Alan Coutts's Noront Resources Ltd. (NOT) slipped one cent to 52 cents on 163,000 shares. The company is buying $20-million worth of claims in Ontario's Ring of Fire area from Cliffs Natural Resources Inc., and the purchase has attracted some Indian opposition. Last week, Chief Sonny Gagnon of the Aroland First Nation and interim Chief Bruce Achneepineskum of the Marten Falls First Nation met with lawyers in Toronto, in hopes of stopping the sale. This week, they plan to convince other chiefs to oppose the sale. They are upset mostly with Cliffs, pointing out that the company failed to consult when it decided to sell the land. Noront has had little to do with the Aroland First Nation so far, but for the past six years it has been working closely with Marten Falls. It pays the band for a portion of its exploration. It also provides band members with jobs, training, scholarships, bursaries, summer camps, drug-addiction services and Christmas presents. The company had developed a good relationship with the band's former chief, Elijah Moonias, but now Mr. Achneepineskum is in charge. He is well known to the company, having worked for Noront as a community liaison officer from 2009 through 2010. He resigned in 2010 to better focus on council duties.

There are 32 different bands living in the Ring of Fire area, all of which Noront says would benefit from development, especially from the construction of a road. Currently most of the communities are fly-in, which means they must fly in everything from bottled water to bread.