Posts by Michael Allan McCrae:

EPA battles spill near Suncor Energy’s Colorado refineries

The Denver Post reports that Federal officials in Commerce City, Colorado are trying to contain contamination in the South Platte River near one of Suncor Energy's refineries. What material is leaking and where it is actually coming from is still to be determined. The EPA has emergency response crew working on the scene. Booms and barriers have been set up to contain the spill, which was first reported on Sunday.
Michael Allan McCrae | December 1, 2011 | 3:11 pm

PotashCorp cyberattack needed 100 people to pull off

CBC News is reporting that last fall's cyberattack on government agencies looking for confidential information on PotashCorp was much larger than previously disclosed and the perpetrators seemed to be after insider information. Seven Canadian law firms were attacked, along with various government agencies. Analysts estimate that the well-coordinated attack must have involved 100 people or more. Although the attacks were traced back to China, that does not mean the attacks were carried out by that country. The Chinese government denies any involvement.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 30, 2011 | 4:27 pm

A Bitcoin autopsy

Bitcoin, an alternative to fiat currency, rose fast from its inception in the last three year, but just as quickly unwound. Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency created in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto. No central authority issues new money or manages transactions. Instead, money is generated collectively by a network, also known as miners.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 30, 2011 | 3:38 pm

Diamonds are forever secure

Geekosystems reports on a new use for diamonds, providing truly unknowable random numbers that could serve the basis for secure communication. Random numbers are at the heart of modern communication, used for electronic commerce, wireless networks and bank transactions. The basis of secure communication is generating a random number, known as the key, that is shared by the recipient and the sender that is then used to scramble and unscramble the message that is sent between the two parties.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 29, 2011 | 6:10 pm

Canadian iron ore miner reaches $120 million development deal with Chinese steel producer

Century Iron Mines, an iron ore miner with projects in Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador, has reached a $120 million development deal with WISCO Resources, one of the third largest steel producer in China. WISCO Resources, which holds an approximate 25% interest in Century Iron, will invest $120 million in exchange for a 40% interest in three of Century Iron Mines' projects, Duncan Lake, Attikamagen and Sunny Lake. Funds will be used for exploration and development. WISCO Resources is a major subsidiaries of Wuhan Iron & Steel Corporation, headquartered in Wuhan in the province of Hubei in the People's Republic of China.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 29, 2011 | 4:36 pm

Drilling rock from 56 million kilometres away

Following on from NASA's successful mars mission of the rovers Spirit and Opportunity, NASA's latest rover, Curiosity, was successfully launched on Saturday. The $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory mission is attempting to determine if Mars has an environment that could support life. Curiosity, which is five times the size of the previous vehicles, will orbit the red planet for a few months and then land on August 2011. The rover is equipped with a two metre arm that can take soil samples and drill rock. Rock samples are subject to a number of tests, including laser-induced radio spectrometry where the soil sample is vapourized and analyzed.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 28, 2011 | 3:54 pm

Russian steelmaker buys Australian iron ore prospect for A$554 million

Investors are wondering why Russian steel-maker Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works is buying Flinders Mines (ASX:FMS) for A$554 million. Flinder's main asset is the Pilbara iron ore project, a 917.3Mt JORC-compliant resource located in Western Australia. MMK is Russia's third largest steel company. Last year it had revenue of $7.7 billion and net income of $254 million.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 25, 2011 | 3:50 pm

Quebec mining investment at an all-time high, up 43% from 2009

The mining industry in Quebec is roaring, with $2.92 billion in investment in 2010, up from 43% in 2009. The Institut de la statistique du Québec, which released the findings on Wednesday, said that this was the seventh straight year mining investment increased, and in each of the last three years investment was greater than $2 billion. In March the Fraser Institute warned that changes to the province's tax code would harm business investment, and Quebec slid from first to fourth in the institute's list of mining-friendly jurisdictions. If the changes don't weigh on province, 2011 could be a banner year.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 24, 2011 | 8:38 pm

Royal Canadian Mint’s gold-backed ETF alternative raises $600 million

The Royal Canadian Mint has a hit on its hands after raising $600 million from the sale of its exchange traded fund alternative, exchange traded receipts backed by physical gold bullion held in the mint’s facilities in Ottawa, Ontario. The Canadian mint, which introduced the ETRs just over three weeks ago, says that ETRs are different than other gold investment products since the purchaser of an ETR owns the actual gold rather than a unit or share in an entity that owns the gold. Given the money raised, the Globe and Mail calculates that the ETRs may be the largest initial public offering of the year.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 24, 2011 | 4:03 pm

Markets tumble, gold falls under $1,700

Uncertainty regarding the never-ending euro crisis and weak data from China sent gold and markets lower. The S&P/TSX Composite Index is off 1.88% and the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index is down 1.93%. Yesterday, gold broke through $1,700 mark but is now back trading at $1,680.
Michael Allan McCrae | November 23, 2011 | 6:28 pm

Canada’s oil exports to triple by 2035 thanks to in situ production

Canada's net crude oil exports will triple by 2035 due to in situ production and not hydraulic fracturing, according to a report by the National Energy Board released on Tuesday. Oilsands accounts for 55% of Canada's oil production today rising to 85% 24 years from now. "By 2035, in the Reference Case, oil sands bitumen production is projected to reach 811 thousand m³/d (5.1 million bbl/d), three times the production for 2010."
Michael Allan McCrae | November 23, 2011 | 3:42 pm