The chromite project in Sudbury operated by Cliffs consists of four components: the mine site located near McFaulds Lake, an ore-processing facility, an Integrated Transportation System (ITS) and a Ferrochrome Production Facility (FPF).
The mine- and ore-processing facility will be located at the mine site, which is about 2,600 hectares. It also contains components of the ITS, a housing complex, a tailings management area, a waste rock management area and a number of supporting facilities. The ITS is being proposed to transport people and supplies between the mine site and existing road and rail network like the concentrate from the mine site to the transload facility situated adjacent to CN’s existing transcontinental rail line located about 340 KM to the south.
Roughly 3,000 to 4,000 tons of chromite will be processed daily using electric arc furnaces to produce between 1,250 and 1,750 tons of ferrochrome. The mine is predicted to have a lifespan of 30 years.