https://www.miningweekly.com

De Beers to flood NWT’s Snap Lake mine a year after closure

17th December 2016

By: Henry Lazenby

Creamer Media Deputy Editor: North America

  

Font size: - +

VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Diamond major De Beers has announced that it will flood the mothballed Snap Lake mine, in Canada’s Northwest Territories (NWT) in January, more than a year after it was placed on care and maintenance on the back of lower diamond prices.

The company said flooding will take about six to eight weeks to complete, thereby preserving the long-term viability of the orebody and reducing costs while mitigating environmental risks associated with maintaining dormant operations.

Once complete, the company expects to lay off about 20 employees to a level of about 35.

De Beers said employees who are displaced will be considered for alternative placement at other De Beers facilities where skill sets and vacancies match. Where job opportunities are not immediately available, employees will receive as much notice as possible and a fair and respectful severance package that exceeds regulatory requirements.

Since December 2015, when it laid off more than 400 workers, more than 100 former Snap Lake mine employees have been placed at the new Gahcho Kué mine in the NWT, which is also operated by De Beers.

De Beers advised that it was unable to find a suitable external party to buy the Snap Lake mine, citing extended care and maintenance being the most responsible and viable route forward.

The company plans to run a winter road programme in the first quarter of 2017 to remove some inventory and equipment offsite and bring in fuel supplies to the site. The long-term phase of care and maintenance will mainly be focused on environmental monitoring activities.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

Comments

Showroom

VEGA Controls SA (Pty) Ltd
VEGA Controls SA (Pty) Ltd

For over 60 years, VEGA has provided industry-leading products for the measurement of level, density, weight and pressure. As the inventor of the...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
WearCheck
WearCheck

Leading condition monitoring specialists, WearCheck, help boost machinery lifespan and reduce catastrophic component failure through the scientific...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Hyphen, Eva mine, ferrochrome price make headlines
Hyphen, Eva mine, ferrochrome price make headlines
27th March 2024
Resources Watch
Resources Watch
27th March 2024

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.137 0.173s - 88pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now