The Vale Voice. Working together for a sustainable future

Transcription

1 The Vale Voice Working together for a sustainable future This is the first in a series of newsletters created to keep you informed about Vale s proposed potash mine the Kronau Project. We are committed to transparency, which is achieved through ongoing two-way communication with our community and stakeholders.

2 A Message from our Project Manager At Vale, our mission is to transform mineral resources into prosperity and sustainable development. This means we operate and develop new projects in a way that meets the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet the needs of tomorrow. It s essential that our Kronau Project maintain this focus as we continue through the two project approval processes. I d like to take this opportunity to explain these two processes. Internally, the Kronau Project is still in the pre-feasibility stage. At Vale, we refer to this stage as Front-End-Loading (FEL) 2. This means the project is currently under review by Vale s board of directors. The board will determine if we proceed to the feasibility stage (construction planning), otherwise known as FEL 3. The next and final stage of the process is construction approval. Externally, the Kronau Project is working through the provincial government s environmental assessment process. All development proposals in Saskatchewan must go through this assessment in order to address potential environmental issues. We began socio-economic and environmental baseline studies and effects assessments in 2010, and the process is ongoing. In March and again in October, we reached out to the community and sought your feedback. We received valuable input that we were able to incorporate in our planning and consider as we plan for the future. We continue to welcome feedback from all of our stakeholders including you, the general public and Aboriginal communities throughout all stages of the Kronau Project. Next Steps We plan to submit our Environmental Impact Statement report to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment in mid-. Once this report is submitted, we will host public information sessions to explain our findings to the community. We will advise you of the information session dates and times as they become available. I hope you enjoy this first edition of our newsletter. We all look forward to hearing your thoughts and working together for a sustainable future. Regards, Will Longworth

3 About the Kronau Project Location & Core Facilities The Kronau Project (the Project) will be located in south central Saskatchewan approximately 20 km southeast of Regina within the Rural Municipality of Edenwold and approximately 1.6 km from Kronau. The core facilities for the Project will include a processing plant, administration offices, a maintenance shop and warehouse building, substations, a water treatment plant, a storage building, a cogeneration facility to provide hot water and brine, a rail loadout, a cooling pond, and a tailings (waste) management area. The final core facilities location has now been selected and can be seen in the image below. 48 Richardson N Legend Urban Municipality Cemetery Kronau Site Access 31 Site 32 Location Kathrintal Colony Road Paved 0 10 km

4 More about the Kronau Project Processing The potash ore (sylvinite) will be extracted through solution mining from the Patience Lake, Belle Plaine, and Esterhazy Members of the Prairie Evaporite Formation. Hot water and brine will be pumped from the cogeneration facility to the well pads, where it will be injected into the mining caverns. The brine from the caverns will be returned to the processing plant through an underground pipeline using the same piping corridors used to deliver the injection fluids. Potash processing will consist of the following phases: 1 injection and solution recovery; 2 evaporation and crystallization; 3 salt and potash debrining; 4 potash drying and product screening; and 5 potash storage and shipping. Infrastructure Support infrastructure for the Project will include water, power, natural gas, communications, and road and rail access. SaskWater, SaskPower, TransGas, and SaskTel will be the utility providers of water, power, natural gas, and telecommunication services, respectively. Road access will be provided from Highway 33 via an upgraded intersection and new road to be constructed to the core facilities area. Two options are being considered for rail access a link to the Canadian Pacific (CP) rail line adjacent to the main facility, and a link to the Canadian National (CN) rail line approximately 10 km north of the facility. Potash will be shipped to port in covered rail cars. A rail load-out facility will be developed within the core facilities area. For a more complete description of the Project, please visit:

5 Answering your questions Q. How many jobs will the Project create during construction and operation? Should the Kronau Project receive ministerial approval on the environmental assessment and permitting processes, Vale is planning to initiate construction in 2013 and we anticipate requiring up to 2,000 people on-site. We are tentatively scheduled to have the plant begin operation in late 2016 or early 2017, and once operational, the mine would employ 300 people full time. In addition to the direct jobs created, there will also be employment required as a result of the goods and services for the Project workforce. Q. How big is the area covered by the environmental assessment? The study area for individual environmental components varies based on the regional landscape. The study area for completed predictive modeling on changes to air quality was defined by a 20 km x 20 km region centred on the core facilities. The focus of the noise baseline is on public exposure; ambient noise levels will be determined at locations considered sensitive to noise from a human perspective. The wildlife and vegetation study area is approximately 5,220 square kilometres for the purposes of capturing different habitat types, vegetation communities and wildlife migration patterns. Q. How much time will the public have to review the environmental impact assessment? The Project proposal is currently available for public review and comment. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) should be completed by mid-; the provincial regulatory agencies will conduct a technical review of the document before it is released for public review. The public will be given a minimum of 30 days to review and comment, and Vale will hold another round of public information sessions to discuss the content of the EIS.

