In January, De Beers will begin flooding its Snap Lake mine in the Northwest Territories. At this time, it will also cease its involvement in an exploration quest in Saskatchewan.
The company notes that it will preserve the Snap Lake resource until market conditions allow for it to operate more economically. With its program of extended care and maintenance, the ore body will remain viable while minimizing the environmental impact of running Snap Lake.
Once the flooding is complete, mine staff will be reduced from 55 to 35, with displaced staff being considered for jobs at the company’s other operations.
Recently, De Beers also ended its $20.4 million joint venture with CanAlaska Uranium to probe for diamonds in Saskatchewan. The initiative was called off after a drilling program found seven anomalies were “most likely associated with magnetic minerals within organic material in the overburden,” says CanAlaska.
