transmission retarder provides 600bhp (447 kw).

Heavy-Duty Dump Box: The dump box is constructed of HARDOX 400 steel and is designed to handle the most extreme materials. The low profile sides are designed for easy and ef-ficient loading with a scowled end to secure large boulders and reduce hydraulic cylinder stress upon boulder impact. The auto lift tailgate maximizes material loading while the full cab guard protects the operators cab from falling debris.

Superior Operator Comfort: The 6900XD truck is built for work, but the operators cab is built for comfort. From the air-ride cab, a premium insulation package, adjustable air-ride seat with active air lumbar, an expansive dash with highly visible LED lighting, tilt and telescoping steering wheel, the 6900XD can’t shorten the hours on the job, but it can make the time spent more comfortable and ultimately more productive.

Winacott Equipment Group is the Saskatchewan dealer for Western Star Trucks, Hyundai Construction Equipment, and

The Right DealWinacott Equipment Group provides industry leading equipment.

Western Star 6900XD 40-Ton Off Road Hauler

Load Capacity: 40 US-TonsHeaped Capacity: 30 Cubic Yards SAE 2:1Gross Power: 500hp

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www.winacott.caWe are located at 3002 Faithfull Ave in Saskatoon, 1522 Ross Ave East in Regina,

Hwy 18 East in Bienfait.

Winacott Equipment Group is the Saskatchewan dealer for Western Star Trucks, Hyundai Construction Equipment and Cancade trailers.

We are also the Parts and Service dealer for Sterling Trucks. Winacott Equipment group has 3 locations. Saskatoon, Regina and Bienfait.

We have been in business since 1974.

Winacott Equipment group is factory certified for Detroit Diesel, Mercedes- Benz, Cummins and Caterpillar Diesel Engines.

Winacott is also certified for Eaton Fuller transmission, Meritor transmission and axles, Dana axles, Sisu and ZF planetary axles. Winacott is also a fully equipped Spring and suspension repair shop.

Winacott has the equipment to repair worn s-cam housing on trailer axles, at your shop or ours, at a fraction of the cost of replacing the entire axle assembly.

MINING4800

SF SB4900

SF SBXD

6900XD

4700SF SB

Cancade trailers, as well as being the parts and service deal-

er for Sterling Trucks.

Since being founded in 1974, the company had expanded

to three locations in Saskatchewan - Saskatoon, Regina, and

Bienfait. Along with their Western Star Trucks dealings, the

Winacott Equipment group is factory certified for Detroit

Diesel, Mercedes- Benz, Cummins, and Caterpillar Diesel

Engines; certified for Eaton Fuller transmission, Meritor

transmission and axles, Dana axles, Sisu and ZF planetary

axles; is a fully equipped spring and suspension repair shop;

and has the equipment to repair worn s-cam housing on

trailer axles, at your shop or theirs, at a fraction of the cost

of replacing the entire axle assembly. 8

On longer hauls in excess of 20 kilometres (12 miles) the fuel efficient 6900XD has posted average fuel consumption of 27 litres/hour (7.13 gallons/hour).

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We provide specialized mining and construction sales and

rentals the moment you need them—with the quality and certification your

company requires.

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Heavy equipment section

tel 604.560.5080fax 604.560.5090

www.safetywhips.caSW SafetyWhips Canada

2677 – 192 St. #107Surrey, BC V3S 3X1

Safety EquipmentSafetyWhips.ca

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Sample of product lines: Elmac Parts • Deutz Engines, Parts and Services • MICO Products • New Holland Differentials & Parts

John Deere(Funk) Differentials, Transmissions, Parts & Service • Clark Transmission, Differentials, Parts & Service • Cummins Engines • Donaldson Air Cleaners, and Hydraulics • DCL Mine X Purifiers

Hydraulic Cylinders • Custom Fabrication

Young’s manufactures all types of underground haulage trucks, service and maintenance trucks and personnel carriers. We take great pride in our reputation of Service and our

ability to custom fabricate consumers needs.

We focus primarly on hard rock mining, and have sold equipment all over theworld. Young’s also sales parts, and does repairs on other types of equipment.

MINE HOISTS INTERNATIONAL LTD.offers a single-source supply of used hoisting

plant equipment to the Canadian andInternational mining industries.

We Own What We Offer

Phone: (705) 495-8587 Fax: (705) 497-1016 • E-Mail: [email protected]

P.O. Box 392, North Bay, Ontario, Canada P1B 8H5

www.minehoist.com

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 109www.vermeercanada.com

VERMEER and VERMEER LOGO are trademarks of Vermeer Manufacturing Company in the U.S. and/or other countries. © 2011 Vermeer Corporation and Vermeer Canada, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

BRAMPTON ATLANTIC EDMONTON SASKATOON WINNIPEG CALGARY LAVAL (800) 668-9065 (902) 222-9679 (800) 809-5066 (306) 382-3249 (866) 548-1866 (866) 809-6653 (800) 990-7919

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Heavy equipment section

BPT Components & Parts Inc. are leaders in the Clark Powertrain market featuring inventory of over

$5 million in Clark Dana Powertrain components and replacement parts for the mining, logging, and construction industries. With warehouses in Toronto and Sudbury, Ontario, as well as Buffalo, New York, U.S., they reduce equipment downtime saving customers valuable money and adding profits to the bottom line.

With our state-of-the-art dyno-test machine to insure that our products meet or exceed OEM standards.

BPT also represents many OEM man-ufactures of equipment and products such as Carraro, Stampler Corp., A.L. Lee, Mine Radio Systems Inc., Trojan Tire Inc., Catalytic Exhaust Products Ltd. and Paurat GmbH. BPT is now Canada’s official Carraro Spare Parts Distributor.

As well as rebuilding Clark-Dana Hurth components, BPT now is rebuild-

ing all major brands of off-road transmis-sions, converters, differentials and axles for Caterpillar, Case, Carraro, Ford, JCB, John Deere, Allision, Funk, Twin Disc, and Perkins.

BPT’s staff has worked with dealers and companies to solve many, or all of client’s equipment problems. They can keep equipment up and running with the highest quality parts and components at exceptional savings for customer. 8

Building and RebuildingBPT Components & Parts Inc. offer inventoryand equipment problem solving.

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Heavy equipment section

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Now You’re Torquing!®

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BRITESPAN BUILDING SYSTEMS

Your mine is expanding and you require numerous buildings for your operations. A fabric

covered building is the ideal building choice, offering unlimited uses and sub-stantial benefits for your mining opera-tions. Here are the top five reasons why fabric buildings are the “brite” building choice.

1. Natural light – the natural source of light that you receive from a fabric building drastically reduces the need for electrical lighting. Therefore, you save money on installing costly light-ing systems and you will not have to deal with high electrical bills. The in-side of the building is bright even on a cloudy day, making it a very enjoyable environment to work in.

2. Clear span space – the truss design on the fabric covered building pro-vides remarkable storage/work space. There are no centre posts to contend

within the building; therefore you are not paying for an abundance of build-ing materials. On certain building se-ries, there is enough room to unload or work on trucks right inside the building.

Top Five

By Kelly Thomson

Why fabric covered buildings are the “Brite” building choice for your mining operations.

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BRITESPAN BUILDING SYSTEMS3. Versatility – A fabric building can be used for anything. You

can easily extend your building economically if needed in the future or if you don’t need it anymore you have the option take it down and move it to the next job site. You can easily transform your building from one building use to another.

4. Installation and Maintenance – fabric buildings can be in-stalled in as little as two days, so you are saving money on la-bour rates and your operation can be up and running quickly. They are also very low maintenance, no need to re-shingle or paint the roof after a few years.

5. Designed for your location – buildings can easily be deliv-ered to remote locations and are designed for your specific

building location. There are a variety of foundation options to choose from such as blocks, shipping containers, and pre-cast foundations. The build-ings are engineered to meet the snow and wind loads in your area.

BRITESPAN Building Systems’ prod-uct offers ranges in widths from 19 feet up to 160 feet wide, to any length re-quired, and there are seven different building models to choose from. Cus-tom widths and designs are available for special applications.

So if you are constructing a new building, consider the advantages of a fabric covered building in your buying decision and the time and money you will save over the years. It just makes cents. 8

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INNOV-X TECHNOLOGIES CANADA

Was there life on Mars? This is a question that fascinates sci-entists and geologists all over

the world. There are many similarities between Mars and Earth and by study-ing the surface morphology, chemical makeup, lithology, and geology of Mars we may begin to understand how our two planets turned out so differently. The evidence of life or prebiotic chem-istry can be analyzed by identifying rock types and their chemistry. Scien-tists relied on robots and the rovers to go to Mars to gather meaningful data. The rovers carried a number of scientific instruments to analyze rocks including X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray dif-fraction (XRD) analyzers which mea-sures elemental composition and min-eralogy, respectively. To be able to go to Mars, these analyzers had to be portable and accurate. The Mars Science Labora-tory (MSL) Rover chose InXitu’s por-table rock and mineral analyzer to study

the geology and environment of selected areas. The commercial version of the CheMin is the Olympus Terra XRD. These modern day instruments can also help with mining, exploration, and envi-ronmental activities back on earth and with a much smaller budget.

Initially conceived to perform chemi-cal and mineralogical testing for NASA’s MSL mission, Olympus’ Terra™ is a rugged, fully-portable field instrument which harnesses advanced dual XRD/XRF technology and renders it for earth-bound applications. The conventional XRF/XRD analyzers were too large and by combining both Olympus and NA-

SA’s innovation, the Terra brings to life a new way of performing XRD and XRF measurements. With minimal sample preparation, the Terra is a highly useful tool that will provide you with quantita-tive mineralogy in the mining field.

Along with quantitative mineralogy, another great tool that is highly benefi-cial to the mining industry is multi-ele-ment compositional data. The Olympus Delta Handheld XRF Analyzer provides fast, non-destructive elemental analysis. It can be used in the field for immedi-ate results which determines the next course of action. The Delta brings the power and flexibility of handheld XRF

From Mars to Earth

Modern-day instruments meantfor space can also help with mining, exploration, and environmental activities backon earth.

By Jyoti Grewal B.Sc.,Technical Consultant, Northern ANI

ROVER PHOTO COURTESY OF NASA.

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INNOV-X TECHNOLOGIES CANADA

spectrometry to the field. Ruggedized and ultraportable, this fast technology provides accelerated testing times, al-lowing for hundreds more tests to be conducted per day with analytical confi-dence. The Delta’s real overall value is to get large and inexpensive data sets and make decisions in real time with mini-mal reliance on off-site laboratory test-ing.

With Olympus’ expertise in XRF, they were able to combine both XRF and XRD to introduce the BTX Profiler.

The BTX Profiler carries on the revo-lutionary XRD technology employed in NASA’s “Curiosity” Rover. It combines with the highly acclaimed, award win-ning Earth-bound technology employed in Olympus’ Analytical XRD and XRF Instruments. Building on NASA and Olympus patents, the BTX Profiler is a leap forward in the technology of com-bined XRD and XRF analysis. The BTX Profiler provides comprehensive com-positional materials analysis at both the structural and elemental level. This

multi-sample analyzer is the only instru-ment in the market that will give you both qualitative and quantitative XRF and XRD data.

Another great instrument to use in the field is ASD’s Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectroscopy analyzer. NIR allows rapid identification of mineral deposit altera-tion assemblages, including character-izing those associated with economic mineral deposits. This instrument mea-sures the reflection or absorbance char-acteristics of light in a sample. NIR is non-destructive, requires little or no sample preparation and can examine ir-regular surfaces. You can easily convert measured data into actionable informa-tion to help optimize processes or im-prove research.

Some of these technologies that were invented for Mars have resulted in many applications on Earth. These compact and portable analyzers are being used in many applications such as oil and gas, mining and exploration, among other uses. XRF, XRD, and NIR are all technologies that are beneficial to the mining industry. These technologies not only save time and money but give real-time quantitative and qualitative data with minimal sample preparation. The large inexpensive datasets gathered dur-ing an on-site analysis make possible a large potential reduction in dollars spent on lab tests while providing immediate information for on-site decision making in advance of the lab. This is a key com-ponent in shortening the exploration timeline and condensing field seasons, making the most of budgets and tight ex-ploration schedules. By eliminating non-viable targets, drilling and prospecting

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INNOV-X TECHNOLOGIES CANADA

can be focused on the most favourable areas, resulting in more rapid prioritiza-tion and substantial cost savings.

Northern ANI paired up with only the best technology companies to bring you innovative, intuitive, field durable, high performance analytical instruments to identify any element, any compound and any material whether it is in the

lab, in the field or on Mars. Juniors and majors alike are experiencing the signifi-cant benefits of XRF, XRD and NIR.

For more information and to learn how XRF, XRD and NIR are being uti-lized and can apply to your projects, please visit www.northernani.com. Northern ANI is an authorized dis-tributor for ASD and Olympus, world-

wide leaders in scientific equipment. Northern ANI brings a superior suite of analyzers to market that provides quali-tative and quantitative material charac-terization for detection, identification, quality control, process control, regula-tory compliance, research and develop-ment for numerous applications includ-ing metallurgy and geochemistry. 8

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MacPHERSON, LESLIE & TYERMAN LLP

At times, natural resources compa-nies may find it operationally in-convenient or difficult to obtain

mining rights from a private party who owns key mineral lands. In some situ-ations, it is not easy to make a legal de-termination as to who actually owns the mineral lands in question.

However, if a company mines or drills past the boundaries of where its mining rights extend, it may be obligated to pay a significant amount of damages to the injured party.

Generally speaking, a person who mines another person’s minerals with-out consent must compensate the min-eral holder. The tort of trespass to land is committed by entry upon land in the possession of the plaintiff land owner without lawful justification by the de-fendant resource company. This includes a situation where a defendant’s mining

activity encroaches upon the subsurface rights belonging to the holder of a min-eral title. The tort of conversion is also applicable in the context of unauthorized mining. Conversion involves the wrong-ful taking of goods, including minerals.

Trespass causing damage to property will entitle the plaintiff to any reduction in value of the land caused by the tres-pass. Trespass and conversion involv-ing the removal of a valuable resource, such as timber or coal, generally entitles the plaintiff to the value of the resource removed, less certain deductions. The measure of damages that Canadian courts have awarded for trespass or con-version of minerals has differed, depend-ing on the factual circumstances.

Based on previous court determina-tions, any trespasser that acts willfully or negligently in committing a trespass will likely be required to pay the value of the

minerals removed, minus only the cost of transporting it to market. This method of determining damages is sometimes referred to as the “harsh” rule, as it can leave the trespasser (such as a mining company) at a significant loss.

