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OCTOBER 2017 • E&MJ; 41 www.e-mj.com NORDIC MINING 2017 list at 29 years, two years longer than Aitik, although the company plans to seek permitting for mining at the near- by Nautenen deposit there this year. The Boliden area has a further seven years of production at current rates unless new resources are identified. At its Finnish operations, Boliden es- timated that Kevitsa, recently acquired from First Quantum Minerals, currently has 16 remaining years at full produc- tion, but that Kylylahti is likely to be exhausted by 2019. The company noted that it is prioritizing its exploration with- in existing mining areas. Boliden reported mine production of 329,000 mt of zinc during 2016, 103,000 mt of copper, 63,000 mt of lead, 7,000 mt of nickel in the sec- ond half of the year, 5,766 kg of gold, 446,800 kg of silver and 38,680 kg of tellurium. Smelter output was zinc, 461,000 mt; copper, 336,000 mt; lead, 74,000 mt; nickel in matte, 31,000 mt; gold, 17,638 kg; and silver, 609,100 kg; plus 1.6 million mt of sulphuric acid. Dragon Mining's Nordic operations include its two production centers at Vammala in Finland and at Svartliden in Sweden. The Vammala complex consists of the Vammala plant and the Jokisivu and Orivesi underground gold mines, with most of the flotation con- centrate produced there being shipped for further processing and doré produc- tion at Svartliden. With mining completed at Svartliden in 2013, the company has maintained use of the plant there in anticipation of receiving test mining permits for the nearby Fäboliden gold deposit, where the previous owner, Lappland Goldminers, had completed a feasibility study on an open-pit operation. In the meantime, it has been processing concentrates from Vammala, but during 2016 stopped tak- ing external concentrates containing high leachable copper values because of the potential effect on water discharges. Aside from Fäboliden, Dragon Mining is working on bringing its Kaapelinkulma project in southern Finland into produc- tion, with commissioning of the open-pit operation scheduled for early 2018. The company produced 34,400 oz of gold from its Nordic operations during 2016. ... and in Russia Across the border in Russia's Kola Peninsula, Kola MMC (part of the Nornickel group) operates a number of open-pit and underground copper- nickel mines, with two smelters at Zapolyarny and Nikel. While sulphur dioxide emissions from the plants have been a long-standing issue in both Norway and Finland, The Bar- ents Independent Observer recently re- ported that changes to the processing system at Zapolyarny, replacing roast- ing with briquetting, has cut emissions there substantially. Against this achievement, SO 2 emis- sions from the Nikel plant have risen but are now being captured to a greater extent as feedstock for the smelter's re- vamped sulphuric acid plant. With plans for two new mines, the 1-million-mt/y Sputnik open pit and the 1.5-million-mt/y Yuzhny under- ground mine, to be on stream by 2018, Kola MMC is spending RUB27 million ($500,000) on upgrading its rail and lo- gistics systems at its Monchegorsk nick- el refinery. BUILD A HYDRAULIC DRILL FEED EASILY. Doofor feed system component kit helps building a hydraulic drill feed easily, economically and quickly. The kit includes a Doofor drifter, aluminum feed, a hydraulic valve and other components according to your needs. The feed can be installed on number of platforms such as excavators, mini-loaders and can be used as a part of a drill rig. IT'S A MATCH! An era of easiness starts with Doofor! DOOFOR INC. Talttakatu 8 FI-37150 Nokia, Finland Tel. +358 3 343 0747 information@doofor.fi www.doofor.com www.facebook.com/doofor