Noranda to shut down Gaspe

The 46-year-old Gaspe Copper smelter in Murdochville, Que., will close at the end of April, says owner Noranda (NRD-T).

Noranda, which had announced last November that Gaspe would be shut down for a minimum of six months starting at the end of April, said there was no economically feasible way of keeping the aging smelter in production. About 300 employees will lose their jobs in the closure.

The company has been studying ways to maintain production at Gaspe since announcing the planned suspension. The study concluded that the smelter could not be made more competitive. Gaspe, which had produced 109,000 tonnes copper and 220,000 tonnes sulphuric acid in 2001, had faced weak metal prices and treatment charges.

Employees will receive a severance package and have access to a relocation and job-placement program funded by Noranda, the provincial government, and the United Steelworkers, the work force’s union.

Along with the six-month closure of Gaspe, Noranda had announced production cuts at its Canadian Copper Refiners plant in east-end Montreal.

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