However, if a court considers the tres-pass to be innocent – perhaps because the trespasser legitimately thought it had mining rights to the property in ques-tion – the amount of damages awarded by a court may be net of costs relating to mining, production, and marketing. So while the mining company would not be able to retain any profit from its actions, it would essentially be reimbursed for its operational costs. This is sometimes re-ferred to as the “mild” rule.

Courts have applied a different ap-proach in situations where the party who suffered the trespass would not have been able to independently produce the resource. In Montreal Trust Co. versus Williston Wildcatters Corp., the Sas-katchewan Court of Appeal awarded damages equal to the amount of royalty monies that the Court of Appeal deter-mined the plaintiff would have been able to negotiate in the marketplace. In Wil-liston, the oil and gas lease in question technically terminated in 1990, but the parties did not immediately recognize that.

In 1992, the plaintiff questioned the validity of the lease but did not ask the respondents to stop drilling or leave the land, and continued to accept royalties. The Court of Appeal held that the only period of trespass was from the time the lease terminated until March 1992, when the plaintiff challenged the validity of the lease but still allowed the respondents to

Know Your BoundariesLearning the law of trespass.

By Penny Yeager, Partner, MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP (with contributions from Tyson Bull, Articling Student, MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP)

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector 119

MacPHERSON, LESLIE & TYERMAN LLP

www.pbegrp.com [email protected] Phone: 1.866.526.7963 toll free

produce from the land. The court viewed the period after March 1992 as “leave and licence,” a form of consent that may be implied through acquiescence or con-duct.

This alternate approach to damages in Canada originated from a 19th cen-tury English coal mining case, Living-stone versus Rawyards Coal Company, in which the owner of an acre and a half of land and the associated mineral rights sued a coal company for mining the coal under his property. The coal company believed it had a right to mine the coal under the plaintiff ’s property, and only found out it did not after it had mined. The court restricted damages to the amount of royalty monies the defendant would have received if he had granted mining rights to the coal company. The court determined that there was no re-alistic way he could have produced the coal on his own. The rationale was that to award damages even under the mild rule would be to give the defendant a windfall, actually putting him in a better

position than he was before the trespass occurred.

The court in Williston applied the Liv-ingstone approach, and only awarded the plaintiff the amount of royalties it would have been able to negotiate in the mar-ketplace. More recently, in Freyberg ver-sus Fletcher Challenge Oil and Gas Inc., a 2007 decision of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench, the court also awarded damages for conversion based on the roy-alty the plaintiff likely would have received.

Even though courts have recently tak-en a more lenient approach than in the past with regard to damages for trespass and conversion in the natural resources context, it would be risky for a mining company to trespass.

Numerous judgments prior to Wil-liston have focused on the wrongful gain by the trespasser, reasoning that the trespasser should not benefit from a trespass. As well, a court may not take the Livingstone approach in the case of a willful or negligent trespass. For ex-ample, there is risk that a court may find

that a sophisticated mining company that mines another party’s lands without the requisite legal rights is negligent if it did not properly assess applicable title in-formation. In addition, a company can-not simply turn a blind eye to whether or not it is trespassing and then claim it did not realize its actions would constitute a trespass. Such an approach would likely be considered recklessness or willful blindness, and a court may well apply the “harsh rule” in such circumstances.

Given the significant amount of dam-ages that could be awarded under the “harsh rule”, resource producers are well advised to ensure that they have all nec-essary legal rights before tapping into a given deposit.

MLT has a highly active and experi-enced team of natural resource lawyers that help clients at every stage in their business cycle. As a leading western Ca-nadian law firm with breadth and depth of expertise in the natural resources sec-tor, MLT is the firm to turn to for all is-sues in the industry. 8

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PRAETORIAN CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT

Engineering, Procurement, and Con-struction Management (EPCM) firms have been the main execu-

tion tool for resource projects for some time, and do provide some compelling features. They provide a single point of contact and responsibility, large re-source (employee) pool to handle mega projects, and relative cost certainty (if the envelope is pushed further towards turnkey EPC – Engineer Procure and Construct – contracts) that can be at-tractive. There is, however, a growing trend with mid-tier and major produc-ers alike to utilize third party Project or Construction Managers (PM or CMs).

Why use a third party PM/CM? The answer varies by owner and project, but generally amounts to a desire for greater

direct control over the project while lim-iting the expense of the owner’s team. A dedicated PM/CM firm effectively ex-pands the owner’s resources to manage the project, creating a skilled and expe-rienced owner’s team that can ensure a focus on project success - uniting the design, procurement, and contractor groups toward a common goal. A team with extensive project experience to complement an owner’s operations ex-perience can improve project outcomes from stage-gate approvals through com-missioning and turnover.

Utilizing a small independent team to monitor and review the design as it is being completed can allow greater in-volvement through constructability and operability input. Constructability and

operability considerations are far less costly to implement during design, and an integrated owner’s team may be bet-ter able to present these opportunities to the design team. The timely use of value engineering studies with input from construction, operations, and design can not only reduce cost, but also improve the quality of the final product.

The independent team can also pro-vide transparency through the monitor-ing of design progress, milestone accom-plishments, and discipline integration of the project components. In some cases, projects can become schedule critical through slippages in the engineering and/or procurement deliverables that aren’t identified as critical or required until construction begins. Having a con-

EPCM Or E-P-CM? Strategies for optimizing project execution.By Greg Topinka, P.Eng.

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2013-2014 Northern Prospector122

struction driven focus during the design phase can help to identify and mitigate such potential schedule impacts, as the focus is placed upon what is required for construction rather than focusing on design completion specific goals. Man-aging and identifying these unknowns or unrecognized items during design is far more schedule and cost effective then identifying and reacting to them during construction.

During execution, a specialized con-struction management team can provide significant benefit. Often resource com-panies wish to utilize local contractors to the extent possible as a part of their social licence. If required, a strong CM team can help to mentor these contrac-tors in order to develop an advanced safety culture and broaden their project controls skills. CM firms often specialize in developing contracting strategies that best match the project goals – the use of fixed price, target price, unit rate, or time and material contracts (or a com-bination thereof ) may be appropriate based on design completeness and risk tolerance to schedule, price, and quality.

Safety is the single most important factor for any project, and develop-ing or reinforcing a positive safety cul-ture within those working on site is the most effective way to keep a project safe. Many construction management firms are experts in gaining adoption of be-haviour based “zero harm” cultures, not through strong policing by dedicated safety personnel, but rather by providing safety leadership with every interaction that every member of the CM team has in the field.

CM firms also often provide addi-tional “value added” services in addition to the standard construction manage-ment roles of contractor supervision, issue resolution, and progress, cost and schedule management. These can in-clude CAD modelling and survey man-agement for heavy civil projects (either to verify installed quantities or to allow for placement of materials by owner forces), procurement support, estimat-ing support, stage gate proposal prepara-tion, and feasibility study capex reviews.

A Construction or Project Manage-ment firm can be integrated into a proj-

ect in a number of roles. As an integrated Owner-PM/CM team, they will monitor and support engineering (schedule, val-ue engineering studies, constructability input), optimize contracting (ability to utilize smaller, local contractors through mentoring or to tightly manage a large general contractor) and function as con-struction manager throughout construc-tion and commissioning. Their work will conclude with a handover to operations. In this model individual positions can be filled by either the owner or the CM firm, creating a truly hybrid project team across organizational boundaries.

In the role of an independent on-site CM team the owner may have an in-ternal PM team or an Engineering and Procurement (EP) group as the project manager. CM services provided support either the owner or EP group, and can include value engineering, constructa-bility, and execution as the construction management team throughout con-struction and commissioning, including the handover to operations.

The CM firm may also act as the owner’s representative in support of an

PRAETORIAN CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT

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PRAETORIAN CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT

EPCM group to provide constructa-bility, value engineering, and sched-ule management. In this scenario the owner draws upon the construc-tion manager’s depth of project ex-perience to support their internal operations experience.

Ultimately, the key to successful project execution is people; having people with the right skills and ex-perience available when required. An effective PM/CM team should include a combination of engineer-ing, technical and trades skill sets - all with primarily major project experience - that can be utilized for the project duration. Working with a dedicated Construction Manage-ment firm ensures that the right skills and experience are available to the project without the burdens of recruiting and retention for the owner. Ideal teams utilize a mixture of trades, technologists, and con-struction experienced engineers in order to ensure the strengths of each background are available.

Praetorian Construction Man-agement provides professional con-struction management services for the Canadian mining industry - in-cluding both open pit and under-ground operations. They serve as clients’ frontline interface for the development and construction of projects at both new and existing mines. As an independent project manager without ties to engineer-ing or contracting firms, Praetorian provides clients with an unbiased approach to completing projects. They excel in delivering projects that are executed safely, on schedule and within budget. Given their teams’ unique construction management skills, Praetorian offers a complete portfolio of services from review-ing a project’s feasibility through to mine operations. They have both the experience and tools for establish-ing project control systems, contract management, purchasing services and construction management.

For more information please see our website at www.praetoriancm.com. 8

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TERRALOGIC EXPLORATION INC.

Mineral exploration is a differ-ent game than it was 20, 50, or 100 years ago. It’s probable that

most of the world’s surface ore deposits have already been discovered, making many of the traditional methods of ex-ploration less effective than they have been in the past. For this reason, new methods of acquiring surface and sub-surface data - and then standardizing and interpreting that data - are increas-ingly important. Chris Gallagher be-lieves that new ore body discoveries will be found in the database as much as the field.

Gallagher is a senior geologist and chief geologic database administra-tor with TerraLogic Exploration Inc., a mineral exploration consulting com-pany based in Cranbrook, B.C. Through TerraLogic, Gallagher has worked on properties throughout western Canada and Mexico, where his skills in geologic mapping, structural geology, GIS, and database design have been instrumental advancing grassroots exploration proj-ects.

Gallagher says his key role within the company is to ensure that field crews are collecting high-quality geologic,

geochemical, and geophysical data con-sistently and efficiently. The crews use time-honoured techniques for soil, silt, and rock sampling, and augment these efforts using specialized equipment such as XRFs, scintillometers, and airborne geophysical surveys.

This standardized data is then entered into TerraLogic’s custom databases al-lowing lead geologists and their teams to share and analyze this data seamlessly. The unified exploration data model al-lows systematic baseline analysis to be automatically applied to all of the ex-ploration projects they are working on,

New Method

Technological advances key to discovery.

By Tanya Laing Gahr

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TERRALOGIC EXPLORATION INC.

TerraLogicExploration Inc.

D R I V E N B Y D I S C O V E R Y

Exploration ConsultationFrom Concept to Completion

TerraLogic provides a full spectrum of consulting services to the moneral exploration industry.

We combine proven exploration techniques with advanced data management to deliver comprehensive solutions to geological challenges.

Services offered include:• Geochemical surveys

• Geological mapping &prospecting

• Drill programs

• Camp Construction &Management

• Custom GIS solutions &Cartography

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freeing up valuable time for more ad-vanced project-specific analysis.

“We’ve been collecting data digitally for over 10 years now,” says Gallagher. “And our methodology allows us to col-lect data in a new way or look at it in a new way that hasn’t been done before. It allows us to evaluate properties in a new way – those that have been picked over a dozen times using traditional methods. It allows people to collect better data in a timelier fashion. Hopefully allows you to analyze that data very quickly.”

Gallagher says that TerraLogic takes the approach cutting-edge technology is critical to discovering new deposits that are not detectable using traditional methods. He has led a company initia-tive to utilize, develop, and refine tech-nology that he states increases their abil-ity to look into the earth reliably.

“We’re going to need new technol-ogy and exploration methodology,” says Gallagher. “That’s the bottom line. If you could just take a soil sample or visually assess the rock and say, yeah, there’s an ore deposit here, we would continue to do that. But as these get discovered, we need to discover new methods.” 8

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“And our methodology allows us to collect data in a new way or look at it in a new way that hasn’t been done before.”

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TNR INDUSTRIAL DOORS INC.

TNR Industrial Doors Inc. is the largest producer of high-perfor-mance rubber doors in Canada—

and plans to stay that way.Based out of Barrie, Ontario, the pri-

vately owned – and proudly Canadian – company is well-positioned to build and compete with any high-performance door on the market, says company CEO Cathy Buckingham, who is quick to highlight TNR products as durable, easy to install and easy to maintain.

Undeniably, the company’s quality

craftsmanship is complemented by their desire to build and source locally. And, their high-performance, high-speed, high-impact doors (available in rubber or fabric) have attracted both national and international attention in commer-cial and industrial sectors.

“Our orders are made to fit our cli-ents,” Buckingham says. “We will custom build – by the inch – and normally doors are ready to ship in two weeks.”

A leader in their field, TNR Industrial Doors Inc. is a relatively young company, opening its doors in late 2003. Yet, only a few years later, the company had become one of the strongest contenders in the USA and South America – and remain that way today. Recently, TNR expanded into a new 70,000-square-foot facility to better meet client demand. This marks the company’s third expansion to date.

When asked what the company’s se-cret to success was, the CEO was quick to sum it up in one word: people.

“I think one of the things that sets us apart (and I’ve been told this) is our

corporate culture,” notes Buckingham, a recent recipient of the RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneur Award. “When we started this company from scratch, it was really important to establish that we are a business family and that we make sure part of that family is our customer.”

Together, Buckingham’s team offers an excess of 500 years of combined ex-perience and consistently operates with a customer-first focus. Currently, the company has been partnering with end-users to develop new products, such as high-performance fabric doors; their newest project, currently under devel-opment, caters to the corrosive environ-ment sector and will be introduced to market in the next few months.

“I think what separates any good com-pany– whether small, medium or large – is that you genuinely have to care about the people who use your product,” she concludes. “We recognize that we deal with large industrial users, and we’re there to meet their needs.” 8

TNR Industrial Doors Inc.Brings The Canadian TouchTo The International Market By Jillian Mitchell

Visit us online at www.tnrdoors.comContact TNR today for more information or to request an information package

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TNR “Built To Your Needs” solutions provide your best dollar value and ROI. You can rely on our 500 years of combined experience specifically with industrial rubber roll-up doors to deliver the door you need.

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LEGACY BUILDING SOLUTIONS

Some say that good help is hard to find. This is certainly true in many circumstances, particularly if some-

one doesn’t know where to look or, per-haps more importantly, how to look.

In mining and prospecting applica-tions, finding good help isn’t only about personnel. It’s also about developing a solid support system of infrastructure and equipment – tools that help achieve the necessary levels of productivity to make an exploration operation profit-able. In other words, there is greater desire to not just manage costs or meet basic needs, but to seek out and find real value.

This emphasis on value has made a significant impact on equipment of-ferings. “Standard” machines are not completely disappearing, but miners and prospectors have gradually turned toward investing in customized solu-tions that deliver truly unique benefits.

Machines and auxiliary products today have to do more than tackle a specific task – they must fit the exact operating requirements of a given company.

