September 3rd, 2025 - The Mine Wire

METALS MARKET

 ^{**For our chart above we are taking prices from Tuesday 4pm EST to Tuesday 4pm EST, so not the typical week of Monday through Friday.}

KEEPING AN EYE ON GOVERNMENT DECISIONS

Here are some of the notable government policy moves this week:

• 🇨🇳 The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) held its 25th summit this week in northern China. Heads of State from China, India, Russia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan all attended. Founded in 2001, the SCO originally sought to deepen military cooperation among its members. Today, the SCO has broadened its scope and at this summit members discussed cooperation in the areas of politics, security, trade, investment, energy, industry, sustainable development, new technologies and international and regional agendas. The summit was followed by a massive military parade yesterday where Chinese President Xi Jinping warned the world was facing a choice between peace or war.

• 🇨🇦 Canada was also focused on alliance building this past week as Prime Minister Mark Carney and his Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Tim Hodgson, were in parts of Europe. The pair touted a Joint Declaration of Intent with Germany to deepen co-operation to secure critical mineral supply chains. Minister Hodgson specifically pointed to the example of MP Materials being funded by the United States, "I think you'll see us looking at similar types of transactions, working with our allies." A task force for co-operation will be established that may have participants from industry, Indigenous communities, academia, and other stakeholders. (Government of Canada)

• 🇨🇦 Prime Minister Carney also announced that the government has officially launched The Major Projects Office (MPO) to serve as a single point of contact to get nation-building projects built faster. The MPO will be headquartered in Calgary with Dawn L. Farrell as the inaugural President & CEO. Previously, she was President and CEO of both Trans Mountain Corporation where she oversaw its multibillion-dollar expansion project, and TransAlta Corporation where she led a major transition from coal to renewables. We like the appointment a lot, like that the head office is located in the west, but the proof will be in the pudding. With that said, we like what we see so far. Got a potential major project? Better get that congratulations letter in with a meeting request. (Major Projects Office)

• 🇨🇦 The Government of Canada also announced that it is investing $6,225,000 to support Graphite Nordique’s Lac-des-Îles expansion project that will extend the mine’s life and sustain its operations by seven to ten years. It also announced CED grants totalling $2,448,570 to assist five promising projects in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region. The recipients are Techni-Lab S.G.B. Abitibi, Arkys Web Software, ASDR Canada, Usinage Marcotte and HydroTech Mining.

• 🇨🇦 In British Columbia, the government gave its consent for Imperial Metals Mount Polley Mine expansion which would extend the mine’s operations to 2033. Across the country in Nova Scotia, the government issued industrial approval for NexGold Mining Corp’s Goldboro gold mine. Expected to come online in 2026, the new gold mine is expected to create 735 new jobs and contribute $2.1-billion to Nova Scotia’s gross domestic product. Not surprisingly, NexGold’s stock shot up 40% on the news. Might be time to pick up a few shares. (Government of Nova Scotia)

• 🇨🇦 Calling all Geoscientists, Engineers, Land Surveyors, Lawyers and other professionals. Effective January 1st, 2026, through the Ontario government’s new “As of Right” framework, a worker in a regulated, non-health occupation who is certified by an out-of-province regulatory authority can apply through a streamlined process to begin working in Ontario. Within 10 business days, they will receive confirmation that they are deemed to be certified in Ontario and can begin working. They can work for up to 6 months while completing their full application to register with the Ontario regulatory authority for their occupation. We really like this move and hope that other provinces follow Ontario’s lead. (Government of Ontario)

• 🇨🇦 BDC has launched a $200M Fund II to Power Canada’s Next Wave of Industrial Innovation which now includes critical minerals. The fund will invest in early-stage, high growth companies developing transformative solutions in a number of sectors, including extractive industries, and now with an expanded focus on critical minerals, a sector increasingly recognized as vital to Canada’s economic sovereignty and national ambitions. Check this out if you are a technological innovator in Canada and seeking financing → (BDC)

• 🇦🇺 Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, is inviting small to medium-sized enterprises to apply for its free eight-week online program, Innovate to Grow: Critical Minerals. The program helps SMEs with innovative ideas investigate new research and development opportunities, refine their concepts and better position themselves for growth in Australia’s critical minerals sector. Applications close on September 21st, 2025 → (CSIRO)

• 🇺🇸 The U.S. Department of the Interior released the draft 2025 List of Critical Minerals and a report that outlines a new model for assessing how potential supply chain disruptions could affect the U.S. economy. Potash, silicon, copper, silver, rhenium and lead were recommended for inclusion to the list and arsenic and tellurium were recommended for removal. Inclusion on the list is critical for companies to access government financing and support. (US DOI)

• 🇺🇸 Reuters reported that the Trump administration is considering a plan to reallocate at least $2 billion from the CHIPS Act to fund critical minerals projects. Again, highlighting the importance of an updated critical minerals list as the US looks to sprinkle some cash on the sector.

