ONTONAGON –According to multiple sources, the White Pine mine is reopening.

Highland Copper Inc. anticipates finalizing the purchase of the White Pine mine by the end of February, a company official said.

“If you like mining, there’s lots of good news coming,” the source said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the sale has not been finalized. “We’re going to be having a lot to say in the near term.”

Resuming mining at the site will be a boon to the struggling local economy and could spur more business activity, particularly at Lake Shore Systems Inc., CEO Jessica Frost said earlier this month while in Ontonagon. Lake Shore, Inc. designs and manufactures mining equipment.

“I’m very supportive of Highland Copper project,” said PM Power Group Chief Operating Officer Zach Halkola, who runs the nearby power plant for the mine. “This could be a big boost to the economy in Ontonagon County and fill a significant void left by recent plant closures. We’ve had significant layoffs in White Pine and this could help local families with long term, family sustaining employment. I’ll always support local jobs and utilizing our natural resources as long as it is done in a safe, environmentally friendly fashion.”

The Highland official said the company will be using a new mining method called the “Cat Rock Straight” system. A video on the website of Caterpillar, Inc., says the heavy-duty automated equipment can be operated by one person. The system is a fully mechanized system specifically designed to extract bedded hard rock deposits continuously in narrow veins.

“We’re committed to developing copper in the U.P.,” the Highland official said.

The company also has plans to mine in Keweenaw and Gogebic counties.

Draft minutes of a November Western Upper Peninsula Citizens Advisory Council meeting say Highland already bought the White Pine mine, noting the “north deposit is lucrative, but it is deep.” The minutes also say Highland is still looking for funding for a nearby Gogebic County project.

According to Highland’s website, the Copperwood deposit is located in Gogebic County within the Porcupine Mountains copper district, about 22 miles west of the White Pine project.

“Copperwood was discovered in 1956 and boasts the highest-grade of all known sediment-hosted copper deposits in the Upper Peninsula,” the website says, adding it is geologically very similar to the White Pine deposit.

Vanessa Dietz’s email address is vdietz@mininggazette.com.