The improved development agreement for the construction of the commercial hydromet plant at Long Harbour reached between the province and Vale Inco on January 29, 2009, has now been officially signed and initial work is scheduled to begin next month.

"The formal legal agreements are now in place to cement the agreement-in-principle negotiated to ensure the project�s timely start along the new timelines for a February 2013 completion date and the accompanying monitoring requirements over that time," said the Honourable Kathy Dunderdale, Minister of Natural Resources. "With the official documents in place, we look forward to the start of this project and the significant increase in local employment it will bring to the Placentia Bay region."

The amended development agreement includes established timelines for the project to start, enhanced local benefits and greater protection of the province�s resources. The agreement now reflects Vale Inco�s commitment to an employment target of 8.9 million total person hours within the province (77 per cent of the total project employment) and to paying the island industrial rate for its power supply, both significant gains over the original agreement. The company has also agreed to maintain a maximum annual export average of nickel in concentrate from the Voisey�s Bay mine over the next four years to remain within its existing cap of 440,000 tonnes of exports from the province.

Vale Inco was to have submitted an Implementation Plan for the hydromet facility on December 31, 2008, that met the terms and conditions of the original 2002 Development Agreement, including a December 31, 2011, completion date. The deadline was extended when the company indicated the original timelines for completion could not be met given the larger size and complexity of the project, as well as the lengthy process for receiving federal approval for residue disposal at Sandy Pond. An amended agreement is now in place to reflect the new timelines and provide the province with greater certainty that the project will proceed on schedule.

"Under the amended development agreement, Vale Inco is now expected to submit its final implementation plan for the project on March 31, 2009 and we look forward to receiving that plan," said Minister Dunderdale. "Initial work at the site will begin in April with site clearing and demolition work and we look forward to reaching the six project milestones committed by the company for the first half of this year."

For more information on the amended Development Agreement, please visit www.gov.nl.ca/releases/2009/exec/0129n08.htm.

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