Not content with leaving its imprint in the Parcel Islands, Vietnam’s northern provinces and the Spratly Islands, China is now resorting to mineral exploration in the country itself as a new strategy in its relentless expansionism.

In November 2007, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung reportedly approved China’s large-scale project to mine aluminum ore, or bauxite, in the Central Highlands in exchange for financial aid. The decision of the communist party triggered a torrent of criticisms and objections from scientists, intellectuals, military and religious leaders.

The project’s opponents voiced deep concerns about the disastrous effects of the mining on the environment, the uprooting of local ethnic Montagnards and, more importantly, the de facto Chinese occupation of the strategic Central Highlands.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap, North Vietnam’s famed war hero, asked that the aluminum ore mining plan be postponed until international scientists had a chance to study its impacts on the environment.

Venerable Thich Quang Do, head of the banned United Buddhist Church of Vietnam, called for a month of “peaceful demonstration at home” to protest against the Chinese bauxite exploration plan. In a statement, he said the project “will destroy the forests of the Central Highlands, pollute the basalt-rich red soils, increase the risk of prolonged periods of drought or flooding, and seriously contaminate water supplies, thus directly threatening the economic development of the southern region of Central Vietnam.”

Despite the outcry, mining operations by China’s Chalco Group began in 2008.

According to the Mineral Information Institute, bauxite is first processed aluminum oxide, which is then refined into aluminum by energy-intensive electrolysis. Vietnam’s aluminum ore reserve - an estimated 7.5 billion tons — is potentially worth $700 billion (USD).

According to Nguyen Thuy Trang, a United Nations official in charge of a program to protect the environment in Africa, bauxite conversion into aluminum oxide generates two toxic chemicals known as “red dust” and “red mud.” Red dust inflames the lungs and can cause cancer of the respiratory system. Red mud, an iron-rich residue, can cause harm to the reproductive system and birth defects.

It is estimated that the production of one ton of aluminum requires four tons of bauxite and releases three tons of carcinogenic red mud. In the long run, toxic chemicals would foul waterways in the Central Highlands and damage the flatland ecology of the Mekong Delta.

Moreover, the destruction of forests and cropland to make room for the mining operations and the establishment of camps and villages for the Chinese workers would displace indigenous tribes, leading to the irreparable loss of their culture and way of life.

The presence of Chinese workers and soldiers in the strategic Central Highlands constitutes a serious threat to Vietnam’s national security, critics say.

“We know that China has established a strong naval base in Hai Nam,” wrote Gen. Nguyen Tan Vinh, former Vietnam ambassador to Beijing, in a letter to members of the Vietnamese politburo. “Now, we let China exploit bauxite in the Central Highlands, and there will be from 7,000 to 10,000 Chinese workers or soldiers who will be stationed and work there; a Chinese town, a military base will take shape in our crucial strategic area. In the north of our country there is a strong naval base, in our west there is a fully equipped army base, thus what will happen to the independence, sovereignty for which we have traded millions of lives and a lot of bones and blood?”

Vietnamese military leaders have every reason to be concerned. The Central Highlands is geographically important. It is a natural gateway that would allow Chinese forces, using a large pincher movement, to cut the country in half or to threaten the southern part of the country.

In 1975, former President Nguyen Van Thieu’s unfortunate decision to abandon Pleiku and Kontum in the Central Highlands allowed North Vietnamese generals to execute deep envelopments in the South, resulting in the quick collapse of ARVN forces.

Aluminum is used in building construction, packaging and car manufacturing - industries hard hit in the current economic slump. According to news reports, China’s Chalco Group, which is mining bauxite in Vietnam, reported heavy losses in 2008. The company said the losses were due to earthquakes and snowstorms in China, the global economic crisis, and a drop in prices for metallic products in the global market. The company said it expects more losses in 2009.

Beijing does not appear to be dissuaded by financial setbacks in its mineral exploration, however, as bauxite mining may be, after all, simply a cover for a larger sinister scheme.

Traditionally, data warehousing implementations were large, complex and expensive, meaning only the top-ranking companies could afford them. Teradata pioneered the initial market for corporate data warehousing solutions and still maintains a segment lead, something HP’s CEO Mark Hurd knows all too well. More recent entrants into the data warehousing and intelligence market, like Netezza, have emerged with cost-effective, appliance-based approaches. Others in this arena include Greenplum, recent Microsoft acquisition DATAllegro and, of course IBM, Oracle and SAP.

But the web changed the way we radiate and consume information and in doing so, created a new opportunity to measure and monetize it. Faced with more user data, logging information, and web content than anyone thought one system could handle, the major web companies developed highly scaled data warehousing solutions themselves. Armed with these tools, they improved customer resonance by building better recommendation engines, more targeted advertising networks and more intricate campaigns.

The preferred architectural model for this web-derived data warehouse – a combination of low-cost server hardware, distributed systems and open-source software — set off an innovation path that outpaced the commercial market. What once was a very expensive proposition — to amass the computer power, storage capacity and network bandwidth to run a high-end data warehouse and analytics engine — is now readily available on-site or in the cloud.

