LES MINES SELBAIE STORY: Introduction

CIM Bulletin, Vol. 83, No. 936, 1990

R.C. Bryce, General Manager, Les Mines Selbaie, Joutel, Quebec

Selbaie is located northwest of Joutel, in what is known as the fourth east-west volcanic sediment group in northwestern Quebec. The main metals produced are copper and zinc, with important contents of both silver and gold. Production comes from an open pit mine on the A-l zone and from two underground mines on the B zone and the A-2 zone. Each mine gave rise to important capital investment programs for construction and mine development, all of which were managed and staffed with company-hired, non-union personnel. Production from all sources now exceeds 7000 tonnes per day, with a workforce of 540 regular employees. Of particular interest technically is the high recovery of B zone reserves underneath 40 m of overburden cover, the low-cost capital development of the A-2 zone, the computerized control of open pit mining, and the successful copper-zinc separation of the A-l zone ore. Due to the low grades of the mineral deposits, efficiency in all aspects of the production process, is essential to the success of the operation.

Keywords: Les Mines Selbaie, Mine development.