The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Northwest Alaska mine impacted by COVID-19 and high water North of 60 Mining News – July 24, 2020
Zinc production at the Red Dog Mine dropped significantly during the second quarter due to COVID-19 restrictions and high water levels restricting access to higher grade ore.
Red Dog zinc and lead concentrates are stored in a large covered facility before being loaded on oceangoing ships during the summer months.
Teck Resources Ltd. June 22 said COVID-19 and water challenges resulted in a significant decrease in the production of zinc and lead at its Red Dog Mine in Northwest Alaska.
Red Dog produced 83,900 metric tons (185 million pounds) of zinc during the second quarter, which is a roughly 47% drop from the 158,000 metric tons (348.3 million lb) produced during the same period of 2019 and a 35% drop from the 128,400 metric tons (283.1 million lb) produced during the first three months of this year.
Likewise, Red Dog lead production during the second quarter of 2020 was 21,500 metric tons (47.4 million lb), down about 26% from the same period of 2019 and roughly 8% from the first quarter of this year.
The lack of available personnel resulting from COVID-19 safety protocols and travel mandates contributed to some maintenance challenges that impacted mill throughput during the second quarter.
"At our Red Dog Operations, travel restrictions and modified schedules remain in place due to the fly-in, fly-out nature of the operation. Maintenance schedules and our ability to respond to maintenance challenges were impacted in the second quarter," Teck wrote in its second quarter 2020 report.
In addition to lower mill throughput, zinc grades were lower during the second quarter due to high water levels restricting access to higher grade ore.
"We continue implementing an increased number of tailings and water-related projects in 2020 to manage increased precipitation and water levels at the Red Dog mine," Teck penned in its quarterly report. "The frequency of extreme weather events has been increasing and these projects are designed to ensure that we can continue to optimize the mine operations."
The ore processed during the second quarter of this year averaged 12.6% zinc, which is about 19% lower than the 15.6% zinc grades mined during the second quarter of 2019.
Teck expects that mill production at Red Dog will return to normal in the third quarter but says water levels at the Northwest Alaska mine may continue to restrict access to high-grade ore in the second half of 2020 and personnel availability could impact other aspects of the operation.
"Labor intensive activities such as maintenance, mine operations, and projects continue to be impacted by COVID-19 safety protocols," the company wrote.
Concentrate shipping from the Delong Mountain Transportation System port is also being challenged this year. Zinc and lead concentrates produced during the winter at Red Dog are stored in an enormous storage facility at the DTMS port for shipping during the ice-free summer season in Northwest Alaska.
This year's shipping season was delayed until July 13 due to the failure of the loading arm on one of two barges that transport concentrates out to oceangoing ships. Teck says the shipping is being completed with one barge until the loading arm on the second is repaired, expected by the end of July.
"This will affect the timing of customer deliveries, but barring unforeseen severe weather conditions, we expect to ship all Red Dog production during the shipping season," Teck said.
First quarter operating costs at Red Dog were US$72 million, which is 11% higher than a year ago, primarily due to higher mill throughput and material movement as well as higher administration costs. Unit operating costs, however, were lower than the same period last year.
Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.
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