The current software favorite for large-scale data processing and analytics is Hadoop, an open-source implementation of MapReduce. MapReduce is a technique popularized by Google that distributes complex problems to many distributed nodes and, as such, is useful for processing information from large data sets. Hadoop helps major web companies make sense of the mouse clicks and content they track across hundreds of millions of users. Amazon began offering it as a pre-configured option on EC2 in early April. Firms like Cloudera help companies apply Hadoop to their data-processing initiatives. Cloudera recently secured a $5 million dollar financing round to beef up its distribution of Hadoop.  Meanwhile, Yahoo has been singing the Hadoop tune for the last couple of years, following the hire of Hadoop’s creator, Doug Cutting, in 2006.

A Hadoop-spawned ecosystem includes a range of complimentary projects. Hive, for example, is an open-source data warehouse infrastructure built on top of Hadoop. And other uses of MapReduce are gaining traction. Recently, Aster Data Systems raised $12 million in new funding for its high-performance analytical database. Aster’s software features in-database MapReduce, and is now available as a cloud-based solution.

Not too long ago, Ian Ayres wrote a book called “Super Crunchers,” in which he details the resurgence of data mining and its impact on overall society. As he notes, this trend has been embraced by not only the web giants (think Amazon using filters to track tastes and purchasing history), but by insurance companies and government agencies, those tasked with making decisions that affect your everyday life. If his observations ring true, we have not seen the last of how these capabilities will affect our day-to-day activities.

Business intelligence and data warehousing are big enough markets to sustain activity at all levels. The industry giants will lumber on delivering conventional solutions, newer technology startups will put innovative products in place, and creative developments from the open-source community will set the industry aflutter. What follows is the ability for more mainstream companies to efficiently deploy unparalleled data mining solutions. The improved data warehousing and analytics capabilities are ready for use. Let’s watch and see who rises to the occasion.

Nearly three months ago, Rwandan troops entered eastern DR Congo for a joint military operation with the Congolese against Rwandan Hutu FDLR rebels.

The operation lasted just over a month and the two governments concluded that the operation had “seriously weakened” the rebels, whose leaders have been linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

However a BBC investigation has discovered that the rebels still have strongholds in eastern Congo and are financing their continued existence by controlling mines near the border with Rwanda.

Our correspondent in the DRC, Thomas Fessy reports on how illegal mining has continued to fuel one of Africa’s most deadly conflicts.

Just a few weeks after the Army Corps of Engineers approved a controversial mountaintop mine in Kentucky without a peep from the Environmental Protection Agency, the EPA has urged the Corps to revoke the permit for another enormous mountaintop project in Southwest Virginia, citing fears of “significant degradation” to nearby streams.

The Ison Rock Ridge mine, owned by Virginia-based A & G Coal, was previously approved under something called the “Nationwide 21? permit, a generic review process intended to streamline the approval of mining applications across the country. In an April 3 letter to the Corps, however, the EPA warned that that generic review did little to prevent the operation from damaging the adjacent watershed, and that further study specific to the Ison Rock project should be performed.

EPA believes that further avoidance and minimization efforts are needed, that the proposed project may cause or contribute to an impairment of the aquatic life use in downstream receiving waters, and that the direct and cumulative impacts from this proposed as well as past and future mines will be persistent and permanent.

If allowed to proceed, the project would fill nine Appalachian valleys, burying roughly three miles of streams.

Franklin Mining Inc. Tuesday said it completed the sale of all energy assets to a newly formed oil and gas company that would keep the name Franklin Oil & Gas, Inc. In exchange for all Franklin Mining energy assets, the company would receive a minimum 20 million shares from the newly formed company’s initial issue.

The company added that the newly formed Franklin Oil & Gas, Inc. would initially focus on development of the Texas oil properties while pursuing further negotiations on gas-to-liquid, oil and hydroelectric projects in South America.

Canadian stocks fell for a second day, led by metals producers, as gold prices dropped to the lowest level in more than two months.

Goldcorp Inc. and Barrick Gold Corp. fell at least 1.8 percent as speculation that the U.S. economy will rebound eroded the appeal of precious metals as an alternative investment. Stocks pared their losses in the final hour of trading as Research In Motion Ltd. climbed more than 7 percent after Bank of America Corp. said the maker of the BlackBerry phone will increase market share.

“Commodities obviously are one of the major drivers,” said Gavin Graham, who helps oversee C$42 billion at Bank of Montreal Asset Management in Toronto. “What you’re seeing is a reflection of weakness in commodity prices.”

The Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index fell 49.59 points, or 0.6 percent, to 9,016.17 in Toronto, paring its 2009 gain to 0.3 percent. The benchmark has climbed 19 percent since falling to a 5 ½-year low on March 9.

