On 2 January this year, Conuma Coal Resources restarted the Wolverine Mine near Tumbler Ridge in British Columbia, Canada.

Energy and Mines Minster Bill Bennet made the official announcement. “Restarting the Wolverine Mine is tremendous news for families living in and around Tumbler Ridge,” said Bennett. “ This mine will create approximately 220 new good-paying jobs in the region on top of the 170 jobs created when Conuma Coal reopened Brule Mine in September [2016]. The restart of these two mines is a significant boost to the economy in the Peace Region.”

The Wolverine Mine, located approximately 15 kilometres west of Tumbler Ridge, was purchased earlier in 2016 from Walter Canada, along with the nearby Brule and Willow Creek coal mines, by Conuma Coal.

The hiring process for Wolverine has already started. Conuma Coal plans to have the mine fully staffed and operating at full production levels by 1 April this year. The company estimates it will produce 1.5 million tonnes of metallurgical coal annually from the Wolverine Mine.

Ministry of Energy and Mines staff are also reviewing Conuma Coal’s proposal to possibly restart production at the Willow Creek Mine in July 2017. Timing for the restart of the Willow Creek Mine is dependent upon Conuma Coal’s ability to complete the necessary work to satisfy all its permit requirements, as well as its internal planning work and decisions to proceed with the future operations expansion.