While most mining advancements over the past decade have been focused on production machines and vehicles, prospectors recently have turned more attention toward other aspects of their operations, such as tension fabric build-ings used for mineral processing, bulk material storage, equipment mainte-nance, and environmental remediation.

Having fabric structures on the jobsite is not a new concept. However, mines historically have been limited to “stan-dard” building offerings. Only in the past few years has new engineering and technology emerged that allows fabric structures to be specifically developed to meet the productivity and efficiency demands that go hand-in-hand with ex-ploration.

Customizable Fabric Buildings

The design of fabric mining buildings took a giant step forward just three years ago when Legacy Building Solutions in-troduced rigid frame engineering and structural steel I-beam construction to the industry. Prior to this development, tension fabric structures traditionally featured hollow-tube, open web-truss framing.

The rigid frame innovation was a ma-jor advancement for the quality of fabric buildings. I-beam design is almost uni-versally accepted within the engineering community, whereas opinions on web truss design had always been very sub-jective, depending on both the manufac-turer and the specific building. Certainly web truss was a serviceable framing op-tion for many years, but lack of consen-sus about what constitutes a well-built or poorly built web truss building indi-

Building Strong Value

Get more for your money with custom engineered tension fabric structures.By Ben Fox, president, Legacy Building Solutions

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LEGACY BUILDING SOLUTIONS

cated it was time for a change.With the introduction of the rigid

frame technique, any questions about structural integrity have been basically eliminated. Legacy Building Solutions is recognized through the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) A660 pro-gram for steel building systems, which requires that structure manufacturers comply with all applicable engineer-ing criteria and building codes. To be certified, building manufacturers must maintain production facilities, staff, and quality assurance systems that are con-

sistently capable of producing quality steel buildings. Legacy’s manufacturing facility has documented CSA-A660 ap-proval.

The advantages of rigid frame fabric buildings actually extend well beyond structural integrity. Mining companies who’ve come to expect customizabil-ity from equipment can now apply the same thinking to their building needs. Rigid frame engineering allows a build-ing to be constructed from the start with customizable dimensions based on individual demands.

With structural I-beam design, pros-pectors can specify the exact building width, length, and height they require down to the inch. Offset peaks, multi-level legs, and other unique features can be easily incorporated. The structure’s design can allow for taller wall and peak heights, as well as doors of any shape or size, to allow larger vehicles and equip-ment to maneuver more easily in and out of the building.

The conventional shape of a rigid frame building also provides practi-cal benefits. The traditional web truss building shape is an arch, so the struc-ture’s curved walls tend to create unus-able space along the sidewalls. The use of I-beams provides rigid frame fabric buildings with straight sidewalls, allow-ing every square inch of the building footprint to be used. This is particularly advantageous when the surrounding landscape offers limited space.

Durable DesignBuildings, like equipment, must be

able to withstand extreme conditions, such as high wind or snow loads. The flexibility of I-beam design allows for buildings to be engineered for specific user requirements and local codes. If a heavier snow load is needed, for ex-ample, the manufacturer can simply narrow the planned width for bay spac-ing between frames, thereby helping the fabric hold the necessary load.

The actual tensioning and installation of the fabric is another important fac-tor in structure durability. Adding fab-ric panels in straight lines on an I-beam makes it easier to ensure that proper vertical and horizontal tension is ap-plied. By comparison, stretching fabric over the curves of a web truss frame can distort the scrim and crack the fabric’s coating, possibly leading to premature failure.

Fabric panel size is also critical to meeting specified loads. If a 140-foot-long building has a roof comprised of just a few big pieces of fabric, it is dif-ficult to secure it at the proper tension to handle snow or wind. If manageable

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LEGACY BUILDING SOLUTIONS20-foot panels are used instead, there’s a much better chance the fabric will be properly placed and secured.

A big reason why fabric buildings are preferred over metal structures is their resistance to the corrosive elements as-sociated with storing salt, ore, concen-trate, or other materials. Though fabric itself is immune to corrosion, certain aspects of buildings can be vulnerable if not properly protected. The frame of a tension fabric building is still metal, and the hollow tube of a web truss is particu-larly susceptible to damage, as corrosion can originate inside the tube. Because they’re solid, steel I-beams don’t share the same vulnerability. Furthermore, they can be treated for added protection through hot dip galvanizing, power coat paint, or grey oxide primer.

Maximizing EfficiencyIn addition to having an overall layout

suited to daily operations, fabric build-ings can be equipped with other features that contribute to jobsite efficiency. Maintenance shops can be fully insulat-ed and heated. Processing facilities can accommodate commodity pressures on the sidewalls. Rigid frame engineering also makes it possible to incorporate overhead cranes, conveyors, or fire sup-pression systems.

Delivery times for fabric buildings are shorter than with comparable metal buildings, but installation scenarios vary greatly. Some manufacturers just deliver the building components and leave it to the customer to hire a subcontractor to erect the structure. More reputable fab-ric building companies in the industry have their own experienced installation crews. Legacy, in particular, has history of travelling to remote sites around in the world. Legacy’s trained professionals ensure the building is installed properly and in a timely fashion, and can also as-sist with relocating the building after a certain period of use at one location.

Mining For ValueAny fabric building manufacturer

can offer the basic benefits of a fabric

roof, such as natural light permeating the structure, but not all engineering is equal. There are definitive advantages, both practical and economic, to pur-chasing a tension fabric building that is designed to exact requirements from the ground up. Prospectors and engineering firms should closely explore the different fabric structure options on the market to find the strongest value.

Legacy Building Solutions special-izes in the innovative design, engineer-ing, and construction of fabric-covered buildings. Legacy offers assistance from concept to completion, including ren-derings, foundation design, installation, and project management. Legacy’s in-house, professional installation crews have constructed over 30 million square feet of fabric buildings. 8

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WEST WIND AVIATION

When Pronto Airways started its scheduled service to northern Saskatchewan in 2006 it faced many of the usual challenges associated when starting an airline

- infrastructure costs, competition, human resources, and most importantly, building a customer base. Especially considering those customers lived in the communities of the Athabasca Ba-sin, more than a 1,000 kilometres north of Pronto’s home base in Saskatoon. The competition predicted Pronto would be out of business in a year. Instead, a dedication to customer service and a keen focus on giving back to the communities propelled this underdog airline to seven years of steady growth, built on strong relationships and trust.

Pronto is the scheduled services branch of West Wind Avia-tion, the provinces largest aviation support group with 30 years of aviation experience. Based in Saskatoon, destinations include Prince Albert, Stony Rapids/Black Lake, Wollaston/

Going The Distance

The underdog advantage in northern Saskatchewan.By Ed Jozic

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WEST WIND AVIATION

Hatchet Lake, Fond du Lac, and Uranium City. Over the last several years Pronto has also provided seasonal flights into Baker Lake and Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, to support uranium ex-ploration in the region. Through West Wind’s significant own-ership of Pronto, direct ownership benefits are provided to the First Nation’s communities of the Athabasca Basin. This spirit of partnership has been a key component in Pronto’s success in the region.

Supplying and servicing the remote communities of the Athabasca Basin poses many operational challenges including extreme weather and short runways. Pronto’s three Beachcraft 1900Cs are perfectly suited for these rugged conditions. The 1900C is a safe, fast, and reliable airliner that offers the capac-ity and flexibility to transport both people and vital supplies to these picturesque communities on a daily basis. This flexibility and reliability is important as the majority of these communi-ties are not accessible by all season roads, and without air ser-vice, would be completely isolated for half of the year.

Exploration and commercial companies in the region face their own unique set of operational challenges. Fluctuation

in the world economy and commodity prices can make long range planning difficult. Pronto’s ability to accommodate these quickly changing needs has made the airline a valuable partner for its commercial customers. Inviting input regarding work force and freight movement, scheduling preferences and even possible new destinations (even if only for a drill season) offers clients a very collaborative approach to solving their project needs. This includes the flexibility to move seamlessly between Pronto’s scheduled service and West Wind Aviation’s charter services as needed, a great advantage as companies grow and needs change.

At the end of the day, it comes down to commitment. Wheth-er you live in the Athabasca Basin or travel there for work, a 1,000 kilometres each direction is a long way to go. For Pronto Airways, safety, reliability, and speed are not just slogans, they are a service commitment. That commitment has set this air-line apart from the competition for its first seven years of ser-vice. Looking ahead, Pronto plans to maintain that underdog spirit, because let’s face it, when things are challenging, who do you want in your corner? 8

At the end of the day, it comes down to commitment.Whether you live in the Athabasca Basin or travel there for work, a 1,000 kilometres each direction is a long way to go.

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MINESENSE™

At the PDAC Convention in To-ronto and World Mining Con-gress in Montreal during 2013,

cost reduction themes were pervasive. One common opinion is fuel switching, such as replacing diesel with electricity or natural gas, or using more solar and wind power generation on site. With the range of alternative energy options, these messages will likely repeat in the context of business optimization and paradigm shift in the mining industry. Rather than seeking energy alternatives, a more fun-damental theme needs to be stated - to reduce the need for energy. At Mine-Sense™ Technologies Ltd., they call this “sustainable mining.”

Comminution consumes the major-

ity of mine energy and water, typically processing ore with greater than 99 per cent waste into concentrate. Therefore it would seem compelling to seek options to reduce the input volume, or more precisely, to reject waste from the input stream. MineSense™ refers to this process-ing philosophy as “pre-concentration.” This thinking expresses the need to apply energy only to the valuable stream, not waste components. Water consumption reduction is a significant parallel benefit to this approach. The time is right for this way of thinking to emerge because, in ad-dition to comminution, other challenges are falling ore grades in currently operat-ing mines all around the world, increased “resource nationalism,” and social license

awareness in resources, creating stricter, and longer permitting processes.

These issues create large pressures on mine-site cash flow. For example, deg-radation from one per cent grade (99 per cent waste) to 0.5 per cent grade (99.5 per cent waste) means twice the capacity is required to produce the same cash flow. While it remains arguable that metal demand is robust, it is fluctuating. Cash conservation on current capital projects will affect a site’s ability to meet demand and reap market premiums when the market swings. As a whole, the industry faces a self-amplified shortage of supply due to reduced capital projects and fall-ing grades. Soon after the next market upswing, there will be a rush to engage in

Think DifferentlyMineSense™ – fundamental shifts are upon us,not just alternative options.

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MINESENSE™

SENSE+SORT =CONSERVE+PROFIT

profit from waste

minesense.com

NP_Minesense_Ad_Final_MineSense 13-10-01 1:53 PM Page 1

fast-tracked projects to meet the demand. These expenditures will be among the largest scale projects to deal with the un-derlying issue of falling ore grades. This volatility cycle, and its widening swings, remains a vicious one for industry leaders to manage.

The MineSense™ solution senses ma-terial streams from conveyors and ore-facing shovels to determine its value, and through applied decision-support soft-ware, sorts the value from run-of-mine material by diverting barren rocks. En-

ergy and water consumption in process-ing these barren rocks is thus avoided. The valued material tonnage and scale of equipment needed to transport and pro-cess them is also eliminated, extending the life of current capacity and reducing the need for future capital projects.

MineSense™ philosophy is to revolu-tionize the ore/waste flow by focusing on sensing and sorting to reject waste and improve overall mine efficiencies. Incorporating a variety of hardware and software technologies, and wide applica-

tion knowledge, MineSense™ delivers on rugged and easy-to-use products. The MineSense™ solution is a suite of prod-ucts using these technologies, includ-ing ShovelSenseTM, BeltSenseTM, and SortOre. Applied precisely, these sensing and sorting products can transform the industry with new efficient and sustain-able practices.

SortOre is currently deployed in a pi-lot in Timmins, Ontario, recovering value from nickel waste dumps at previously unprecedented levels of sensitivity. 8

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SCOTT’S GENERAL STORE

If you’ve ever visited the far northern Saskatchewan community of Stony Rapids you’ve probably been to or

heard about the locally owned and oper-ated Scott’s General Store. It was estab-lished in 1985 by Scott Hale and his wife Kathy as Stony Rapids Snowmobile Cen-tre. It received the name “Scott’s Store” by the community when it became viewed as a vital piece after years of loyal service.

It began as a small Bombardier (ski-doo) dealership providing transportation for northern travellers and trappers and since then has expanded into a store that offers almost everything you need to live and work in an isolated community.

Scott’s General Store offers BRP Ski-doo, Can-am, Evinrude E-Tec outboard motors, and Harbercraft/ Kingfisher and Alumarine boats for sale, rental, and ser-vice.

Scott is also passionate about northern traditions and remains involved with the fur trade, buying and selling furs from lo-cal hunters and trappers. When you visit the store you will see a wide variety of native art and crafts, as well as animal skins hanging on the wall. In addition to groceries and hardware goods, they provide gas, diesel, drummed fuel, pro-pane, and aviation fuel. The staff of 11 can assist you with all your expediting needs. Whether its packing groceries for shipping, organizing rental vehicles, or choosing the right parts and service for you, they are there to help.

It is clear that Scott’s General store customers’ appreciate the friendly, and reliable service offered from such a unique business. He provides service for a broad range of customers including tourists, fishing camps, aviation, and ex-ploration companies. Next time you are in the Stony Rapids area, whether it’s for work or play, stop in and say hello. Scott is always happy to share his knowledge and expertise on the Athabasca region. 8

Scott’sGeneralStore

Stoney RapidsSnowmobile Centre

Serving Saskatchewan’sFar North Since 1985

• BRP Ski-doo & Can-am ATV Dealer/Parts and Service

• BRP Evinrude Dealer Parts and Service• Alumarine & Kingfisher Boats• Husqvarna Chainsaws• Auto Parts & Tires• Groceries• Dry Goods• Gas, Diesel, Propane• Fishing & Hunting Supplies• Lumber & Hardware• Jet Fuel & AV Gas• Truck & Equipment Rentals• Raw Fur Buyer

EXPEDITING SERVICESP.O. Box 19, Stony Rapids, SK S0J 2R0

Tel: (306) 439-2056Fax: (306) 439-2086

Email: [email protected]

Service Stop

Scott’s General Store has been offeringa variety of goods to the north for 28 years.By Kirsti Hale

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VERMEER

The Vermeer® T1255 Terrain Leveler® surface excavation ma-chine (SEM) was developed in

the strong tradition of Vermeer rock-trenching innovation.

Precision surface mining is gaining traction in the iron ore, copper, iodine, limestone, bauxite, coal, and gypsum markets. Precision surface mining is being employed to increase production in existing mines, increase available ore on the mine floor and mine boundaries, mine thin seams, and increase product quality through selective mining and/or loading. These advantages cannot be achieved using drilling and blasting techniques.

