Horne strike hits CCR refinery (November 04, 2002)

Noranda (NRD-T) intends to cut staff at its CCR refinery in Montreal by about 15%, citing revenue losses caused by striking workers at its Horne copper smelter in Rouyn-Noranda, Que.

The smelter normally fills two-thirds of the anode requirements at the 330,000-tonne-per-year refinery. Compounding supply problems is the permanent closure of the company’s Gasp copper smelter in late 2001.

The reductions, 85 permanent and 15 temporary positions, will be achieved through layoffs and early retirement. In the end, the operation will be staffed by about 550 employees.

Both the CCR and Horne operations suffered 3-week shutdowns earlier this summer, owing to a dwindling supply of copper anode.

In mid-June, 510 unionized employees walked off the job at Horne after their complaints about sub-contracting went unheard. Three days later, Noranda declared force majeure (subsequently lifted), and it has since run the smelter at less than half the normal operating levels.

Both sides of the Horne dispute recently agreed to resume negotiations on Oct. 28 in Montreal. They last met in June.

The previous strike at Horne, in 1986, lasted three months.

Horne has the capacity to produce 220,000 tonnes of copper anode per year. In 2001, the smelter produced 188,000 tonnes; the CCR refinery produced 323,000 tonnes of refined copper anode.