Cliffs comes to Capreol: miner's arrival foretells boom for Northern city.

• Author: Kelly, Lindsay
• Position: FIVE NEWSMAKERS

Despite speculation that Cliffs Natural Resources' startup date could be pushed back to 2017, the company's decision to locate its $1.85-billion ferrochrome-processing facility in Capreol, just north of Sudbury, remains one of the area's most significant events in mining since its first ore deposits were discovered, more than a century ago.

After developing a base case for its $3.3-billion Black Thor chromite deposit, conjecture had been heightened as to where the infrastructure would be located. In May 2012, Cliffs announced the ferrochrome processing facility would go to Sudbury, which was chosen over areas such as Thunder Bay and Greenstone.

"Cliffs is pleased to be moving forward with the proposed development of a mine in the Ring of Fire and a processing facility in Sudbury," Bill Boor, Cliffs' senior vice-president of global ferroalloys, said at the time. "These milestones bring us closer to opening the mine and starting production to meet the global demand for stainless steel."

Amongst its attributes, Sudbury offers experience in mineral exploration, mineral production and mine financing, along with a skilled workforce, training programs and environmental stewardship.

Located 500 km north of Thunder Bay, the Ring of Fire is the most substantial chromite deposit in North America and is expected to yield 2.3 million tonnes of chromite per year over 30 years. Infrastructure being developed around Cliffs' Black Thor project includes the mine, an ore-processing facility, an integrated transportation system and the ferrochrome-processing facility.

The facility is expected to produce between 1,250 and 1,750 tonnes of chromite per day, which will require 400 workers during construction and an additional 450 workers for its operation. Hundreds more spinoff employment opportunities are anticipated.

That level of employment and economic development is a boon to the community, according to city Coun. Dave Kilgour, the former mayor of Capreol. In addition to direct employment with Cliffs, an additional 50 to 60 railway workers will be needed, and there should be plenty of work for the area's mining supply and service companies.

"Just as they're servicing Vale and some of the other mines now, they're definitely going to have a continuing service to provide to the refinery once it's open," Kilgour said.

Kilgour doesn't...