Designed for mining, quarry, site prep, and civil work operations, the T1255 SEM puts more control in opera-tors’ hands for precise, high-production material excavation. Vermeer developed top-down cutting drums that allow the cutter teeth to gain penetration with-out using the machine’s tractive effort to drive the teeth into the material. As the machine travels forward and the drum rotates, the teeth on the drum are positioned over the material surface. As contact is made, the top-down cutting action of the teeth instantly creates a consistent-sized product, which can be handled more efficiently than product generated by drilling and blasting.

The Vermeer T1255 SEM is built upon the Commander® three-track trencher, which provides the power needed for the demanding work in mines and quar-ries. The machine offers a 447.4 kW (600 hp) CAT C18 ACERT Tier three engine and Vermeer exclusive TEC® Plus oper-ating system, which interfaces with vari-ous modules throughout the machine. A load control system automatically ad-justs ground speed to use maximum en-

gine power, and also protects the engine from operator error – preventing stall-ing of the engine under load.

GPS Control of Cutter DrumThe Trimble (or other manufacturer’s)

GPS configuration used on surface min-ers of all sizes and types consists of a base station, a single GPS mast on the machine, a tilt sensor, and a radio. The base station is located at a known point in the mine which has the best visibility of all sections – often times the highest point. Since the location of the base sta-tion is fixed and known, it can provide position corrections to the machine of the rough position coordinates calculat-ed by the control module in the mobile unit. These corrections are transmitted via the radio. The radio antenna on the mobile unit must be in line of sight of the base station radio antenna. In some mines, additional repeaters set up in known locations act as transfer stations and extend the range and coverage as necessary. Using a hand-held/truck-

mounted GPS receiver, an initial survey is conducted of the pit/strip/area to be cut. This information is uploaded into Trimble Business Center, and a design plan developed.

This design plan is a three-dimension-al picture of the mine surface at the time of the survey. The mine surveyors or mine planners then decide on the depth of cut for each flitch. A separate cutting plan design is generated for each of the flitches. These plans are then download-ed into the control module of the surface miner either wirelessly or via memory sticks. The operator chooses the appro-priate flitch plan at the start of his shift. This method takes the control of the cut-ting depth away from the operator, and places it in the hands of the mine survey-ors or mine planners. During operation, the GPS will control the cutting depth and drum angle in accordance with the plan. It will also provide some steering guidance to the operator as the surface miner processes the pit. 8

Working HarderT1255 Terrain Leveler surface excavation machine.

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ATLAS COPCO

Attendance at the 81st Prospec-tors & Developers Association of Canada Convention, Trade

Show & Investors Exchange once again exceeded 30,000. PDAC 2013 Executive Director Ross Gallinger, who called the convention “the world’s premier event for the mineral industry,” credited its outstanding program of events for at-tracting 30,147 investors, analysts, min-ing executives, geologists, government officials, students, and international delegations from government, industry, financial institutions and Aboriginal communities to attend the event held March 3 at the Metro Toronto Conven-tion Centre. Among the attractions were Atlas Copco exploration rigs, tools, and equipment.

Atlas Copco’s Eric Diaz-Arguelles, the product line manager for Christensen exploration drills, and Martin Sommers, vice president marketing, capital equip-ment, states the show was positive from their point of view.

“In spite of the concerns surround-ing the market conditions expressed by many of our customers, the reception and turnout at the PDAC was motivat-ing and energetic. It was great to see the level of interest our CS14C surface core drill generated at the trade show with several customers expressing an interest to acquire such a unit,” says Sommers.

Despite the general depressed global exploration market conditions, regions such as Africa, Eastern Europe, and Rus-sia still remain quite active. The expec-tation from many is that the industry activity will pick up again in the second half of 2013 with demand returning to a more normal level in 2014.

Atlas Copco Product Manager Re-verse Circulation Hammers Pierre Cou-lon says traffic was steady and optimistic as visitors showed keen interest in the new Secoroc RC 40 circulation hammer.

Atlas Copco’s Stephane Goupil and Artur Makos, product line manager of core drilling and in-the-hole tools and

Excore EXII Safety Overshot and Excore high performance diamond products, respectively, also declared the show a success.

Among the many exploration prod-ucts that Atlas Copco offers, the follow-ing were showcased at PDAC:

Atlas Copco Christensen CS14 Core Drill

The powerful feed system and main winch of the Christensen CS14 surface core drilling rig make for fast, efficient, deep drilling. The product comes with a 208 hp Cummins six-cylinder Tier III or Tier IV diesel engine. The mast dump, four hydraulic leveling jacks and foldable mast make for easy setup. The CS14 rig’s modern design includes safety guards and emergency stop buttons making the rig user-friendly and safe to operate.

RC 40 HammerThe new Atlas Copco Secoroc RC 40,

together with Atlas Copco reverse circu-lation tricones, drill pipe and its bigger brother, the RC 50, offer customers a dedicated range of solutions for any re-verse circulation exploration job.

Ideal for hole sizes five to 5.5 inches (125 to 140 millimetres) in a variety of conditions, from hard rock to flooded, the four-inch RC 40 hammer’s unique new design is 34 per cent shorter than other four-inch hammers and 20 per cent lighter than its competitors. It can also be serviced more quickly, making it the best selection for increased perfor-mance and reliability in remote, green-field exploration.

The RC 40’s modular system features

Tools Of The TradeAtlas Copco takes stage at PDAC.

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ATLAS COPCO

a one-piece sample tube that can easily be changed without opening the ham-mer. Matching the RC 40 to Atlas Copco DR102 and DR115 pipes, which are 23 per cent lighter, allows exploration to depths greater than 600 meters. The unique coupling seals of DR-series pipe do away with O-rings and, therefore, minimize risk of leakage.

RC Tricones Atlas Copco Secoroc has added to its

entire range of reverse circulation solu-tions. The new range of RC tricones of-fers built-in check valve and a superior flow control to seal the sampling process. This is the ideal solution for RC drilling in the most difficult ground conditions.

Atlas Copco EXII OvershotThe safest overshot made to date. Op-

erators can’t forget safety with this as it’s built in. The automatic safety mecha-nism does not require action from the drilling crew, neither to engage it nor to disengage it during core retrieval. With one less process to worry about, the EXII not only protects the crew and the equipment but increases overall cycle time, raising productivity levels.

Premium Excore SystemAtlas Copco offers the Excore family

of wireline tools, a full range of drill rods, core barrels, core drilling bits, and cas-ings. Simplicity of design throughout the

product family creates increased safety, reduces unnecessary inventory and downtime, and ensures sustainable pro-ductivity in all underground and surface exploration coring jobs.

CMO drill rods Atlas Copco CMO-series internally upset rods have a lighter weight—11 to 21 per cent lighter de-pending on size—to allow greater depth yet maintain the benefits of MO threads.

Safety mechanism The EX II “built in” safety mechanism benefits productivity with efficient design and by removing unnecessary steps in the drilling cycle that are present in other manual locking overshots.

Head assembly Newly designed Ex-core head assembly decreases inven-tory by easily converting from surface to pump-in operations. Available in DCMA sizes B, N and H.

Excore bits Atlas Copco Excore dia-mond bit designs optimize matrices and crown profiles to cover a wider range of applications from a single bit. Drillers reduce the number of bits usually kept on hand for different rock conditions and minimize tripping out of the hole to change bits.

MO drill rods Atlas Copco MO-series wireline drill rods are manufactured to exacting specifications using the indus-try’s highest raw material specification standards with subsequent heat treat-ment enhancement. Mating MO thread

profiles provide a leak-proof joint. Easy to stab and start, and easy to make and break and maintain joint pre-torque. The identification grooves on each rod pin allows easy identification of the MO thread. In addition to removing the risk of mix up, it also provides an easy way to find the rod joint and gives an indication of the ware of the outer diameter.

The 82nd PDAC Convention will be held next year between March 2 and March 5. In the meantime, PDAC of-ficials say they will continue, as always, to support and advocate on behalf of the mineral exploration and development industry.

Best known for its annual convention, trade show, and investors exchange, the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), which was was es-tablished in 1932, represents the inter-ests of the Canadian mineral exploration and development industry. 8

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BROOKVILLE

With 95 years of experience man-ufacturing powered transpor-tation vehicles across an array

of industries, and over 40 years of sup-port to the international mining industry, Brookville Equipment Corporation contin-ues to innovate for its customers through the custom engineering, design, and pro-duction of rail-mounted and rubber-tired transportation and haulage equipment for its customers – which span 80 countries over eleven productive decades.

Split into four distinct divisions, the western Pennsylvania-based American manufacturer currently produces rail-mounted and rubber-tired mining and tunneling equipment, full-size freight lo-comotives, full-size commuter locomo-tives, and heritage and modern streetcars. The company’s core mining business in-cludes customizable product lines that include rail-mounted low-height haulage locomotives and personnel carriers, rail-mounted, high-height, narrow-width min-ing and tunneling locomotives, mainte-nance support vehicles, and a rubber-tired portfolio that includes four-wheel steer and articulated vehicles.

Brookville’s diversified mining portfolio is evidence of a company with a dedication to customer-driven innovation since the company entered the underground mining market in the 1970s producing locomo-tives that featured all-welded frames and shaft drives. Soon after in 1981, Brookville was among the first to introduce plan-etary driven axles and bolt-on wheels to low-height underground locomotives, in response to customer demands for dura-bility in rigorous working conditions un-derground.

In the early 1990s, Brookville again re-sponded to customer demands to supple-ment their rail-mounted fleet with rubber-

Customer-Driven InnovationBrookville Equipment Corporation relies on 95 yearsof a diverse equipment portfolio for continued success.

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From scoops to tractors and locomotives to personnel carriers and support vehicles, BROOKVILLE offers custom-designed diesel and battery-powered rubber-tired or rail-mounted haulage and transportation equipment to meet whatever your job requires. With over 95 years of manufacturing experience and a dedicated team of expert engineers, designers and production staff, we’ve got the grit, know-how and innovative effort you need to keep moving.

Custom Haulage & Transportation Solutions

Brookville Equipment Corporation • Brookville, PA, USA • +1 814.849.2000 • brookvillecorp.com

Driven to Meet Your Demands.

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tired equipment – allowing maintenance crews to navigate to areas without rail and to allow mining environments with steeper grades to be overcome.

Shortly after, in the late 1990s, Brookville introduced two patented hydraulic rerailing systems to the mining market. The Jackwalker™ (13.6 metric ton units and under) and Liftwalker™ (units over 13.6 metric tons) rerailing systems were devel-oped out of a customer request as an alternative to traditional jack-and-crib rerailing methods, saving miners considerable amounts of time and greatly reducing injury risks, by allow-ing miners to rerail locomotives with the press of a button on a locomotive or personnel carrier’s operator panel. The patented device has withstood the test of time as the premier option for efficient and safer rerailing and is still a commonly ordered fea-ture on Brookville units at present.

More recently, Brookville has developed a line of self-pro-pelled support vehicles, allowing customers to optimize their vehicle fleet efficiency. Brookville’s self-propelled fuel buffalo is a self-propelled option for fleet refueling that frees up other vehicles for service. In addition to the fuel buffalo, Brookville’s self-propelled microduster offers a more versatile solution for covering small exposures of coal seams for miners underground.

“Over the company’s 95 year history, nearly every innova-tion that Brookville has brought to market has been the prod-uct of detailed communication and collaboration between the Brookville team and its valued customers,” says Michael White, marketing manager and mining and tunneling sales specialist. “From the production of our first all-welded frame to the devel-opment of integrated, self-propelled vehicles, Brookville’s port-folio’s continues to grow with its customers’ imaginations and our wealth of working knowledge.”

This collaborative approach has allowed Brookville to expand its portfolio in rail-mounted and rubber-tired equipment alike. The company’s rubber-tired line has developed to include bat-tery or diesel-powered four-wheel steer and articulated equip-ment. These units are designed to customer requirements to handle tight corners and spatially restrictive areas of operation – making them ideal for maintenance personnel and for crews who travel into tight working environments. Brookville’s units feature both crab steering, which offers sideways movement, and coordinated steering, which offers improved maneuver-

ability in mining conditions that require tight turning radiuses. The company’s line of articulated equipment includes tow

tractors, maintenance vehicles, and personnel carriers. With the ability to navigate steeper grades, Brookville’s articulated units provide a powerful solution for transporting materials and per-sonnel. Maintenance units can include optional features, such as DC Welders, 240-volt AC generators, cranes, winches, and fuel and lube air supply reels to aid workforces in accomplishing tasks conveniently in remote locations with commonly used on-board tools integrated into vehicles.

Brookville’s rubber tired equipment line also includes heavy duty slope tractors and articulated scoops. Available in battery- or diesel-power, the articulated scoop offers a height clearance of only 1.07 metres with a maximum bucket load of 6,800 kilo-grams. Optional features, such as winches and power take-off provide vehicle flexibility and versatility.

Brookville articulated slope tractors, available in weights up 45 metric tons, are powerful low-height (1.98 metre clearance with a wheel diameter of 1.52 metres) solutions for pulling large loads up steep grades. With a 45 metric ton model that features a 300 horsepower, six-cylinder diesel engine, heavy duty all-welded steel frame, planetary driven axles, and a hydraulically lifted coupler for improved ground clearance, Brookville slope tractors provide the power, traction and low height advantage to meet a wide variety of customer haulage needs and can be customized to meet specific customer requirements.

With 95 years of experience manufacturing powered trans-portation equipment, including 35 plus years of producing low height and ultra-low height mining machinery, and 20 years of experience manufacturing rubber-tired equipment, Brookville’s diversification and growth remains sustainable because of its ability to listen to customer requests and custom manufacture units that meet the specific needs of those customers.

“Whether we are developing a unique new mining vehicle, as we have with our fuel buffalo, or integrating a new feature, such as LED display panels, or providing improvements to our current products, Brookville’s innovations have always and will continue to be driven by customer demands and desires,” White said. “It’s been the key catalyst in our formula for success in cus-tom-manufacturing for the past 95 years, and we aren’t about to change that now,” says White.

As the company progresses towards the future of powered-transportation products, Brookville now looks to use its work-ing history, which spans two separate centuries and 11 different decades, to provide custom solutions for mining in new market-places. Even though the company has shipped over 3,800 units and exported to 80 different countries throughout its rich and illustrious history in manufacturing, utilizing new technological advancements and a willingness to apply current knowledge to meet customer demands is Brookville’s approach to innovation for its customers going forward. 8

BROOKVILLE

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DICORP

LET US HELP YOU WITH OUR TOTAL EXPLORATION PORTFOLIO

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togetherDOWN TO EARTH BUSINESS

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800.661.2792

Di-Corp’s roots date back to 1957 in the basement of company founder, Robert F. LePoole where he imported pipe tobacco and bicycles from Holland under the origi-

nal company name of Hollimex Products. LePoole and his family emigrated from the Netherlands

in 1953, and his dream was to run his own company, and he knew that Canada would be a good place to do it. Distribu-tion seemed a logical choice so LePoole used his contacts back home to source products.

