$1.75 million to connect the Eleonore mine to the fibre optic network

QUEBEC, May 22, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ - The Government of Québec, through the Société du Plan Nord, will invest $1.75 million to connect Newmont Goldcorp's Eleonore mine facilities to the existing regional fibre optic network. This project will enable one of Quebec's most innovative mining companies to continue advancing its vision to create mine 4.0, an interconnected mine of the future. This connection, which will help optimize the company's operations, will also increase the quality of life of workers on site and encourage employee retention.

Jonatan Julien, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Côte-Nord region, made the announcement yesterday while visiting Eleonore Mine in the presence of the Grand Chief and Chairperson of the Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee), Dr. Abel Bosum.

124 kilometers of fibre optic cable will be laid from the Eastmain 1A link to the Eleonore Mine. This project, valued at $3.5 million, will be delivered by the non-profit organization Eeyou Communications Network (ECN). The new high-speed connection is expected to be operational in 2020.

Quotes:

"The mining sector is entering a new era with mine 4.0. Today's funding will contribute to the Éléonore mine's competitiveness in the future: access to a reliable and high-performance telecommunications network is fundamental for the industry to modernize. The realization of this project is excellent news for the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, but also for the Quebec economy."
Jonatan Julien, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Minister responsible for the Côte-Nord region

"Innovative partnerships like this one represent the commitment of the Cree Nation to collaborate on the development of better infrastructure to respond to ever-evolving industries.  Reliable technology is fundamental to the success of large-scale projects that are in turn beneficial to the people of Eeyou Istchee.  We are pleased to see the leadership role Eeyou Communications Network has taken in delivering a project that we can all be proud of and look forward to its future development in servicing the territory as a leader in communications technology."
Dr Abel Bosum, Grand Chief and Chairperson of the Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee)

"From the very start of the Eleonore project, our community has collaborated to ensure best interest for everyone involved, especially land-users.  The people of Wemindji take pride in the important contributions it has made to building a world-class operation conscious of its duty to protect the environmental and social elements shared with the people of our community.  Inclusive and innovative projects, like Eleonore, prioritizing Cree partnership and technology from ECN is setting a positive standard in Eeyou Istchee."
Christina Gilpin, Chief, Cree Nation of Wemindji

"Newmont Goldcorp's Eleonore Mine welcomes this commitment to innovation and investment in the Eeyou Istchee territory. This joint investment from our Cree partner, Eeyou Communications Network, and the Société du Plan Nord will connect the mine to a fibre optic network, providing far more bandwidth than we have today, and will support our vision of creating the first 4.0 mine in Quebec. With this technology backbone in place, new sustainable and responsible mining developments can consolidate the leadership role Quebec plays in Canada's mining sector and beyond. This announcement is also an opportunity to highlight the merger of Newmont and Goldcorp, whose purpose is to create value and improve lives, and with transformative investments like these, we can continue being a catalyst in this region."
Sophie Bergeron, General manager, Eleonore Mine, Newmont Goldcorp

"Eeyou Communications Network is enthusiastic that a very important industrial partner of the region and of ours, the Eleonore mine, will benefit from our cutting-edge fiber-optic infrastructure to improve its operations. This is the culmination of many years of regional development and a great milestone for us. The support we have received from the Société du Plan Nord, for our James Bay highway project and this new project to connect the Eleonore mine has been invaluable make this achievement a reality and we look forward to future partnerships so that our region continues to be a leader in regional telecommunications development."
Alfred Loon, President, Eeyou Communications Network

Highlights:

• The Société du Plan Nord contributes, from a sustainable development perspective, to the planning and integrated and coherent development of northern Quebec. It does so in consultation with representatives of the regions and indigenous peoples, as well as the private sector.
• Newmont Goldcorp is the world's leading gold company and a producer of copper, silver, zinc and lead. The Company's world-class portfolio of assets, prospects and talent is anchored in favorable mining jurisdictions in North America, South America, Australia and Africa. Newmont Goldcorp is the only gold producer listed in the S&P 500 Index and is widely recognized for its principled environmental, social and governance practices. The Company is an industry leader in value creation, supported by robust safety standards, superior execution and technical proficiency. Newmont Goldcorp was founded in 1921 and has been publicly traded since 1925.
• Eeyou Communications Network (ECN) is a not-for-profit telecommunications corporation that provides broadband carrier services for the Cree communities of Eeyou Istchee and municipalities of the James Bay region. ECN delivers advanced, reliable and cost-effective network access for the benefit of communities, populations, businesses, organizations and governments. ECN brings diversified connectivity to global telecom networks, content providers and to Internet for a broad range of social and economic opportunities. ECN supports technology that encourages cultural diversity and autonomy for communities and region.

Related links:

Follow the Société du Plan Nord on Twitter : @plannord
Follow Newmont Goldcorp on Twitter : @NewmontGoldcorp
Follow Eeyou Communications Network on Facebook : @eeyoucn

SOURCE Cabinet du ministre de l'Énergie et des Ressources naturelles

Source: Claude Potvin, Press officer, Office of Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Minister responsible for the Côte-Nord region, Tel. : [phone]; Information: Andréanne Séguin, Communications officer, Société du Plan Nord, Tel. : [phone], [email protected]