Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared at the launch of Iamgold (TSX: IMG; NYSE: IAG) and Sumitomo Metal Mining's C??t?(C) gold project in Ontario.
The prime minister attended the project's official ground-breaking, a ceremony that symbolizes the start of construction and that was also attended by local First Nations, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, cabinet ministers, members of parliament and company personnel.
"Creating more than a thousand jobs during construction and 450 full-time positions once it's completed, today's ground-breaking of the Cote Gold mine is good news for the Flying Post First Nation and the Mattagami First Nation, for Northern Ontarians, and for the Canadian economy," Trudeau said.
"As the world continues to manage the impacts of Covid-19, and as we safely restart our economy, projects like this one will be vital to helping get Canadians back to work and will continue to signal to international investors that Canada is a good place to do business."
Cote is located in the northern part of the province, 20 km southwest of Gogama, 130 km southwest of Timmins, and 200 km northwest of Sudbury.
The project, a 70-30 joint-venture between Iamgold and SMM, has the potential to produce 460,000 oz. gold annually at all-in sustaining costs of US$700 per oz. in the first six years of production with an 18-year mine life.
"This ground-breaking symbolizes the construction start of the Cote gold project, a project which will be a model for modern Canadian mining," Iamgold's president and chief executive Gordon Stothart said at the ceremony.
"Cote is transformational for our local community and First Nations stakeholders, project partners, employees and Iamgold, bringing economic benefits to the region while utilizing sophisticated technology and ensuring the health and safety of all."