Fifty-six years and two more generations of family owner-ship later, Di-Corp is well established as a leading distributor of specialty chemicals, parts, and accessories that serve the inter-national natural resource marketplace.

Dynamic growth has been driven by a focus on exceptional service. Their service offering has evolved by adding field tech-nicians and chemists to their line-up of product experts in or-der to provide solutions in addition to the products being car-ried.

Di-Corp has been supplying sodium carboxymethyly cel-lulose (CMC) made by Akzo Nobel in the Netherlands to the potash mining industry since 1958. Industry may know CMC by its present brand names - Staflo, Depramin and Akucell – all products that are still a part of DiCorp’s line up.

Di-Corp takes pride in the fact that they have been an in-tegral part of the potash industry in Saskatchewan, helping to process this valuable ore with market leading reagents.

With 200 employees in 15 locations across Canada and the United States, Di-Corp is able to exceed customer’s needs with an efficient distribution footprint tailored to deliver solutions when and where it matters.

They continue to vertically integrate to ensure consistent and quality product offerings, and currently have a 12,000-square-foot facility in Saskatoon stocked to supply Saskatchewan and Manitoba mining projects.

In addition to serving the Saskatchewan postash industry, their mineral exploration products have been utilized to ex-plore and develop Saskatchewan and Manitoba’s vast uranium, gold, zinc, nickel, and copper deposits. With the recent growth of the Bakken Oilfield, drilling fluids and cementing products have helped drillers develop this vast natural resource.

With an eye towards the future, Di-Corp is focusing on in-novative products and service offerings through rigorous re-search and development to work in local conditions. With the continued opportunities in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, they plan to continue to expand our footprint of service locations and exceptional service personnel. 8

Putting Down RootsDi-Corp doesn’t just sell products, they deliver solutions. DOWN TO EARTH BUSINESS

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FORTIS

Fortis is a privately owned company based out of Sas-katoon, Saskatchewan. Fortis evolved from its parent company, Northern Strands Co. Ltd., in 2006, which had

been in the mining industry since the 1970s as a distributor of mine hoisting ropes. As the customer base grew, along with the mining industry in Saskatchewan, the company started to distribute and then manufacture hoist rope attachments and fittings. In conjunction with these changing market demands, the company recognized the need for supplying services to the customers. These services included rope changes, skip chang-es, accident remediation, de-rope, re-rope, problem solving, specialized equipment, and custom manufacturing. With con-tinued growth, delivering these services was best met through the development of a separate company. Fortis Engineering & Manufacturing Inc. was created.

It was in 2006 that Fortis took on many of the projects that were previously done by Northern Strands, and they began to grow their manufacturing capacity by producing more at-tachments and fittings. In order to fabricate more products in-house, a machine shop was added in 2010. Due to increas-ing fabrication demands, in the summer of 2012, Fortis chose to maximize manufacturing production and efficiency by creating a night-shift for this division.

The evolution of Fortis went hand-in-hand with the growth of the mining industry in Saskatchewan. The increasing de-mand was easily noticed and quickly realized by the leadership of Fortis. The company met that opportunity by recruiting multi-skilled, highly trained, and experienced employees to create a strong, united, and efficient workforce.

Fortis has successfully forged relationships with a number of customers including Potash Corporation, Agrium, Mosaic, Cameco, Nyrstar, Rio Tinto, and Agnico Eagle, along with several other mining service companies. Fortis delivers spe-cialized consulting and project services to its customers, from engineering to construction, and from maintenance to decom-missioning and emergency situations.

Fortis believes that its determination in creating an injury-free work environment through the ISO policies and proce-dures is evidence of its commitment to safety.

Fortis recently passed the Certification Audit conducted by QAS International in June 2013. After certification Fortis has earned the rare distinction of simultaneously being certified for three different management system standards which includes ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and OHSAS 18001.

We are exceedingly proud of the commitment and teamwork of our employees in achieving these standards. Fortis has a QA & ISO Compliance Department which is committed to con-tinuous improvement of products and services provided by Fortis. Fortis plans to continue on its strategic positioning as a provider of high-quality services and products operating under approved and standardized practices with the aim of achieving continual improvement. Each department in Fortis is monitor-ing its Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to make sure that the objectives are achieved continuously. Fortis also periodically conducts probabilistic hazard analysis and environmental as-pect/ impact analysis to identify the significant H&S and envi-ronmental hazards.

The ownership and management team at Fortis believes in the importance of safety in the workplace. Over the past sever-al years, Fortis has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge from its experience in its collaboration with local and interna-tional mine sites and companies. The company continues to compile the most recent safety knowledge and is adopting and integrating that knowledge into its safety management systems. Fortis believes that its determination in creating an injury-free work environment through the ISO policies and procedures is evidence of its commitment to safety.

Today, Fortis works continuously in mining-related service work and custom manufacturing for a diverse customer base. The company is positioned to identify customer requirements and is uniquely prepared to address those requirements by leveraging its internal talent. Fortis has the experience and knowledge to undertake the delivery of professional services and quality products. 8

What An HonourFortis has earned the rare distinction of simultaneously being certified for three different management system standards

What does fortis mean in latin? Literally, fortis means “strong”, and often used to mean “brave.”

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WESTBURNE

Westburne Electric Supply, a division of Rexel Canada Electrical Inc., is the leading electrical material dis-tributor in Canada. With over 125-plus branches

across the country, more than any other electrical distributor, Westburne provides local access, support, and inventory on a wealth of products and services to customers in British Colum-bia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and the Northwest Territories.

Westburne - Midwest DivisionWelcome to the center of Canada where the Westburne

Electric Midwest Division resides. Spanning the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the northwestern region of On-tario, their geographic trading area is very diverse. The divi-sion offers the services of 150 knowledgeable staff members in 12 branches. The division’s head office in Winnipeg, Manitoba houses more than 40,000 top-of-the-line industrial and com-mercial electrical SKUs in a 60,000-square-foot warehouse. In

2013, Westburne Midwest opened a new design build facility in Regina to better services the Saskatchewan marketplace.

For over 48 years, the prairie-based division of the commer-cial and industrial electrical goods distributor has relied on its formula of superior product selection and customer service to become one of the region’s leaders in the field.

A team of product specialists has been developed to pro-vide guidance to customers and staff alike. A lighting specialist, wire and cable specialist, data-com specialist, standard control specialist, software and PLC, MCC, and drive specialist all sta-tioned in Winnipeg are available to provide solutions. While Winnipeg has the largest group of specially trained personnel, the other branches help by contributing local specialists.

Our partnership with top product lines like Rockwell Auto-mation (Allen Bradley), Eaton Electrical, Philips Lighting, and Crouse-Hinds provide customers with the most highly trained customer service representatives in the electrical business. 8

Best in the WestWestburne Electric Supply offers top product lines in varied sectors.

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SASKATCHEWAN ASSOCIATIONOF OPTOMETRISTS

The eye is one of the main organs through which some living organisms, including human beings, perceive their environment.

The amazing eye’s refracting system allows light from ob-jects focus onto the area at the back of the eye called the retina. Light energy enters the eye through the cornea. The cornea can be thought of as special transparent skin that covers the eye. The lens then bends, or refracts the light until a majority of the light energy is focused on the retina. Since the retina is sensitive to light and can be damaged by exces-sive light energy. The iris, or coloured part of the eye, is the muscle that controls the amount of light that enters the eye through an opening called the pupil. The pupil size shrinks with any increase in light falling on the eye. The retina con-sists of light sensitive cells called rods and cones. The rods are concentrated on the edge of the retina and are mainly for peripheral vision and detection of moving objects. The cones are in the centre of the retina and are responsible for detailed vision and colour reception. The optic nerve sends the signals from the eye to the brain. Thus, the retina cap-tures the image and the brain interprets it.

No matter where we work, flying particles, dusts, fumes, vapors, or harmful rays are apt to expose us to potential eye injury. Fortunately, we can protect against these hazards by using the appropriate protective eyewear.

Common Types of Eye InjuriesThe type and severity of eye injuries range from small

scratches, which heal in a few days, to chemical burns that

can cause permanent blindness. Eye injuries are usually the result of direct contact with an

irritant to the eye. The irritant may come directly from the source to the eye, in the event of a chemical splash or debris from an activity, or be transferred to the eye from a soiled hand, arm, or other means.

Chemical Exposures and Burns Chemical exposures and burns occur when a toxic sub-

stance makes contact with the eye. Acids, alkalis, strong sol-vents, and cleaning agents, and other industrial chemicals are highly caustic and can cause severe damage. The amount of damage suffered from a chemical splash depends on how long the chemical is in contact with the eye. Thoroughly flush the eyes for 15 minutes to completely dilute the chemi-cal.

Corneal Abrasions — A corneal abrasion is, in effect, a scratch or an abrasion of the transparent eye covering. These are the most common type of eye injury and are usually overlooked, mainly because most heal by themselves within a few days. Corneal abrasions are caused by a foreign object making contact with the eye and can be classified as trau-matic, foreign body related contact lens related, or sponta-neous.

Traumatic Iritis — This type of injury can occur in the same way as a corneal abrasion. It is also associated with a blow to the eye from a blunt object.

Hyphemas and Orbital Blowout Fractures – These injuries are associated with significant force from a blunt object to

The Amazing Eye Needs ProtectionThere is no “good” excuse for an eye injury.

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SASKATCHEWAN ASSOCIATIONOF OPTOMETRISTS

the eye and surrounding structures.Lacerations — Lacerations can occur to the eyelids and cor-

nea. They are commonly caused by contact with a sharp ob-ject, including shards of glass.

Ultraviolet Keratitis — The most common light-induced trauma to the eye is ultraviolet keratitis, which can be thought of as sunburn to the cornea.

Foreign Body — Generally, a foreign body is a small piece of metal, wood, or plastic filing. This could be anything that gets into the eye.

PreventionIt is estimated that 90 per cent of eye injuries can be pre-

vented through the use of proper protective eyewear. The task now is to educate people on how important it is to wear eye protection. People don’t realize that an eye can be destroyed in a fraction of a second.

Standard safety glasses look very much like normal glasses,

but are designed to protect you against flying particles. They contain lenses that are impact resistant and frames that are far stronger than regular eyeglasses.

Protective eyewear has evolved dramatically over the years. In the past, safety glasses were worn mainly in industry and made of tempered glass with unflattering frame styles. Since then, a merge between safety glasses and sunglasses has made eyewear more protective and fashionable. There is a much wider selection of colours and styles of frames to choose from. Lens materials, such as phoenix/trivex, and polycarbonate, are the industry standard for today’s safety eyewear.

There is no “good” excuse for an eye injury. For information about a comprehensive Prescription Safety

Eyewear Program, personalized for your company, contact Darren Mirau, Occupational Vision Care (OVC) Coordina-tor at the Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists (SAO) at 306.652.2069 or [email protected]. 8

Take Responsibility for your employee’s eye safety by tailoring the program to meet your company’s safety eyewear needs

The Saskatchewan Association of OptometristsPhone: 306-652-2069 or [email protected] www.optometrists.sk.ca

Occupational Vision Care Program

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MASSLOAD

In industries from mining and manufacturing to construc-tion, transportation, and agriculture, the need to weigh or measure inputs, outputs, and applied force has grown in re-

cent decades to improve production safety and control costs.“Design engineers are responding as complex systems such

as mine lift equipment, construction cranes, industrial tanks, grain silos, and locomotives, which may have lacked weight or force sensing capability in the past, are being upgraded to in-clude load cells, load pins, and tension links,” says Riley Phillips, a mechanical designer at Massload, a Saskatoon, Canada-based manufacturer of quality load cells and weighing systems. “These sophisticated weight and force sensing devices can help to maximize production load efficiency while offering some of the enhanced safety features that are increasingly required by regu-lation, such as automatic shutdown if a load exceeds capacity.”

Here’s a quick look at measuring weight or force with load cells, load pins, and tension links (also known as tension cells).

The BasicsA load cell is a transducer that changes force into a measure-

able electrical output. There are many varieties of load cells, of which strain gauges are the most common. Load cells can range from versatile single-ended shear beam, which can be used in weighing applications such as blenders, hoppers, and floor scales, to double-ended shear beam which can be used in ap-plications such as tank weighing and large capacity platforms.

“Load pins and tension links are subcategories of load cells,”

explains Phillips. “Load pins can be substituted anywhere there is a pin and there’s a need to know the shear force on it. Tension links are a type of strain gauge transducer that measures force in tension applications such as wire rope, chains, and pulleys. These are often used in lifting, pulling, and winching applica-tions such as for cranes and mine lift equipment.”

Standard load cells and tension links are typically used if the system is standard or an engineer can adapt the system to an off-the-shelf item. This tends to occur in applications where there’s some system design flexibility in the early stages of de-sign. Most load cells, load pins, and tension links are custom designed when they must be adapted to fit existing systems. However, designers should consider the potential for custom load cell solutions even for new designs where their use en-hances the overall system integrity, safety, or performance.

How to Avoid PitfallsPlanning a superior weighing system or retrofitting an old

one on existing equipment can present challenges to even vet-eran design engineers. Bringing in your weighing system ven-dor during the planning stage can allow you to improve safety and control costs while meeting specific code requirements.

“A lot of issues need to be considered,” says Larry van den Berghe, president and CEO at Massload, which has refined its custom design flow over the past decade. “It is important to look at the design process upfront to ensure reliability and manufacturability while controlling costs.”

“For instance, fit is critical on load pins because they normal-ly have to interface with tight tolerances,” adds Phillips. “De-pending on where the load is applied, if the supports, loading area, pin diameter, or other factors are off, the load pin may not work as expected.”

To avoid pitfalls, insist on a regulatory approved quality management system that traces the load cell manufacture at each critical step from start to finish and request a design flow checklist from the weighing system vendor to ensure that criti-cal steps are not omitted.

“CAD modelling is not always straightforward, and some-times you have to think beyond software’s presentation,” adds Phillips. “A stress concentration in the CAD modelling may look artificially high in one area, but may be masking a stress pattern in another area. You need accurate data on stress pat-terns throughout the component.”

Enhancing Mine Safety With Load CellsWhat you need to know about measuring weightor force with load cells, load pins, and tension links.

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MASSLOAD

Ask the weighing system vendor to validate the output of their load cell component against simulated real world condi-tions. This validation could be achieved through a digital photo of the test set up for enhanced accountability.

The design specifications, loading, testing, and application must be aligned explains Phillips.

“It’s critical to get accurate CAD modelling and test data be-cause that’s how the product will act, but it must be backed up by actual testing,” he states. “A mistake as simple as using the wrong supporting restraints could artificially strengthen load pin CAD results, and if real-world testing doesn’t catch it, the component may not have its stated capacity.”

