Teck’s major expansion project in the Elk Valley – the Castle Project – has received a (very light) makeover, with the project now known as the Fording River Extension Project, or FRO-X.

In a release, Teck said that the previous name for the project had been causing confusion.

“The Fording River Extension name will help to more clearly and accurately convey the nature of this project as an extension of the existing operation and not a new or separate operation,” said the company.

The FRO-X project is due south of the existing Fording River operations.

The current Fording River operation is winding down following decades of mining activity, with the FRO-X project planned to pick up the slack from the mid-2020s, extending the life of Fording River through to the 2070s.

FRO-X is currently being assessed provincially and federally under the BC Environmental Assessment Act and Impact Assessment Act of Canada, with Teck working with the two levels of government to coordinate the two assessment processes which will take several years.

Currently in an early planning phase, FRO-X’s next big milestone is the Detailed Project Description, which according to Teck’s timeline was due by the end of 2020, but is yet to be completed.

FRO-X contains approximately 360 million tonnes of coal, equating to roughly a 40-year mine life at current production rates, with the company saying that the successful development and construction of the project will allow it to maintain it’s existing work forces through the Elk Valley.

READ MORE: Castle Project moves through assessment process