Xstrata Nickel Suspends Work at Montcalm Mine

SHANGHAI, June 10 -- Xstrata Nickel's Sudbury Operations announces the indefinite suspension of mining operations at its Montcalm Mine in Timmins after a geotechnical review showed structural damage to the mine. Unplanned ground movements at Montcalm forced underground activity at the mine to be stopped at the end of March 2009 to ensure the safety of the workforce and enable geotechnical investigations and monitoring to be carried out.

    Mr Keith Bullock mine manager at Montcalm said that "Safety remains our paramount concern. We are unable to access the mine until a further investigation is conducted and a full assessment of options and risk management plans is complete. We have therefore decided to cease operations indefinitely. We will continue to conduct further geotechnical monitoring at the mine to assess the full extent of the structural damage and the options that are available to us."

    Xstrata Nickel remains committed to proactively engaging with Montcalm's stakeholders throughout the process. Xstrata Nickel’s employees at Montcalm will continue to assist with ongoing assessments and environmental stewardship of the operation in the near term.

    Montcalm was expected to produce approximately 9,000 tonnes of nickel contained in concentrate this year. Its mine life was scheduled to end in mid 2011. The impact of actions at Montcalm to production from the Sudbury Smelter are expected to be substantially offset as it continues to process concentrate from the company’s Raglan and Australasian operations, initial ore from Nickel Rim South and third party feed sources.

    (Source: steelguru)