The not-for-profit telecoms corporation Eeyou Communications Network (ECN) will lay down 124km of fibre-optic cable to connect the mine's facilities to the existing network. The C$3.5 million project is expected to be finished by 2020.
While visiting the mine this week, Jonatan Julien, minister of energy and natural resources and minister responsible for the Côte-Nord region, announced that the government would be investing in the project. It is doing this through state-owned enterprise Société du Plan Nord, which helps develop infrastructure projects in northern Quebec in consultation with representatives of the regions and indigenous peoples, as well as the private sector.
"The mining sector is entering a new era with mine 4.0. Today's funding will contribute to the Éléonore mine's competitiveness in the future: access to a reliable and high-performance telecommunications network is fundamental for the industry to modernise," he said.
"The realisation of this project is excellent news for the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region, but also for the Quebec economy."
The non-profit ECN working on the project usually provides broadband carrier services for the Cree communities of Eeyou Istchee and municipalities of the James Bay region.
"This joint investment from our Cree partner, Eeyou Communications Network, and the Société du Plan Nord will connect the mine to a fibre-optic network, providing far more bandwidth than we have today, and will support our vision of creating the first 4.0 mine in Quebec," said Eleonore general manager Sophie Bergeron.
