Champion Iron halts operational activities at Bloom Lake amid forest fires in Québec
Champion Iron (TSX: CIA) has temporarily halted operational activities at its Bloom Lake mine in Québec in response to forest fires north of its operations.
The community of Labrador City in western Labrador, near the Québec border, was ordered to evacuate last Friday. The town is located approximately 20 kilometres away from Bloom Lake.
With the forest fires only a few kilometres from Bloom Lake, the company initiated its emergency response protocol and said it is gradually evacuating its workforce.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey said on Sunday that a change in wind direction, cooler temperatures and possible precipitation made for favorable conditions for tackling the wildfire threatening the town.
The mineral reserves for Bloom Lake are estimated at 716 million proven and probable tonnes at an average grade of 28.6% iron.
The life-of-mine average iron metallurgical recovery is 82%, with a plant feed grade of 28.6% iron and an average yearly production of 15.2 million wet metric tonnes of high-purity 66.2% iron ore concentrate.
The company ships iron ore concentrate from Bloom Lake by rail, to a ship loading port in Sept-Îles, Québec, and has delivered its products globally, including in China, Japan, the Middle East, Europe, South Korea, India and Canada.
Champion Iron’s shares were down 2.3% to C$5.95 apiece at mid-day in Toronto on Monday, valuing the company at C$3.08 billion ($2.25 billion).