The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
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Alaska Miners Association celebrates 85 years of service, advocating for growth and sustainability in Alaska's mining industry. As the Alaska Miners Association celebrates its 85th anniversary, the organization's vital role in advancing the state's mining industry comes into sharp focus. Founded in 1939 at the onset of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the AMA was similarly established to advocate for fair labor practices and safe mineral development in the Last Frontier. Over...
Zinc contributed most to state's mine production value during 2023; gold is poised to take the crown and make run toward 1 million ounces per year. At a value of $1.5 billion, zinc held onto its throne as the most valuable metal produced in Alaska during 2023. With production forecasts and price trends headed in opposite directions for zinc and gold, however, the gleaming precious metal that drew fortune-seekers North at the turn of the 20th century could soon regain the...
From breaking ground at Alaska's next gold mine to the advancement of North of 60 projects focused on delivering the metals needed for the transition of low-carbon energy, and an impressive safety milestone at Alaska's only coal mine to a history of the helicopters that make mineral exploration across the North possible, here is a countdown of the 10 most popular North of 60 Mining News articles in 2023: No. 10 - CORE celebrates Manh Choh, Lucky Shot Contango Ore Inc., a...
Usibelli Coal Mine Sept. 7 celebrated 1,000 consecutive days without a lost time accident. The fact that this milestone is not a record for Alaska's longest operating mine is a testament to Usibelli's unwavering commitment to the safety and well-being of the more than 100 workers. "We are proud to celebrate 1,000 days without a lost time accident," said Usibelli Coal Mine President Joe Usibelli Jr. "This achievement reflects our commitment to safety as a core value and the...
For those in the know, Alaska's resources aren't just some surprise windfall for renewable energy technologies. While precious metals like gold and silver have been the primary focus of more than a century of mining up north, the 49th State is home to 49 of the 50 materials on the United States' critical minerals list and has a history of stepping up to the plate to provide America with critical minerals when they are needed the most. Looking ahead over the next two to three...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska: Gathering together leaders, decision-makers, and experts toward the common goal of understanding the value of Alaska's mineral endowment and how to unlock it for America's net-zero emission goals, the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management hosted a two-day workshop bringing attention to carbon management and critical minerals and how the Last Frontier will be a keystone in achieving the country's lofty ambition. Held at...
More gold, strong zinc prices helped push value higher; critical minerals could add a boost moving forward. Alaska mines produced approximately $4.51 billion worth of nonfuel minerals last year, a 16% increase over the $3.89 billion in 2021, and an impressive 42.7% jump over the $3.16 billion of mined products during 2020, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's Mineral Commodity Summaries 2023 report. The rise in Alaska mine production value is largely due to increased...
Whether you are involved in the mining industry or not, lifelong Alaskans, at some point or another, have most likely heard the name Usibelli. Perhaps, however, many Alaskans may not be aware that behind the Usibelli Coal Mine is the Usibelli family – owners and operators of the largest coal mine in Alaska. Yet before a titan of Alaskan industry was born, generations of sweat, elbow grease, and raw determination was needed before the name Usibelli would be known. Built from f...
Usibelli Coal Mine May 14 announced the passing of Joseph Usibelli, Sr., an Alaska mining pioneer in the truest sense. Born on Dec. 28, 1938, in Suntrana, a historic Alaska mining town about 3.5 miles east of the community of Healy, Joe Sr. spent his entire life involved with Alaska's mining sector. The son of Emil and Rose Usibelli, Joe became president of Usibelli Coal Mine at the age of twenty-five after his father passed away unexpectedly in 1964. During his 23-year...
Reclamation is more than a regulatory requirement for Usibelli Coal Mine Inc., a family-owned company that began restoring the natural landscape at its Interior Alaska coal mining operation before there were federal laws requiring it. Now that there are reclamation regulations in place, mining companies must post a bond that ensures the land gets restored – either by the company that will get the money back upon successful completion or a third party that will use the bond m...
Mining and mineral exploration helped to bolster an Alaskan economy plagued by COVID-19 during 2020. According to a report prepared by the McKinley Research Group, a renowned Alaska-based research and consulting firm formerly known as McDowell Group, Alaska's mining industry injected roughly $2 billion into the Alaska economy last year. Commissioned by the Alaska Miners Association and Council of Alaska Producers, "The economic benefits of Alaska's mining industry" report...
Amidst the scramble to prepare for an imminent pandemic that is roiling mining and metals markets, the three large mines in Interior Alaska have taken the time to look after the members of their community most vulnerable to COVID-19. On March 12, Kinross Fort Knox Mine, Northern Star Resources Ltd. Pogo Mine and Usibelli Coal Mine collectively donated $21,000 to support an emergency funding request received from the North Star Council on Aging for the Fairbanks Senior Center....
