North American Palladium has confirmed it intends to reopen its Lac des Iles mine when palladium reaches about $300 per oz, Metal Bulletin reports.

The company placed the mine - which is located in Thunder Bay, Ontario in Canada - on care and maintenance last October as a result of struggling pgm prices.

At that time, palladium was averaging $191.82 per oz, but the metal closed on Monday at about $252 per oz for September delivery, its third-highest close so far this year.

The recovery has largely been motivated by safe-haven buying over concerns about the economy, stronger demand in China and a general upward trend in pgm prices.

Although the company had previously thought the $800 per oz target to be unlikely, it now believes the mine could be reopened as early as January 2010, according to the news provider.

North American Palladium is one of the continent's largest pgm and nickel producers and the open-pit and underground Lac des Iles operation is one of the largest in the world.