As one mining camp near Mistissini closes, another one opens. The difference, of course, is that the closing camp – Strateco’s Matoush uranium camp – was a lightning rod for controversy. But there’s no opposition to Stornaway Diamond’s Renard mine, the first diamond mine in Quebec.
When Premier Philippe Couillard flew in to participate in the mine’s ground-breaking ceremony July 10, he was joined by Mistissini Chief Richard Shecapio, Chibougaumau Mayor Manon Cyr and Chapais Mayor Steve Gamache.
That ceremony followed a formal production decision by the company, which meant that the board of directors had agreed to move ahead with the Renard project following receipt of a $946 million financing package from its shareholders.
“The formal decision to proceed to construction and production at Renard… represents the most significant milestone yet in the long journey to bring Quebec’s first diamonds to market,” Stornaway President and CEO Matt Manson said in a press release. “The Renard Diamond Project is now fully permitted, financed and ready to build.”
Dignitaries with shovels from left to right: Sydney Swallow – Tallyman; Steve Gamache mayor
of Chapais; Chief Richard Shecapio from Mistissini; Jacques Daoust – Minister of the
Economy, Innovation and Export; Premier Philippe Couillard; Manon Cyr mayor of
Chibougamau; Matt Manson – President and CEO of Stornoway; Jean Boucher – Member of
the National Assembly for Ungava; Patrick Godin – COO of Stornoway
Ghislain Poirier, Stornaway’s Vice President, Public Affairs, explained that the company has 30 months to bring the project into production.
“The main thing [we need to do] is to build all the infrastructure needed for the diamond production,” said Poirier.
The first year of construction will focus on a permanent camp for 300 workers, and will be followed by a temporary camp for 300 more.
“It’s a remote project,” Poirier said. “So we need to build enough room for 600 workers – that will be the peak number during construction.”
The next goal will be to get the processing camp ready to run, as well as a power-generation system.
“We will produce our electricity using liquefied natural gas,” Poirier said. “We will bring it in by the road each day. It’s clearly better than diesel: it’s a cleaner way to produce electricity, especially for greenhouse emissions.”
The good news for Crees, said Poirier, is that room in the camp for workers means jobs for workers. The Renard camp will be hiring 250 workers in the next year and a half, followed by another 250 in the 18 months after that.
“The best way for us to maximize worker retention, so people will stay on board at the mine site, is to hire people from the region,” Poirier said. “When you are from Montreal, if you come to the mine site, but then have another opportunity in South America, it’s easy for you to leave. With people based in the region, they will be more loyal and [less likely to leave to pursue other work]. It’s a win-win situation.”
In 2012 the company signed the Mecheshoo Agreement with the Cree Nation of Mistissini and the Grand Council of the Crees, which granted Cree consent for the project. Poirier said the company is very proud of the Mecheshoo agreement, which he said will bring jobs and contracts to Mistissini and other Crees in Eeyou Istchee.
“We say we didn’t negotiate an agreement, we built an agreement with the Crees,” he said. “Our goal is clearly to involve them in the long term. The mine will be in production for 20 years plus, perhaps 30 or 40. We want the Crees to benefit. The Jamesiens too. The people from Chibougaumau and Chapais will benefit as well.”
Already, with the project to build the site road, Poirier says that the company entirely uses regional workers and equipment, organized through the Mistissini-based Eskan Company, one of the project’s two main contractors. The other was Swallow-Fournier, a joint-venture company owned by the families of tallymen on whose traplines the mine site is located as well as a contractor from Abitibi.
“The road is a 100% original product,” Poirier said. “These two contractors built the road last year using many local subcontractors. That was a big achievement.”
The mine is slated to be up and running by the end of 2016, and is scheduled to be in full-scale commercial production by the second quarter of 2017.
“That will be for many, many years,” Poirier said. “We have at least 20 years in front of us: 11 years based on our reserve, and nine based on our resources. We are already drilling on site to increase our resources. The deposit is open, so it’s possible to think about many other years ahead of us. That’s why it’s so important to maximize the number of Cree workers at the beginning. If they enter into our workforce, they’ll be in it for a long time.”
Poirier laughed at a mention of the controversy over Strateco’s Matoush uranium project, which was stopped by near-unanimous opposition from the Crees.
“It’s more than just the social acceptability,” he explained. “That’s just the beginning. You have to gain it, but then you have to maintain it after you gain it. Social acceptability is very important to us – it’s my job.”
