Hudbay Minerals’ 777 mine back at full tilt

The Toronto-based company resumed limited operations in late October, while completing repairs to the damaged shaft, which cost less than the C$5 million ($3.8m) originally estimated.

Hudbay temporarily reassigned equipment and staff from the 777 mine to the Lalor mine in Snow Lake during that time, in an effort to offset lost production.

“The shaft incident was an unfortunate event, but the team responded quickly and was successful in bringing this important asset back into full production ahead of schedule,” president and chief executive officer Peter Kukielski said in a media release.

The miner said that while fourth-quarter production and sales volumes will be impacted, it continues to expect the Manitoba business unit to achieve its full year production and unit cost targets for 2020.

The 777 mine is near the end of its productive life, with closure slated for 2022. Hudbay’s focus has been shifting toward its Snow Lake operations since the gold-rich Lalor deposit was put into production there in 2014.