BC Ferries deal with Chinese shipyard makes waves in Ottawa
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OTTAWA — BC Ferries set off a tidal wave of controversy on Tuesday after announcing a major shipbuilding deal with a Chinese state-owned enterprise, with the ripple effects of the decision reaching Ottawa.
Vancouver Island Conservative MP Jeff Kibble raised the issue in Wednesday's question period, accusing the Liberal government of rewarding the provincial carrier for selling out Canada's national interest.
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Toronto Sun
37 minutes ago
- Toronto Sun
Liberals accused of trying to 'hide their scandals' after scathing auditor reports
Government's responses to scandal 'wouldn't take the scum off rice pudding,' Tory MP says OTTAWA — Recent auditor general reports on questionable government spending provided plenty of ammunition for the Conservatives Thursday during question period. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Query after query came from the opposition benches on Auditor General Karen Hogan's bombshell reports released this week, including Canada's floundering purchase of 88 new fighter jets to work outsourced to questionably qualified government contractors. Try refreshing your browser, or Liberals accused of trying to 'hide their scandals' after scathing auditor reports Try refreshing your browser, or 'The Liberals should not be dodging accountability; they want to hide their scandals from Canadians, but the auditor general report was very clear — this Liberal government ignored the rules and allowed insiders to profit to the tune of $64 million.' 'The Liberals gave $64 million to GC Strategies, a two-person IT firm that did no actual work and is currently under RCMP investigation,' Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis said during question period. Please try again The next issue of Your Midday Sun will soon be in your inbox. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. Thanks for signing up! By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content The Conservatives tabled a motion in the House to recover money paid to GC Strategies — responsible for creating the contentious ArriveCan app — within 100 days. Lewis said the scandal suggests Liberals are showing disdain for Canadians by rewarding the ministers responsible with promotions to other portfolios. In response, Procurement Minister Joel Lightbound said the government revoked security clearances to GC Strategies, which according to Hogan's report saw 31 federal agencies award them 106 contracts worth a total of $92.7 million. Only $64 million of that was paid out. 'We've terminated all contracts with GC Strategies, we've barred GC Strategies from future contracts with the government of Canada,' Lightbound said.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
China grants rare earth export permits after US trade talks, offers relief but uncertainty persists
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The high-level negotiations over China's export controls of rare earths is giving U.S. businesses some relief, even though it may be only for now. China has approved 'a certain number' of export permits for rare earth elements and related items, its commerce ministry said on Thursday, one day after U.S. President Donald Trump declared that Beijing would supply to the U.S. companies those key elements and the magnets made from them following a two-day trade talk in London. 'I will be one of the happiest people out there if, if in fact, China starts to, to release some of those heavy rare earths and allows them to get into the world economy because the world economy is going to shut down without those heavy rare earths,' said Mark Smith, chief executive officer of NioCorp., which is developing a new mine in Nebraska to produce niobium, scandium, titanium and an assortment of rare earths. Export controls of the minerals apparently eclipsed tariffs in the latest round of trade negotiations between Beijing and Washington, after China imposed permitting requirements on seven rare earth elements in April, threatening to halt production of cars, robots, wind turbines and other high-tech products in the U.S. and around the world. Negotiators from the two governments said they reached a framework to move forward, with details yet to be agreed to by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, but businesses welcomed the developments, even though uncertainties persist. Important elements used in many products Rare earth elements are some of the most sought-after critical minerals. Despite the name, they aren't actually rare, but it is hard to find them in high enough concentrations to make mining them economical. They are also difficult to extract from the ore, and China over the past several decades has built dominance in the processing capacity, supplying nearly 90% of the world's rare earths. In the heat of the tariff war with Trump, Beijing on April 4 announced permitting requirements for seven heavy rare earths: samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium, citing the need to 'better safeguard national security and interests and to fulfill global duties of non-proliferation.' The elements China has restricted, such as terbium and dysprosium, are key ingredients needed to make permanent rare earth magnets withstand high temperatures. That is crucial for a variety of uses in electric vehicles, wind turbines and military uses like jet engines and nuclear submarines. Some of the other rare earths needed for those magnets are produced at the only operating U.S. rare earths mine run by MP Materials in California, but China remains the only source of nearly all of what's known as the heavy rare earths. MP Materials previously sent the heavy rare earths that it mines to China for processing but it halted that in April amid the tariffs. The company is working to expand its own processing capability as soon as possible, and it is building a new magnet plant in Texas. Looming shortages start to hit manufacturing Neha Mukherjee, rare earths analyst at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, had previously predicted that most companies wouldn't start to run short of rare earths until later this year, but it appears some companies already have problems. 