developments
Courtesy of KGHM Polska Mied S.A.
disappointing. “Obvigenerations of royal wedding ously whenever a project bands, including the Queen Mother Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, doesn’t move forward Queen Elizabeth, Princess Marthrough the process, for garet, Princess Anne and the industry it’s disapPrincess Diana. Last November, pointing,” he told CIM the Daily Post, which covers Magazine. “And when you think of a project like North Wales, reported 60 Ajax, it’s one that could grams of gold from the Clogau have provided economic mine sold at auction for benefit, both in terms of £44,000 ($76,000) to an jobs and the commodity anonymous buyer for five times that’s produced.” its estimated value, prompting Cox said that despite speculation it had been bought the announcement, he felt by the royal family for the wedthe province’s new NDP Ajax, a 1,700-hectare open-pit copper-gold project, is located about 10 ding of Prince Harry and government has been kilometres southwest of Kamloops. Meghan Markle in May. clear about its “commitDiminishing gold reserves ment” to the mining industry. “This is Federal environment minister caused the mine to shutter in 1998, one specific project, but the governCatherine McKenna issued a separate but Alba’s executive chairman George ment has made that comment to indusnews release on Dec. 14 saying that she Frangeskides told CIM Magazine that try and also publicly that they believe had referred the project back to Fish- the “prospect of discovering unworked this industry is foundational and eries and Oceans Canada and Natural veins in the existing and extensive Cloessential in the transition to a lower Resources Canada to determine gau mine development is above all carbon economy,” he said. what makes this project attractive.” whether the project could go ahead. – Kelsey Rolfe Kamloops City Council and the four Frangeskides said the company is still First Nations had previously objected assessing the project’s timeline, but there has been more interest in the to the mine being built. In March an Junior miner takes a project due to the royal connection. environmental review panel led by the stake in project with a Alba has uranium, iron ore, SSN rejected the project after a graphite and oil and gas assets in the months-long review, citing the spiritual royal pedigree United Kingdom, Ireland, and Greenand cultural importance of the land Alba Mineral Resources aims to land. Frangeskides said the company around Jacko Lake, where the mine reopen a Welsh gold mine with a royal looks for assets with “significant historwould be located. connection, which was closed for ical work and, ideally, a production Ajax was the first mining project in nearly 20 years. history.” Clogau-St David’s has proBritish Columbia’s history that needed The London-based miner acquired duced the most gold historically of any to have a First Nations consultation a 49 per cent stake in Gold Mines of U.K. gold mine, accounting for 81,000 plan as part of the environmental Wales Limited, the owner of the Clo- ounces of the 131,000 produced in the assessment project. The ministers said in the release that gau gold mine, in early December. In Dolgellau gold belt it is located within. Alba’s announcement, the company The company, which is worth £8.8 the assessment found the project would have “significant adverse impacts” on said “the opportunity presented by this million ($15 million) on the London Stock Exchange’s small-cap market, the asserted aboriginal rights and title Project is pretty unique – high grade of the SSN, “which in many cases could gold in the heart of the United King- plans to bring the existing mine back dom, the fact that Welsh gold attracts a into production and explore the site for not be avoided or minimized. new targets. “With a wider exploration “The ministers concluded these significant premium over spot rates, ground, we have identified over 100 effects were unacceptable in the cir- the historic connections of Welsh gold with the heritage of the United Kingsuch targets and historical workings,” cumstances.” Frangeskides said. “To focus on the The environmental assessment was dom, the potential for finding more coordinated between the provincial gold in the vastly under-explored highest priority areas, we’re using 3D underground scanning and we will Environmental Assessment Office and exploration ground.” The site area includes the Clogau-St commission ground and airborne geothe Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. It evaluated the project David’s mine and “over 300 smaller physical surveys over the most prospective areas of the project to idenfor five different types of effects: envi- workings and trials.” The high-grade, narrow veins of tify structures for follow-up drilling.” ronmental, economic, social, heritage Clogau have provided gold for three – Amanda Scriver and health. February • Février 2018 | 29