The Horne Foundry in Rouyn-Noranda has said it is willing to invest in technology to reduce its toxic emissions on condition that the government gives it guarantees on its operating conditions.
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Following a Radio-Canada report indicating that the company was no longer confident about investing in reducing its factory's arsenic emissions, which must rise to 3 nm/m3 by 2027, the company admitted it was working with the government to have come into contact.
“Like any company preparing to invest such sums, we want to ensure that we have a stable environment and predictability regarding future operating conditions in the medium and long term,” Horne Foundry responded in a press release from Swiss giant Glencore on Wednesday .
According to an internal Ministry of Economy memo released to the media, the Rouyn-Noranda factory was at “high risk” of closure.
According to Radio-Canada, the cost of the Aeris facility modernization project rose from $500 million to $750 million, while the company stopped short of citing “significantly increased” costs.
The announcement concerns the Noranda miners' union.
“The investment of $750 million must absolutely be made in our factory. This is important to preserve our jobs, but also those of other factories and suppliers that depend on the foundry,” said union President Shawn Smith.
For her part, CSN President Caroline Senneville stressed that investments in the foundry “must be confirmed as soon as possible”.
“This foundry is critical to the battery industry due to rare metal recycling and copper production. It is the only factory of its kind in North America,” added Louis Bégin, president of the Federation of Manufacturing Industry (FIM-CSN).