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Elkview Mine

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Summary

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Coal (metallurgical)
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
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SnapshotElkview Operations (EVO) are part of the EVR steelmaking coal Operations.

Elkview Operations (EVO) produces coal from three active pit phases (Baldy Ridge BR6, Baldy Ridge BR2 and Natal Phase NP2). Additional permitted (Baldy Ridge BR3, Baldy Ridge BR4, Baldy Ridge BR5, Baldy Ridge BR7, Adit Ridge AR) and unpermitted (Adit Ridge, Natal Phase NP2, Natal Phase NP3) phases are planned.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Posco Group Inc. 3 % Indirect
Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. 20 % Indirect
Glencore plc. 77 % Indirect
On January 1, 2024, in connection with the Steelmaking Coal Business Unit Transactions Teck Resources completed an internal reorganization of the steelmaking coal business unit to align all steelmaking coal assets, including Teck Coal Partnership and Elkview Mining Limited Partnership, under a newly organized Elk Valley Mining Limited Partnership (EVM LP), which directly or indirectly holds 100% of steelmaking coal assets.

On January 3, 2024, Teck completed the NSC and POSCO Transactions, with NSC and POSCO acquiring a 20% and 3% interest, respectively, in EVM LP. Following the NSC and POSCO Transactions, EVM LP now holds a 100% interest in all of the steelmaking coal operations and Teck holds a 77% interest in EVM LP, with NSC and POSCO holding the remaining 20% and 3%, respectively.

On July 11, 2024, Teck Resources Limited completed the sale of its remaining 77% interest in the steelmaking coal business to Glencore plc.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Sedimentary

Summary:

The Elkview mine is located within the Crowsnest Coalfield in the Elk Valley. The coal measures are situated within the Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Kootenay Group sediments.

From earliest to latest, the Kootenay Group includes:
• Morrissey Formation: sandstones; subdivided into the Weary Ridge and Moose Mountain Members; 20–80 m in thickness;
• Mist Mountain Formation: interbedded sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, shale and thin to thick seams of bituminous to semi-anthracite coal; 450–550 m in thickness;
• Elk Formation: interbedded sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, shale and locally thick beds of chert-pebble conglomerate and thin seams of high volatile bituminous coal; 350–450 m in thickness.

The geology within the Elkview Project area dips towards the west at approximately 20° and plunges gradually to the south at about 4–8°.

The Mist Mountain Formation contains approximately 25 coal seams of potential economic interest, consisting of medium to high volatile bituminous coal.

Within the coal measures, there are three structurally separated coalfields, the Elk Valley, Crowsnest, and Flathead coalfields. Elkview is situated on the northern end of the Crowsnest coalfield. The Crowsnest coalfield is bounded by the west-dipping Erickson normal fault on the east and the Bourgeau thrust fault on the west.

The major structure in the Project area is a southwest plunging syncline, the Sparwood (Michel) Syncline. Multiple thrust faults and normal faults occur throughout the Project area, mostly striking in a northwest to southeast orientation. The thrust faults generally dip west to southwest at inclinations of 20–50°. This has resulted in coal seam repeats and structural deformation and complexity along the thrust fault boundaries, by overlapping and drag folding.

The tectonic thickening of the basal 10-seam is an important factor in mine planning.

The Mist Mountain Formation depth of burial ranges from surface exposures to >750 m. The coal measures on the EVO contain bituminous grade coal seams with varying volatile matter contents. The coal quality varies with depth of burial and location along the strike of the deposit. Seams may range in thickness from <1 m to >15 m.

Seams range in rank from high to low volatile bituminous and are numbered from 10 at the base, upwards to 1, with additional seams A through D at the top of the 600 m thick stratigraphic column. All mineable coal seams in Baldy, Adit and Natal Ridges are within the Mist Mountain Formation. A portion of the Fernie Formation occurs at the top of Adit Ridge.

These are the areas in which over thrusted repeats of 10-seam may be found due to the thrust fault thickening, and as such, required an increased drilling density to maintain the geological assurance. Zones of complex geology pass through Baldy Ridge, Adit Ridge and Natal Ridge and are adjacent to the fault lines. About half of the deposit at EVO is classified as complex, with the remaining half classified as moderate.

EVO produces both hard coking coal and semi-hard coking coal products which are derived from the mineable coal seams:
• Hard coking coal (HCC): coke strength after reaction (CSR) 64+;
• Semi-hard coking coal (SHCC): =55 CSR =63.

The specific quality characteristics of individual seams will determine into which of the products it will be placed.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Heavy Mobile Equipment

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EV - Electric
AV - Autonomous

Comminution

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Processing

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Commodity Production

CommodityUnits202220212020201820172016
Coal (metallurgical) Mt  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe76.27.1
All production numbers are expressed as clean coal.

Operational metrics

Metrics202320222021202020192018201720162015
Annual production capacity  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe7.4 Mt of clean coal7 Mt of clean coal7 Mt of clean coal7 Mt of clean coal7 Mt of clean coal

Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Mine Financials

Units2020
Capital expenditures M CAD  ....  Subscribe

Personnel

Mine Management

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