To ensure output stability, engineers also need to know how the load cell output may vary depending on material strain over time, according to Phillips. Conducting a creep test to deter-mine how stable the output is over time can also be important.

Because the accuracy of any load cell is only as good as its calibration, it is vital that the reference cells in any testing sys-tem be traceable to a trusted standard such as that of the Na-tional Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). To guar-antee that your supplier complies with the Verified Conformity Assessment Program (VCAP), a program implemented by the National Conference on Weights and Measures, it is also a good idea to ask for a copy of the VCAP auditor’s report.

“When warranted, it’s advisable for a vendor to cross check their results against an independent, third-party engineering firm as an added layer of reliability and quality assurance,” adds Phillips.

The right vendor partner will also pay attention to small de-tails that will streamline manufacture of the weigh system com-ponent, such as gauge selection, bonding, and sealing to ensure lasting performance and resistance to water intrusion.

Phillips notes the importance of knowing the correct loca-tion where load cells, load pins, or tension links are supported “because if you over-support a load cell it won’t have the output you’d expect.” Placement of internal electronic components such as bondable or trimmable resisters can also affect device performance, he says.

“Even details such as putting scribe lines on where to place components can ease manufacturing,” says Phillips. “When

these sorts of details are overlooked, they can require the man-ufacturer to rebuild a load pin or load cell before it’s done right.”

Details such as the types of bolts used should not be over-looked either.

“The customer may require a countersunk bolt arrangement to hold lids on, if they’ve found that during operation bolt heads have been knocked off because they’re close to walls or equip-ment,” he explains.

The right weigh system vendor partner will also consider finer points that will affect field performance and maintenance.

“It’s important to include loading direction arrows because once a product like a load pin is sealed and symmetrical, the customer won’t know which way to place it in their equipment otherwise,” explains Phillips. “To enhance field performance, it’s also necessary to specify the right type of connector, whether hard wired, wireless, or quick disconnect.”

As design engineers respond to the growing need to weigh or measure inputs, outputs, and applied force to improve pro-duction safety and control costs, working and consulting with the right vendor partner can be a critical choice in designing weigh systems with the optimum load cells, load pins, or ten-sion links. 8

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CALM AIR

Calm Air’s story began over 50 years ago from the humble beginnings of a fishing camp float plane operation to now being one of central Canada’s largest regional air-

lines. Founders, Arnold and Gail Morberg, recognized the impor-

tance of reliable air service to their camp guests and established the airline in 1962. In 2009, Calm Air was purchased by Ex-change Income Corporation who deemed Calm Air a success-ful company with long term goals and commitment to future growth.

Reliable air service is still one of Calm Air’s philosophies today. Passenger service is scheduled to five communities in Manitoba and seven communities in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut on a daily basis. This is not an easy feat as the weather can be temperamental in the north. Jet service was introduced to the Manitoba communities two years ago. The Dornier J328, with seating capacity of 32 and a speed of 370 mph, has been

Unearthing The North On Wings Calm Air was born in the north to service the north.

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CALM AIR

CHARTER & CARGO 1.888.225.6247 PASSENGER RESERVATIONS 1.800.839.2256

CHARTER Hawker Siddeley 748, Saab 340B, ATR 42, ATR 72, Dornier 328JETPASSENGER Frequent Daily Flights, Convenient Connections, Low One-Way FaresCARGO General & Priority Rates, Bulk Fuel, Oversized Freight, ‘Big Door’

Calm Air is Fuelling the North

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proven to be the aircraft that is the ticketed choice amongst travellers. With a growing population in the north, jet service was required for the convenience of time for the business and medical traveller.

Passenger service only makes up approximately half of Calm Air’s total business. Calm Air’s fleet of eight ATR 42 and two ATR 72s handle its customer cargo and freight needs with ease. The ATR 42 holds up to 11,000 pounds of freight and only needs a 3,000 foot runway, while the ATR 72 can take up to 16,000 pounds of freight needing a 3,600 foot runway. These ATRs have the capability to land on gravel and ice strips and haul both bulk tanks and fuel drums. With warehousing of their

own in Garden Hill and Oxford House, delivery in and out of these communities has never been easier. Also having an ex-panded warehouse facility in Churchill has not only has opened more doors in northern Manitoba, but it is opening doors to the high Arctic as well.

The combination of passenger and air cargo in these remote communities is what makes Calm Air so successful today. Calm Air has the ability to take a 42 passenger aircraft down to a 22 passenger aircraft and combine that with freight which makes these types of aircraft very viable in the north.

With bases in Thompson, Churchill, and Winnipeg, Calm Air has opened the gateways to the north.

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PKS LIFTS

When PKS is approached with the question “do you think you can lift this?” their im-

mediate response is, “tell us what you want to lift and we can build it.” Since 1998, co-owners, Stanley Poweska and Chris Kubat, have teamed up to create one of the most innovative companies in the equipment lifting industry. PKS Equipment & Engineering Incorporated, stands as one of North America’s most specialized lifting companies. Today, PKS continues to transform the visions of their customers into reality.

When it comes to the needs of their customers, Poweska and Kubat leave their clients in awe as they go above and beyond the typical two-post or four-post lift. One accomplishment, among sev-eral, includes engineering lifts that are located in mines descending more than a mile into the ground. This equipment operates to lift some of the heaviest min-ing equipment, which currently tops at 240,000 pounds. Besides mining, PKS is manufacturing lifts that are used in the servicing aircraft engines in aerospace industry, lifts used in Boston Transit

for subway cars, lifts for the Caterpillar machinery assembly line, lifts for the military, and many more. With Poweska and Kubat’s persistent engineering back-grounds, no challenge is left unmet.

While PKS has the ability to continu-ously stun their customers, the company

also takes pride in assisting in basic lift-ing needs. Their standard lifting equip-ment includes heavy duty four-post drive on lifts, portable or mobile column lifts, scissor lifts, two-post lifts and in-ground bus and truck lifts in high and low pressure designed to be environ-mentally friendly and certified. This type of equipment can be found in (and not limited to) local government facili-ties, school bus garages, car dealerships, over-the-road truck centers, municipali-ties and mass transit centers. A profi-cient company, like PKS, has the ability to appeal to all customers, no matter how big or small the request.

PKS also works with distributors across the United States and Canada. When one of the distributors from the mid-western United States, Indiana Au-tomotive Equipment, was asked, “Why do you choose to offer PKS lifts as one of your equipment lines?” owner Shane Tatom replied, “our customers in the

Up-LiftingLifts that will take you to new heights.

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PKS LIFTS

heavy duty industry use many different types of lifting equipment to lift a variety of vehicles, and PKS is a company that builds all the different types of lifts in house at their Ancaster, Ontario facili-ties. This is very important to us because we can work with one manufacturer for all the different types of equipment we offer.”

Tatom comments that with PKS, he’s able to have the support system that he hasn’t been able to find with other com-panies.

Along with meeting the support needs of their customers, PKS acknowledges the importance of safety and makes it a priority in their equipment. This is especially significant since safety has recently developed into one of the great-est concerns in the equipment lifting in-dustry. You might ask, “What exactly is company doing to insure that their lifts are in the best safety ranking possible?” Well PKS is member of the Automotive Lift Institute and works with ALI to ac-complish the mission of promoting the safe design, construction, installation, inspection, and use of automotive lift products. Stanley takes this same mis-sion and integrates the safety into his

own company to create the safest, most high quality lifts in the world. Not only that, but he’s helping other company’s to do the same.

New trends are constantly arising in the lifting business. One of the most popular trends today is the use of mobile columns. PKS is a company that offers mobile columns in three-phase, single-phase, and battery-operated electric/hydraulic lifting options. The capacity ratings of these mobile columns begin at 12,000 pounds per column and goes up to 50,000 pounds/column (200,000 pounds total). The mobile columns are helping clients utilize the most space possible in their service bays, while also being able to lift a wide range of vehicles with just one lifting system.

Recently making a return to the in-dustry of in-ground lifts have been seen as a convenience, especially since new designs offer low oil volume (five gal/per post) high pressure environmentally friendly lift with capacities up to 35,000 pounds/per post.

In the past, these lifts have become a detriment to the environment due to their problem of leaking hydraulic fluid into the ground. Today’s in-ground op-

tion allows the lift to be serviced and/or rebuilt without the lift being dug up.

Another popular trend seen in the lifting world is the scissor lift. PKS has developed a way to build this lift in many different capacities from 20,000 pounds up to 130,000 pounds and lengths from 16 feet up to 60 feet, making it a very popular lift. It can also be bolted directly to the top of the concrete floor without any excavation necessary. In addition, equipment that utilizes tracks as a drive option (such as bulldozers) can easily enter the platform and be raised. PKS patent pending design of section run-ways lift that can be lowered down into the mining shaft and easy assembled on site.

It is no secret that we live in a world that is changing every day. These chang-es are even being seen in lifting equip-ment Industry. It is obvious that the capacity of vehicles is becoming higher. This means that the capacity of the lifts used for these vehicles must change as well. With PKS having the attitude of, “tell me what you want to lift and we can build it,” they are in the driver’s seat to supply HD lifts when it comes to an ever-changing market. 8

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TIGERDALE ENTERPRISES LTD.

Entering into it’s eighth year of operation, Tigerdale is con-tinuing to grow by providing what the customer wants – quality and 24-hour service, seven days a week. Tiger-

dale manufactures coreboxes, corebox lids, core racks, marking blocks, and surveyors lath, all used in the exploration and min-ing industry. Located on a primary highway in northeastern Saskatchewan, Tigerdale services companies Canada-wide.

Coreboxes come in all shapes, sizes, and quality. Tigerdale provides a “western style” corebox that is superior to most core-boxes on the market.

“The difference is in the assembly,” says Yvette Dudar, office manager. “All our boxes are screwed together, rather than sta-pled or nailed, so they can take the bouncing and rough treat-ment that is all a part of doing business at the drill site. As we all know, core drilling is costly and the core needs be contained in a way that keeps the sample as intact as possible. A poorly made/falling apart box containing core, costs the customer far more than just the cost of the box. Tigerdale does supply a su-perior box to help protect your core.”

Tigerdale’s coreboxes come in the traditional NQ, HQ, PQ, and BQ sizing. Custom sizes are welcome upon request. Tig-erdale is also very cognizant of the weight of a full corebox and is now providing sizing that meets the ergonomic demands as requested by some customers.

“Tigerdale understands that the exploration industry is not a nine to five business and we are more than willing to be available after hours, weekends, and holidays. We strive to work with the customer to ensure they receive their orders on their schedule or timeframe,” says Dudar. “We’ve been shipping Canada-wide since our opening in 2006 and our coreboxes have been used in just about every province and territory throughout Canada.

With over 20,000-square-feet of useable floor space, Ti-gerdale stores all coreboxes and racks inside to protect them from the elements. When your product is shipped to you it is shipped clean and free of the ice buildup or debris that you may find in products that are assembled and then stored outside un-til their sale.

Coreboxes, Core Racks,And Customer ServiceTigerdale Enterprises Ltd. continues to provide high quality of all factors after eight years of operation.

“All our boxes are screwed together, rather than stapled or nailed, so they can take the bouncing and rough treatment that is all a part of doing business at the drill site.”

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TIGERDALE ENTERPRISES LTD.

Western Style core boxes manufactured with plywood bottoms and extra screws and nails for added strength. We carry NQ, HQ, BQ, Lids, marking blocks, surveryors lath. Custom sized boxes are manufactured upon request.

Core Racks with treated wood and metal tubing- both in NQ and HQ sizing.

We ship Canada-wide and pride ourselves on fast friendly service.

Tigerdale Enterprise Ltd.Core Boxes and Racks

PO Box 58 201-1st Street SouthPleasantdale Saskatchewan S0K 3H0T (306) 874-5540 | F (306) 874-5568

E [email protected] | www.tdecoreboxes.ca

Enclosed Core racks protect your core from the elements .

The staff consists of local Saskatchewan residents, including an on-site journeyman carpenter who oversees quality and completes special proj-ects for customers. Within the building is also a coffee shop that serves as a town meeting place most mornings.

Tigerdale is open to meeting with potential clients as well. The com-pany has a booth at the Saskatchewan Geological Conference in Saska-toon every year and invites people to stop in or come by the plant located at Pleasantdale, Saskatchewan.

“We here at Tigerdale feel confident that we manufacture superior products at competitive prices. Our intention is to be one of those busi-nesses that is here to stay for many years to come,” says Dudar. 8

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ARGO

With the arrival of three “versatile” eight-wheeled plat-forms, Argo utility terrain vehicles have tapped into a growing range of specialized applications for highly

receptive customers.Argo’s current line of extreme terrain vehicles (ETVs) in-

cludes three baseline platforms: the Argo 8x8 750 HDi, Argo 8x8 XTI, and 8x8 Centaur. Each baseline features a host of ver-satile options and components to adapt the vehicle to unique requirements in the field, backed by the manufacturer’s or dealer’s capability to customize its product as needed to suit the customer.

“Our new class of ETVs was inspired by requests from busi-ness customers to push our popular UTV series even further. They were looking for very rugged working vehicles that could take them deeper into the toughest terrain conditions, whether it’s dense bush, rock, or flooded areas, explains Bernhard Wa-genknecht, vice president, sales and marketing, Argo.

The development of Argo ETVs began with mine exploration crews looking for more practical and affordable ways to trans-port people and supplies into remote sites around the world. Since then, Argo ETVs have also been welcomed into service for public utilities, forestry, firefighting, and search and rescue.

Common Ground for ETV MobilityConfigured to carry cargo, passengers, or tools, each of the

new ETVs is based on the same engineering principles that made Argo the “go to” vehicle for serious off-road enthusiasts. The design of each platform began with extreme terrain essen-tials, including low ground pressure, low centre of gravity, trac-

tion, and maneuverability. Sharing these primary characteris-tics, all three ETV types offer a light step on soft or sensitive terrain, excellent stability to safely negotiate slopes and rough ground, and ground-eating mobility to climb through all kinds of soft, wet, and uneven terrain.

Safety is a key concern when personnel are sent into isolated work zones, so it’s a key focus for Argo as well. Tipping be-comes a serious hazard on rough terrain, but Argo’s low centre of gravity makes it one of the safest off-road vehicles available. The tipping coefficient, or static stability factor, for Argo ETVs is uniformly in the range of 1.35 to 1.4. By comparison, the most popular competitive UTVs are three to four times more likely to roll over. Adding a ROPS cage will provide some protection against tipping injury, but it will also raise the centre of gravity and make the vehicle less stable as it negotiates boulders, logs, and steep inclines.

