Wildfires force miners in Quebec to suspend operations

Article content Several miners in Quebec were forced to suspend their activities over the weekend as the province takes steps to tackle more than 150 forest fires in the region. Article content The province’s road closures and bans on access to forests were expanded to a larger area in Quebec from June 4 onwards to prevent the start of new fires. Article content “The recent restrictions imposed by the Quebec government, as a result of the regional forest fire situation, is directly impacting our exploration operations,” Patriot Battery Metals Inc., which owns the Corvette lithium project in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, said in a statement. “The company has temporarily ceased drilling and surface exploration field activities until the situation improves.” In the past year, Patriot’s share price has risen by $13, or 485 per cent, as investors bank on the increasing demand for lithium, a metal used to build the batteries that power electric vehicles. Article content Osisko Mining Inc., which runs the Windfall gold project in the same region, said it withdrew its staff and continues to monitor the situation. The miner, however, doesn’t expect the suspension of activities to impact its business. The company has a market cap of about $1.3 billion. Toronto-based Wallbridge Mining Company Ltd., which runs the Fenelon gold project in Quebec’s northern Abitibi region, and Vancouver’s Archer Exploration Corp. that owns the Grasset project, which contains minerals such as nickel and copper in the James Bay area, also suspended their activities and evacuated workers. Several other provinces are battling wildfires in what is shaping up to be one of the worst starts to forest fire season. Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate nationwide. Article content In a news conference last week, Jonathan Wilkinson, minister of natural resources, linked the increasing intensity of the wildfires to climate change. “It is a simple fact that Canada is experiencing the impacts of climate change including more frequent and more extreme wildfires,” he said. “The amount of forest burnt by wildfire is projected to double by 2050 due to our changing climate, causing longer and more intense wildfire seasons, more extreme weather conditions and increased draught.” Climate change is the third-biggest threat to the mining industry behind geopolitics and environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns, according to a survey conducted by Ernst & Young Global Ltd. last year.

This article was published by: Naimul Karim

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