Usibelli Coal Mine April 10 reported that its crew of roughly 100 employees worked 798 consecutive days without a single lost time accident (LTA), a new safety record for the Interior Alaska mine. This surpasses the coal mine's previous safety record of 797 days without an LTA, set by its crews in 2006. "While we are proud of this accomplishment, there is never a sense of complacency about the safety challenge," said Usibelli Coal Mine President and CEO Joe Usibelli Jr. "We...
Usibelli Coal Mine Jan. 30 surpassed two years of operations without a single lost time accident, a job-related injury that results in time away from work. Usibelli's safety program – Everyday Safety-At Work. At Home. At Play. – combined with the CORE Safety framework of the National Mining Association lays the foundation to make safety a core value for all mine employees. "The number one priority at UCM is safety – every day, and in everything we do," said Usibelli Coal...
Usibelli Coal Mine Inc. Oct. 26 announced that it has acquired the Tri-Valley subdivision in Healy, Alaska from Alaska Railroad Corp., a major step in the coal mining company's goal to make these lots available for private ownership. "What many people outside Healy may not know, is that there isn't much land in the area available for private ownership. The community's primary residential subdivision is actually built on Alaska Railroad Corporation land. Residents own their...
HEALY: Hundreds of friends, family and colleagues arrived at Usibelli Coal Mine Inc.'s Healy operation to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the longest lived large mining operation in Alaska – an event that highlighted the coal company's pioneering past, current growth and bright future. During a speech to kick off the celebration, Usibelli Coal President Joe Usibelli, Jr. said the Healy operation is currently delivering roughly 1 million tons of coal per year to five power p...
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 is now looking more like a dead-cat bounce – a minor recovery after a long down trend. This is particularly true of the exploration sector. Reviewing the Alaska minerals industry, you will note that several exploration projects are only now commencing their 2018 exploration p...
Celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, Usibelli Coal Mine (UCM) is Alaska's only operational coal mine. The company is proud to have an all-Alaska workforce of approximately 100 employees, of which more than one-third represent the second, third or fourth generations within their families to have worked at the mine. Today, Joe Usibelli Jr., the third generation of the Usibelli family, leads the mine as president, a position he's held since 1987. Each year UCM produces...
FAIRBANKS – 2018 marks the 75th anniversary of Alaska's longest lived mining operation, the Usibelli Coal Mine Inc.'s coal mining operations near Healy – a monumental milestone honored by the mining community during the Alaska Miners Association Biennial Spring Conference in Fairbanks. "I guess as far as 75 years ago, that's a pretty amazing number when you think about it and in some ways we're a survivor and success is a combination of a lot of hard work and a lot of luc...
Miners see mountains of federal regulations standing between them and the development of Alaska’s unparalleled mineral wealth. In the recently published Fraser Institute Survey of Mining Companies, 449 global mining executives ranked Alaska 59th, right below Zimbabwe, when it comes to uncertainty concerning environmental regulations. This perception is not just that of those observing Alaska from afar, but also one shared by the miners who are trying to develop and operate m...
Mining's contribution to Alaska's economy starts with the hefty paychecks being issued to the some 4,350 miners that work in the state, according to recent study completed by the Alaska Miners Association and McDowell Group. The report, "The economic benefits of Alaska's mining industry," found that the average miner working in Alaska during 2016 received a whopping US$108,000 for the year, about double the average income across all sectors in the state. That is nearly US$470...
With metal prices stabilizing, physical stockpiles dwindling and demand again on the rise, things are beginning to look up for the beleagered mining industry. Gold's performance over the past several months is a case in point. The World Gold Council reported that during the first quarter, buying of exchange-traded gold funds rose to its highest level since early 2009, wiping out the deep sell-offs of 2014 and 2015 for this instrument. Uncertainties in the fiscal stability of...
As President Barack Obama enters his last month in the White House, his administration has finalized a midnight hour rule that would add another level of regulatory burden on coal miners in the United States. Developed by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, a bureau within the United States Department of Interior, this “Stream Protection Rule” is being advertised as a means to ensure that surface and groundwater flows remain in balance in and around a c...
After eight years of battling anti-mining policies being promulgated by the Obama Administration, the National Mining Association is cautiously optimistic about the positive change in the tone and substance of U.S. resource development policies since Donald Trump has moved into the White House. “The November election ushered in a surprisingly swift and dramatic change, particularly in the way people in Washington D.C. view natural resources,” NMA President and CEO Hal Quinn said during a June 28 keynote speech at the Res...
President Donald Trump is set to ink his signature on a resolution that overturns a midnight hour Obama administration rule that threatened U.S. coal miners with added regulatory burden. The so-called Stream Protection Rule was touted by the Obama administration as a necessary clarification of the rules surrounding valley fill, a mining technique used in Appalachia that involves depositing overburden removed from hilltops in an adjacent valley and then re-contouring the...
