Producer nears mineral level at prototype kaolin facility.

Whitemud Resources is going full bore in their drive to become the best metakaolin producer in North America.

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"Construction is progressing very well," says Christian Gagnon, Whitemud Vice-President, Manufacturing. "Everything is on time and on budget, as per our expectation."

By Gagnon's measure, the company's Gollier Creek Kaolin Mine near Assiniboia will be in full commercial production by February. Right now they're stripping overburden and using the material in water retention activities near the site.

"We should be at the mineral level in the first days of September," Gagnon estimates, adding the processing facilities will be ready to accept mined kaolin by the middle of December.

Production at the $50 million project will begin to ramp up after the Christmas break.

Using an on-site kiln, the mined kaolin will be processed into metakaolin, an additive used by the concrete industry to produce high-strength concrete. Whitemud may be headquartered in Calgary but its complete focus is on the Gollier Creek operation.

"The Saskatchewan plant is really our prototype, our demonstration plant," Gagnon says. Whitemud estimates the eventual size of the new metakaolin market to be in the order of 2.5-3 million tonnes of metakaolin per year, well above the current facility's opening production capacity of 175,000 tonnes.

With that size of market in mind, Whitemud designed its plant to accept a quick retrofit that would double its capacity within the first few years. Preliminary preparations are also being made for the construction of a second plant sometime in the future.

The company is now on the verge of finding managers and senior staff for Gollier Creek. Gagnon says they will be in complete hiring mode from July onward, building up to an on-site staffing level of 28 permanent Whitemud employees. From the reception the project has received to date he expects many employees will come from the local area.

"We've had very good support from the community since we began more than two years ago," Gagnon says, noting people often stop by the site to check on it's progress.

"It's been an interesting and well-received project."

Whitemud has been in contact with the mining industry in Saskatchewan and, Gagnon expects, will take on a more participatory role once they're 'in full-blown production'. Many of the company's geologists and management personnel are known in the province's coal and potash circles.

"We've had ties with the (provincial) government from the beginning, with Minister Cline and his department," Gagnon says. "There's been a very good welcome."