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Noront, KWG in Ring of Fire talks

Junior miners KWG Resources and Noront Resources announced they have been in talks to develop their properties in the Ring of Fire in partnership with First Nations in the remote region, after the latter announced Monday it had purchased 103 Ring of
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The Liberal government took a beating yesterday in the Ontario legislature over the lack of progress in the Ring of Fire exploration camp. File photo.
Junior miners KWG Resources and Noront Resources announced they have been in talks to develop their properties in the Ring of Fire in partnership with First Nations in the remote region, after the latter announced Monday it had purchased 103 Ring of Fire claims from Cliffs Natural Resources for $20 million.

“We are delighted with this evolution of the Ring of Fire’s opportunities and are hopeful that our relationship with our Big Daddy joint venture partner will become more constructive and collaborative,” said KWG CEO Frank Smeenk in a press release.

“We think that the transportation and processing options we have developed can now be pursued in concert with our two governments and the First Nations constituencies to see the mineral assets of both Noront and KWG go into production.”

Noront's transaction with Cliffs includes a 100-per-cent interest in the Black Thor chromite deposit and the Black Label chromite deposit.

It also includes a 70-per-cent interest in the Big Daddy chromite deposit and an 85-per-cent interest in the McFauld's Lake copper zinc resource.

Once the transaction is completed, Noront will hold around 360 mining claims, or roughly 80,000 hectares of the emerging mining camp known as the Ring of Fire, located 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay.

KWG owns the remaining 30-per-cent interest in the Big Daddy chromite deposit, and also has the right to earn 80 per cent of the Black Horse chromite deposit, where resources are being defined.

Since Cliffs shut down its Ring of Fire projects in late 2013, Noront and KWG have become the leading mining companies in the region.

But Noront CEO Al Coutts said in a best-case scenario, the company's leading Eagle's Nest property will be developed by late 2018.

Ontario Chamber of Commerce has been critical of the speed of development in the Ring of Fire, and in a report card it released in early March the chamber gave failing grades almost across the board due to the glacial pace of progress in the region.

The chamber said the absence of foundational agreements with First Nations and government permitting delays have contributed to the slow pace of development.

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