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Ekati

Ekati, from the Tlicho word meaning ‘fat lake’, is Canada’s first diamond mine. Indigenous peoples said quartz veins in the granite resembled caribou fat. Photo: Dominion Diamond Mines
  • Diamonds
  • Production start 1998, after exploration and development work started in 1981
  • Lac de Gras, Northwest Territories, 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife
  • Open-pit (Beartooth, Fox, Koala, Koala North, Misery, Panda)/underground (Koala, Koala North, Panda)
  • As of 2018, Koala, Lynx, Misery, Pigeon, and Sable are the actively mined pipes, Lynx, Pigeon, and Sable are open pit operations, while Koala is an underground operation and Misery operations will transition from open pit to underground mining in 2018, subject to permitting approvals
  • Initial mine life projection 17 years (1998-2015), then extended to 2019
  • Mine life now to 2034 with various kimberlite developments (Sable, Misery, Fox, Jay) potentially extending to 2041
  • Socio-economic northern legacy – 15,661 person years employment, $5.9 billion spend (through 2017)
  • Operated by Dominion Diamond Mines, part of privately-owned Washington Group
  • May 2018, Jay pipe development suspended for further study

View Ekati’s latest video, Canadian Brilliance.