http://business.financialpost.com/news/mining/ontario-court-ruling-opens-up-potential-road-access-to-ring-of-fire-mineral-belt

Ontario court ruling opens up potential road access to ‘Ring of Fire’ mineral belt

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Peter Koven | February 25, 2016 12:41 PM ET
More from Peter Koven | @peterkoven

Peter Koven/National PostDrill samples from the Ring of Fire sit in stacks in northern Ontario.Development of Northern Ontario’s mineral-rich belt could be in for a boost after a court ruled a small mining company should not have exclusive access to a transportation corridor.

TORONTO — The planned development of Northern Ontario’s “Ring of Fire” mineral belt got a potential boost on Wednesday when an appeals court ruled that a small junior mining firm should not have exclusive access to a transportation corridor.

The decision opens the door to construction of a north-south road to the Ring, which is thought to contain about $60 billion of chromite and other minerals. The Ontario government supports a road, in part because it would link up with remote First Nations communities.

What the appeals court is saying is that you can’t hold mineral development hostage

In 2009, a Toronto-based company called KWG Resources Inc. staked more than 200 mining claims going from the Ring of Fire all the way down to the CN rail line in Exton, Ont. Effectively, this gave KWG control over a crucial 340-kilometre access route to the mineral belt.

U.S. mining company Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. was keen to develop a road up to the Ring that would cross more than 100 of KWG’s claims. But its attempts to do so were thwarted.

In 2013, the Ontario Mining and Lands Commissioner rejected Cliffs’ request for an “easement” on KWG’s claims to build a road, saying it could negatively affect the claims.