For immediate release
December 09, 2002
DE BEERS TO MAXIMIZE LOCAL EMPLOYMENT AND BEGIN DISCUSSIONS ON
THE PROVISION OF ROUGH DIAMONDS TO THE NWT
Yellowknife,
December 09 2002 — Public Technical Sessions,
part of the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board (MVEIRB)
review of the De Beers Snap Lake Diamond Project, concluded
Friday following two weeks of detailed discussions
on technical aspects of the project.
The
final two days of the sessions addressed the socio-economic
impacts of the project, such as the employment of northerners,
the supply of Snap Lake production to the local secondary
industry and the branding of Canadian diamonds.
On
the subject of local employment De Beers stated
that at full production the mine will employ approximately
500 people and that the company’s intention is
to hire as many northerners as the local labour market
can provide. The company also provided details of its
Human Resources strategy, and the training initiatives
which will be developed in partnership with other stakeholders,
to tap the as yet unrealized potential amongst northern
people.
“We
are committed to maximizing local employment and will
make very significant investments both in terms of finance
and other resources, to achieve that,” said John
McConnell, Vice President, NWT Projects for De Beers. “It
is De Beers’ practice to maximize local Aboriginal
employment wherever we operate, on the basis that this
represents an ideal goal of 100%. The company has achieved
in excess of 80% of this target on most of our mines
in Southern Africa.”
In
response to a question regarding the supply of Snap Lake
production to the NWT cutting and polishing industry,
Richard Molyneux, President and CEO of De Beers
Canada said, “De Beers recognizes and respects
the policy of the Government of the Northwest Territories
(GNWT) on this issue. We see two possible avenues for
the supply of Snap Lake rough diamonds to the NWT; one
means is through the socio-economic agreement which is
under negotiation with GNWT, and the other is through
Aboriginal equity participation in the project which
would be covered by the Impact Benefit Agreements (IBAs)
currently being negotiated with the affected Aboriginal
groups.”
Discussions
with the GNWT on the supply of rough diamonds, as part
of the socio-economic agreement, are to begin this week.
The socio-economic agreement will cover a wide range
of issues, including the employment of northerners at
the mine.
On
the subject of the branding of Canadian diamonds De Beers
said that preliminary research indicates that the current
Canadian brands are being well promoted and are able
to meet market needs, and that under present market conditions
an additional De Beers Canadian brand would negatively
impact the current branding initiatives.
Molyneux
pointed out the dynamic nature of the industry and said
that De Beers would keep a close watch on developments
within the industry and would review this position as
appropriate over time and as the Snap Lake project moves
closer to production.
“We
believe these sessions were thorough and productive and
that all affected stakeholders were given an opportunity
to clarify their technical questions concerning the Snap
Lake project. We look forward to continuing this process
through the general public sessions scheduled for March
next year. It is our desire to see the Snap Lake Project
proceed in an environmentally and socially responsible
manner to the benefit of the NWT and De Beers, ” said
McConnell.
- Ends -
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further information contact:
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Linda Dorrington
Manager - Public and Corporate Affairs
De Beers Canada
Email: linda.dorrington@ca.debeersgroup.com
Tel: (416) 645-1710 ext 412 / (905) 849-0619
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