New Timmins mining expo to showcase the North.

With interest in mining reaching a fevered pitch, a new industry expo is being planned for Timmins for the coming fall.

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Known as "The Big Event: Northern Mines & Exploration Expo", it will be hosted at the McIntyre Arena complex on September 21 and 22, and is being organized by Timmins-based Canadian Trade-Ex.

"We're excited, because Timmins lies in the centre of all sorts of mining activity," says Glenn Dredhart, president of Canadian Trade-Ex, which organizes trade shows for the mining and forestry industries.

Up to 8,000 people are expected to attend the event, which is being labeled as showcase for the industry in Northern Ontario and Quebec. A similar Canadian Trade-Ex mining and forestry expo held in the city in 1999 drew 14,000 attendees, while the company's recent Lake of the Woods Expo in Kenora drew up to 8,000 attendees.

Numerous partners have already become involved with the project, including the Porcupine Prospectors and Developers Association, the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, and various local area mining companies.

Much of the event's schedule was developed through feedback from mining companies and local communities. Dredhart says. As a result, the expo will feature a career fair in response to the rampant demand for skilled tradespeople. Companies looking to attend are being encouraged to bring human resource representatives to meet with members of the general public. Conversely, Dredhart will be conducting a mass mailing throughout Northern Ontario and northwestern Quebec to entice people to bring their resumes to the event.

To this end, a number of schools have also committed to featuring displays at the event, including Northern College, the Haileybury School of Mines, and College Boreal.

"It doesn't matter where you live, there's a lack of skilled tradespeople in the industry. It's something that companies need quite severely right now, and we're trying to help deliver that component as best we can."

The Big Event will also feature an investment fair where publicly traded junior mining companies will have the opportunity to showcase their properties in a series of exhibits.

These companies will also be able to make a 20-minute presentation to potential investors in a special session, for which Dredhart is working to attract 420 people.

Attendees will also be able to take in a trade show, where up to 250 exhibitors from a variety of industry-related sectors will be able to put their services on display.

As part of Dredhart's mantra of ensuring everyone involved in the event will benefit in some way, exhibitors will be privy to a closed-door gala dinner with senior management and purchasing staff from several major mining operations, including De Beers and Xstrata Nickel.

"This will allow management to outline their problems and seek solutions from those who are attending," Dredhart says. "It's a great opportunity for networking."

Having partnered with the expo, the Porcupine Prospectors and Developers Association will be putting on a one-day prospector's course at the event at the request of its members.

"Part of our mandate is to bring mining to the public, and we look at any opportunity to promote that aspect," says Bill MacRae, president, Porcupine Prospectors and Developers Association.

The single-day course targets those who know little about prospecting and will teach them various rudimentary skills, such as recognizing geological structures on one's property.

MacRae says most of the major industry events occur in the spring, leaving the early fall as a prime opportunity for a new event to attract a broad range of sectors to attend.

"The industry is fairly buoyant, and there's lots going on right now. It's a good time to be doing something like this."

www.woodtech.net

By NICK STEWART

Northern Ontario Business