Coeur Alaska has awarded a construction contract for a tailings facility at the Kensington Mine 45 miles north of Juneau.

The contract went to AIC, an Alaska-based contractor, and Kake Tribal Corp.

The facility at Lower Slate Lake is the last construction project left to be completed at the mine.

The U.S. Supreme Court in June gave Idaho-based Coeur the go-ahead to dump waste from the mine into Slate Lake.

The company expects to begin production in the third quarter of 2010.

The mine is expected to employ up to 300 during remaining construction and about 200 during operations.