Articles written by Curt Freeman
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 161
Green bananas, mining risks, and time
Noted Alaskan prospector Rudy Vetter once told me, "At my age, I don't even buy green bananas anymore." I heard this sage remark during a mineral property lease negotiation after I offered Mr.... — Updated 8/19/2022 Full story
Is it time to press the reset button?
I know, I know, I promised to shut up and go away a long time ago. But I lied, so sue me! Just be glad I didn't title this ramble "Is it time for Format-C?" after all, most of the young-uns would... — Updated 7/28/2022 Full story
The final entry of Captain Curt's log
In November 1996, a little over 23 years ago, I began writing quarterly mining news summaries for the Society of Economic Geologists (SEG). Shortly after that, I began writing monthly summaries for... — Updated 9/26/2020 Full story
Old mining risks yield to new concerns
As the year winds down, mineral industry evaluations for 2019 are being published at a rapid rate. One of the most interesting such global reviews is EY Global Mining and Metals' annual "risk... — Updated 9/26/2020 Full story
Alaska exploration extends into mild fall
An abnormally long fall has allowed the Alaska mining industry to extend seasonal work well into mid-October, creating a lot of new information about project work conducted around the state.... — Updated 9/26/2020
Alaska mining traces erratic global trend
If you have watched the metals markets over the last month, you know why Alaska's mineral industry has surged, stalled, swerved, swooped, slowed, shelved and stuttered, sometimes all at the same... — Updated 9/26/2020 Full story
Alaska's topsy-turvy exploration season
As the rest of the country suffers through the Dog Days of summer, Alaska is approaching the end of a topsy-turvy summer season that saw unseasonably hot, dry weather in some parts of the state duri... — Updated 9/26/2020 Full story
Freeman throws down rare earth gauntlet
Earlier this month Reuters reported that several agencies within the U.S. Federal government were "rapidly assessing" our domestic ability to mine and refine rare earth elements and utilize those... — Updated 9/26/2020 Full story
Metals feel love, explorers not so much
Earlier this month S&P Global put out a summary indicating that during the first quarter of 2019 metals like copper, zinc and nickel were up quarter over quarter by 11 percent, 22 percent and 25... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
The 2019 mining game is afoot in Alaska
In the famous words of Sherlock Holmes, the game is afoot! After seasonally slower news from Alaska's mining industry in March and April, the dam has broken with over two dozen Alaska mining... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Calm before the 2019 exploration storm
As is usually the case this time of year, news about Alaska mineral activities is a bit sparse this month as planning activities are at flank speed ahead of next month's surge in field activities.... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Concerning mineral exploration trend 2019
As is usually the case this time of year, the mining industry is awash in backward-looking statements designed to allow for more accurate forward-looking statements. Prime among them is one of my fa... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Unbridled enthusiasm keeps miners happy
Those of you that attended the recent Cordilleran Roundup Convention in Vancouver can attest to the exuberant, upbeat atmosphere that pervaded the conference and was very much in evidence at the... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Keeping the main thing, the main thing
I, for one, feel vindicated, relieved and ready to face the New Year! How so, you ask? Please let me explain. For those of you who remember my column in November, I noted that EY Global Mining and... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Mixed economic signals for Alaska mining
As the year waned, Alaska's mining industry reported some of the last of its 2018 seasonal field results while the University of Alaska and state of Alaska released some current and projected... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Alaska drill results continue to roll in
WESTERN ALASKA Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. announced that it had finalized a surface right of way agreement with Alaska Peninsula Corporation for use of that latter's lands for the construction... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Mining risks change often, dramatically
As Alaska's mining industry nears the end of another hectic year during which metals prices and investor sentiments rose and fell as precipitously as the world's major stock exchanges, the industry... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Explosion of mining activity in Alaska
Following a couple of quiet months where Alaska's mining industry focused on its work, the last month has seen an explosion of new info come out regarding that effort, some of it profound in its... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Strategic metals ban rallies explorers
Underscoring the interconnected nature of the global mining market, not 48 hours after the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act was signed into law, the mining industry began wondering... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Dead cat bounce for Alaska mining?
Although the Alaska mineral industry is in better health in the middle of 2018 than it has been in the last five years, the spirited recovery that was in progress in the first quarter of the year... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Alaska mineral exploration tops $100M
The summer field season is in full bloom across Alaska with programs stretching from the Brooks Range to southeastern Alaska, and from the Yukon border to southwestern Alaska. Exploration targets... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Critical Alaska geological maps needed
One of the most common complaints I hear from companies and individuals working in the mineral industry in Alaska is our deplorable lack of modern, usable-scale digital geophysical and geologic... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Stiff competition for exploration services
An early spring coupled with low snow fall in many parts of Alaska have combined to enable companies large and small to start their summer field programs early this year. As expected, competition is... — Updated 9/25/2020 Full story
Alaska exploration mirrors global trend
In 2017 Alaska’s mineral exploration industry saw its first up-tick in exploration spending since 2011, an increase that S&P Global Market Intelligence’s “World Exploration Trends” indicates... — Updated 9/24/2020 Full story
Mining sector about to rocket ... or not
Seven days of near-continuous rain did nothing to dampen the mood at the recently concluded Cordilleran Roundup Convention in Vancouver. The event was buoyed by a realistic optimism we have not... — Updated 9/24/2020 Full story