It’s a big blow for the small northern New Brunswick community of Belledune.
Glencore has announced the permanent closure of Brunswick Smelter, which employs about 420 people.
In a news release, the company says the smelter has been uneconomic since the closure of the Brunswick Mine in 2013.
The decommissioning process will begin immediately and the smelter will cease all operations by the end of the year.
Glencore says it’ll seek potential relocation opportunities for workers, adding a small number will be kept to work on site monitoring, water treatment and closure projects in the months ahead.