Unlike most ATV/UTV -style vehicles, the Argo ETVs are able to steer through the tightest bush and rock conditions with their zero turn radius and feature a ground clearance of nine-inches or more. The Argo 8x8 750 HDi and Argo 8x8 XTI are both amphibious, able to drive straight into and out of flooded areas and small lakes, while the larger Centaur ETV will ford streams as deep as 26 inches. The vehicles’ fully sealed lower body not only keeps out water and dirt, it also contains service fluids within the machine. Potential pollutants such as lubrica-tion, oil, hydraulic fluid, antifreeze are safely held in the vehicle in case of a leak until they can be properly disposed. The ETV body also minimizes heat and spark hazards in dry forested areas and grasslands. Only a short segment of the exhaust is exposed outside the body, exiting the hull at a point three feet (one metre) above ground level.

Rough-Terrain “Tool Carriers”For industrial explorers and crews working in the world’s

most remote territories, “getting there” is only half the battle. The Argo ETVs are built for hard work, and the designers en-sured that each platform would adapt readily to the many ap-plications their owners take on. The ETVs are offered with a list of quick-change components that tailor the baseline vehicle to its job with customized equipment for carrying cargo, people, special equipment, and fuel.

“Making the baseline vehicles easy to convert has really made a difference to the practicality of these ETVs,” says Wagenknecht.

All In The FamilyArgo ETVs bring a new work ethic to eight-wheelersfor resource and utility industries.

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ARGO

“We’ve had a lot of success with rental houses who stock the vehicles along with a selection of add-on components, much as they stock attachments for other prime movers. It lets them get more utilization from their investment, and a more satisfied cus-tomer at the end of the project.”

UTVs Roll up Their SleevesThe Argo 8x8 750 HDi and Argo 8x8 XTI closely resemble

previous models of ARGO UTVs in appearance, enclosed by a vacuum-formed sealed body with full skid plate provided as standard. Both are powered by 31 HP (23.1 kW) Koehler Ae-gis 750 cc engines coupled to the triple-differential ADMIRAL standard or high-torque steering transmission developed by Argo’s parent company, Ontario Drive and Gear Ltd. (ODG). The transmission delivers even torque to all eight tires and is up to 50 per cent more efficient than hydrostatic drive systems.

The HDi model is rated for loads of up to 1,150 pounds (520 kg) and runs at top speeds of 20 mph (32 kilometres/h). Its standard ground pressure with Argo’s stock 25-inch tires is just 2.1 psi (14.5 kPa), which can be pared down to as little as 1.06 psi with the use of Argo’s 18-inch wide rubber multi-purpose tracks. This excellent weight distribution is especially valuable when crews are traversing environmentally sensitive areas – the impact of the Argo vehicle is actually lighter than a man’s footstep.

Argo also offers 15-or 18-inch quad tracks for all of its vehi-cles, designed to provide increased flotation along with traction to scramble over obstacles on irregular terrain.

The XTI is a beefier vehicle with a 1,500 pound (680 kg) load capacity and a top speed of 17 mph (27 kilometres/h). Like the HDi, the XTI features a one-piece ergonomic handlebar steer-ing control with a mounted brake lever. Its greatest departure from the lighter HDi is in the chassis, modeled after the highly durable and robust Centaur 8x8.

Extreme-Terrain TruckingThe top of the line 2013 Centaur 8x8 has adopted the look

and the work ethic of an extreme-terrain truck. Shifting to an automotive-style steering control, the Centaur is driven by a 34 HP (25.3 kW) Daihatsu/Briggs & Stratton engine with the

advanced Centaurmatic transmission, designed specifically for this ETV by ODG. Operating at speeds up to 28 mph (45 kilometres/h), the Centaur hauls loads up to 1,500 pounds (680 kg) and boasts a towing capacity of up to 2,000 pounds (900 kg) using an auxiliary trailer available from Argo.

The hallmark of the Centaur is the payload platform behind the two-person cab. Argo has developed a varied selection of flatbed decks, a dump box, as well as a multi-purpose mounting frame for add-on equipment that users can quickly swap out to suit the task at hand. Variations now in the field include a cus-tomer installed mobile jib crane, drilling rigs, spraying systems, and firefighting equipment. The mounting frame is purposely designed with a deep recess into the body of the ETV, so the vehicle’s centre of gravity remains close to the ground after its attachments are mounted.

Argo’s focus on supporting work crews is reflected in addi-tional features and options such as the 150A alternator kit for operating power tools on the Centaur, a dash-operated bilge pump, and a 4,000 pounds (1,814 kg) power winch for front or rear mounting. For rapid transport to the most remote sites, Argo offers a four-point helicopter lift kit for all of its ETV se-ries.

All in the Argo familyArgo ETVs are marketed through a growing network of

stocking distributors and dealers worldwide. Argo USA has more than 100 dealers and continues to grow at a steady pace.

Since their introduction over 45 years ago, Argo vehicles have become world-renowned for their versatility, safety, de-pendability and low operating cost. In 2008, Argo accepted the challenge of a lifetime, helping the Canadian Space Agency to design a vehicle for “out of this world” terrain conditions: NASA’s next-generation Lunar Rover! Recently, Argo partnered with a Canadian security specialist to create a remote-operated robotic platform for airport baggage facilities to recover and remove suspicious packages safely. With over 50,000 units in service worldwide, Argo vehicles have been adopted and cus-tomized for military, search and rescue, and robotic surveil-lance duty, as well as leading the industry in recreational and hunting applications. 8

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JENNMAR CANADA

Canadian mining companies know all too well the vast-ness of Canada’s geography and the broad distribution of its mineral resources. With mines and exploration proj-

ects located from coast to coast and into the high arctic, miners face unique logistics challenges in ensuring product supply to keep operations going.

When it comes to ground support products, a strategic sup-ply item for any underground operation, one company has rec-ognized this challenge and is committed to meeting this need head on.

“It’s one of JENNMAR Canada’s core business strategies. To locate our facilities close to our customers’ operations,” says David Hurd, managing director of JENNMAR’s Canadian op-erations.

This approach is adopted around the globe. With manufac-turing and distribution in 27 locations worldwide, each geo-graphic operation takes this methodology down to a regional level.

“When it comes to supply logistics, central stocking allows us to respond quickly to delivery needs. It also allows us to consol-idate inbound and outbound freight, reducing these significant cost drivers and allows us pass savings onto our customers,” continues Hurd.

Responsiveness to customer needs for engineering and tech-nical support has also been key to JENNMAR’s growth and they are second-to-none in providing these services with each location staffed with technical personnel.

JENNMAR Canada, founded in 2008, established corporate headquarters and its first manufacturing plant in Sturgeon Falls, Ontario. They established an engineering, technical sales, and customer service center in Sudbury, Ontario. JENNMAR

also established itself in Quebec, constructing a technical and customer service center in Val d’Or with a fully-stocked ware-house, meaning they are well positioned to support customers in Quebec.

To support western Canada, JENNMAR located a second manufacturing facility in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Manu-facturing a full-line of ground support products, JENNMAR’s western Canada operation serves as a consolidation and staging area for specialty products manufactured at other JENNMAR plants worldwide. Regional expansion in the west continued with the establishment of a customer service and distribution center in Thompson, Manitoba.

Through an opportunity presented with the formation of a purchasing group in the Yukon, JENNMAR Canada recognized the challenges facing these remote northern operators. Deliv-ery response time and the high-cost of freight and logistics are significant factors impacting these operations. In response JENNMAR established a warehousing and distribution center in Whitehorse, Yukon.

“Though requiring significant financial commitment, we rec-ognized that we had an opportunity to directly benefit these remote miners, and partner with the group in logistics. The for-mation of this operators group is something attempted by min-ing companies in the past but this is the first time I have seen it successfully achieved. It speaks to the resilience and innovative spirit that is so characteristic of Yukoners and we wanted to play our part,” states Hurd.

As new challenges and opportunities arise JENNMAR will continue along this path. “One thing customers can rely on is the fact that we will have skin in the game by being on their doorstep,” he concludes. 8

Location, Location, LocationJENNMAR Canada keeps close to customers to ensure high-quality service.

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JENNMAR CANADAOntario • Saskatchewan • Yukon

www. jennmar.com

Given the vastness of Canada’s geography and the broad distribution of its mineral resources, Canadian mining companies face

unique challenges in ensuring enough product supply to keep operations going.

When it comes to ground support products, JENNMAR recognizes these challenges and is committed to the strategic location of our facilities as close as possible to our customers’ operations, allowing us to respond quickly to delivery

needs, also allowing consolidation of inbound and outbound freight.

Reducing these significant cost drivers allows us pass savings onto our customers, and that helps improve any location.

Location. Location. Location.

NorthernProspector_FullPg_9-2013.indd 1 10/1/2013 12:03:51 PM

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SAFETY WHIPS

The increased number of regulations and requirements for mine safety doesn’t come as a surprise. Mining has historically held some of the most dangerous jobs, and

the most dynamic work environments. Throughout mining’s history, new safety rules and regulations have been formed as a result of a hard earned lesson; as one veteran miner said, “each of these rules has blood on it.” From an accident that results in bumps, bruises, and damages to one that results in fatalities, a momentary lapse or poor practice often results in an incident or accident. Mining our resources is a critical component to our global economy, however we must do so while sustaining effec-tive safety practices and minimizing damages and loss of life.

Once corrective action is identified, swift implementation is critical to avoiding repetitive mistakes. SafetyWhips has built its reputation and success on this concept: first to respond, and quickest to adapt. The safety industry is dynamic, and the mine safety industry must evolve and contribute immediately. Safety-Whips continually adjusts its manufacturing process and prod-uct offerings to allow for this change instantaneously.

Does anyone recall seeing a small truck equipped with a long broomstick and a red rag at the tip? You won’t see many mine sites still allowing a “broomstick and rag” as a safety flag, and this is due to several corrective mandates following accidents at a number of mine sites. The specific height of a flag 12 feet in the air factually prevents loss of life. Investigators have used data to reconstruct proper viewing angles and distances of larger equipment to assert that 12-foot tall warning whips be required to avoid future incidents.

Look at it this way, we have a minimum of five senses with sight being one of the most valued senses for well-being and production. Increasing visibility is the most critical safety mea-sure for all mine sites.

SafetyWhips has focused its research and development on

improving site visibility through use of Light-Emitting Diode (LED) technology. In recent years, the mine industry has in-creasingly utilized LEDs to improve equipment efficiency, sav-ing on equipment maintenance costs while simultaneously achieving a high level of visibility for safety.

SafetyWhips has stayed at the forefront of this gradual tran-sition by engineering and producing Warning Whip products, Auxiliary Lighting products, and Vehicle Identification Lighting products with the brightest whip lights available and the most robust Vehicle Identification Systems made.

As the industry leader in extremely heavy duty Vehicle Identi-fication Display (VID) systems, SafetyWhips produces products that no other company has been able to replicate. The VID is the most visible, withstands the most extreme mining environ-ments, and easily takes a high pressure bath.

When it comes to site visibility and safety, SafetyWhips’ en-gineers use up-to-date LED technology to outperform all com-petitors. Visibility is critical, and in separate reports issued in the U.S. by MSHA, the inability to properly identify large equip-ment can result in catastrophic damage and fatalities. Sites globally such Freeport McMoRan in Morenci, Arizona (U.S.) and Oyu Tolgoi in Ulaanbaatar City, Mongolia have set their site standards to specifically require “SafetyWhips” brand prod-ucts for large equipment identification. The product line’s rec-ognition as having the best visibility and best durability in the market is supported by sites in more than 18 countries globally currently using and requiring these products.

Mine site safety is an ongoing target, with “best practices” be-ing the path to the safest work environment possible. Through the selection of the right products made by manufacturers who understand these environments, mine sites are safer and more productive. 8

Whipped Into ShapeEnsuring timely, effective, and highly visible safety products.By Michael Tucker

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NRB

There is no doubt that a renewed awareness of off-site construction is climbing to an all time high.

Emerging project profiles, academic re-search studies, and reports such as Pre-fabrication and Modularization, by Mc-Graw Hill Construction, combined with the media hype surrounding high-pro-file, high-rise modular buildings going up in NYC, or China, have piqued the interest of architects, owners, construc-tion managers, and general contractors. And while you can likely find many ar-ticles written that explain why this is so, there are fewer articles written that explain how to work with off-site con-struction techniques to realize the best possible outcome.

For mining operations, building a complete structure off-site under con-trolled conditions has many advantages. Construction activity on-site is mini-mized resulting in less disruption and better safety. The accelerated construc-tion process generally has your build-ing completed in about half the time of conventional methods, and building in

a controlled plant environment means less downtime, a reliable workforce, bet-ter QA, and less waste. In order to get the most out of this alternative project delivery method however, you must un-derstand how the process works, and how it differs from on-site construction.

Here are three basic pre-construction tips that could help you get started.

Research and Prequalify the Industry

The commercial modular construc-tion industry is comprised of two prima-ry sectors - relocatable buildings, and permanent buildings. And while some companies do both well, others have more preference or depth in one over the other. Permanent modular (off-site) construction is gaining an increased foothold in the construction industry today in many markets. For the mining industry, workforce housing (temporary, or permanent) is a widely recognized and highly utilized modular building ap-plication. Additionally though, compa-nies are looking to modular construction

for a variety of surface structures such as operations centres, mine dry buildings, and administration complexes that are built for extended life and durability us-ing steel and concrete.

Industrial mine site locations can present a myriad of logistical challenges not found on a typical commercial build-ing site, such as remote locations, high levels of daily surface activity, restricted or timed site access, as well as stringent document control, Q & A and Inspec-tion Test Plans, and most importantly, very rigorous health and safety proto-cols. It is prudent to match your facility requirements and site logistics to com-panies with similar prior experiences, so initiating a vendor pre-qualification process ahead of your actual bid process could be beneficial.

Commit to the Concept; Complete the Design

A successful modular project requires some advance collaborative planning to avoid pitfalls that can occur when attempting to convert a convention-

Getting Started “Off-site construction” for the mining industry.

By Laurie Robert,vice president, Sales and Marketing, NRB Inc.

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NRB

ally designed building project over to a modular project too late in the game. The design team should consult with or include a qualified modular contrac-tor who can guide the design process and optimize the use of modularization. While permanent modular construction can meet most any requirements for aesthetics, building science, mechanical and electrical systems, life safety, and life cycle durability, there are certain condi-tions inherent to the elemental design principles that need to be considered.

The Module LayoutBreaking the desired floor plan down

into workable modules requires plan-ning. The module layout is determined by creating the most logical and cost ef-ficient way to achieve the desired floor plan for the owner, while allowing for all outside influences that impact, or are impacted by this design. Some examples include:

Foundations - The final module layout determines the final foundation design requirements by establishing all bearing point locations and their loads.

Transportation regulations - Each three-dimensional module must travel over roads from the plant to the final site location and local transportation regu-lations, (they can vary geographically), will govern the maximum length, width and height these pieces can travel. High volumetric spaces, such as mine dry fa-cilities with hanging locker basket sys-tems, would require the modules be split both horizontally and vertically.

