"Confirmation of road access would be almost as good as news of a nice Nickel strike"
I believe the two are directly tied together, Poly. Another nickel strike would take this thing over the line as far as economics go,and a road decision would follow close behind. It is interesting to note that each of these new birds that are arriving are not really economical on their own and as a result do not seem to do much for the SP. However, logic says that there has to be more than just that one nickel body, and once it is found, everything else falls into place.
One has to consider, if any of these birds that have been found, had been within a few km of Sudbury,or Red Lake, or any one of several other mining camps,each of these hits would have resulted in a huge SP rise. They are not though and as a result the SP does nothing.
That could change in a minute as drilling continues. One good nickel hit would change the economics overnight. there would be confirmation close behind regarding road, etc, and suddenly each of these hits are able to stand on their own. The resultant SP rise will then be proportionately higher and quicker.
I like the odds,mainly because the resulting payoff is getting so much better with each hit.
Regards
K