This week marked a milestone for Quebec mining as Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines Ltd.' s first iron ore shipment, right, departed the company's new port of Sept-Iles, on its way to China. It is the first of many shipments from the company's Bloom Lake mine, which is moving into production and is expected to churn out 8 million tonnes of iron ore concentrate a year. Consolidated Thompson is also putting together a plan that would double production at Bloom Lake to 16 million tonnes a year. The iron ore from the project will go to Asian customers, and Consolidated Thompson has a special partnership with the Chinese steelmaker WISCO, which has agreed to buy 50% of the output. The Bloom Lake mine is located in northeast Quebec, about 400 kil