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Our Operations
Eagle Mine
In building Michigan’s first new mine in decades, we’re dedicated to safety, protecting the environment, and putting local people to work.
We began production in Fall 2014, and so far through 2021, we have produced 317 million pounds of nickel and 313 million pounds of copper. In total, we are expected to produce 440 million pounds of nickel, 429 million pounds of copper, and small amounts of other metals over our mine life (2014-2029).
The surface facilities encompass roughly 130 acres, similar to a small 18-hole golf course.
The ore body is accessed via a mile-long decline tunnel, which starts off going east from the site and then turning to meet the ore body to the west of the surface facilities. We extract our ore with Long Hole Stope and Cut and Fill mining techniques.
When mining operations are completed, we will see restoration efforts are implemented quickly and efficiently. To preserve the environment, it’s our goal to see that any land that has been disrupted during the mining process is returned to a natural state.
Eagle Mine is owned and operated by Lundin Mining, a diversified Canadian base metals mining company with operations and projects in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Portugal, Sweden, and the United States of America, primarily producing copper, zinc, gold, and nickel. About Lundin
Humboldt Mill
The Humboldt Mill was built and first used by Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc., for milling iron ore from their adjacent open pit mine. CCI ceased operations at the Humboldt site in 1979 and sold the property to the Callahan Mining Company. From 1985 to 1990, Callahan utilized the Mill to process gold from the Ropes Gold Mine in Ishpeming, Michigan.
Before Eagle Mine, the last company to use the site was Mineral Processing Corporation. Since 1997, the Humboldt Mill sat idle, falling into disrepair.
The Mill was purchased by Rio Tinto in 2008. We obtained the permits necessary to refurbish and operate the mill in 2010. Between 2009-2011, we invested more than $5 million in clean-up and environmental reclamation activities of historical mining waste. Construction and equipment upgrades to the mill began in 2012 to prepare the facility for ore production in 2014. In all, more than $275 million was invested to bring the historic mill back into operations.
By utilizing the mill, we are able to extract more nickel and copper at lower grades. This leads to better use of the mineral resource, more jobs and taxes, and longer mine life.