Construction of Canada’s next diamond mine is 58% complete and remains on schedule for completion in April 2003.
London-based
The pipes lie immediately offshore of the 20-sq.-km East Island in Lac de Gras, 300 km north of Yellowknife and 30 km southeast of the Ekati diamond mine. Diavik Diamond Mines, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Rio Tinto group, is the operator and 60%-owner of the joint-venture project. Aber owns the remainder.
Plans call for the construction of a series of water retention dykes to permit open-pit mining of the four pipes in three separate pits. Mining will eventually shift underground on two of the pipes in the latter part of the project’s 20-year span. The first dyke is being constructed around the A-154 South and North pipes, which are separated by only 100 metres. Nearly 6 million tonnes of rock will be placed along a 6-km-long path to build the A-154 dyke embankment. The dyke construction is advancing on schedule for completion by the end of November.
A 1-metre-thick impervious plastic concrete wall extending through the centre of the dyke to bedrock will prevent lake waters from seeping into the pit. The waterproof barrier will be finished in summer 2002, followed by dewatering of the pit in preparation of mining.
More than half the minable reserve is in the A-154 South pipe, estimated at 11.7 million tonnes grading 5.2 carats per tonne at US$79 per carat, which equates to US$419 per tonne of kimberlite. The A-154 South pipe will have an operating margin of US$359 per tonne.
Construction of the exterior of the kimberlite processing plant should be finished this month, which would allow interior work to proceed during the winter. Related infrastructure, including power, sewage, additional fuel storage, heating plants, maintenance shops and the administration complex, is on schedule.
During the first 10 years, the Diavik mine will produce somewhere between 6 million and 8 million carats per year, contributing $150 million in annual profits to Aber. The $1.3-billion project has a 32-month payback period.
The Diavik joint venture has spent $515 million to the end of the second quarter. Aber had expected to arrange a US$150-million conventional debt-financing package in September, which would hve allowed it to fund the remainder of its share of the capital costs, as well as initial working capital requirements. Aber expects to receive a formal commitment by a lending group made up of several Canadian and international banks. The company has $162 million in working capital, enough to last into the first quarter of 2002.
The Diavik joint venture recently concluded participation agreements with all five neighbouring aboriginal groups. These relate to training, employment and business opportunities. The native groups have ratified the Diavik environmental agreement and the socio-economic monitoring agreement.
Be the first to comment on "Diavik inches toward completion"