'The overall market stockpile exists, but looks like a lot of OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), especially auto manufacturers, were not prepared, especially in Europe,' Mukherjee said. Some American companies have stockpiled, but they 'might start experiencing constraint if this continues.' 'Looks like most of the stockpile is still in China hence the bottleneck in supply,' Mukherjee said. On June 4, the European Association of Automotive Supplies said the industry was 'already experiencing significant disruption' due to China's export restrictions on rare earths and magnets. 'These restrictions have led to the shutdown of several production lines and plants across Europe, with further impacts expected in the coming weeks as inventories deplete,' the group said. Questions remain about latest trade deal Details are still scarce on any agreement on rare earths shipments from China. On Thursday, He Yadong, spokesman for the Chinese commerce ministry, said China will 'sufficiently consider the reasonable needs and concerns by all countries in the civilian field' in reviewing applications of export permits for rare earths and related items. He said that it is consistent with international practice to put export controls on rare earths because they can be used for both civilian and military purposes. China's limits on rare earths remain a threat In a note, Gabriel Wildau, managing director of the consultancy Teneo, wrote that even though there is an agreement for now, 'supply cutoffs will remain an ever-present threat.' That's because China's licensing regime for the export of the seven heavy rare earths and related magnets is permanent, despite perceptions at the time that it was an act of retaliation, he wrote. China 'will probably not approve exports in sufficient quantity to allow U.S. customers to stockpile, ensuring that Beijing's leverage remains undiminished,' he wrote. 'Beijing may approve few if any exports to U.S. defense companies and their suppliers.' Smith of NioCorp. said even if the Chinese are offering a reprieve from their restrictions on rare earths, they will likely still keep limits in place on U.S. military uses. 'If I'm in the military and flying a jet or running a nuclear class submarine or a guided missile, I don't want that to fail because of high temperatures. So we have to have these heavy rare earths,' Smith said. Smith said he hopes to find a solution to the problem of America being almost entirely dependent on China for these elements. 'I sincerely hope from the bottom of my heart that we use this situation as our final learning,' Smith said. 'Let's take care of what we know needs to be taken care of.'
The Market Online
5 hours ago
- The Market Online
Antimony stock doubles after bonanza-grade assays
Junior antimony stock Churchill Resources (TSXV:CRI) more than doubled after assaying up to 35.1 per cent antimony at its Frost Cover mine and 14.4 grams per ton of gold at its Stewart mine in samples from its Black Raven property in Newfoundland Churchill is a Canadian exploration company focused on critical minerals in Newfoundland & Labrador Churchill Resources stock has given back 41.67 per cent year-over-year and 78.13 per cent since 2020 Junior antimony stock Churchill Resources (TSXV:CRI) more than doubled after assaying up to 35.1 per cent antimony at its Frost Cover mine and 14.4 grams per ton of gold at its Stewart mine in samples from its Black Raven property in Newfoundland. According to Thursday's news release, Black Raven is located 60 kilometres northwest of Gander and about 100 kilometres north of the Beaver Brook antimony mine, which management believes to be on track for re-opening and in need of more deposits like Black Raven to feed the mill. Although Frost Cove's antimony veins and host felsic dyke have been traced over 800 metres on surface, including numerous historical samples grading over 1 per cent antimony, neither it nor the Stewart gold mine have been drilled. For a little background, antimony is a critical mineral for defense and technological applications, including in the military, battery and broader energy-storage sectors, but is currently at risk with over 90 per cent of production controlled by China and Russia, both conflict-prone nations. Churchill is keen on demonstrating Black Raven's potential as a reliable source of antimony, with upcoming summer exploration positioning it to harvest value from prices exceeding US$50,000 per ton after Chinese export restrictions in late 2024. Though prices may normalize following a China-United States trade agreement in June, antimony's long-term prospects are expected to combine rising demand with a worsening deficit, placing explorers and developers with promising assets front-and-centre to shore up global supply. Leadership insights 'These high-grade results confirm our expectations,' Paul Sobie, Churchill Resources' chief executive officer, said in a statement. 'Our antimony sampling was from the hanging wall and footwall veins in the upper historical adit at Frost Cove. Previous historical sampling returned 30 per cent antimony and 28.27 g/t gold over 0.43 metres, 320 metres south of this adit, suggesting that conditions that produced ultra-high-grade antimony concentrations may exist over an area covering multiple veins with significant lengths. These grades place Frost Cove among the highest-grade antimony projects globally. Churchill is immediately commencing its summer surface exploration program, with follow-up work at Frost Cove and Stewart through trenching and channel sampling (at surface and in the workings at Frost Cove), as well as systematic mapping and sampling of the complete mineralized package.' About Churchill Resources Churchill Resources is a Canadian exploration company focused on critical minerals in Newfoundland & Labrador. Its portfolio includes the untapped Florence Lake nickel project and Taylor Brook nickel-copper-cobalt-vanadium-titanium project. Churchill Resources stock (TSXV:CRI) is up by 133.33 per cent trading at C$0.035 as of 11:45 am ET. The stock has given back 41.67 per cent year-over-year and 78.13 per cent since 2020. Join the discussion: Find out what everybody's saying about this junior antimony stock on the Churchill Resources Inc. Bullboard and check out the rest of Stockhouse's stock forums and message boards. The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. For full disclaimer information, please click here.
