Mining News: Donlin Creek destined to become behemoth  06/29/2008
After six years of hard work, NovaGold Resources Inc. is moving closer to its goal of developing a world-class gold mine in the hills above the Yukon-Kuskokwim River Basin of southwestern Alaska. The Vancouver, B.C.-based junior is set to produce its first gold at the Rock Creek project near Nome th...

Mining News: No better place for gold discoveries  06/29/2008
Everyone who is planning to work on Alaska mineral projects in 2008 is busy doing just that as the longest day of summer quickly approaches. Programs ranging from grass-roots prospecting to multimillion-dollar feasibility studies are spread over the entire state with the most active areas being West...

Mining News: He who forgets his past must re-drill it  06/29/2008
It is said that those who forget their history must relive it. It appears that geologists working together with the State of Alaska have found a unique way to make that adage come true. Imagine spending hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars building an active database and then stashing i...

Mining News: One unclear water initiative remains  06/29/2008
Alaskans will not be voting on the original anti-mining initiative 07WATR during the August 26 primary election. On June 6, the Alaska Supreme Court dismissed an appeal of a lower court ruling that declared the proposal unconstitutional. A similar initiative, 07WTR3, is still headed to the August...

Mining News: Sherwood: More at Minto, less at Kutcho  06/29/2008
Sometimes less can be more and then other times, more is just plain more. That’s the word from Sherwood Copper Corp. The company posted a major jump in mineral resource estimates June 17 for its Minto Mine in central Yukon, based on results of 101 new holes drilled across four deposits – Area 118,...

Mining News: Red Chris gets green light from court  06/29/2008
Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has set aside a lower court ruling and confirmed a federal environmental assessment of the Red Chris copper-gold project 18 kilometers, or about 11 miles, southeast of the village of Iskut, east of the Alaska Panhandle in Northwest British Columbia, according to proj...

Mining News: Miners chase projects in Canada’s Arctic  06/29/2008
Mining exploration appears to be hotter than ever this season in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, but the Canadian Arctic region’s few producers are getting hammered by the strong Canadian dollar. The discrepancy was particularly evident in the territories’ mining production. The total value o...

Mining News: Upgrades at Golden Summit to free gold  06/29/2008
Freegold Ventures Ltd. has started its first full season of bulk sampling at the Golden Summit property outside of Fairbanks with an upgraded version of the gravity-based gold recovery plant first used last fall. The recovery plant was delivered to Golden Summit late summer 2007 and was put into ope...

Mining News: Junior grabs 100 percent of Terra, LMS  06/29/2008
International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. June 10 said it has entered into an agreement to acquire all of the interest of AngloGold Ashanti (U.S.A.) Exploration Inc. in the Terra and LMS projects in Alaska, plus certain other AngloGold rights, in exchange for 450,000 shares of the Vancouver, B.C.-based ju...

Mining News: Juniors seek merger to explore Niblack  06/29/2008
Two Vancouver B.C.-based explorers, Committee Bay Resources Ltd. and Niblack Mining Corp., have agreed to join forces. The companies have penned an initial agreement in which Committee Bay would acquire all of Niblack’s securities in a one-to-one swap. Committee Bay is also investigating the possib...

Mining News: New gold producer eyes Yukon startup  06/29/2008
KETZA RIVER — Now that Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp. is a producer at its Jerritt Canyon Mine in Nevada, the Vancouver, B.C.-based miner is poised to develop a mine at its gold- and silver-rich claims here in the southern Yukon. After three years of exploration drilling and even longer cleaning up an aban...

Mining News: Barr offers voice of reason  06/29/2008
Rosie Barr, spokeswoman for NANA’s “Voices of Reason Campaign,” told Mining News that anti-mining initiatives expected to come before Alaska voters on this fall’s ballot would shut down existing mines like the huge Red Dog zinc-lead mine in Northwest Alaska and prevent the permitting of future mines...

Mining News: Pebble applies for social license  06/29/2008
During John Shively’s 17 years working for the NANA Regional Corp., he was involved with the acquisition of land selection rights for the zinc property where the Red Dog Mine is currently located. He and other NANA leaders went on to permit and develop – in partnership with Teck Cominco – the world’...

MINING NEWS: Junior tunnels into VMS deposit  05/25/2008
Nearly eight months into a concentrated digging program in Southeast Alaska, Niblack Mining Corp. has bored more than 2,200 feet into a mountain on Prince of Wales Island in a plan to create a 3,000-foot main access tunnel to the underground Niblack gold-silver-copper-zinc volcanic massive sulfide d...

MINING NEWS: Full Metal goes all out for Granite Creek  05/25/2008
Full Metal Minerals Corp. May 15 said it signed an exploration agreement with an option to purchase 100 percent interest in the Granite Creek Gold Property in southwestern Alaska. The Vancouver, B.C.-based junior said it can earn 100 percent interest in the Granite Creek property from a third-part...

