Despite expecting further delay to RoF development, Noront exploration guns for gold – by Henry Lazenby (MiningWeekly.com – January 18, 2017)

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VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Despite reporting progress with discussions between stakeholders, the largest landholder in the emerging Ring of Fire (RoF) mining camp of Northern Ontario, Noront Resources, said Tuesday that it expected further delays to the development of its cornerstone Eagle’s Nest mine.

The precious and base metals project developer said the Canadian federal government, the Ontario provincial government, First Nations and itself were advancing negotiations to establish a joint infrastructure plan for the region.

However, this process intersects with discussions between the province and the Matawa Tribal Council at the Regional Framework Table that are taking longer than expected, and that have the potential to delay the provincial government’s stated goal of having shovels in the ground by 2018.

The timing for development of the company’s Eagle’s Nest mine is tied to the delivery of a shared access all-season road into the remote region. Noront advised that it intended to help progress the discussions by focusing its interactions on the three communities with traditional land use in the area: Marten Falls, Webequie and the Neskantaga First Nations.

The Toronto-headquartered company reported that dialogue and negotiations with Webequie and Marten Falls were progressing well, with both these communities recently sending delegations of senior community members to view site activities.

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