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The new technology means that N.W.T.’s Nacha Lacho Rare Earth Mine has no tailings. The resource department of the Northwest Territories has a new child in the city. The Necharacho Rare Earth Mine is located about 100 kilometers east of Yellowknife on Lake Tor and will be put into production this spring. According to the operator of the demonstration project and the owner of near-surface mineral deposits, Cheetah Resources, Netharachau will become Canada’s first rare earth element producer and is among the countries that have signed contracts with indigenous groups to mine minerals on their own. The first project territory.
For Kyle Beha, a heavy equipment operator who has worked in mines in the Northwest region, this is a pleasant surprise. “This means that I have worked a lot in other places, and I have always been a minority. I have always been the only one or a few, but it accounts for about 80% here. 80% of the locals, so I like it very much. Good,” he said. Beha, Hail from Délı̨nęN.W.T. and employed by the Yellowknife Deans First Nations economic entity Detunzu Nahanni Construction Company, which is operating for the mine. “A lot of people don’t have a ticket, no training, and no job. I was lucky to get off the bus and let my ticket start to work and do this kind of work,” he said.
David Connery, vice president of corporate affairs and strategy at Cheetah Resources, told the media that the demonstration phase of the project is considered small, with about 30 seasonal jobs this summer. “We expect the actual footprint to be less than 10% less than that of ordinary diamond mines.” Connery said: “Although we have many initiatives, we have to make it clear that Netcharacho will never replace diamond mines in the Northwestern region’s economy. contribution. “Nevertheless, 600,000 tons of ore-bearing rocks are expected to be mined this summer, of which 100,000 tons contain valuable minerals that are used to power cars, wind turbines and mobile phone cameras. Necharacho Mine Project Manager Carla Lance Parker is smaller, but the secret lies in classification.
“There are no chemicals, it is driven by air. Parker said that its optical fiber X-ray will be aluminized like a diamond, and it will identify the products we need and the products we don’t need, and will separate them through belt feeding. The absence of chemicals means that the first phase of the mine’s clean-up work only involves waste rock.The reclamation plan without tailings ponds reassure Beja. “Last year, when I landed at Fort McFort, I noticed that all the trees were dry. All the effects I saw. There were not many animals, and the ground dried out and turned into sand. Without any tailing, we have already Having carried out this process here, I am very happy to be an environmentalist.” Beha said. The product will be transported to the Dry Cao River by barge in the summer. After that, it will go to Saskatoon, where it will be processed by the Saskatchewan Research Council, and Cheetah Resources will refine it before shipping it to Norway for the fine separation and sale of rare earth elements.
“We also showed to the global customer base that N.W.T. Cheetah’s mixed rare earth and precipitation products can meet its strict product specifications.” Connery said.Cheta Resources told the media that the project is expected to achieve the second phase of development in 2024; if all goes well-Cheetah hopes to enter the second phase and expand the number of excavation pits before 2024.