Canada’s chief political spokesmen for the mining industry appear to be at odds over the recent Canada-U.S. free-trade agreement. In a recent interview with The Northern Miner, the federal mines minister expressed optimism over the agreement — optimism his Ontario counterpart doesn’t share.
“At first blush, this agreement looks worrisome,” said Sean Conway, mines minister for Canada’s largest mineral-producing province. “It appears, from what we now know, that there is more bad news than good news in what was agreed to.”
In Ottawa, Mines Minister Gerald Merrithew is singing a different tune: “This agreement carries distinct advantages for industries and individuals in every single region of Canada. Once the Canadian people are told of these advantages, they will be convinced it is a good deal.”
Lac Minerals has lost its appeal against the initial judgment in favour of awarding ownership of the biggest gold mine in Canada to International Corona.
The Ontario Court of Appeal handed down a unanimous decision supporting an Ontario Supreme Court decision to shift ownership of the Page-Williams mine at Hemlo, Ont., from Lac to Corona. However, Lac has one final avenue of appeal — the Supreme Court of Canada.
When the markets opened on the business day following the Appeal Court’s decision, Corona’s stock soared to $85 from $47.50, whereas Lac’s fell dramatically. Shares of Royex, Corona’s parent company, rose to $8.75 from $5.50, while the B shares of Teck, the company that splits everything in the Hemlo area with Corona on a 50-50 basis, rose to $45 from $34.78.
Lac has until the end of the year to convince the Supreme Court that it should be allowed to appeal the decision.
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