Gold miner Agnico to invest $1.2B in two mines in Canadian Arctic
by Canadian Manufacturing.com Staff
Toronto-based Agnico Eagle green-lights two major Nunavut gold projects
TORONTO—Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. is moving forward with plans to expand one Nunavut gold mine and develop another.
As it released its 2016 financial results Feb. 15, the company detailed plans to invest $330 million to expand its Meadowbank mine, about 100 kilomtres outside Baker Lake, Nunavut and $900 million to develop its new Meliadine project near Rankin Inlet.
“Our primary focus will be on developing and expanding our business in Nunavut as we complete the construction of a new mine at Meliadine and develop the Amaruq satellite deposit at Meadowbank,” Sean Boyd, the company’s CEO, said in a statement. “These new operations, along with optimizations at existing mines, are expected to result in production growth from current levels to approximately 2.0 million ounces in 2020, along with a decline in unit costs.”
The company opened its Meadowbank mine, which is located in Nunavut’s Kivalliq region about 300 kilometres west of Hundson’s Bay, in 2010. To expand the operation to the nearby Amaruq deposit—about 55 km north of the main site—Agnico plans to spend approximately $330 million.
Meanwhile, it also plans to spend $900 million over the next three years to development its Meliadine project. About $550 million of the funds will go toward surface construction, while $350 million will be directed to underground development. The project will have a 14-year lifespan and is expected to produce approximately 5.3 million ounces of gold.
The company said both the Amaruq expansion and Meliadine mine should be producing gold by late 2019.
