puppin,

It's good to hear that the ice road from Pickle Lake to Webequie (?) have came early this year thanks to the right conditions of cold weather and not much snow fall. So, that section is good for transportation, including perhaps transportation of heavy equipment, and supplies (fuel, etc) for starting the construction of NOT Ni mine. But, without the permits NOT won't be able to start anything, since spending millions of dollar ahead of the construction permit is not a wise thing to do. It's hoped that bureaucrats and politicians (our leaders) understand all this.

In addition to site preparation, a ~100-km ice road from Webequie to the RoF, with crossing at the Muketei River, will have to be built at a cost of some ~$20M. Presumably, this would need a construction permit as well. Anyone knows if NOT has applied for a permit for this section?

Another option is the NS ice road from Nakina to the RoF. The Marten Falls FN is proposing to extend the ice road from Marten Falls to reach the RoF. This extension is whole heartedly supported by NOT. Question: What option would NOT choose, the NS ice road from Nakina, or the EW (actually this should be called the SW-NE) road proposed by NOT?

Currently, it looks more like the NS ice road proposed by Marten Falls FN is the choice, since I have not heard any talk, from NOT, about a current application for the 100k portion from Webequie to the RoF. Can someone verify this understanding?

Bottom line, the construction permit (EA) is a crutial piece of paper. If NOT does not have this permit soon, neither ice road option would help an early preparation for the mine, since NOT will not make a move to spend $ millions. The ice road season is short. If NOT missed this window of opportunity then it would lose another year.

May be Alan Coutts should request a meeting with Premier Wynne to explain all this to her. There would be no use talking to the responsible Minister who would probably just talk (he can out talk anybody, including Alan)... and do nothing.

Time is getting really short, and X-mas is coming.

goldhunter