MINING NEWS: Teck Cominco first-quarter profits dip  05/25/2008
Teck Cominco Ltd. reported a 4.3 percent dip in profits in the first quarter of 2008 due mainly to a higher Canadian dollar and lower coal and zinc prices. Earnings fell to C$345 million, or C78 cents a share, compared with C$360 million, or C83 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2007. Teck Co...

MINING NEWS: Fort Knox expansion jumps to fast track  05/25/2008
Kinross Gold Corp., owner of the Fort Knox Gold Mine near Fairbanks, is accelerating work on an expansion project now under way at the mine to boost gold production at Fort Knox as much as six months sooner than originally planned. Based on the revised schedule, production from the project is now ex...

MINING NEWS: When you find yourself mining lemons …  05/25/2008
Looking at the world through the wrong end of the binoculars, as I often do, induces me to conclude that Alaska’s mining industry is in a major state of disarray. Consider the evidence: There is a huge investment into the country for the purpose of developing our vast resource base; one-third of...

MINING NEWS: Drills turn on projects across Alaska  05/25/2008
The game is afoot all across Alaska with the drills turning to the right on projects all across the state. The operating mines turned in strong first-quarter results and several new acquisitions, joint ventures and new players were announced in the last month. ...

MINING NEWS: Parties settle Red Dog discharge lawsuit  05/25/2008
A federal judge has canceled a trial scheduled for May 19 concerning a lawsuit filed in 2004 by six Kivalina residents asking for more than $20 million in damages from Teck Cominco Alaska Inc. for alleged violations of the U.S. Clean Water Act at the Red Dog Mine in Northwest Alaska. Plaintiffs cl...

MINING NEWS: Little Squaw shareholders adopt new name  05/25/2008
After decades of doggedly chasing the legendary allure of the gold-rich Chandalar District northern Alaska, Little Squaw Gold Mining Co. is showing signs of closing in on its recent goals. The Spokane, Wash.-based junior changed its name in May to Goldrich Mining Co. It also released findings April...

MINING NEWS: Review set for Kensington tailings plan  05/25/2008
Coeur d’Alene Mines Corp. May 8 said the U.S. Forest Service said an Environmental Assessment is the preferred level of review for permitting the proposed alternative tailings facility for its Kensington Gold Mine near Juneau, which could allow for a conclusion of the permitting later this year. Con...

MINING NEWS: Junior Goldmark backs away from Iliamna deal  05/25/2008
Goldmark Minerals Ltd. of Calgary, Alberta has opted not to pursue an acquisition agreement with Geocom Resources Inc. to acquire all of Geocom’s interest in the Iliamna property in Alaska, and 49 percent of Geocom’s complete ownership of the Santa Rosa and Marcelita properties in Central Chile. Th...

MINING NEWS: Zazu Metals Corp. wins permit for drilling at Lik deposit  05/25/2008
Zazu Metals Corp. May 13 said it has received a Title 9 Permit from the Northwest Arctic Borough for an exploration and development program this year on the 26.7-million-metric-ton Lik zinc-lead-silver deposit, 22 kilometers, or about13.5 miles, from the Red Dog zinc-lead mine in northwestern Alaska...

MINING NEWS: Pebble owners pledge to share research  05/25/2008
The Pebble Partnership, vowing to share its research with the public as it becomes available, has launched a series of reports based on its pre-permitting environmental and socio-economic reports. In May, the partnership of Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. and Anglo American plc., the two companies...

MINING NEWS: Gold Crest teams with gold giants  05/25/2008
After years of exploring Southwest Alaska on its own, Gold Crest Mines Inc. has teamed up with Newmont North America Exploration Ltd., a subsidiary of Newmont Mining Corp. in three separate ventures and with Cougar Gold LLC, a wholly-owned affiliate of Electrum Ltd., on five other gold properties in...

MINING NEWS: Redcorp abandons amphitrac vehicle  05/25/2008
Redcorp Ventures Ltd., parent of Redfern Resources Ltd. which operates the Tulsequah Chief Mine Project near Southeast Alaska, has abandoned plans for developing an unusual tow vehicle in favor of more conventional vessels for moving shipments of zinc, copper, silver, gold and lead concentrates from...

MINING NEWS: Study endorses power line proposal  05/25/2008
Building a power line into northern British Columbia could attract C$3.5 billion in mining investment to the area, according to preliminary findings of an independent study. The Northwest Power Line Coalition, an industry group that took up the idea when B.C. government officials dropped plans for t...

MINING NEWS: Junior wants to take closer look at BMP  05/25/2008
International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. May 13 said the results from a recent high resolution airborne magnetic and EM survey completed over 30 square kilometers of mineralized areas of the company’s BMP project in central Alaska show huge anomalies that warrant aggressive follow-up exploration. A day e...

