Published 8:10 am Monday, December 1, 2025 By Derek Neary Northern News Services Mines in the NWT and Nunavut churn out great volumes of metals, minerals and gems. Mining companies also produce mountains of numerical data. This is a sample of what can be found in various annual socio-economic reports. De Beers/Mountain Province Diamonds (Gahcho Kue) -4.66 million carats of diamonds were unearthed in 2024, down from 5.6 million in 2023. -De Beers and Mountain Province Diamonds spent $116 million with Indigenous companies. -The mine had 649 full-time equivalent positions in 2024, 233 of those were filled by NWT residents. -De Beers and Mountain Province Diamonds put $657,000 toward corporate social investment in 21 communities and organizations in 2024. -Mine procurement with NWT companies totalled 67 per cent of goods and services needed in 2024. Agnico Eagle (Meliadine and Amaruq) -Agnico Eagle is responsible for about a third of Nunavut’s gross domestic product. -In 2024, approximately 65 per cent ($846 million) of Meadowbank, Meliadine and Hope Bay procurement spending was with Indigenous suppliers. -The company’s workforce in Nunavut totalled 3,681 people in 2024, of which 14 per cent were female and 11 per cent were categorized as local to the Kivalliq or Kitikmeot regions (278 Inuit employees). -Agnico Eagle’s global mines emitted 1.32 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2024, and 34 per cent came from its Nunavut operations. -The company supported five search and rescue operations in 2024, assisting with air and land resources. Those incidents occurred in Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, Whale Cove and Hope Bay. Burgundy Diamond Mines (Ekati) -Business expenditures amounted to $431 million in 2024, of which 68 per cent was directed to Indigenous partners and other Northern businesses. -$5.1 million was disbursed to Northern communities in 2024 through impact benefit agreement payments, community donations and sponsorships. -Ekati employed 1,242 individuals, including 700 employees and 542 contractors last year. Of those workers, 28 per cent were Northerners with 60 per cent of that number being Indigenous Northerners. -The mine achieved 100 million carats extracted over 26 years of production at Ekati. Last year’s production was enough to help Burgundy reach four per cent of overall global rough diamond supply. Rio Tinto (Diavik) -Rio Tinto spent $382 million related to Diavik in 2024, of which $285 million was kept in the North. -Since 2000, spending at Diavik has totaled $10.8 billion — $7.7 billion of that has been allocated in the North. -The Diavik workforce stood at 1,272 full-time equivalent positions in 2024, of which 34 per cent were Northerners and 15.3 per cent were women. -Rough diamond production was 2.76 million carats last year, part of the 147 million carats extracted since 2003. -Community contributions in 2024 amounted to almost $541,000. Since Diavik began operations, the mine’s owners have put $13 million toward scholarships for Northern youth and community sponsorships. Baffinland Iron Mines (Mary River) -More than $16 million in payroll was disbursed to Inuit employees living in the communities surrounding the Mary River iron mine in 2024. Another $8 million was earned by Inuit workers from Iqaluit. -Baffinland and its contractors paid Inuit employees more than $30 million in 2024, or about 13 per cent of the overall payroll. Female workers made up 11.5 per cent of the workforce at the mine last year. -Inuit comprise 57 per cent of workers in labour jobs, 15 per cent of intermediate positions, 4 per cent of technical jobs/skilled trades and 13 per cent of professional or management jobs. -The average salary among full-time Inuit employees was $116,938 last year. -The value of contracting with Inuit firms in 2024 came in at $167.3 million. Since Mary River was developed, Inuit companies have captured nearly $2.1 billion in contracts. -Baffinland paid $129,467 toward seven claims filed through the Qikiqtani Inuit Association’s Wildlife Compensation Fund in 2024. For more stories from NWT & Nunavut Mining, click here.
NWT & NUNAVUT MINING: Northern mining by the numbers
