The Mining News

Canada has been a leader in mineral exploration and extraction for over 50 years. Canada is the largest single exporter of oil to the United States, and Alberta is the #2 oil supplying region in the world. Mines in Quebec, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Ontario, and Alberta extract enormous quantities of aluminum, coal, potash, copper, diamond, gold, nickel, uranium, zinc, oil, and natural gas that are shipped throughout the world. Over half of the world’s 2300 mining related companies are listed on Canadian stock exchanges, and 40% of the world’s mining companies are based in Canada. In 2006 over $440 billion dollars worth of mineral and fuel related natural resources were exported throughout the world.

Mineral exploration is the segment of the industry that is responsible for identifying new assets for mining companies to exploit. Staking a claim and moving to production is a process that can take years. Exploration workers face the most rugged terrains and weather conditions in identifying viable assets.
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Popularity: 69% [?]

As accessible coastal oil reserves in shallow waters near the shore become exhausted, alternative sources must be continually found. A synthesis of advanced technologies has opened up new frontiers in deeps sea oil and gas explorations. With over 70% of the earth covered in water there is a lot of territory to explore, which makes starting in the right place a paramount issue. Sensors aboard satellites, surface ships, and submarines have helped locate and access oil reserves in areas previously thought impossible to reach. Currently drilling in the Gulf of Mexico is taking place at depths as low as 2500m’s.

Satellite imagery is an area continually undergoing innovation. In the past satellite data has been used to identify “macroseeps”, or large pools of oil at the surface leaked from reserves below. Using advanced sensing equipment and lasers, satellites can now pick up traces of hydrocarbons in the atmosphere above suspected oil reserves. Comparing images taken at various times can help pinpoint locate the exact sources of the seeps.
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Popularity: 91% [?]