Pogo mine permits still being processed

Final EIS expected in September, company could receive permits to start developing remote gold mine in November

Patricia Jones

Petroleum News Contributing Writer

Developers of the Pogo gold deposit, a remote hardrock underground mine project some 40 miles from near Delta Junction in Interior Alaska, are “cautiously optimistic” that governmental regulators will finalize permits in time for a November construction start.

State and federal agencies say they expect to issue sometime in September a final environmental impact statement for the Pogo Gold Mine Project. Following that, a 30-day waiting period is scheduled before issuance of final permits for development.

“We’re pretty much on course and I don’t see any problems anywhere,” Bill Riley, Region 10 mining coordinator for the Environmental Protection Agency, told Petroleum News Aug. 13. “We feel we have addressed all the comments pretty well, so we’re pretty comfortable with it.”

EPA is one of several regulatory agencies reviewing plans submitted by Teck-Pogo Inc., a subsidiary of global mining giant Teck Cominco, to build a hardrock gold mine and mill in the remote upper Goodpaster River valley.

Karl Hanneman, Alaska regional manager for Teck Cominco, told Petroleum News earlier this year that the company hopes to start working on a 49.5 mile access road and initiating earthwork at the mine site in November.

“We’re cautiously optimistic that we can still meet that time schedule,” Hanneman said on Aug. 18.

Teck-Pogo will sign contracts for the estimated $250 million construction project after permits are finalized and after the company receives board approval to proceed with the project, he said.

Pogo, estimated to contain 5.5 million ounces of gold with an average grade of a little more than a half-ounce of gold per ton of rock, lies in two layers of rock 600 to 900 feet underground.

Up to 500 people will be needed to construct facilities at Pogo. During its 10-year plus mine life, about 300 year-round workers will operate the mine and mill, which will churn out about 400,000 ounces of gold per year.

Final similar to draft EIS

Riley said the final EIS would likely be very similar in content to the draft document. “There could be some tweaks to it.”

Ed Fogels, Alaska Department of Natural Resources project manager for the Pogo gold mine, agreed, saying that “…there shouldn’t be any significant changes from the draft to final. Essentially the preferred alternative will be real similar to the draft EIS.”

After issuing the final EIS, a 30-day holding period is required before EPA issues its Record of Decision, and permits for development are approved. The company could expect to complete the permitting process sometime in October or November, Riley said.

Road access draws interest

Teck-Pogo proposed building a gravel roadway, 18 to 24 feet wide, following the Shaw Creek Hill route, Hanneman said. The company’s cost is estimated at $25 million.

“There were 359 separate issues raised (in public comments) and of those, 228 were related to the road,” Fogels said. “Most all of those supported the access road and the (preferred) route.”

“We always said there are only four issues with the Pogo mine — the road, the road, the road and the road,” Fogels said.

Comments also tended to support the company’s proposed use of that new access road — building a permanent route for the first half of the road and reclaiming the second half after the mine is shut down.

In addition, Fogels said, comments also tended to mirror the company’s preference for keeping the road private for industrial use during the mine’s life, then turning the permanent portion over to a public access route.

Teck-Pogo wants the road kept private “for operational safety and liability,” Hanneman said.

Fogels also said public support from the comments was overwhelmingly supportive of the overall project.

“Not one single comment opposed the mine. We felt really good about that,” he said.