Almost everything is in place for mining company Agnico Eagle to continue expanding its gold operations at Detour Lake and in Kirkland Lake.
One large gap for Canada’s largest gold producer and the third in the world, is attracting a work force.
Speaking to a business audience in Timmins, Agnico’s VP of Operations, André Leite spoke of recruitment and training. But he says for all his company’s potential to be realized, it needs mining talent from outside Canada.
However, recruitment even from within Canada is difficult.
“When you talk – maybe empirical,” he said, if you talk to people from Southern Ontario and you ask them if they would move here, it’s generally not a positive feedback that I get.”
At the same event, mines minister George Pirie echoed an announcement by the premier from last week, of ten-million dollars for Agnico under the provincial skills development fund.
“Ten-million dollars to Agnico with the Skills Development Fund,” Pirie said. “Ten-million dollars. That matches the largest single donation that’s been given to any company in Ontario.”
