Terrafame launches an EIA procedure for using the ore deposit in Kolmisoppi and expanding the mining concession to meet future needs

Terrafame’s mining concession in Sotkamo has the largest nickel ore reserves in Europe. The other metals recovered from the ore are zinc, cobalt and copper. Starting in 2021, nickel and cobalt will be refined in the company’s own battery chemicals plant to make battery grade chemicals for use in electric vehicle batteries.

There are two ore deposits located in Terrafame’s mining concession that have been verified: Kuusilampi, where the company’s current open pit is located, and Kolmisoppi, which is planned to be taken into use in the late 2020s. Together, these ore deposits ensure that mining and metal production is expected to continue for even 50–60 years. In order to build the new waste rock and secondary leaching areas needed to make full use of the deposits, the existing mining concession is planned to be expanded accordingly.

Terrafame will launch an environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedure concerning activities related to mining Kolmisoppi deposit, the watercourse arrangements for Lake Kolmisoppi, and the expansion of the mining concession. It is appropriate to assess the use of the ore deposits in Kolmisoppi and the expansion of the mining concession as a whole in the same process.

The EIA procedure will be started with pre-negotiations with the authorities on 5 February 2020. The EIA programme for the procedure will be submitted to the Kainuu Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment in March, and the public consultation event included in the procedure is scheduled to be held in April. The actual environmental impact assessment will be carried out during 2020.

The EIA procedure will end with the coordinating authority presenting its reasoned conclusions. After that, Terrafame will apply for an environmental permit for the viable solution, most likely in early 2021.

For further information, please contact:

Chief Sustanability Officer Veli-Matti Hilla, Terrafame Ltd, p. +358 20 7130 800 (switchboard), veli-matti.hilla[at]terrafame.fi

Terrafame Ltd is a Finnish multi-metal company producing nickel, zinc, cobalt and copper at its mine and metals production plant located in Sotkamo, Finland. With the battery chemicals plant currently being built, our main product, nickel-cobalt sulfide, can be processed into nickel and cobalt sulphates that are suitable for electric vehicle batteries. Our aim is to conduct environmentally sustainable, safe and profitable operations. www.terrafame.com