After five years of operation, Hudbay’s Reed Mine is closed.
The Reed Mine, one of three mines majority-owned and operated by Hudbay in northern Manitoba, ceased production at the end of July.
The mine, located in Grass River Provincial Park about 120 kilometres away from Flin Flon and 80 kilometres from Snow Lake, had been in operation since September 2013.
Ground was broken at the Reed site in 2012, on the same day Hudbay announced the extraction of the first ore from the then-new Lalor mine near Snow Lake.
In 2014, the first ore from the Reed site was produced. Just over four years later, truck driver Ken McCrimmon, who drove the first ore load out of the mine, drove the symbolic last load out at the Reed Mine closing ceremony, which celebrated the success of the operation, on July 25.
For a region always looking for the next mining mother lode to provide long-term activity and jobs, Reed would never be the biggest option. The mine was designed to be small – in total, the mine had a total mineral reserve of 2 million tonnes, compared to nearly 13 million tonnes at Hudbay’s Lalor mine.
“Reed, from the outset, was always going to be a short life mine,” said Alan Hair, Hudbay CEO, at an official event held at the mine on July 25.
“It’s been very successful and it’s met our expectations, but all good things must come to an end.”
Despite the mine’s small size and output, the mine’s calling card was the high-grade copper it produced – at one point, Reed copper was labelled the fifth-highest grade copper produced in any underground copper mine in the world. That, combined with the mine’s relatively short distance to the Flin Flon mill, made Reed mine an attractive investment.
The mine was located within the boundaries of Grass River Provincial Park; a placement that caused some controversy after Hudbay initially announced the project. Provincial government approval of the project was met with consternation from environmental groups and First Nations figures. Hudbay officials encountered protests from First Nations groups on at least two occasions while the mine was being planned. In 2013, Mathias Colomb Cree Nation issued a notice of eviction to Hudbay, ordering the company to vacate both the Lalor and Reed mine sites – an order Hudbay was never forced to, and did not, comply with.
The last ore from the mine was extracted and showcased at an event at the mine on July 25. Demolition and restoration of the natural site will soon begin.
The shutdown means that Hudbay’s only active mining operations in northern Manitoba will be the 777 and Lalor mines, along with processing facilities in Flin Flon and Snow Lake.
The 777 Mine site is anticipated to shut down in 2021, while the Lalor Mine is anticipated to continue until 2027. Hudbay also owns a majority of the Rosemont copper mine project in Arizona and owns the Constancia Mine in Peru.
No layoffs will come as a result of the Reed closure. Workers who served at the site – about 40 full-time workers in total – will be reassigned to work at Hudbay’s operations in Snow Lake or Flin Flon
“We have a commitment to our people, even though this mine is closing, all of the Hudbay people will continue to work for us at our other operations,” said Rob Assabgui, vice president of Hudbay’s Manitoba business unit.
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