http://www.miningglobal.com/miningsites/1774/Top-10-most-anticipated-mining-projects

Eagle’s Nest (Noront Resources)

The reason for the project’s inclusion here is not all down to economics. When Cliffs Natural Resources pulled out of its huge chromite project in the Ring of Fire, it left a sizeable dent in Canada’s Ministry of Northern Development and Mines’ plans for the region. As a result, the government has now pinned its hopes on this 150-200,000tpa nickel-copper-PGE project, which it anticipates leading to a host of spin-offs to open up the area. Simply put, it cannot afford to let it go the same way as Cliffs’ development, so it may look to invest in infrastructure that the project could potentially use. A March update of its 2012 feasibility study economics envisaged initial capital of C$609 million (US$479 million), a $265 million net present value (8 percent discount), an 18.9 percent internal rate of return and a three-year payback period at prices of US$12,613/t of nickel, US$6,020/t of copper, US$1,126/oz of platinum and US$735/oz of palladium.

There is potential to develop Eagle’s Nest concurrently with the Blackbird, Black Thor and Big Daddy chromite deposits, which could potentially bolster the economics. A bigger project factoring in all of the major claims would capture the imagination of regulators, but come with a top-heavy capital cost that would be hard to fund in this environment.