Xstrata Zinc / North America
Brunswick Mine
Xstrata Zinc: World > North America
| Detail label | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | New Brunswick, Canada |
| Products | The main product is zinc concentrate, with by-product lead and copper concentrates |
| Employees | 800 |
| Annual production capacity | The Brunswick mine and concentrator has an annual capacity of 3.6 million tonnes of ore containing zinc, lead, copper, and silver. |
Description of Operation
Brunswick is an underground mine located 20 km SW of Bathurst, New Brunswick. The mine is well located for shipping concentrates by rail or by boat through the company-operated bulk-handling facility near Belledune, New Brunswick, located 50 km from the mine.
Zinc concentrate is shipped by rail to CEZinc, in Valleyfield, Quebec or shipped offshore either to the Xstrata Asturiana zinc smelter or to other smelters in Europe. Bulk concentrate is shipped to a variety of smelters in Europe. Lead concentrate is shipped by rail to the Xstrata Belledune lead smelter. Copper concentrate is shipped by rail to the Xstrata Horne copper smelter, in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec.
Brief History of the Operation
The massive-sulphide ore body was discovered in 1953 and put in production in 1964. This operation has produced more than 120 million tonnes of ore to date and counts among the largest underground zinc mines in the world. With the current life-of-mine plan, the mine will be depleted near the end of 2010.