Brazilian mining giant Vale is capitalizing on a nickel boom and moving forward with its underground mine at Voisey's Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Dwight Ball announced Monday morning.
It's a "momentous announcement" for the mining industry, Ball said at the announcement at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown St. John's.
"Vale is proceeding with its underground mine," Ball said.
"This is a province that's open for business, and people are showing up."
The move will extend the mine's operating life by at least 15 years, Ball said. Over the five-year construction, more than 16,000 person-years of employment will be created.
Once operational, direct employment will hit 1,700 jobs, including the Long Harbour processing plant, Ball said.
Construction workforce will peak at 4,800 in 2020, with 16K person years of employment over 5 years.
—@TRobertstConstruction will begin later this summer, with first ore expected no later than April 2021.
Eduardo Bartolomeo, Vale's executive director of base metals, said the Voisey's Bay mine is a "huge source of pride" for the company, including the established relationship with the Inuit and Innu communities.
"They are not only our neighbours, but also our employees, our service providers, our partners in so many aspects of our operation."
Vale always had a commitment to Voisey's Bay, Bartolomeo said, but a worldwide nickel decline forced the company to put plans on hold.
A very diverse group gathered at the Sharaton this morning in advance of a big announcement by Vale, including current and future political leaders. <a href="https://t.co/a122UBcE4C">pic.twitter.com/a122UBcE4C</a>
—@TRobertst"Unlike downturns in the recent past, this one took much more than ever predicted it would be. So everybody in the world from the nickel miners went into preservation mode. Vale was no exception," he said.
But now, the company is ready to go, he added.
"We are ready to start hiring, ready to begin construction and ready to fulfil a long-standing commitment to this project."
The Voisey's Bay mine and concentrator is located south of Nain, on Labrador's northern coast.
The project was cast into uncertainty 10 months ago when the company announced it was reviewing its worldwide operations amid a persistent downturn in nickel prices.
The roughly $2-billion project was sanctioned in 2015, and was scheduled to begin production in 2020.