MINING NEWS: For sale: Turnkey gold mine  05/25/2008
Seven months after putting the Nixon Fork Mine on the block, St Andrew Goldfields Ltd., an Ontario-based exploration and mining company, may be weighing competing purchase offers for the property. Potential purchasers have expressed interest in the project, according to Mining News sources. But St A...

MINING NEWS: Expansion initiatives gel for Sherwood  05/25/2008
Sherwood Copper Corp., less than a year after commissioning its copper-rich Minto Mine in central Yukon, appears to be firing on all cylinders with production, expansion and exploration initiatives. The Vancouver, B.C.-based miner May 14 reported discovery of new areas of copper-gold mineralization...

Full Metal discovers high-tech metal at Fortymile  07/17/2008
Full Metal Minerals July 16 said assay results show indium among the metals present in the LWM deposit at its Fortymile property in East-Interior Alaska. The company also released results from nine ad...Comments

EPA accepts public comment on NPDES  07/17/2008
The Environmental Protection Agency’s public comment period deadline addressing the approval of the application made by the State of Alaska to assume primacy from the EPA to regulate National Pollutan... Comments

News Nuggets  07/17/2008
FORESTRY BOARD - Alaska Governor Sarah Palin July 11 appointed Jeffrey Y. Foley as the mining representative to Board of Forestry. The nine-member board advises the state on forest practices and issu... Comments

Ballot Measure 4 headed to Alaska primary  07/10/2008
In a July 3 decision, the Alaska Supreme Court confirmed Superior Court Judge Douglas Blankenship’s decision concluding that the ballot initiative 07WTR3 is not an appropriation and can be placed on t... Comments

Exploration will earn junior ownership of Whistler  07/10/2008
Geoinformatics Exploration Inc. July 8 said it has begun its 2008 exploration program on the Whistler gold project approximately 160 kilometers northwest of Anchorage, Alaska and has completed the fir...Comments

Pebble hydrology report shows extensive study of area groundwater  07/10/2008
Pebble Limited Partnership July 10 released Report Series D: Groundwater Hydrology, the fourth of 14 reports that owners of the controversial Pebble Mine Project have pledged to make public as part of... Comments

News Nuggets  07/10/2008
POLYMETALLIC - Constantine Metal Resources Ltd. July 10 reported partial analytical results for the first 2008 drill hole (CMR08-11) at the Glacier Creek prospect, South Wall Zone target, on its polym... Comments

Supreme Court will review Ninth Circuit ruling on Kensington tailings permit  07/02/2008
In response to petitions for a writ of certiorari filed by Coeur Alaska and the state of Alaska, the United States Supreme Court has agreed to review a Ninth Circuit court ruling that invalidates tail... Comments

Redfern responds to request for info  07/02/2008
Alaska Department of Natural Resources received a response from Redfern Resources Ltd. June 26 to the state’s Feb. 12 request for additional information concerning the Canadian junior’s proposal to us...Comments

Junior eyes Pebble-like project in Yukon  07/02/2008
Western Copper Corporation June 24 said its Casino copper-gold-molybdenum deposit in central Yukon Territory has the potential to be developed economically as a sizable open-pit mine. An independent p... Comments

News Nuggets  07/02/2008
SILVER - Hecla Mining Company June 27 said it extended the deadline to close on the sale of its subsidiaries engaged in Venezuelan activities to Rusoro Mining Ltd. The date, originally set for June 27... Comments

Democrats declare emergency to ban uranium mining and exploration near Grand Canyon  06/29/2008
U.S. House Democrats on the Natural Resources Committee on June 25 used an emergency power to ban uranium mining and exploration around the Grand Canyon National Park. After Republicans left in prote... Comments

Pebble Partnership releases surficial geology report  06/29/2008
Pebble Limited Partnership June 24 released Report Series C: Surficial Geology, the third of 14 reports that the owners have pledged to release as part of their Pre-Permitting Environmental & Socio-Ec...Comments

Yukon anticipates C$115 million spent on exploration and development in 2008  06/29/2008
The Yukon Chamber of Mines has completed its 2008 Yukon Exploration and Development Survey. The annual survey forecasts the level of exploration and development expenditures anticipated for the 2008 s... Comments

News Nuggets - Alaska  06/29/2008
NIBLACK MINING CORP. JUNE 26 SAID THE UNDERGROUND drill program on the company's gold-silver-copper-zinc rich Niblack VMS property in southeast Alaska has resumed. The drilling will be situated at the... Comments

New Nuggets - Canada  06/29/2008
STRONGBOW EXPLORATION INC. JUNE 25 PROVIDED AN UPDATE of exploration activities at the Nickel King and Snowbird nickel projects in southern Northwest Territories and northern Saskatchewan. The company... Comments

