Mineral Exploration is the official publication of the Association of Mineral Exploration British Columbia.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/468124
S P R I N G 2 0 1 5 37 A fourth circumstance was Imperial Metals' large, robust Red Chris copper- gold project, which had environmental permits in place and was steadily moving ahead. Red Chris was the lynchpin proj- ect NTL needed to restore momentum, Dirom says. Finally, a fifth circumstance was that AltaGas began putting together the $725-million Forrest Kerr hydro project, including a $180-million construction agreement towards the cost of the new transmission line. B.C. got back on board, heralding NTL as a good choice for federal fund- ing. Prime Minister Stephen Harper accepted that recommendation, announc- ing $130 million towards the power line in September 2009. BC Hydro, after consulting with numerous First Nations, announced in 2011 that NTL would pro- ceed – starting at Skeena Substation near Terrace, with a 334-kilometre first phase running north to a new substation at Bob Quinn Lake. By December 2014, Imperial Metals had invested $643 million into construc- tion of Red Chris and expected to be making concentrate for shipping in early 2015. The mine at full operation will pro- vide up to 325 well-paying, full-time jobs. "A lot of people believe that the NTL is something the province is paying for, and for certain they have fronted signifi- cant costs," Lebel said. "But so has Imperial Metals, and so has AltaGas – there are tar- iffs that have to be paid back to the province with interest. So it becomes an extraordi- nary investment for the province." The opening of Red Chris is just the first of many mine investments that AME BC anticipates in the coming years as a result of NTL, according to Dirom. "This area is world class in terms of prospects, speaking of the northwest in general and the Golden Triangle specifically. Huge deposits, and very rich deposits, have been discovered." Galore Creek is still on the books and, in December 2014, Seabridge Gold announced that the federal government had given environmental approval to its KSM gold project. A short list could also include the Arctos Anthracite Project, Schaft Creek, Snowfield, Turnagain, Brucejack, Kutcho Creek, Bronson Slope and GJ. "Schaft Creek isn't too far away, not to mention Galore Creek," Dirom says. "As well, we've seen huge excitement in the last two years with Brucejack right in this same area. The table is now set for success." ■