Inco cuts nickel at Kelly Lake

Nickel major Inco (n-t) has announced an initial resource figure for a major nickel and platinum-group-metals deposit discovered in 1997 at Kelly Lake, near Sudbury, Ont.

The deposit holds an estimated 10.5 million tonnes grading 1.77% nickel, 1.34% copper and 3.6 grams per tonne of platinum group metals (PGMs). In comparison, Inco’s Ontario Division currently mines ore averaging 1.41% nickel, 1.4% copper and 1.8 grams PGMs.

Inco says the Kelly Lake deposit is accessible by means of existing infrastructure near its Copper Cliff South mine and that a production decision will be made later this year.

Exploration at Kelly Lake is part of Inco’s ongoing exploration strategy to find new sources of high-grade ore at shallow depths or near its existing Canadian mines. So far, the program has had two successes: Kelly Lake and a high-grade nickel-copper-PGM zone at Totten, also in the Sudbury area.

Inco plans to spend US$7.7 million at the Ontario Division this year on underground and surface exploration of several targets. The company notes that this will be its highest exploration spending in Ontario since the late 1970s.