RE:RE:RE:Magnesium Nickel
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A NEW GREEN LIFE FOR MINE TAILINGS
HELEN BARIL
THE PRESS
The tailings left by asbestos mines in Quebec are increasingly coveted for the other minerals they contain. A Quebec company, ECO 2 Magnesia, will produce magnesium oxide on the site of the former Carey mine, in the Chaudire-Appalaches region.
The project, which requires an investment of 150 million, has just passed an important milestone with the confirmation of its low carbon footprint. “A very big step,” says Paul Boudreault, president of Sigma Devtech, the firm leading the project.
The ECO 2 Magnesia technology, designed by the National Institute for Scientific Research (INRS), has been validated by an independent study carried out by COOP Carbone, which establishes that it emits up to 30 times less greenhouse gases. greenhouse than the processes used to produce magnesium oxide.
The new way of doing things uses mine tailings, water and CO 2 , which is recovered and reused, explains Louis-Csar Pasquier, co-inventor of the ECO 2 process and professor at INRS.
“It's totally innovative. »
— Louis-Csar Pasquier, co-inventor of the ECO 2 process and professor at INRS
Magnesium oxide is a white powder that can be used in the manufacture of firebricks, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals and even in food.
Another company, Alliance Magnesium, is also working with Japanese investors to recycle asbestos mine residues in the Thetford Mines region by producing magnesium in the form of metal, which is aimed at different markets.
FUNDING
The tons of waste that we couldn't get rid of therefore become an attractive asset for investors, and for Quebec.
The magnesium contained in the residues accumulated for 130 years in the Chaudire-Appalaches and Estrie regions is of great value, according to Paul Boudreault.
The ECO 2 Magnesia plant would make it possible to recycle 480,000 tonnes of mine tailings per year.
The president of Sigma Devtech is currently working to raise the necessary financing to build a factory on the former Carey mine site.
Investors from Singapore, who have been following the development of the project since its inception, as well as potential customers, are ready to board, according to the promoter. "We have the greenest technology in the world," he says.
The government of Quebec, which financially supported the project in its development phase, should participate in the company, hopes Paul Boudreault.
The plant would initially produce 20,000 tons per year of magnesium oxide in 2024, and would gradually increase production thereafter to reach 60,000 tons annually. Most of this production would be for export.