The Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency has granted a mining safety permit for Keliber’s second largest deposit, Syväjärvi.
The permit, granted last week, includes immediate execution, despite eventual appeals. The permit is not yet legally valid.
Keliber stated on Tuesday that preparatory work had started at Syväjärvi, including the removal of overburden, building sedimentation basins and a wetland for overland flow, as well as the construction of roads.
With the mining safety permit granted, Keliber would be able to begin mining wall rock. This would be used as crushed rock and aggregate in building infrastructure, such as the basin structures and foundations and surfaces for roads.
“Syväjärvi's wall rock works very well as material for building infrastructure. Utilising wall rock as utility material for the future mine is both cost-effective and environmentally friendly as the stone supply is nearby. Material efficiency, which is part of the circular economy, has been a part of our operations from the very beginning,” said CEO Hannu Hautala.
The construction phase at Syväjärvi would last for about two years, during which time about one-million tonnes of wall rock would be mined.
The rock material would also be used in the construction of the Päiväneva concentrator area.
Lithium ore production is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2024 and continue for about four years. After that, mining will continue at the Rapasaari mine in the Päiväneva area, and the Syväjärvi mine would be rehabilitated.