Redcorp sells $90 million of future Tulsequah gold  06/19/2008
Redcorp Ventures Ltd. has entered a $90 million sale agreement with Gold Wheaton Corp. for the purchase of all gold produced at Redcorp’s Tulsequah Chief Mine in western British Columbia about 45 mile... Comments

Red Chris gets green light from appeals court  06/19/2008
Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has set aside a lower court ruling and confirmed a federal environmental assessment of the Red Chris copper-gold project east of the Alaska Panhandle in Northwest Brit...Comments

Sherwood pursues smaller project for Kutcho  06/19/2008
Sherwood Copper Corp. June 12 unveiled the results of an independent preliminary economic assessment of the high-grade Kutcho polymetallic project in Northwest British Columbia, which outlined a signi... Comments

News Nuggets - Alaska  06/19/2008
THE UNITED STATED ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY June 18 announced it is accepting public comments on the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation request for approval of an Alaska version of... Comments

New Nuggets - Canada  06/19/2008
FIRESTONE VENTURES INC. SAID JUNE 13 IT HAS REQUESTED a temporary trading halt of its shares, effective as of the close of trading on June 16, 2008, noting that June 16, 2008 is the last day for proce... Comments

NovaGold boosts resources outline estimate for Donlin Creek, preferred plan  06/12/2008
NovaGold Resources Inc. June 10 said it has revised its resource estimate for the Donlin Creek gold project upward to 31.7 million ounces of measured and indicated gold resources with an additional 4.... Comments

Supreme Court removes first water/mining initiative  06/12/2008
The Alaska Supreme Court June 6 granted a joint motion to dismiss all appeals related to 07WATR, the first water/mining initiative, also known as the “Clean Water 1” initiative. The action means that...Comments

First hole in 2008 stirs excitement of Yukon explorer, investors  06/12/2008
International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. June 10 said it has entered into an agreement to acquire all of the interest of AngloGold Ashanti Exploration (U.S.A.) Inc. in the Terra and LMS projects in Alaska,... Comments

ITH acquires 100 percent of Terra and LMS projects from AngloGold Ashanti  06/12/2008
Northern Freegold Resources Ltd. June 9 reported that the first hole of its summer exploration program at Freegold Mountain in the Yukon Territory encountered astonishing evidence of gold mineralizati... Comments

News Nuggets  06/12/2008
FULL METAL MINERALS LTD. JUNE 6 SAID UNDERGROUND rehabilitation work is under way at the Lucky Shot Property aimed at completing underground drifting, drilling and a bulk sample to confirm the continu... Comments

Alaska DNR adopts new plan in Southeast; opens 130,360 acres to mineral exploration  06/05/2008
The Alaska Department of Natural Resources May 29 said Commissioner Tom Irwin has adopted an amendment to the Prince of Wales Island Area management plan. Formerly managed under two separate plans – t... Comments

Heat exchanger spills electrolyte at Teck’s Trail operation  06/05/2008
Teck Cominco Metals Ltd. May 29 said a heat exchanger in the lead refinery of its smelter at Trail in southern British Columbia failed, allowing an acidic solution containing lead to spill into the Co...Comments

Drilling for platinum begins in Goodnews Bay  06/05/2008
Pacific Northwest Capital and Stillwater Mining Co. June 3 said a $1 million drill program is underway at the Goodnews Bay Platinum Project in Southwest Alask. The partners will focus on two drill tar... Comments

News Nuggets  06/05/2008
FULL METAL MINERALS AND BHP BILLITON MINERAL SERVICES Company June 5 said exploration work has commenced on multiple copper-gold porphyry targets in eastern Alaska. Full Metal Minerals has expanded th... Comments

Committee Bay Resources to merge with Niblack Mining  05/29/2008
Committee Bay Resources Ltd. and Niblack Mining Corp. May 22 said they have signed a letter of agreement to combine the two companies in a one-for-one stock-swap transaction. The letter also provides... Comments

NovaGold rethinks its strategy in face of tough capital markets  05/29/2008
NovaGold Resources Inc. has had to rethink its strategy since its Galore Creek project was halted in November due to soaring costs and it “has a job to do” to regain the value of its assets, the compa...Comments

StrataGold pursues Fort Knox-like Dublin Gulch in Yukon  05/29/2008
StrataGold Corp. May 28 began an 8,500-meter diamond drill program at its Dublin Gulch property in Yukon. Dublin Gulch is located in the north central portion of the Tintina Gold Belt, which is being... Comments

News Nuggets  05/29/2008
VANCOUVER, BC-BASED ZAZU METALS CORP. MAY 29 ANNOUNCED it received the remaining permits for a 2008 exploration and development program at the Lik zinc-lead-silver deposit, 22 kilometers, or about 13... Comments