Roundup 2018: AME’s Thome on BC’s mineral politics

VANCOUVER — The Association for Mineral Exploration’s (AME) Roundup conference in Vancouver serves as a bellwether for the mining industry as the first major technical event of the new year. The most recent iteration featured the typical discussions on metal prices and markets, but it was also marked the maiden mining voyage for British Columbia’s newly elected, left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) and Green Party coalition government. The NDP-led minority government’s stance on mining in the province remains untested. Premier John Horgan has been rhetorically supportive of the business, and held over pro-mining initiatives from the previous long standing Liberal government, including the flow-through share tax framework and exploration credits; funding for Geoscience BC; and provincial sales tax (PST) breaks for electricity used at mine sites. Meanwhile, B.C.’s Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Michelle Mungall is working with industry groups — including the AME — on the BC Mining Jobs Task Force. Continue reading at The Northern Miner.