Newfoundland’s mineral shipments increase

The total value of mineral shipments from Newfoundland and Labrador is expected to total $1.02 billion this year, up from the 1997 preliminary total of $1.01 billion.

Shipments of industrial minerals such as dolomite, gypsum, peat, slate, brick, cement, magnetite, stone, and sand and gravel accounted for about $46 million of the 1997 total, and this level is expected to remain about the same in 1998.

Metals, including iron ore products, gold and copper, account for the rest of the mineral production. The value of gold production is expected to fall to $24 million this year from $43 million in 1997 owing to the closure of the Hope Brook gold mine and the shutdown of Ming Minerals. This decrease is only partly offset by increased production from Richmont Mines’ Nugget Pond mine in Newfoundland.

The value of iron ore shipments is expected to show a modest increase this year. Western Labrador produces about 55% of Canada’s iron ore products.

Exploration expenditures are forecast to be $50 million this year — 34% less than in 1997. Government officials note that exploration levels are still significantly higher than they were before the Voisey’s Bay nickel-copper-cobalt discovery in late 1994.