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Rio Tinto Alcan snags labour deal for B.C. smelter project

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VANCOUVER -- Rio Tinto Alcan has reached an agreement to help secure workers to build a proposed $2.5-billion aluminum smelter in northwestern British Columbia. "What they're concerned about mainly is the first access to the skilled trades," said Wayne Peppard, executive director of the British Columbia and Yukon Building and Construction Trades Council. The proposed modernization of the smelter in Kitimat would make it one of the largest in North America and require as many as 1,500 workers to build. With fierce competition for labour, especially in Western Canada, this new agreement with 16 unions is an important part of moving ahead. On Thursday, Rio Tinto Alcan hosts a ceremony in Vancouver to formally sign the deal. While the project appears to be progressing, it has faced several delays. Most recently, Rio Tinto's board of directors had been expected in the spring to approve building the project, a decision that has been pushed back to the fall. And the biggest question is the hostile takeover bid by Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd. for Rio Tinto PLC, the Canadian arm's Anglo-Australian parent based in Britain. If successful, there is speculation that Rio Tinto's aluminum assets will be sold to another company, such as Alcoa Inc. of Pittsburgh or Aluminum Corp. of China. The Kitimat project would increase the smelter's capacity by 40 per cent to 400,000 tonnes a year while cutting greenhouse gases emissions by roughly a third. The original facility, built in the 1950s, is nearly obsolete but is an important cornerstone of the regional economy. Mr. Peppard said he hasn't seen any indications the project won't proceed. In July, Rio Tinto Alcan signed a $200-million contract to manage the construction with Bechtel, the San Francisco engineering firm. -reporton business.com

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