The Mary River Project ("the Project") is a proposed iron ore mine and associated facilities located on North Baffin Island, in the Qikiqtani Region of Nunavut. Baffin Island is home to Inuit, who enjoy a culture that is unique and traditional to arctic regions. The land where the Project is located is important to Inuit culture, heritage, and their continued well-being in that these people use the resources on the land and from the sea for both their subsistence and in preserving their traditional way of life.
The Project involves the construction, operation, closure, and reclamation of an 18 million tonne-per-annum (Mt/a) open pit mine. The high-grade iron ore to be mined is suitable for international shipment after only crushing and screening and as such, no chemical processing facilities are required for this Project. A railway system will transport the ore from the mine area to an all-season deep-water port and ship loading facility at Steensby Inlet where the ore will be loaded into ore carriers for overseas shipment through Foxe Basin. A dedicated fleet of cape-sized ore carriers, capable of breaking ice, will be chartered by Baffinland from a consortium of ship owners organized by Fednav. Some non-icebreaking ore carriers and conventional ships will also be used during the open water season.
All major Project components will operate year round and, based on the currently-defined iron ore reserve, will continue to operate for about 21 years. Geological conditions suggest that additional ore may be delineated as exploration continues, potentially extending the life and/or increasing the production rate of the Project.
The Mary River site is located about 160 km south of the community of Pond Inlet (Mittimatalik) and 1000 km northwest of Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut. Project facilities will be sited in the mine area at Mary River and port area at Steensby Inlet, with a railway line and access road connecting the two. Marine access and shipping through the construction phase and periodically during operation will occur seasonally through Milne Inlet and the existing Milne Inlet Tote Road will therefore be used periodically to access Mary River during frozen conditions. Shipping through Steensby Inlet will be seasonal through construction and year-round through operation. Access to the Project sites for personnel will be by chartered aircraft.
Site conditions play an important role in the planning and execution of the Project. The area experiences bitter cold in the wintertime and 24-hour darkness from November to January. Summers bring 24-hour daylight from May to August, but continued cool to cold conditions. While these conditions are typical of arctic environments, they substantially affect planning and logistics relative to most Project activities; but especially to shipping, procurement, construction, and field investigations.