Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
As environmental regulations toughen up in Canada, French transnational Veolia (Euronext: VIE) has found a niche to operate.
In particular, the Water Technologies division is seeing increased interest from Canadian miners, said the branch’s Vice President for Business Development in the Heavy Industry, David Oliphant.
Interviewed by MINING.com’s Michael McCrae, Oliphant said miners want to tackle issues regarding effluent management from the early stages of the development of their mines, as a way to not only protect the environment as much as possible but also to respond to demands from the local communities. “And we are there for the long haul as a trusted advisor. We have excellent technologies and we also have the expertise,” he said.
The executive added that a proof of such expertise is the fact that Goldcorp (NYSE:GG,TSX:G) selected Veolia to be the sole-source supplier of the water treatment system for the removal of arsenic and other metals at its Éléonore project in the James Bay Region of Quebec.
