Around the North

More than 26 kilometres of Highway 584 is finished being upgraded between Geraldton and Nakina just in time before winter. The project started last year and involved fixing ditches and resurfacing the road. The upgrades created 37 jobs.

Noront Resources Ltd. (NOT:TSX) and Freewest Resources Canada Inc. (FWR:TSX) have both released public letters to shareholders over what Freewest calls a hostile takeover attempt.

Tembec suffered more losses this year as sales for the three-month period that ended Sept. 26 were $451 million, down from $629 million from the same period last year.

A new Ernst & Young report suggests the Canadian mining and metals industry may become a prime target for increased taxes and levies as the government faces budget pressures to fund the deficits created during the global financial crisis.

The City of Dryden has launched its new tourism website. The site contains information on this area's activities, events, attractions and businesses.

North American Palladium reported a $6.2 million loss in its third quarter but President-CEO William Bigger said the company is optimistic of better times ahead for the growth-oriented Toronto miner.

The Ontario government opened a 20-kilometre, four-lane stretch of Highway 69 to traffic, south of Sudbury. It's the first section of four-lane highway to be completed in the new Sudbury-Parry Sound corridor. Construction began in 2005.

Brett Resources intends to fast-track development of its gold deposit near Atikokan in northwestern Ontario. A preliminary assessment study of the company's Hammond Reef Gold project shows a base case inferred mineral resource of 6.

With 135 home starts recorded in North Bay so far this year, Mayor Vic Fedeli is trumpeting his city as “leading the pack” in Ontario residential construction. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

Rubicon Minerals is pouring $60 million into a second round of exploration drilling at its Phoenix Gold Project in Red Lake. The Toronto-based junior miner discovered a large gold system in 2008, called F2, and is drilling to expand the resource.