In 1982, Eldorado bought Gulf Minerals Canada Limited Companys (GMCL) from Gulf Canada Limited. One of GMCL's principal concerns was the development of uranium mining sites around Rabbit Lake, in Saskatchewan. Eldorado also bought the assets of a German-owned, Canadian-incorporated company called Uranerz, which had entered into a joint venture with GMCL in 1970 to develop the Rabbit Lake sites.
These records provide one of the best sources of information of GMCL. It was undoubtedly understood by GMCL that the company's success hinged on the timely identification and accurate assessment unanium market threats and opportunities. As much as understanding the external economic and political environment, however, marketing's function extended to the development of an appreciation of the status of some of GMCL's other operations, particularly with respect to the company's financial situation, current production capacity and quality as well the company's exploration initiatives and discovery prospects and potential.
The records produced by the marketing department reflect the breadth of Marketing's purview of the GMCL's operations. The files collected by the Marketing manager, the director of Marketing, the Contract Administrator, and to a lesser extent the Director, Marketing Research offer an important collection of records as well as a convenient point of entry into some of the records.
Although the records were all maintained by Marketing, Head office, the organization and content of the records varies throughout the accession.
Records filed according to a file classification plan include but are not limited to: administrative records (e.g., employee benefits, policies and procedures), and records filed under the topics of mine marketing, contract administration (e.g., Rabbit Lake), inquiries, uranium policy and supply & demand, downstream fuel cycle. These records date primarily from the 1970s and early 1980s, and are found in accession boxes 1 and 6-18.
Additional records are grouped by subject rather than file classification plan. Subjects include but are not limited to:
GMCL Uranium Task Force (boxes 2-4);
Gulf - U.C.L. Negotiations, working notes (box 5);
Uranium clipping file 1972-1979 (box 29);
Multi-subject boxes in the accession (boxes 19-23, 27) include contents such as: a 1962 Radiological Safety Guide; advertising brochures and booklets from 1972; files for worldwide uranium mining companies.
Records formerly maintained by individuals (D.O. Downing, J. R. Britt) at their desks are now in accession boxes 35-38.
Records formerly maintained by Marketing in a locked cabinet are included among the records in box range 45-54 (with the possible addition of box 44). Included are daily letter files and chronological files (boxes 44-45, 47-50, 54); a variety of miscellaneous correspondence and subject files on a range of subjects, for instance "Political contributions" (boxes 46, 50); and a collection of records likely assembled via file searches conducted early in 1977, in response to subpoenas (boxes 51-54).
Finally, also included in the accession are: chronologically-ordered telexes and daily letter files (box 34); Statistics Canada publications (boxes 28, 39-42); and various worldwide status reports etc. from the Nuclear Assurance Corporation (boxes 30-33, 43). The copies of Statistics Canada publications will be recommended for removal. Additional records may be reviewed for archival value.
Photographic material and audiocassettes are scattered through the accession's boxes. Approximately 80 Rabbit Lake historical photographs are found in boxes 10 and 26, and additional ca. 40 photographs relating to public relations, advertising, a contract, and a construction site also feature in boxes 10 and 26. Three audiocassettes under the subject header "Uranium Cartel" feature in box 24. Another unlabelled audiocassette is included among D.O. Downing's desk files in box 35.
