Mount Polley operator Imperial Metals falls into the red

Mount Polley | BCBusiness
The highly public Mount Polley tailings pond spill

THE#BCBIZDAILY
Two big mining updates, plus a Dubai company comes to B.C.

The Vancouver-headquartered mining company behind last year’s highly publicized Mount Polley tailings spill had a bad year in more ways than one. According to financials released Tuesday, Imperial recorded a net loss of $37.3 million for 2014. That compares to profits of $41 million and $32.6 million in 2013 and 2012, respectively. According to Imperial, the losing year is a result of a “reduction in metals production and remediation costs of $67.4 million related to the Mount Polley tailings dam breach.”

Brucejack
Speaking of Mount Polley, the first B.C. mine to be green-lit by the province since last year’s spill has overcome another hurdle. Pretium Resources announced Thursday that it has entered into a Cooperation and Benefits Agreement with the Nisga’a Nation in northern B.C., where it plans to operate a $450-million gold mine, the Brucejack Project. For the details of the arrangement, go here.

Dubai money
A Dubai state-owned port company is buying into B.C., having agreed to purchase Fairview Container Terminal for $580 million pending regulatory approval. DP World Ltd. is acquiring the Prince Rupert terminal in a move to get a slice of increased trade between North America and Asia. “Fairview Container Terminal offers the fastest access for vessels traveling between Asia and North America,” DP World CEO Mohammed Sharaf said in a release Thursday. “The terminal also offers the highest productivity rates on the West Coast and an efficient rail link to the hinterland.”