Closure date for Flin Flon smelter to be announced by summer: company
Last Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2009 | 9:19 AM CT
People in Flin Flon should know by summer when the Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd. will close its copper smelter.
A company official told CBC News an announcement should come by the end of June.
Financial reasons are being blamed for the closure, which will put about 200 employees out of work. Tom Goodman, vice president of company operations, said the costs to upgrade the 80-year-old smelter and keep it going are not economically prudent.
"Shipping's a big part of it. Energy costs are a big part of it. But also, at the same time, the value that we get from third parties to treat their concentrate is just not there anymore," he said.
Without the upgrade, the company won't be able to meet new federal emission standards by 2014, Goodman said.
