Vale Limited - Pre-Vale History

Pre-Vale History

The Canadian Copper Company was founded following the discovery of copper deposits in Sudbury, Ontario. Initially, ore was shipped for smelting to a plant in Constable Hook, New Jersey, owned by the Orford Copper Company. Processing soon revealed that the ore was also rich in nickel and exploration tests revealed an enormous potential. In 1902 the International Nickel Company, Ltd. was created in New York, NY as a joint venture between Canadian Copper, Orford Copper, and American Nickel Works. In 1916, the International Nickel Company of Canada, Ltd. was incorporated as the operating company in Copper Cliff in Sudbury, and in 1918 the company built a new refinery in Port Colborne. The International Nickel Company of Canada, Ltd., first began using the trade name Inco in 1919.

In 1929, the corporation underwent a major expansion by absorbing the British-owned Mond Nickel Company. A head office was established in Toronto. During World War II, Inco's Frood Mine produced 40% of the nickel used in artillery by the Allies. Inco also maintained a machining plant located in Sterling Forest, NY. The Sterling Forest Site was sold and is now owned and occupied by International Business Machines. In 1972 the Inco Superstack was built in Sudbury. In 1976, the company’s name was officially changed to Inco Limited.

In order to generate cash Inco sold its manufacturing sites of nickel alloys to Special Metals Corporation in 1998. Special Metals Corporation however filed Chapter 11 in March 2002.