De Beers to flood NWT’s Snap Lake mine a year after closure

Diamond major De Beers has announced that it will flood the mothballed Snap Lake mine, in Canada’s Northwest Territories (NWT) in January, more than a year after it was placed on care and maintenance on the back of lower diamond prices. The company said flooding will take about six to eight weeks to complete, thereby preserving the long-term viability of the orebody and reducing costs while mitigating environmental risks associated with maintaining dormant operations.