That's the opinion expressed by an experienced mining engineer after a firsthand view of the natural barriers and logistical challenges which Granduc Operating Company's men have overcome at the Granduc copper mine in British Columbia.

Nothing in the Granduc development was easy. The deep orebody was partially covered by a glacier, so open pit mining was not feasible. The terrain was too rugged, direct access to tidewater overland too difficult and the weather too treacherous to permit building a concentrator at the mine site. From the nearest feasible concentrator site, an 11 - mile tunnel had to be driven under intervening mountain ranges and glaciers to the mine, and a mountain road, subject to heavy snow-fall, had to be built to Stewart, the nearest port, 32 miles away.

The men who developed Granduc had to plan for, and then achieve, engineering goals unprecedented in the history of mining. Furthermore, Newmont and American Smelting and Refining Company had to exercise great financial resourcefulness in turning Granduc from a dream into reality.

The story of Granduc, from its discovery, through its exploration and development, to its fruition as a productive copper mining community makes a fascinating chapter in the history of North American mining.

Granduc was made possible by the combination of financial and technical resources of two of the world's great mining organizations, American Smelting and Refining Company (Asarco) and Newmont Mining Corporation.

The property was leased jointly in equal shares by Newmont and Asarco from Granduc Mines Limited, and was operated by Granduc Operating Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Newmont. Production of the mine was shared equally by Newmont and Asarco.