 Ore processing facility at Heath Steele Mines (BR Walker 1993) | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
  Heath Steele Mine Location in New Brunswick | |
| Location | Northumberland County |
| Province | New Brunswick |
| Country | Canada |
| Coordinates | 47°17′00″N 66°04′00″W / 47.283333°N 66.066667°W |
| Production | |
| Products | Copper, Lead, Zinc |
| History | |
| Discovered | 1953 |
| Opened | 1957 |
| Closed | 1999 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Noranda |
| Year of acquisition | 1979 |
Heath Steele Mines, situated 60 km (37 mi) northwest of Newcastle, New Brunswick, Canada, at the headwaters of the Tomogonops and Little Rivers, was a large and productive copper, lead, and zinc mine which operated from 1956 to 1999. The mine was an economic cornerstone of Miramichi communities throughout this period.
The mine was initially developed as a collaboration between the American Metal Company (later Amax) and Inco (International Nickel Company) and consequently was also known as the Little River Joint Venture.
The mine was named after Mr. Heath Steele, the Vice-President of Exploration of the American Metal Company. It seems that Mr. Steele had little directly to do with the mine, but the parent company probably bestowed the name as an honour on his retirement from the company.
No smelter was included in the facility. The ore concentrates were instead hauled by rail to various smelter operations (for example at Belledune) for further processing, or to the ports at Newcastle and Dalhousie, New Brunswick where the concentrates could be shipped to customers overseas (e.g., Spain, Finland).