Friday, 17 February 2012 14:16
 |
| Gold miners work in the open pit mine at Agnico-Eagle's Meadowbank Mine facility in Meadowbank Mine, Nunavut on Wednesday, August 24, 2011. The mine is situated 75 km north of the hamlet of Baker Lake. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick |
Tom Hoefer, executive director of the chamber of mines, says Agnico-Eagle's decision to shut down the Meadowbank gold mine near Baker Lake three years earlier than expected is concerning, especially given a recent decision by another company, Newmont, to put its plans for a gold mine near Cambridge Bay on hold.
"It really demands everybody have a look at it to see what they can do," he said. "We don't want it to become contagious. Because you've got such great opportunities, and that's really worth protecting in Nunavut."
Agnico-Eagle announced Thursday the gold mine near Baker Lake would close in 2017 instead of 2020, because of higher than expected costs.Hoefer says government and Inuit organizations need to consider ways to make sure Nunavut's business reputation doesn't take a hit.
"I think it's time for us to gather all the stakeholders together and say, guys, let's see what we can all do here to make sure Nunavut stays strong."
But Sean Boyd, Agnico-Eagle's CEO, said despite the poor performance of the Meadowbank mine, the company is moving forward on plans to develop the Meliadine mine near Rankin Inlet.
Boyd said Meliadine has higher-grade ore than Meadowbank and that its location will help keep production costs down.
"One of the things Meliadine has that could certainly help on the cost side is its proximity to Rankin Inlet versus Meadowbank's distance from Baker Lake," he said.
That has Rankin Inlet's mayor, Pujjuut Kusugak, waiting to see what comes next for Agnico-Eagle, for Meliadine and for his community.
Kusugak said he wants to make sure his community is properly prepared for a mine — both for the benefits and the challenges that he's sure it will bring.
"The real impacts, I think, right now are really unknown," he said. "It's going to have a huge impact for generations."
Agnico-Eagle officials say Meadowbank employees are well positioned to transition to Meliadine, which is scheduled to begin production in about five years.
For more northern stories from CBC.ca, click here.