Boliden plans to purchase the Kylylahti copper mine, the exploration rights and copper/nickel deposits in the Outokumpu field in eastern Finland from Altona Mining in a transaction valued at $95 million. The deal is subject to approval by the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority and the approval of the shareholders of Altona Mining Ltd.
“We see several synergies in mining, metallurgy and exploration. The exploration areas are similar to what we experience in Sweden and have potential for additional discoveries. The acquisition will also establish Boliden as a mining company in Finland, where we already are a significant smelting company,” said Lennart Evrell, president and CEO, Boliden.
The exploration areas acquired are located in proximity to previous mines and copper and nickel deposits. “Exploration efforts in the area have been limited since the mid-1980s and the potentials below 400 m depth have not been explored in any detail,” said Jan Moström, president, Boliden Mines.
The Kylylahti mine, located 450 km northeast of Helsinki, has 110 employees and approximately 120 contractors. Copper accounts for 80% of the revenues, with gold, zinc and silver accounting for the remainder. The mine opened in 2012 and has a capacity of 650,000 metric tons (mt) per year of ore. The life of the mine is calculated to 2021, based on current mineral reserves.
For the year ending March 2014, production was 9,000 mt of copper, 300 kg of gold, 2,200 mt of zinc and 2,100 kg of silver in concentrate. The operating profit during 2013 amounted to $18million. The concentrate is supplied to Boliden’s smelters Harjavalta and Kokkola for refining to finished metals.
