N. Idaho's Sunshine Mine to change hands

By JOHN MILLER ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER BOISE, Idaho -- The famed Sunshine Mine in northern Idaho is changing hands, as Canadian mining company Minco Silver Corp. said Wednesday it will pay $62.3 million for the mine's owner, Sterling Mining Co. Sterling, based in Wallace in Idaho's Silver Valley, disclosed last month that financial problems had forced it to consider unloading assets or finding a partner. Sterling bought the dormant Sunshine Mine in 2003 and began initial production last December after the construction of a 5,000-foot tunnel that allowed miners a second escape route and also allowed more machinery to be brought in. In June, however, Sterling announced its cash flow had been impaired by delays in production due to extreme weather, safety inspections, equipment failures and cancellation of expected financing... [read full story]