Osisko Mining’s Sale Raises Questions About Canada’s Mining Industry
Osisko Mining Inc. was recently sold for a whopping $2.15 billion. The company owns one of the biggest and highest-grade undeveloped deposits of gold globally. John Burzynski, the Osisko’s CEO, stated that he couldn’t complain about the outcome seeing as investors had made money.
He did reveal, however, that his initial objective when he ventured into Canada about 20 years ago was to build a new mining giant in the country. To his dismay, the opposite happened, with major companies and their holdings being sold to foreign investors. To date, the Canadian mining industry is processing the outcome of a wave of acquisitions that decimated most of the nation’s major mining companies.
Currently, some of the richest mines in the country are managed by executives who work for foreign-owned companies; these businesses have headquarters in Australia, Brazil and Switzerland, among others.
It doesn’t help that Canada’s mining industry has gone roughly 10 years without recording any growth. We can see that the exploration and mining companies listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange jointly raised $6.8 billion in equity capital in the first half of this year. During the same period in 2022, the companies raised $4 billion. These figures are in the same league with the $5.3 in equity capital raised in 2016, $6 billion in 2015 and $5.4 billion in 2014.
Some industry executives believe that the market may be shrinking. There may be some truth to that, especially after accounting for inflation in the above figures. Exactly what ails this market remains unknown, but some players in the industry posit that a lack of government support and regulations may be the cause of the sector’s present woes.
The Mining Association of Canada also cites several issues impacting the sector in its annual report, including inadequate workforce diversity, which may lead to labor shortages in the future, and lengthy time between a deposit’s initial discovery and first mine production. The mining industry is also sensitive to policies that impede investment, including the federal government’s move to block investors from China from venturing into the market through the Investment Canada Act.
Falcon Energy Materials PLC recently relocated to Abu Dhabi, following questions about investment from a Chinese company that would have seen the two partner on technology to produce battery metals at scale. In the agreement, which was terminated by Falcon following scrutiny from the federal government, the Chinese company would have received 19.4% of the company in exchange for a $16.9 million equity investment.
Other exploration and mine development companies, such as First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF), are now left to hold the mantle of growing the mining sector in Canada.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FSTTF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the MiningNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by MNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.MiningNewsWire.com/Disclaimer
Osisko Mining Inc. was recently sold for a whopping $2.15 billion. The company owns one of the biggest and highest-grade undeveloped deposits of gold globally. John Burzynski, the Osisko’s CEO, stated that he couldn’t complain about the outcome seeing as investors had made money.
He did reveal, however, that his initial objective when he ventured into Canada about 20 years ago was to build a new mining giant in the country. To his dismay, the opposite happened, with major companies and their holdings being sold to foreign investors. To date, the Canadian mining industry is processing the outcome of a wave of acquisitions that decimated most of the nation’s major mining companies.
Currently, some of the richest mines in the country are managed by executives who work for foreign-owned companies; these businesses have headquarters in Australia, Brazil and Switzerland, among others.
It doesn’t help that Canada’s mining industry has gone roughly 10 years without recording any growth. We can see that the exploration and mining companies listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange jointly raised $6.8 billion in equity capital in the first half of this year. During the same period in 2022, the companies raised $4 billion. These figures are in the same league with the $5.3 in equity capital raised in 2016, $6 billion in 2015 and $5.4 billion in 2014.
Some industry executives believe that the market may be shrinking. There may be some truth to that, especially after accounting for inflation in the above figures. Exactly what ails this market remains unknown, but some players in the industry posit that a lack of government support and regulations may be the cause of the sector’s present woes.
The Mining Association of Canada also cites several issues impacting the sector in its annual report, including inadequate workforce diversity, which may lead to labor shortages in the future, and lengthy time between a deposit’s initial discovery and first mine production. The mining industry is also sensitive to policies that impede investment, including the federal government’s move to block investors from China from venturing into the market through the Investment Canada Act.
Falcon Energy Materials PLC recently relocated to Abu Dhabi, following questions about investment from a Chinese company that would have seen the two partner on technology to produce battery metals at scale. In the agreement, which was terminated by Falcon following scrutiny from the federal government, the Chinese company would have received 19.4% of the company in exchange for a $16.9 million equity investment.
Other exploration and mine development companies, such as First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF), are now left to hold the mantle of growing the mining sector in Canada.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FSTTF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the MiningNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by MNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.MiningNewsWire.com/Disclaimer
