zinc mines are closing.Teck to close Lennard Shelf mine in...

zinc mines are closing.

Teck to close Lennard Shelf mine in August
Mon Jul 14, 2008 7:04pm EDT

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 14 (Reuters) - Teck Cominco Ltd (TCKb.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) will close its Lennard Shelf zinc mine next month, saying on Monday that rising costs, lower prices and a stronger Australian dollar had made it uneconomical.

The facility in western Australia had been scheduled to remain in operation until 2011, but Teck warned in April that it might close it sooner. The mine had been restarted in 2007 after a three-year shutdown.

Teck co-owns the mine with a unit of Xstrata Plc (XTA.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), and the closure is not expected to have a material impact on the earnings of either company, Teck said.

The mine was producing less than expected and its profitability had been hurt by a sharp drop in zinc and lead prices at the same time the Australian dollar was increasing and energy and labor costs rose, the company said.

The mine produced 42,100 tonnes of zinc metal and 12,400 tonnes of lead in 2007, according to Teck. (Reporting Allan Dowd, editing by Rob Wilson)