Panel offers no "crystal ball": experts offer no solid forecast on commodity downturn.

AuthorMyers, Ella
PositionMINING

Solid answers--it's what mining professionals are looking for in the downturn, but they may not exist.

The current bust has dominated conversations in the mining industry and it loomed large, despite optimistic attitudes, at a mining panel held by the Sudbury and Ontario Chambers of Commerce in February.

As Andre Dumais prepared to moderate the panel, he expressed concerns that have come up again and again over the last few months.

"I'd like to get an idea of how long this is lasting, but no one has a crystal ball," said the business development officer for Black Rock Engineering. "I was lucky. I came into this business when it was in the middle of a supercycle, a boom, and it was going to go on forever. And in my short decade, this is already my second significant downturn."

The panel centred on findings in the Ontario chamber's report Digging Deeper: Strengthening Ontario's Mining Advantage. The report touches on regulatory, infrastructure and cost challenges faced by today's industry.

"I think people are hoping to get a sense of where the industry is going, and what they need from senior levels of government," said Sudbury chamber president Debbi Nicholson.

The panel was comprised of Stephen Lindley, vice-president of Aboriginal & Northern Affairs at SNC Lavalin; Doug Morrison, president and CEO at the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI); Hans Matthews, president...

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