North of 60 Mining News - The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

The Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories has ruled that Canadian Zinc Corp. can reopen a winter road to its Prairie Creek mine without a new environmental review process, saying the road was already in operation well before new environmental... — Updated 5/22/2005

Vancouver-based Abacus Mining and Exploration Corp. said May 17 that it has signed a letter of intent with Teck Cominco Ltd. for the purchase of Afton Operating Corp.'s milling and processing facilities, tailings storage areas, associated permits,... — Updated 5/22/2005

Barrick Gold Corp. has acquired an 11 percent stake in Northwest Territories diamond explorer Diamondex Resources Ltd., Canada's biggest gold producer said May. 18. Barrick said it acquired 7.55 million units of Diamondex for 90 cents cash each in... — Updated 5/22/2005

On May 18 a methane gas explosion ripped through a Siberian coal mine where 132 miners were working, leaving one dead and 10 with burns and other injuries, the mine's director, Yuri Kurtabashev, told Itar-Tass. All 10 injured were hospitalized.... — Updated 5/22/2005

The good news from Teryl, Kinross, Geoinformatics, Midas, Geocom and others is tempered by the loss of Alaska's gentleman scientist Ernie Wolff, who passed away on May 3; Liberty Star Gold appoints Phil St. George as VP of exploration s I write... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

Construction work at the $320 million Pogo Gold Project near Delta Junction slowed in late April when a gastrointestinal virus plowed through workers at the remote site. The 24-hour bug, which caused nausea, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

Owners of the Union Bay platinum project near Ketchikan, Alaska, have approved a budget of $1.1 million for exploration this year, the companies said May 16. Freegold Ventures Ltd., Pacific North West Capital Corp. and Lonmin PLC are backing the... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

British Columbia is reveling in a mining boom without parallel in more than three decades, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Powered by higher metals and coal prices, reflecting the strong demand for commodities, and an increase in t... — Updated 5/22/2005

A geologist with 30 years' experience in Alaska has been appointed mining section chief at the Department of Natural Resources. Tom Crafford, 54, will report to Bob Loeffler, director of the Division of Mining, Land and Water, beginning June 1.... — Updated 5/22/2005

There aren't many places in the United States where you drive on the left side of the road, but Usibelli coal mine is one of them. When you arrive at the gates to the mine in Healy, Alaska, you have to switch to the left because that makes it... — Updated 5/22/2005

Explorers from Canada, Washington, Arizona - and Alaska too - have staked claims in the vicinity of the massive Pebble gold-copper deposit. These juniors hope to emulate the success of Vancouver-based Northern Dynasty and take a project to the... — Updated 5/22/2005

A mention of the world's richest diamond mines conjures images of hot, steamy African jungles. Yet it is the frozen tundra of the Canadian Arctic that is yielding the latest treasure trove of diamonds and sparking a staking stampede that is... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

Natural Resources Canada has completed C$7 million in renovations to its experimental mill in Ottawa, adding flexibility, back-up systems and energy efficiency to the facility, according to the department. The facility has been redesigned for use a... — Updated 5/22/2005

The hunt for diamonds is undergoing a reawakening in Manitoba, four years after the first wave of explorers failed to locate kimberlite. The province's far north has attracted interest from De Beers Canada, which has collected exploration licenses... — Updated 5/22/2005

Exploration spending on Yukon mines is forecast to double this year from 2004 to about C$40 million, according to an exploration and development survey by the British Columbia and Yukon Chamber of Mines. The greatest push is coming from healthy... — Updated 5/22/2005

The air miners breathe, the noise they hear, the equipment they use and the substances they consume all pose safety risks. The industry has learned this the hard way, with tens of thousands of mining fatalities in the 20th century, but today... — Updated 5/22/2005

Red Dog's unenviable position at the top of the Environmental Protection Agency's national Toxics Release Inventory doesn't mean that the world's largest zinc mine is a dangerous polluter, according to the state of Alaska. The Teck... — Updated 5/22/2005

The road has been cleared for Canada's latest diamond mine, with South African gem giant De Beers giving its final go-ahead for the C$636 million Snap Lake project. In the planning and development stages for several years, the mine is scheduled to... — Updated 5/22/2005

Idaho-based Coeur d'Alene Mines received its 12 state of Alaska permits for the proposed Kensington underground gold mine in May, and the company expects federal permits to be issued by the end of the second quarter of this year. The targeted... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

Prosecutors have opened a criminal case into alleged misappropriation of property at the Russian state diamond monopoly Alrosa, officials said May 14. The case, opened May 13, concerns the misappropriation of property worth more than 153 million ru... — Updated 5/22/2005 Full story

Freegold Ventures is planning a 2005 summer program on its Grew Creek epithermal gold deposit 22 miles west of the town of Ross River. The Yukon project is just over half a mile from the Robert Campbell Highway and the Whitehorse power grid.... — Updated 5/22/2005