Genuity believed recently as January that as much as 20% of Noront is held by majors. The majors are at the doorstep, and they are waiting. Although tonnage is important, the possibility of this discovery being a previously-unexplored Ni Cu PGE belt must be a curve-ball they weren't expecting. The majors will not want to wait for DE5 to put their foot in the door. As another poster said earlier, it is strategically important to the majors to protect and control supply which could also mean preventing acquisition by competitors (just as a puppy would bite hold of three tennis balls to prevent another from getting one). There will come a point when risk-assessment models suggest stepping into the play is less costly for a major than waiting. Whether this stems from DE2, or DE3, I cannot see Richard settling until drilling proves there is not another DE to be found.

So, we continue to wait. As solace, here are some words of comfort from the Feb 26 Genuity Report:

"we note that at Eagle One the highest Pt grades at +40g/t Pt were associated with the only assay interval described as a "breccia sulphide" mineralization type)."

and this description of core from DE2:

Hole NOT-08-1G2 was drilled at local grid coordinates 32+17E, 5+73N with an azimuth of 155 degrees and initial dip of -50 degrees. After 10.9 meters of overburden and limestone the hole entered a strongly altered peridotite. A mineralized deformation zone was encountered over a length of 29 meters between 39 and 68 meters downhole, comprising a 3 meter section of massive sulphide-magnetite breccia and units of sulphide breccia with widths ranging from a few centimeters to a maximum of 1 meter in length throughout the entire zone. The hole was terminated at 239 meters in an altered peridotite.