Generation Mining, the developers of a proposed palladium near Marathon, has selected Wood PLC to handle the project's engineering work.
The global consulting and engineering company was awarded the contract to do the processing plant engineering and the equipment procurement for the Marathon palladium-copper project in northwestern Ontario.
In an Oct. 13 news release, Gen Mining said the goal over the next few months is get 75 per cent of the engineering work completed by the time construction starts. Early ground preparation work is tentatively anticipated sometime in the second half of next year.
Gen Mining cautions the start of construction is contingent on receiving critical permits following the approval of the environmental assessment expected in the middle of next year.
The company is out to raise $665 million to build the open-pit mine on a deposit located 10 kilometres north of Marathon, a community of 3,300 on the north shore of Lake Superior. The Marathon mine project will offer 1,000 construction jobs following the initial groundbreaking.
If government permits are granted, an 18-month construction period will follow with commercial mining production tentatively beginning in late 2023 or early 2024.
Gen Mining also announced Paul Murphy, previously of G-Mining Services, has come aboard as a consultant, along with Gordon Lung of LQ Consulting and Management to fill a key role of project services manager. These two will help steer the project through the pre-construction and construction phases.
Steve Haggarty, president of Haggarty Technical Services, will remain as a project consultant and a senior technical advisor working with Wood on the processing plant engineering designs.
"We are extremely happy to have this integrated team comprised of the Wood Engineering group and the Gen Mining team members to advance the project," said Gen Mining COO Drew Anwyll in a statement.
"This is a top team with a proven track record to advance the Project through the engineering designs and into the construction in the second half of 2022. We are definitely set up to make this an outstanding project.”
Gen Mining's Marathon property covers a land package of 220 square kilometres. The company currently owns an 82.6 per cent interest in the Marathon Project along with Sibanye Stillwater.
