Settlement Reached with Environment and Climate Change Canada - ArcelorMittal Mining Canada Confirms More Than $400 Million Invested to Permanently Resolve Issues

MONTREAL, May 15, 2026 /CNW/ - ArcelorMittal Mining Canada G.P. ("ArcelorMittal") today announced that it has reached a settlement with Environment and Climate Change Canada ("ECCC") regarding water management practices at its Mont-Wright and Fire Lake mining operations.

Under the terms of the settlement, ArcelorMittal Mining Canada will pay a total of CDN $100 million in connection with matters arising between 2014 and 2022 concerning the interpretation and application of the Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations and the Fisheries Act, as in force during the relevant period. Of this amount, a fine of CDN $100 will be paid to the Receiver General for Canada, with the balance directed to the Government of Canada's Environmental Damages Fund.

The underlying charges related to discharges of suspended matter, and in certain cases with the presence of nickel and zinc -- but no harmful chemical materials -- from ArcelorMittal's mining operations. Notably, 96% of the infractions to which ArcelorMittal pleaded guilty occurred in 2018 or earlier. Since that time, ArcelorMittal has invested more than CDN $400 million in comprehensive, long-term water control and treatment infrastructure to address operational and environmental water challenges both on site and in the surrounding areas. With these projects now complete, ArcelorMittal remains focused on further strengthening its environmental stewardship and sustainable development practices.

"The settlement reached and announced today will mark the end of this chapter", said Mapi Mobwano, President and Chief Executive Officer of ArcelorMittal Mining Canada. "We are committed to improving the environmental performance of our operations. The majority of the issues associated with this claim occurred 8 years ago or more and since then we have invested CDN $400 million to improve water issues on site. This includes, among other projects, the CDN $162 million invested in Mont-Wright for the construction of the Nipi water treatment facility, along with a runoff water capture ditch network. I am confident that the steps we have taken will avoid such situations in the future. The communities around our operations are extremely important to us and we will continue to ensure that we are taking the right decisions to protect the environment."

About ArcelorMittal Mining Canada G.P.
ArcelorMittal Mining Canada G.P. operates mining facilities in the province of Quebec, including the Mont-Wright and Fire Lake mines. The Company is committed to responsible mining practices and to the protection of the environment and the communities in which it operates.

Details on the breakdown of the $400 million investments are provided in appendix, along with more details on some of the most important projects in water and environmental management.

Mining Canada G.P.

Appendix

Water management improvement projects on ArcelorMittal mine sites

	Project name	Year of completion	Site	Total costs
WATER MANAGEMENT – $172.5 million
1.	Effluent Treatment Plant MS-6	2017	Mont-Wright	$3,527,914
2.	Replacement FL-7	2018	Fire Lake	$187,164
3.	Treatment plant at FL-2	2018	Fire Lake	$518,431
4.	Temporary treatment plant HS-2	2018	Mont-Wright	$34,593,012
5.	Red water treatment plant replacement studies	2018	Mont-Wright	$2,335,903
6.	Southwest Channel	2018	Mont-Wright	$21,430,099
7.	Basin C	2019	Mont-Wright	$16,393,577
8.	Channel B	2020	Mont-Wright	$2,849,680
9.	Channel C	2023	Mont-Wright	$16,542,048
10.	NIPI water treatment plan	2022	Mont-Wright	$66,236,308
11.	Channel D	2024	Fire Lake	$7,900,801
SEWAGE SYSTEMS – $11.7 million
12.	Rest area – Kitchen 3	2018	Mont-Wright	$162,083
13.	New wastewater treatment plant (SP-02)	2022-2025	Mont-Wright	$11,500,038
TAILINGS STORAGE FACILITY MANAGEMENT AND PROJECTS – $214.8 million
14.	Hesse 4 dike raising	2023	Mont-Wright	$27,771,125
15.	Tailings storage facility management	2017-2025	Mont-Wright	$133,872,773
16.	Project B+	2018-2023	Mont-Wright	$38,156,697
17.	Civil engineering work at the tailings storage facility	2020-2023	Mont-Wright	$14,975,853
FISH HABITAT OFFSETTING PROJECTS – $20.1 million
18.	Lac Jeannine and Lac Nipissis	2022-2024	Mont-Wright	$20,116,357

GRAND TOTAL INVESTMENTS COMPLETED = $419,069,863

Summary of the "Nipi" water treatment plant project Mont-Wright mining complex

Investment: $66 million CAD

Construction: April 2021 to March 2023 – inaugurated April 17, 2023

Capacity: Construction of a water treatment plant with a capacity of 6500 m³/hour. About 10 to 12 million m³ of water are treated per year by this plant. The plant was designed to treated suspended solids and dissolved metals in water with pH control. Nordikeau Inc., which works in partnership with the Innu Nation, is responsible for operation of the plant.

Benefit: Improvement of the quality of water released beyond common standards.

Summary of the Mine Water Management Program
Mont-Wright mining complex – Southwest Sector 

Investment: $75.3 million CAD

Construction: 2017-2025

Description: Construction of mine water management infrastructure to capture runoff and water from mining activities to a water treatment plant. The project involved:

• Extending an existing ditch (Ditch B) by 1.9 km
• Building a new 4.2 km ditch
• Adding a new water containment basin (Basin C) with a combined capacity of 170,000 m³

This project completed a previous project (construction of Basins A and B and Ditches A and B). These projects made it possible to ensure compliance with the federal and provincial regulatory requirements, and to protect sensitive natural environments downstream, such as Rivière aux Pekans and the projected Rivière Moisie aquatic reserve.

Benefits: Optimized mine water management, reduction of environmental and regulatory risks, and assured continuity of operations.

Summary of the tailings management and containment program – Mont-Wright mining complex – Basin B+ sector

Investment: $74.8 million CAD

Construction: 2021-2025

Description: Construction of a controlled containment and settling basin for water from tailings deposited hydraulically and from runoff in contact with these tailings. The basin has a capacity of 12,7 million cubic metres of water and extends over an area of approximately 4 km².

Basin B+ plays a key role in the site's hydraulic balance, the integrity of the tailings storage facility infrastructure and management of the tailings volumes generated by the concentrator. It prevents overflows of water directly into the environment that could have been caused by extreme rain. It helps control recirculation of water to the concentrator and assists water quality in the final effluent.

Benefit: Ensuring the reliability of the overall tailings management system, improvement of control of water and infrastructure, ensuring the safety of mining operations and reduction of environmental risks, with Basin B+ as a structuring component of the performance and stability of the containment system

Summary of the Hesse 4 dike raising and expansion of the tailings storage facility –Mont-Wright mining complex

Investment: $27.8 million CAD

Construction: completed at the end of December 2023

Description: Increase in the capacity of the Hesse North tailings storage facility to support concentrator production and prevent overflows. The project involved raising the Hesse 4 dike (to ~666 m) and the associated settlement structure, to increase the tailings storage capacity and ensure adequate management of tailings water in the tailing storage facility.

Benefit: Improvement of tailings and water management and elimination of the risk of uncontrolled spills into the environment

SOURCE ArcelorMittal Exploitation minière Canada s.e.n.c.

Source: Annie Paré, Director, Communications, ArcelorMittal Mining Canada G.P., [email protected]