Mining project set to return to Paulatuk, N.W.T.
Region home to massive 'anomaly'
A mining project could soon resume near Paulatuk, N.W.T., giving investors another chance to explore one of the biggest potential mineral deposits in the world.
Company chairman Kerry Knoll says Darnley Bay Resources Ltd. recently had a change in leadership. The company has spent more than $20 million on exploration and related expenses since 1997 and was "virtually out of funds."
Knoll says the company has now managed to find about $740,000 in new investment, which will allow it to pay debts to the Inuvialuit Land Administration and resume work near Paulatuk. He says the company is still trying to raise $3 million to $5 million for a major campaign of exploration drilling.
"The good news is, our company is going to survive because a lot of companies are not surviving in our business," said Knoll.
The mining company was formed in 1993 to explore what is known as the "Darnley Bay anomaly." This distortion in magnetic and gravitational fields has been recognized by the Geological Survey of Canada and could indicate massive quantities of base minerals. The anomaly is the largest recorded in North America and has been compared to those recorded at the world's biggest nickel reserves which are in Sudbury, Ont., and Norilsk, Russia.
Knoll says the company is assessing the technology used for previous drilling in the High Arctic, and might attempt to use different techniques this time around.
He says the company should be active in Paulatuk within a few weeks doing clean-up work and site preparation, including clean-up work related to previous exploration in 2011.
Inuvialuit Regional Corporation CEO Nellie Cournoyea has said the Inuvialuit support the project, provided that environmental standards are acceptable. The Inuvialuit's agreement with the company includes access fees and royalties, as well as a potential 10 per cent stake in ownership of the mine.