HIGH-GRADE NI-CU-PT-PD-ZN-CR-AU-V-TI DISCOVERIES IN THE "RING OF FIRE"
NI 43-101 Update (September 2012): 11.1 Mt @ 1.68% Ni, 0.87% Cu, 0.89 gpt Pt and 3.09 gpt Pd and 0.18 gpt Au (Proven & Probable Reserves) / 8.9 Mt @ 1.10% Ni, 1.14% Cu, 1.16 gpt Pt and 3.49 gpt Pd and 0.30 gpt Au (Inferred Resource)
Message: Cliffs to sell chromite claims in Ring of Fire area to Noront for US$20 million
By The Canadian Press
TORONTO - A junior Ontario mining company is extending its investments in the province's remote Ring of Fire area by agreeing to pay US$20 million for chromite mining claims owned indirectly by Cleveland-based iron ore producer Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.
Noront Resources (TSXV:NOT.V - News) will buy the shares of two Cliffs subsidiaries that own 103 claims, adding to the TSX Venture-listed company's own holdings in the Ring of Fire area, about 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, Ont.
After the deal closes, Noront will have about 360 mining claims covering 80,000 hectares or 65 per cent of the Ring of Fire, a mining area that holds one of the world's richest chromite deposits as well as nickel, copper and platinum.
Chromite is used to make stainless steel.
While the area holds promise, critics fear it be years from development without adequate transportation and power services.
The Ontario government has earmarked $1 billion for infrastructure but there is no agreement with First Nations and Ottawa is reluctant to commit federal funding.
Noront president and CEO Alan Coutts said the deal with Cliffs "underscores Noront’s long-standing belief and commitment to the region.
"We have made significant investments in the Ring of Fire and our team has become experts in the region from both a technical and social point of view.”
Noront says it will receive financial backing from Franco Nevada Corp. (TSX:FNV.TO - News), a prominent Canadian mining royalty company based in Toronto.
Franco-Nevada has agreed to lend US$22.5 million to Noront and will receive seven per cent interest and royalty payments over time. Noront will also receive US$3.5 million in cash as part of the granting of the royalties.
Cliffs said in late 2013 that it had suspended investment plans for the Ring of Fire area. In November, it vowed to completely withdraw from eastern Canada, including its Bloom Lake iron mining operations along the Quebec-Labrador border.
The sale to Noront is expected to close around mid-April after approval is received from the Quebec Superior Court because subsidiary Cliffs Quebec Iron Mining was under creditor protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act.
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