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REGIONAL NEWS - U.S. & CANADA Cliffs Idling Wabush Pointe Noire Pellet Plant Cliffs Natural Resources announced on March 11, that it expects to idle its Wabush Pointe Noire pellet plant within the city of Sept-Îles, Quebec, by the end of the second quarter of 2013. The company said the decision was due to high production costs and lower pellet premium pricing, which it expects to persist in certain markets this year. Cliffs currently produces both iron ore concentrate and pellets at its eastern Canadian iron ore operations, which include the Wabush and Bloom Lake mines and the pellet plant and rail and port facilities at Pointe Noire. After idling the pellet plant, the company will transition to producing only iron ore concentrate at its Wabush mine in Newfoundland and Labrador. The company will continue to operate the rail and port operations at Pointe Noire and will proceed with a multi-year port expansion project that includes a ship loader for Capesize vessels. For 2013, Cliffs is maintaining its fullyear sales and production volume expectations of 9 million to 10 million mt out of its eastern Canada business segment. This will include about 3 million mt of both iron ore pellets and concentrate products from its Wabush operation, with Bloom Lake supplying the remainder. Cliffs announced on November 19, 2012, that it was delaying portions of its Bloom Lake mine Phase II expansion and idling some production at two of its U.S. iron ore operations, Northshore Mining in Minnesota and the Empire mine in Michigan. These production cuts were driven by increased iron ore pricing volatility and lower North American steelmaking utilization rates, the company said at that time. IIBG Studying Possible North American Plants International Iron Beneficiation Group Ltd. (IIBG), an affiliate of Russia-based OAO Severstal, one of the world's leading vertically integrated steel and steel-related-mining companies, has launched a preliminary feasibility study to consider the viability of building a granulated iron facility in Sydney, Nova Scotia. Other locations under active consideration in North America include Sept-Îles, Quebec, and sites in Minnesota, Kentucky and Indiana in the United States. Potential plants to be built at these locations would use an innovative process developed by the International Mineral Beneficiation Services (IMBS) based in South Africa. The IMBS process converts superfine iron ore into metallic iron units without the need for agglomeration. The final product would be used for steel production, mostly in electric arc furnaces as an effective substitute for scrap. The IMBS process is cost efficient and has lower environmental impacts than traditional processes. IIBG's decision as to whether the locations under consideration will be developed and in what sequence within the context of an overall North American strategy will depend on the results of the respective feasibility studies and the successful launch of the first commercial plant utilizing IMBS technology in Phalaborwa, South Africa. IMBS is leading the Phalaborwa plant construction, where Severstal holds a 33% stake. "IIBG emphasizes at this time that the company is conducting the necessary due diligence to determine the feasibility and priority of potential sites. IIBG cautions and confirms that no final commitments can be made at this very early stage of the business development process," said IIBG CEO Dmitry Solomin. The feasibility study for a possible Sydney, Nova Scotia, plant will be initiated first, to be followed by investigation of other sites during the course of 2013. A decision on whether to proceed with a project and its sequence will be made at the completion of these studies. Avanti Receives Kitsault Environmental Approval Avanti Mining has been issued an Environmental Assessment Certificate (EAC) for its Kitsault molybdenum mine by the British Columbia Minister of Environment and Minister of Energy, Mines and Natural Gas. Avanti is focused on developing the past producing Kitsault molybdenum mine located about 140 km north of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, and south of the head of Alice Arm, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean. Avanti reported the results of an updated feasibility for the project in February 2013. The property includes three known molybdenum deposits: Kitsault, Bell Moly and Roundy Creek. The Kitsault mine produced molybdenum between 1967 and 1972 and from 1981 to 1982, with total production during both periods of approximately 31 million lb of molybdenum. (Continued on p. 46) An affiliate of Russian steel producer OAO Severstal is considering the possibility of building a granulated iron facility in Nova Scotia, using technology developed by International Mineral Beneficiation Services. IMBS has applied the technology in a pilot plant (left) and a commercial plant (right) located in Phalaborwa, South Africa. 16 E&MJ; • APRIL 2013 www.e-mj.com