TORONTO (miningweekly.com) - Brazil's Vale has provided some details on plans to increase production levels at its Canadian nickel operations, amid a strike that marks its eighth month this Saturday.

More than 3 000 United Steelworkers union members employed at Vale Inco's operations in Sudbury and Port Colborne, Ontario, have been on strike since July 13, 2009, after they were unable to reach agreement on a new contract, while employees at the Voisey's Bay operation in Newfoundland and Labrador downed tools a few weeks later, in August.

On Thursday, the Sudbury and Port Colborne employees voted to reject a new proposal from the company, after the first talks since the strike began were broken off at the weekend.

In the last few months, Vale has restarted various mining, milling and smelting operations in Canada, using nonstriking workers and some third-party contractors.

The company began by targeting copper-rich zones, and produced a copper concentrate from the Clarabelle mill in Sudbury, but switched the focus to nickel in January, with the restart of one of the two furnaces at the Copper Cliff smelter.

"The furnace has been operating at full capacity since, drawing down nickel inventories to produce a nickel oxide matte for the company's refinery in Clydach, Wales and producing at a nominal rate of 11-million pounds of nickel per month," Vale said in a statement on Friday.

The company said it is ramping up mine production in Sudbury to maintain an uninterrupted supply of feed to the furnace and expects to be running at full, uninterrupted production in the second half of the year.

The Clydack refinery will be producing at 7,9-million pounds of nickel a month by April.

Vale has also restarted operations at the Voisey's Bay Ovoid mine and mill, which supplies nickel concentrates to the company's operations in Manitoba and Sudbury, and copper concentrates to clients in Europe.

"The Voisey's Bay site is currently operating on a two-week on, two-week off campaign basis, producing 3,5-million pounds of nickel per month and 2,8-million pounds of copper per month," Vale said.