Canada: Wildfires shut down Teck Resources copper mine

Feeling the heat.

Teck restarts copper mine, Kodiak pauses due to wildfire

Teck Resources said it had resumed operations at its Highland Valley Copper mine in British Columbia after a wildfire evacuation order was lifted. Meanwhile explorer Kodiak Copper said it had temporarily halted drilling at its MPD copper-gold porphyry project.

Mining Journal

19 August 2021

HVC was suspended on the weekend when the order was put in place by the district of Logan Lake.

Teck said HVC was in the process of ramping back up to full operation and the company's copper guidance would be "updated as necessary after the risk of further effect on operations from wildfires subsides".

HVC accounts for almost half the company's copper production and was expected to produce 128,000-133,000 tonnes this year of the company's forecast 275,000-290,000t.

Meanwhile explorer Kodiak Copper said it had temporarily halted drilling at its MPD copper-gold porphyry project in southern British Columbia as a precautionary measure due to the wildfire situation.

"I sincerely hope that the lower temperatures and forecasted rain over the next couple of days will help improve the fire situation and bring some relief to the local communities," president and CEO Claudia Tornquist said.

The BC Wildfire Service currently lists 31 "wildfires of note" which are highly visible or post a potential threat to public safety.

Canada is experiencing an unusually hot summer and difficult fire season, which has impacted the resources sector across the country, including uranium miner Cameco which temporarily suspended its Cigar Lake mine in Saskatchewan last month due to a wildfire.

Raging Wildfires Shut Down Teck Resources Copper Mine

Matthew Evanoff

Miningfeeds.com

August 17, 2021

Growing wildfires in British Columbia continue to create complications for everyone in the region. High winds continue to fan the flames of massive blazes in southern and Interior BC. Those fires have prompted evacuations for hundreds of properties and several highway closures.

Teck Resources, Canada’s largest diversified miner, is also feeling the heat after the District of Logan Lake issued an evacuation order. As a result, the company has had to close its Highland Valley copper mine. The closure of the mine means all workers except employees essential for ensuring safety and environmental protection have been evacuated now. The company will continue to monitor the situation closely but sees no risk to its infrastructure in the region so far.

This is nothing new for the company and the province, as wildfires continue to rage. Evacuations and significant quantities of smoke have now been a regular feature of the landscape for some time now in 2021. Smoke from these wildfires has been getting in the way of the company’s operations, primarily because of low air quality.

The low air quality is an untenable condition for the mining company and shut down the oxygen plant, which is needed for production at Teck’s metallurgical plant. As the fires continue to burn and firefighters do all they can to stop them, the company has indicated that it will provide any updates to production guidance if it is needed when the smoke clears.