GN eyes Lupin mine training scheme

By NUNATSIAQ NEWS

Ed Picco, the minister of education, said last week that his officials are planning to visit the site of the former Lupin gold mine, and that he supports the idea of using it as place to train Nunavummiut for mining jobs.

Lupin’s owners, Kinross Gold Corp., closed the aging mine after its ore body was exhausted.

The Kitikmeot Inuit Association and the Kitikmeot Corp. are now proposing to run a mine training centre at the site.

“I think that it is a good move. It’s the private sector moving forward on a training initiative. It involves the region and it supports the local economy. That is something that we are interested in doing,” Picco said in response to questions from Keith Peterson, the MLA for Cambridge Bay.

Picco also said his officials are still negotiating with the federal labour minister, Claudette Bradshaw, on an application for funds from the Aboriginal Employment Skills Program to pay for mine training.

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