• 🇺🇸 The Department of the Interior is moving forward with three competitive coal lease sales in Alabama, Montana and Utah this fall. Canyon Fuel Company, LLC (Utah) and Navajo Transitional Energy Company, LLC (Montana) have already signaled their interest through applications. Coal continues to be a favorite of President Trump. (DOI)

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MINING MATTERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

• 🇦🇺 🇺🇸 In major acquisition news, Australia’s RPMGlobal has received a non-binding indicative proposal from Caterpillar Inc. for A$1.123bn. The companies have entered into a six week exclusivity period for Caterpillar to conduct due diligence. Caterpillar’s all cash offer of $5 per share is a 32.6% premium to RPMGlobal’s closing price of $3.77 per share on August 28th, 2025. RPMGlobal is up 55% year-to-date and up over 75% the past year. (RPMGlobal)

• 🇺🇸 Bloomberg news reported last week that gold miner Newmont is looking to cut its production costs by $300 per ounce. In its most recent quarter the miner reported all-in-sustaining costs of $1,593 per ounce while others like Agnico Eagle were at $1,289 per ounce. Bloomberg reported that this could lead to thousands of lay-offs and that Newmont has already begun holding calls over job cuts and other cost-cutting measures.

• 🇿🇲 🇨🇳 In February, Chinese state-owned Sino-Metals Leach Zambia was responsible for a major toxic spill that polluted a major river with arsenic and cyanide. The pictures were horrifying, the Zambian air force dropped hundreds of tons of lime into the river to counteract the acid waste, and the United States embassy last month ordered all government personnel out of the area due to “hazardous and carcinogenic substances” in the environment. There is a popular term in politics, “The cover-up is always worse than the crime." Well, this week South Africa-based environmental company Drizit implied that it was fired days before its final report was due for discovering that 1.5 million tons of hazardous waste were released - almost 30 times the amount that Sino-Metals Leach Zambia admitted to. (PBS News)

• 🇨🇦 The Nisga'a and Tahltan nations and Arrow Transportation Systems have formed a three way equal partnership to purchase the Port of Stewart bulk terminal on the Portland Canal which separates British Columbia and Alaska. The government of British Columbia provided a $5m grant to the two first nations to help with the purchase. The terminal’s main focus is transporting critical minerals. (CBC)

• 🇷🇺 Russia’s coal mining giant Mechel is halting some operations as it faces declining coking coal concentrate prices, rising operational costs, a stronger rouble and sanctions due to the war in Ukraine. In its half-year report, it said: "Under the current circumstances, we have decided to suspend production of unprofitable product types, partially redirecting resources toward products that are more in demand in today's realities." The company lost $40.5bn roubles in the first half of the year, roughly $500m USD.

• 🇦🇺 In other coal miner news, congratulations to Sharif Burra, who will take over as Yancoal Australia’s new CEO, staring September 8th. With over 28 years of experience in the sector, Burra has spent the last 12 at Yancoal in a host of executive roles. Break out those congratulations notes!

• 🇦🇺 With a brand new CEO at the helm, Rio Tinto announced a new operating model and executive team this week. Effective immediately, Rio Tinto will simplify its product group structure to three business units: Iron Ore; Aluminium & Lithium; and Copper. Matthew Holcz becomes the new Iron Ore CEO while Jérôme Pécresse (Aluminium) and Katie Jackson (Copper) continue on in their unit CEO roles.

• 🇨🇦 Canadian-based instrumentation and monitoring company, GKM Consultants, will rebrand to GEO-Instruments, effective September 2, 2025. GKM Consultants and Geo-Instruments had collaborated on several large projects in the past. Now they will be united under the same name. Congratulations to all! (Geo-Instruments)

MINING BITS

• 🇨🇦 A group of 11 from the Greenstone Gold Mine in Geraldton, Ontario, won the Health Sciences North 50/50 draw, winning $432,700. You can watch the foundation’s manager call one of the members of the group who says, “I gotta tell the boys here” - some pure Canadiana! Can we get these guys as extras in an episode of Shoresy? Congratulations to the 11 for supporting a wonderful hospital charity and coming out with a cool $39,336 each. Watch the call here →(CTV News)

• 🇸🇪 Sweden’s 113 year old Kiruna Church was jacked up and loaded onto a custom-built trailer to help it make a 2 day relocation journey. Why you ask? Well the Swedish state-owned miner LKAB operates the world’s largest underground iron ore mine site in Kiruna and due to expansion, the church needed to be moved to save its wooden walls from ground subsidence. Watch the video here → (Reuters)

• 🇺🇸 The Center for Strategic & International Studies looks at “The Risks of U.S. Deep-Sea Mining.” The authors argue that any move by the United States to ignore the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea Part XI which covers the International Seabed Authority and deep-sea mining, would allow China and other global powers to do the same with Part V which covers exclusive economic zones. Basically they argue that the rules-based maritime order would be over. Definitely worth a read. (CSIS)

• 🇸🇴 The International Institute of Sustainable Development published a report in August titled, “Mining Policy Framework Assessment: Somalia.” While there are no large scale mining operations in the country, the report suggests that there are at least 47 exploration targets with evidence of tin, iron, copper, gold, platinum, molybdenum, lithium, uranium, coal and gemstones among others. High risk, high reward? Worth a read → (IISD Report)

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