Some comments to the article....

"We need about $7 million to develop that project," he said. "What this allows us to do is go to equity markets and say, 'Hey, we've got some certainty on this.' Now this is financeable."

The reporter forgot to multiply the 7 x 100..to make it 700  million

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Sudbury remains in the running to host such a facility, said Coutts, along with Timmins and Thunder Bay.

"There are advantages and disadvantages to all the communities, whether it's proximity or experience," he said. "Sudbury and Timmins, for instance, are smelter towns, so they know exactly what a smelter is and have the workforce to run a smelter."

There was no mention of Sault Ste Marie...anymore...

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In another article Noront mentions the lengthy permitting requirements for a smelter.

If you wish to make the timeline ...shorter....you pick a spot that already had a permit for a smelter ...but closed the smelter down...like the copper smelter xstrata had in Timmins.

http://www.timminspress.com/2011/03/14/xstrata-paying-2-million-for-smelter-closure

Tremendous studies were already done prior to this copper smelter opening and permitting was given. Today's technologies provide emission reduction as compared to the older technologies...Much easier to get permitting if a smelter was already present....as in the case of Timmins...and the skilled workforce is there...and jobs are desperately needed...there...