Mining firm does away with rail spur as part of Nebraska project

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor

NioCorp Developments Ltd. is removing plans for a 4.3-mile rail spur and supporting infrastructure that would have been constructed as part of its planned Elk Creek Superalloy Project.

The project, located in Elk Creek, Neb., originally called for delivery of 7,000 metric tons per week of reagents needed for separation and purification of the three superalloy metals that NioCorp plans to produce. However, the company explained that recent metallurgical process advancements will allow many of those reagents to be recycled from material that was previously planned for disposal.

The $21.3-million spur would have required the construction of several railroad bridges over the Nemaha River, Elk Creek and various tributaries, as well as impacting an estimated 2.6 acres of wetlands and open water and more than 1,700 feet of various water channels. Additionally, the spur would have required construction of new rail crossings in the vicinity of the project, as well as the rights acquisition of land on which the spur was to be located.

NioCorp says with the rail spur removed from the project, environmental impacts have been reduced, which should streamline the permitting process with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

“As we continue to shrink the overall environmental footprint of our Elk Creek Project, the elimination of a rail spur line is a major advance, both environmentally and economically,” said Mark A. Smith, CEO and executive chairman of NioCorp. “The largest single set of potential impacts to federally regulated waters was presented by the construction of the rail line over a number of water features. Given that we have found a way to remove these impacts from our Section 404 permit by recycling more material on-site, this presents a very good outcome both for the project and for the environment. It also represents another major de-risking for the project.”

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