Drilling operations are under way at the
I-Minerals Helmer-Bovill kaolin-feldsparquartz project in north-central Idaho.
Photo courtesy I-Minerals Inc.
EXPLORATION and MINING
in the Western USA (PART II)
by Simon Rees
Exploration and mining companies operating in the Western USA are facing tough times; metals prices remain sluggish, while costs remain
a perennial problem. For many, equity, debt or other financing measures are unobtainable or no longer suitable. Some companies whose
fortunes are tied to gold have been in a particularly unenviable position following the yellow metal's price slide that started in April and has
only recently risen.
But amid the gloom are glimmers of longer-term hope; the USA economy is experiencing a moderate economic revival, while Asian
's
growth remains comparatively robust, although perhaps not to the levels some might have wished. These developments and others beside
should assist industrial metals and minerals, which will be good news for the Western USA. Time may also be on the side of companies
focused on uranium, particularly those with projects in Wyoming and Utah. China and other nations across the Middle East and Asia continue to develop and build reactors, which should offer greater price support.
Meanwhile, Mother Nature always has the power to disrupt or damage operations and the Western USA is no stranger to this. An
awe-inspiring example occurred on April 10 at the Bingham Canyon copper operation in Utah. Around 165 million tons of earth is estimated to have fallen into the open pit from the northeast wall, one of the largest non-volcanic slides ever recorded in North America,
according to Jeff Moore, a geological engineer at the University of Utah.
30 www.resourceworld.com
SEPTEMBER 2013
