Quebec wants to study the fallout from reviving the Murdochville mine

Quebec is setting up a committee to evaluate the benefits of reviving the Murdochville copper mine — closed for more than 20 years — while Osisko Metals wants to bring it back to life by banking on the growing demand for ore resulting from the green transition.

The government of Quebec announced this Monday the creation of a “maximization committee” whose mission will be to gauge the economic and social benefits for the region of the relaunch of the Murdochville copper mine. The initiative also aims to promote “harmonious and lasting collaboration with communities”.

The announcement comes as the Montreal mining company, Osisko Metals, plans to relaunch activities at the site purchased in 2022 by 2031. In a context of electrification and energy transition, copper is considered critical. There is also a deposit of molybdenum on the site, a by-product considered strategic in several sectors.

Osisko Metals plans to conduct other studies by 2027 to ensure the viability of the project, currently in the advanced exploration phase.

“Copper and its derivatives are minerals that we must focus on for our energy transition,” declared in a press release Maïté Blanchette Vézina, Minister of Natural Resources and Forests, also minister responsible for the Bas-Saint-Laurent region and of the Gaspésie−Îles-de-la-Madeleine region.

In the spring, Osisko Metals revised the potential of its mine upwards. In an update of its estimates, the company then maintained that the copper equivalent content had increased by 30% compared to previous estimates which date back to 2022.

A number of infrastructures, already on site, would facilitate exploitation. Route 198 which connects Murdochville to the coast provides access to the port of Saint-Anne-de-Monts located 100 kilometers away. Hydro-Québec also serves the location with an electrical station which provides energy.