6 Internal Assessment Process 1 2 Scoping Study Pre-feasibility Study Aug Apr Nov Aug. Sep. 1 Baseline Collection 2 3 Screen 6 Impact Assessment Environmental Assessment Process Internal Assessment Process 1 Scoping study: (business analysis) FEL 1 2 Pre-feasibility Study: (alternative analysis) FEL 2 3 Feasibility Study: (construction planning) FEL 3 4 Internal Approval: (Construction Approval) Subject to results from feasibility study

7 Exploration Continues While Vale s Kronau Project is moving through the pre-feasibility stage, Vale s exploration team is continuing to explore its approximate 2,700 square kilometres of prospective exploration permits in Saskatchewan. 3 Feasibility Study 4 Internal Approval Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Future ing 5 Scoping Public EIA Review 4 Review Decision Environmental Assessment Process 1 Baseline collection: Vale began socio-economic and environmental baseline studies and effects assessments. 2 Project Proposal: Vale submits project proposal to Environmental Assessment Branch (EAB) and Saskatchewan Environmental Assessment Review Panel (SEARP) on August 31,. 3 Screening: EAB and SEARP review proposal. They determine if Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is required or not. They establish that Vale requires EIA. 4 Public Review: Project proposal was open to public review for 30 days, released in Saskatoon and Regina. 5 Scoping: Terms of reference are developed to define the scope of the impact assessment. 6 Impact Assessment: Vale conducts EIA and begins to prepare EIS. 7 EIS: Vale submits EIS to the Ministry of Environment. 8 EIA Review: EAB and SEARP perform technical review. EIS and government review released for public comment for 30 to 60 days. 9 Decision: Minister approves, rejects, or appoints a board of inquiry for the development.

8 Meet the team Vale Potash Canada Limited s corporate office currently has nine full-time employees located in Regina and a small exploration team based in Emerald Park. Our team is committed to working collaboratively with the Aboriginal community, the general public and stakeholders to ensure open, two-way communication throughout the entire project. Over the next year, we ll continue to grow as the approval processes continue to advance. Meet our newest Kronau Project team members. Kathryn Pollack Vale welcomed Kathryn to the Kronau Project team in January to fill the role of Mining Lands Administrator. Kathryn brings experience in land acquisition and administration from the utility and oil and gas industries. Having left the province to follow a career in the arts, she transitioned to her career in land asset management while in Calgary and returned home to Saskatchewan in She and her husband are happily raising free-range children (and chickens!) on their family farm in the Lumsden area. Kathryn is proud to be part of a world-class project that will allow her to build strong relationships with landowners and farmers in the Kronau area. Lara Ludwig Lara joined our Kronau Project team in January as a Community Consultation Specialist. Lara hails from the communications world, which exposed her to the different scopes of government, private industry and not-for-profit organizations. Regina is Lara s home, and she was thrilled to have the opportunity to return to the city and get involved in this exciting new project. As a community liaison, Lara s role is to work closely with internal and external stakeholders throughout the project evaluation and development stages. A firm believer in giving back to the community, Lara enjoys volunteering her time with the Red Cross and coaching basketball. Contact Us For all general inquiries contact: Corporate Office 1874 Scarth Street, Suite 1900 Regina, SK S4P 4B3 +1 (306) Exploration Office 20 South Plains Road Emerald Park, SK S4L 1B7 +1 (306) Get to Know Vale Vale is a global mining company that discovers and transforms minerals into the essential ingredients for everyday life. Vale Potash Canada Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Vale S.A. In Canada, Vale has operations and offices in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Manitoba. For more information about Vale, please visit The Vale Voice is a Vale Potash Canada Limited newsletter that will provide updates on our company and the Kronau Project. To sign up and receive The Vale Voice as a mail-out or pdf document, please kronau.project@vale.com.