Site access - Notwithstanding the re-strictions that may be imposed by trans-portation, the modules must also be able

to move through the site location, and be craned on to the foundations. Fenc-ing, gates, adjacent structures, and other obstructions must be considered when establishing the final sizes and configu-rations of the modules, or when deter-mining the extent of site work that may be necessary.

Mechanical /Electrical Systems - Be-cause overall height of module is also dictated by transportation, often me-chanical duct systems are designed to work within less ceiling space. BIM is an effective tool to assist with layouts and clash detection.

Modular mate lines - The objective is to complete as much of the building off site as possible, up to 90 per cent is common. Therefore when configuring the modular floor plan it is best to avoid locating windows, doors, and plumbing fixtures across modular splits if possible, to reduce on-site work.

The module layout needs to be com-pleted by the modular builder, with the input of other stakeholders in the event some minor changes are needed.The fi-nal Modular Key Plan as it is commonly known, is then “frozen” and becomes an essential part of the structural design process.

Final Design and Approvals When formulating the project sched-

ule, establish a reasonable but finite time to get the final design, submittals, and approvals completed to 100 per cent and stay with it. Unlike conventional construction, where the length of the project schedule may permit decisions or changes to be made during construc-tion, once the modular project hits the

plant floor, contemplated changes, or change directives can adversely affect the flow of the construction process, and the schedule.

In order to gain the optimal advantage of the accelerated scheduling, the objec-tive is to avoid discontinuance, so cap-turing the complete design intent and code requirements upstream is neces-sary. The modular builder may also ask for staged approvals that best fit their production schedule, particularly for items on the critical path such as struc-tural steel, so be prepared to review and approve the shop drawings as they are submitted.

Define the Scope of WorkDuring the pre-bid or pre-construc-

tion phase, establish, agree on, and com-municate the project scope of work that will be carried out by the modular con-tractor and that which will be carried out by “others” (usually the general con-tractor) on the site.

Typically the modular contractor is responsible for the final modular design, fabrication, transportation, and setting on the foundation, as well as complet-ing the remaining installation finishes of architectural, mechanical, and electrical elements within the building itself. The general contractor may be responsible for all site work including foundations and final service connections to the building once it is in place. These scope elements can vary by project and by site depending on the needs and resources of the owner and the contractors, but regardless of the split in work, a Scope of Work document should be created, clearly defining the roles and responsi-bilities of all the stakeholders before the project begins.

These are only three basic “pre-con-struction” guidelines to consider when exploring the innovative possibilities in off-site construction available today. To become more familiar with methods and materials, contact an industry provider in your area, or contact NRB through their website at www.nrb-inc.com. 8

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Building off-site reduces on-site activity,improving safety.

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Building your project off-site in our controlled plant environment results in better waste management, less downtime and improved quality during construction. When an NRB building

arrives at your site it is already up to 95% complete, significantly reducing on-site activity as well as vehicular traffic from material deliveries and workforce travel. This results in a cleaner, safer construction site with minimal disruption to the busy mining operation.

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Specializing in the Mining Industry with permanent Mine Dry Facilities,Operations Centres and Administrative Offices.

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LEON’S MANUFACTURING

RAMROD Equipment, “the lon-gest running mini skid manufac-turer in the industry,” offers over

60 years of quality and experience to cus-tomers and dealers worldwide. Located in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, RAMROD Equipment has spent years developing and perfecting RAMROD products to manufacture only the highest quality of equipment.

RAMROD PRO Series, RAMROD Estate Series, and RAMROD Specialty Custom models are RAMROD Equip-ment’s 2013-2014 line of models cur-rently on the market. RAMROD Mini Skid Compact Loaders and attachments can always provide the right equipment solution. From wheeled to track, nar-row to wide, diesel, biodiesel, propane to gas powered, remote control opera-

tion, different hydraulics output options, and a wide selection of attachments, the RAMROD line is a profitable investment for dealers to represent and end-users to own. Countless “quick attach” attach-ments are also available for all units, such as buckets, levellers, augers, tren-chers, backhoes, pallet forks, hydraulic hammers, and much more

The RAMROD PRO Series includes Model 930 Wheel, Model 1330 Track, and Model 1350 Track. These heavy duty multi-purpose units offer commer-cial operator more power and perfor-mance than ever before. With incredible push-pull tractive power, exclusive self-levelling loader arms, industry leading lift height and carrying capacity up to 2,700 pounds, the RAMROD PRO Se-ries is ideal for any tough conditions or industrialized application.

The RAMROD Estate Series features Models 500 Wheel and 575 Track. These two units deliver big performance in small places. Machines are driver-friendly, with an unobstructed view of

Perfect ToolRAMROD Equipment offers big and small for all types of jobs.

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LEON’S MANUFACTURING

all working conditions. The 34-inch or 40-inch narrow track base of the RAM-ROD Estate Series makes it easy for op-erators to access tight work areas that larger loaders are incapable of reach-ing. These compact machines are easily transported on trailers or pick-up trucks and are ideal for home owners, acreages, barnyard use, or light utility and con-struction applications.

One feature that the RAMROD Mini Skid Loader has, that sets it apart from other compact loaders, is the option of remote control operation. Using the RAMROD Model 1350 Track machines as a base, these upgraded Remote Con-trolled Units allows the machine to be controlled within the operator’s line of sight up to a maximum distance of 500 yards from the machine. These machines are ideal in conditions where space is very confined, where toxic materials are being handled, where falling debris may cause operator injury, where slope conditions are severe, or anywhere that could jeopardize the operator’s health and safety. The numerous industrial ap-plications can also be accommodated with special requirements such as light-ing, cameras and attachments, for below the surface and above ground use, inside or outside of buildings. Currently, RAM-ROD Remote Control units are being used in mines in Chile, South America; British Columbia, Canada, and through-out the United States. 8

The numerous industrial applications can also be accommodated with special requirements such as lighting, cameras and attachments, for below the surface and above ground use, inside or outside of buildings.

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VENTURE CAPITALMARKETS ASSOCIATION

If Joe Martin, co-founder and chairman of the new Venture Capital Markets Association (VCMA), had his way, the VCMA would eventually evolve into an industry association

dedicated to working with the various Canadian regulatory bodies overseeing the venture capital industry. Additionally, he would like to see captains of industry financing a Chair of Regulatory Studies at a few of the country’s more prominent schools of business. The reasoning behind his plans?

“The venture capital market in Canada is slowly being regu-lated out of business,” Martin states. “The Toronto Stock Ex-change and the TSX Venture Exchange are owned by the banks. They’re trying to change venture capital investments into blue-chip investments. And, in so doing, they are killing a 100-year old Canadian tradition of financing emerging businesses.”

Martin goes on to talk of how these changes are affecting the job market.

“We are now in the very real process of seeing thousands and thousands of jobs being lost because of regulators who do not understand speculative investing and by politicians who allow them to operate without accountability to anyone other than themselves,” he states.

According to Martin, about 60 per cent of worldwide mining exploration is done by Canadian companies, with two-thirds of these headquartered in Vancouver. Venture capital to help fund this industry is (or has been) available in a variety of ways. Mar-tin estimates that about one-third of all of the world’s mines owe their origins to venture capital investments by Canadian companies.

“Venture capital investing in tech, life-sciences, energy and mining is a high-risk/high-reward proposition,” states Martin. “Fortunately, for venture capital companies, they’ve been able to procure and find viable projects because of a system that supported them—at least until now.”

New Regulations Strangle Market

Don Mosher, co-founder and president of the VCMA, is a strong proponent against the new industry regulations.

“We believe that over the last 25 years, since the Bank Act was dissolved in the 1980s, that the bankers have taken over the exchanges and regulatory bodies,” he states. “Regulation is a growth industry these days and the banks are the only ones benefitting from it.”

Mosher cites several regulatory examples that support his argument. First, he says, neither of the two independent boards operating under the Investment Industry Regulatory Organiza-tion of Canada (IIROC) have people who represent and/or have an interest in the venture capital industry.

Second, on March 17th of this year, the IIROC introduced a new client-relationship model that that has taken the rules governing managed discretionary accounts and applied them to all advised accounts. As a result of this new regulation, the account advisor is now governed by his “fiduciary duty”. For example, the “suitability clause” prevents allowing a venture in-vestment to anyone over the age of 65.

“All of the liability has been placed on the account advisor,” states Mosher, who adds that most of Canada’s wealth is held

Change Is In The AirNew association takes aim at over-regulation in venture capital market.

By Melanie Franner

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VENTURE CAPITALMARKETS ASSOCIATION

by Canadians over the age of 55. “These regulations and rising costs are forcing junior mining companies out of the market.”

Mosher cites Fraser Mackenzie Limited’s recent resignation as an IIROC member as an example of how over-regulation is affecting the market.

“Junior mining companies can’t raise money in this type of environment,” he states. “Regulatory barriers to investors and escalating costs are putting these startups out of business be-fore they begin.”

The Right to SpeculateMosher says that the venture investment is speculative, just

like buying lottery tickets or gambling at a local casino. Each comes with its own risks, but Canadians are granted the right to self-govern in the second two examples.

“The odds of winning a lottery or winning at Black Jack in a casino are set,” he notes. “But as an educated ventures investor, I can dramatically increase my chance of success by studying the companies and following the markets. Yet, as an older inves-tor, I can’t participate, unless through a discount or unadvised account. And, as a youngster, I can’t participate in a financing due to not qualifying as an accredited investor. So where is the money going to come from to finance startups? The successes become the equities populating the TSX. Where are these com-panies going to come from in the future? The pool of capital

available to venture needs to be expanded—not restricted.”Mosher, in fact, believes that the new regulation goes against

the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom.

A Unified VoiceThe creation of the VCMA is expected to help turnaround a

struggling industry overburdened with regulation. “We have already formed an agreement with a lobbyist firm,”

states Martin. “We’re not out to reinvent the wheel. We’re try-ing to aggregate information with other bodies that are involved so that we present a united front and a unified voice.”

To that end, the VCMA is in the process of raising money to fund its lobbying efforts. It is asking that all public companies on the TSE Venture Exchange donate $100 and all private in-dividuals associated with the venture capital industry donate $5. The association is also asking a few key members of indus-try who have benefitted significantly to make a donation to the cause.

“We would like to raise at least $200,000,” concludes Martin. “It is an ongoing program, but one in which we would like to have the momentum swinging in our favour within the next six months.”

More information the VCMA and its fundraising efforts may be found at http://venturecanada.org. 8

Above:� Don Mosher.Right:� Joe Martin.

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Alex MacIntyre & Associates Ltd. ..........................................42Anglo American Exploration Canada Ltd. .............................51Athabasca Fuel Service Ltd....................................................47Atlas Copco .............................................................................39BPT Components & Parts Inc. .............................................110Brandt Tractor ........................................................................99Britespan Building Systems.................................................114Brookville Equipment Corporation ......................................139Bull Powertrain & Driveline Center .....................................111Butler Buildings Canada ........................................................37C & V Portable Accommodations Ltd. ...................................34Calm Air International Inc. ...................................................149Cambridge House International ............................................67Canadian Western Bank ...........................................................3Cementation ...........................................................................71Certified Mining & Construction Sales & Rentals ..............107Churchill Gateway Development Corporation .......................77Copper Reef Mining Corporation .............................................9Danatec Educational Services Ltd. ........................................74Darby Manufacturing ..............................................................97Di-Corp .................................................................................141Diamond Shelters ...................................................................55Dimatec Inc. ............................................................................28Discovery International Geophysics .......................................25Discovery Mining Services......................................................33Foremost Industries LP........................................................103Fortis Corporation ..................................................................31GMR Electric Motors ................................................................4Golder Associates Ltd. ...........................................................95Graham Construction ...........................................................105Havlik International Machinery Inc. .......................................43Hugh Monroe Construction Ltd. ..............................................4Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Ltd. .............................24Innovative Utility Products Corp.............................................51Irathane/Elliot Systems ..........................................................60J.P. Enterprises Incorporated ................................................72Jamal Contracting Inc. ...........................................................20Jennmar USA........................................................................157Kramer ....................................................................................36L&M Powertrain Parts ...........................................................21Lakehead Marine & Industrial Inc. ........................................30Legacy Building Solutions .................................................. OBCLeons Mfg. Company Inc. .....................................................163Lewis Instruments Ltd. ..........................................................38LiDAR Services International Inc. ..........................................89MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP .................................... IFCMagestik Foundations (Ontario) Ltd. .....................................47Manitoba Innovation Energy & Mines ....................................19Massload Technologies ..........................................................13McCann Equipment Ltée./Ltd. .............................................110

Metalex Metal Buildings Inc. ..................................................11Miller Thompson LLP ...........................................................IBCMine Hoists International Ltd. .......................................32, 108Minesense Technologies Ltd. ...............................................133Modern Tool Ltd. ...............................................................86, 97Norseman Supply Ltd...............................................................6North Bay Machining Centre Inc. ..........................................57Northern ANI / Innov-X Canada ...........................................117Northlands College ................................................................87Norwest Manufacturing .........................................................26NRB Inc. ................................................................................161Nutana Machine Ltd. ..............................................................41Ontario Drive & Gear ..............................................................63Osprey Wings Ltd. ...................................................................88Perimeter Aviation Ltd. ..........................................................32PKS Lifts .................................................................... 100 & 101Points North Group of Companies .........................................93Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan ...................................83Power & Mine Supply Co. Ltd. ...............................................45Praetorian Construction Management ................................121Pyott Boone Electronics Inc. ................................................119Richards Transport Ltd. .......................................................103Robertson Trading Ltd. ..........................................................89Ross Industries Ltd. ...............................................................40Rosta Inc. ................................................................................59Safety Whips .........................................................................108Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists ........................145Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy ................................29Scott’s General Store ............................................................134SCR Mines Technology ...........................................................61Sea Cargo Air Cargo Logistics Inc. ........................................73Skyharbour Resources Ltd. ...................................................89Snow Lake Home Building Centre .........................................75SRK Consulting ......................................................................28Steel Building Canada Inc. ...................................................118TerraLogic Exploration Inc. ..................................................125Tigerdale Enterprise Ltd. .....................................................153TNR Industrial Doors .....................................................65, 126Tracks & Wheels Equipment Brokers Inc. ............................35Transwest Air ..........................................................................23University College of the North ................................................5Vermeer Canada Inc. ............................................................109VMS Ventures Inc. ...................................................................85Westburne Supply Midwest ..................................................143Western Heritage ....................................................................53West Wind Aviation / Pronto Airways .....................................11Winacott Spring Western Star Trucks .................................106Winkler Canvas Ltd. ...............................................................62Young’s Machine Co. .............................................................108zemco Door Products ............................................................22

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