Raw-materials producers and financial stocks, which account for 46 percent of the nation’s benchmark stock index, contributed the most to today’s decline.

Goldcorp lost 1.8 percent to C$37.40, leading raw-materials producers to a 2.9 percent decline, the steepest among 10 industries in the S&P/TSX. Barrick Gold lost 4.6 percent to C$35.61. Gold futures for June delivery fell $24.50, or 2.7 percent, to $872.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange as last week’s rally in equities curbed demand for a haven from stock market losses.

Loan Losses

Financial stocks fell 0.8 percent, contributing the most to the benchmark’s decline after commodity producers, as Mike Mayo, analyst at Calyon Securities, advised selling bank shares, saying government measures to shore up lenders may not help as much as expected and loan losses will exceed levels from the Great Depression.

Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s biggest lender, lost 0.7 percent to C$38.20. Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canada’s second- largest bank, dropped 2 percent to C$45.26.

Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will meet with chief executive officers of the country’s biggest banks to discuss new rules that may be implemented from last week’s Group of 20 nations meeting, the National Post said.

The executives are likely to use the meeting this month to voice their opposition to greater oversight powers by the Bank of Canada, the newspaper reported today, citing unidentified financial industry lobbyists.

Building Permits Drop

Stocks also dropped after Canadian building permits declined for a fifth straight month in February, the longest streak since 1990, as commercial and government construction plans slumped.

The total value of permits issued by municipalities fell 16 percent to C$3.67 billion ($2.99 billion), the lowest since January 2002, Statistics Canada said today in Ottawa. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg anticipated a 4 percent drop, the median of 15 estimates.

EnCana dropped 0.3 percent to C$54.88 as oil lost $1.46 to $51.05 a barrel. Qatari Oil Minister Abdullah bin Hamad al- Attiyah said he doesn’t expect prices to rebound as far as $70 a barrel this year as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries implements its biggest-ever supply reduction. Crude stockpiles in the U.S. are at a 15-year high.

RIM climbed C$5.46, or 7.5 percent, to C$78.26, leading technology shares in the S&P/TSX to a 6.1 percent advance, the steepest among 10 industries. The company’s online applications store, inexpensive stock price and market gains versus competitors should support the shares, Bank of America analyst Vivek Arya wrote in a research note.

Ascot Mining Monday announce that its subsidiary, Veritas Resources CR SA, has signed a Joint Venture Agreement with the owner of La Toyota Gold Concession in Costa Rica that will contribute to a substantial increase in the Company’s planned gold production.
The Agreement between Veritas Resources and Auro Magra CR SA, the owner of La Toyota, underlines Ascot’s stated objective of aggregating multiple gold mining concessions within the Costa Rican Gold Belt. Under the Agreement, Veritas Resources will earn a 50% interest in the Joint Venture.
The company said La Toyota is located in the “Gold Mountain Country”, Puntarenas, Costa Rica, which lies close to and North West of the Company’s other operations at Tres Hermanos, El Recio, Boston and Chassoul. La Toyota is serviced by paved roads and is readily accessible from the Company’s existing operations.
There are four hydrothermal parallel veins approximately 300 meters apart on La Toyota concession; La Toyota, El Angel, Anarchy and Felix. The initial development will be of the Toyota vein which is 4 meters wide near surface, dipping at 85 degrees and narrowing to 1.5 meters nominally about 10 meters below surface. This vein extends for more than 1 kilometer and its horizontal limit has not yet been fully established. According to the Mining Department of the Costa Rica Government, the Toyota vein hosts “proven but not yet 43-101 compliant” reserves of 666,190 tons at an average grade of 0.48 oz/ton or 319,770 oz of gold.
Commencing in early 2010, production from La Toyota will significantly contribute to Ascot achieving its forecast of 100,000 ounces of gold per year within the next three to five years, it said. The additional projected contribution from the Toyota vein (the first to be developed) is:
Year 1: 7,500 ozs - Net to Ascot: 3,750 ozs (Revenue $3,200,000 @ 95% purity @ $900/oz)
Year 2: 14,500 ozs - Net to Ascot: 7,250 ozs (Revenue $6,200,000 @ 95% purity @ $900/oz)
Year 3: 18,000 ozs - Net to Ascot: 9,000 ozs (Revenue $7,700,000 @ 95% purity @ $900/oz)
It is expected that the other three veins will display similar characteristics which underlines the potential of the La Toyota property.
The company said that all permits are in place. Construction of the mill and associated infrastructure has commenced and initial mine development is proceeding. The concession is permitted for 150 metric tonnes per day of mill throughput. The initial mill capacity will be 50 metric tonnes per day, increasing in two planned stages to full capacity.
Under the Agreement, Veritas Resources, as Operator, will bring into production a 50 metric tonne per day mill and develop mining operations capable of sustaining the plant at capacity at which time the Company will be vested as to 50% in the Joint Venture. Capital costs to Veritas Resources are estimated at $1 Million.
Most of the plant and equipment is already on site.