The week’s best mining stories, blunders, and promises. “This is reality!”

It is Friday, so a round up of the week’s top stories about mining.  No, I am not going to write another posting about natives who like mining, or natives who do not like mining and are going to disrupt the 2008 and 2010 Olympics to make their point.  It all gets to be terribly repetitive and boring.  How much sympathy do they think I have. 

In my opinion, the best mining news story of the week is at this link, under the heading “Mining company digs up ancient marine reptile.”  The article tells of the finding of the bones of a 75 million year old marine reptile (an Elasmosaur) at the Buffalo Rock Mine near Lethbridge, Alberta.  You just have to enjoy a story that ends:

As to the Buffalo Rock Mining find being a relative of the Loch Ness monster, Henderson says this isn’t possible.   The Elasmosaur required sub tropical or tropical conditions to exist, while the waters surrounding Scotland are cold. In addition, says Henderson, the earliest record of stories about the Loch Ness monster date back only 15,000 years, and for it to have been an Elasmosaur, the first recollections would have had to have occurred long before that time.

My second favorite mining story of the week is that Barrick is seeking to sue the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC).  Seems Barrick got the wrong information from CIBC and bought into assets linked to houses in California and now the mining company has lost lots.  You must enjoy a news report that tells it thus delicately:

Barrick Gold Corp., the world’s largest gold producer, wants to sue Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce over the bank’s advice to invest in asset-backed commercial paper.   Barrick, which owns about C$66 million ($65.4 million) in commercial paper, claims CIBC’s investment bank said the debt wasn’t tied to subprime mortgage assets, the newspaper said. This led the Toronto-based company to hold on to its paper and buy more before the market froze in August.

Somebody lied to somebody and some mining company was putting money into non-mining ventures.  An interesting peek into the world of banking and mining.  And one where you can’t and do not need to have sympathy for anybody. 

Then there is the silly story out of Africa (a perpetual source of venality and stupidity)  that a new mining code is to be put in place to make things work better for mining investors.  I also have a bridge in Brooklyn for sale.  Here is part of the story that earns third place for the week: 

The mining code, launched in Dakar on 17 April and to be ratified by parliaments in 2009, aims to put in place transparent financial practices, impose strict environmental standards, and make sure more of the revenue from the industry ends up in the hands of governments and communities.   “The benefits of the gold-mining industry are not currently felt by populations… mines can even introduce conflict to countries. This code will… try to recoup more revenue from gold-mining to help the producers themselves,” Mamadou Makhtan Gueye, director of the ECOWAS Commission, told journalists.

Finally a link to my favorite YouTube of the week on the Lake Peigneur Salt Mine Craziness.

And PS finally, if in spite of my remarks about Africa, you seek a job in Africa, go to GlobalCareerCompany where they note this:

Secure in the knowledge that key African economies promise outstanding growth, multinationals are investing continent-wide. Likewise, a growing number of African companies are seizing the opportunity to expand across the region and internationally.  The result of this vibrant growth is heavy investment in human capital by leading organisations. More than anything else, companies are seeking high calibre Candidates with international experience and the regional expertise to lead their business into the future.  To address this need, Careers in Africa initiatives bring together high calibre graduates, MBA’s and professionals seeking careers in Africa with leading multinational and regional companies.

To be entirely honest, while I was writing the blog above, a familiar acccent came over the phone and made me feel homesick, so I asked Njambi Ngunjiri to send me something fast and she did, and here it is:

The Careers in Africa Recruitment Summit was established to meet the increased demand across Africa and is now regarded as the biggest and most significant African recruitment event in the world. This annual invitation-only event gives candidates the opportunity to meet with some of the biggest companies in the region, and internationally.  The Summit brings together professionals seeking careers in Africa with leading companies from the region and provides unparalleled access to leading HR Directors and Senior Business Representatives from up to 60 organisations over one weekend.   Careers in Africa will be hosted in London on 23-25 May 2008. Details of the summit and participating companies can be found on www.careersinafrica.com.    Career opportunities within the Extraction Sector range from entry-level openings to senior management appointments and cover a variety of functions, including:

• Mining Engineers with Grinaker
• Rock Engineers with Exxaro
• Geologists for Anglo Gold Ashanti
• CAD Operators for Impala Platinum
• Mine Managers for Barrick

At any rate, have a good weekend.