VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Iron-ore project proponent Champion Iron Ore has acquired an operational fleet of 735 specialised iron-ore railcars from Canadian Iron Ore Railcar Leasing, for $30.1-million.

Champion chairperson and CEO Michael O’Keeffe on Wednesday said the acquisition brought the TSX- and ASX-listed company a significant step closer to resuming mining operations at its Bloom Lake mine, near Fermont, in Québec.

“Owning our own fleet of railcars will deliver substantial strategic and cost benefits as we bring Bloom Lake back into full-scale production. The acquisition is also a major step towards financing the Bloom Lake restart,” he said in a statement.

Champion, through its 100%-owned subsidiary Société de voitures de chemin de fer du Lac Bloom, is paying 6% of the acquisition price as a down-payment, with the balance to be financed by a three-year seller note at a London Interbank Offered Rate plus 1.75% a year.

Champion in February published the results of a feasibility study on Bloom Lake, demonstrating a financially viable and competitive project in current global markets.

Compliant mineral reserves were estimated at 411.7-million tonnes and the operation was forecast to generate more than $15-billion in revenue over the next 20 years. Champion believes Bloom Lake has the potential to be one of the region’s most important long-life iron-ore mines and a significant contributor to the national economy.

Bloom Lake already has rail loop infrastructure, which Mining Weekly Online witnessed first hand during a site visit last year, with access to tidewater and international markets through existing rail and port infrastructure.

The rail access comprises a 31.9 km rail spur that is operational and connects to the Quebec North Shore & Labrador (QNS&L) railway at the Wabush Mines facilities, in Wabush, Labrador; a second segment using the QNS&L railway between Wabush to the Arnaud junction, in Sept-Îles; and a final segment from Arnaud to the Pointe-Noire port facilities in Sept-Îles, where the concentrate will be unloaded, stockpiled and then loaded on vessels for export.