The Ontario government has been granted 30 minutes to make its case at an upcoming legal challenge by Cliffs Natural Resources over gaining access to its Ring of Fire deposit.
In an April 29 news release, KWG Resources reported that the Divisional Court of the Superior Court of Justice of Ontario has granted standing to the government in an upcoming court case by Cliffs to overturn a decision reached by a provincial tribunal.
Last Sept. 10, Ontario’s mining and lands commissioner dismissed Cliffs’ application for an easement to build an access road over the claims staked by KWG.
In her decision, commissioner Linda Kamerman admonished the government for not having any representation during the summer hearings to testify on a matter concerning Crown land that was of provincial and public interest.
This time, the Attorney General – acting on behalf of the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines – will be granted a half-hour to make its representation at the appeal in June.
KWG has a 30 per cent stake in the Big Daddy chromite deposit that it shares with Cliffs and is also exploring its Black Horse chromite.
The bone of contention with Cliffs is KWG’s use of mining claims to stake a long overland corridor from Nakina north to the James Bay exploration camps with the intention of building an ore haul railroad.
