North American Gem (NAG) waiting for coal prospecting permit approval.

North American Gem Inc. (TSX: V.NAG, Stock Forum) announced Monday evening that it has now received First Priority "Comfort letters" for 71 townships, or more than 1.3 million acres, from Saskatchewan Energy and Resources.

At the moment, North American Gem is waiting on the status for another eight Townships of Coal Prospecting Permit to be approved as well as Coal Prospecting Permit approval for the Adamas Property which would allow exploration to start. The company has First Priority status on the township that holds the Adamas Discovery.

The company also reported that earlier this month, North American Gem president Charles Desjardins, and two of his advisors met with Saskatchewan's Energy and Resources Minister, Bill Boyd and a number of ministry officials, saying that “Mr. Desjardins was very encouraged by Minister Boyd's interest and support for the potential contribution that new coal developments may have on the economy in central Saskatchewan.”

North American Gem says it “anticipates being a major land holder in this new coal region of Saskatchewan.” The company says it plans to first twin the Adamas discovery hole to get a true grade of the quality of the coal at that location, and further exploration holes in the area of the discovery.

In early trading Tuesday, shares of North American Gem were down 6.6% to 28.5 cents with over 500,000 shares traded.