Diversified miner Hudbay Minerals has announced the completion of mining activities at its 777 copper-zinc-gold-silver mine in Canada, which once served as its flagship Manitoba operation, after 18 years of production.
The site in Flin Flon has begun closure activities, the company said, and its employees and equipment are now being transferred to its Snow Lake site, also in Manitoba. That is part of Hudbay’s plan under its Lalor ramp-up strategy.
The 777 mine commenced production in 2004 with an initial 10-year mine life, operating steadily and successfully with expanded reserves for an additional eight years.
“After extensive drilling in and around the mine in recent years, no new deposits were identified and the 777 mine hoisted its last skip of ore late last week,” Hudbay said.
“The company’s hydrometallurgical zinc facility in Flin Flon will also be closed after more than 25 years of successful operations,” adding that both the mine and facility will be safely decommissioned by September.
The Flin Flon concentrator and tailings impoundment area will be shifted to care and maintenance, which the miner said could provide optionality should another mineral discovery occur in the Flin Flon area.
“[The] 777 was a state-of-the-art mine that represented the pinnacle of a century of shared success for Hudbay and Flin Flon,” said President and CEO Peter Kukielski.
“Though the closure of 777 marks the end of a mining era in Flin Flon, we will continue with exploration activities in the region. Hudbay’s transition to Snow Lake will help deliver that future and demonstrate our commitment to being a valued member of our communities.”
In all, Hudbay owns three polymetallic mines, four ore concentrators and a zinc production facility in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada, and Cusco, Peru, and copper projects in Arizona and Nevada in the U.S.
Source: Hudbay Minerals