A Thunder Bay junior miner was granted a temporary injunction to keep exploring on its Manitoba gold project after a nearby First Nation sought to bring work to a halt.
The Manitoba Court of the Queen's Bench will allow Mega Precious Metals to continue working on its Monument Bay Project, 570 km northeast of Winnipeg.
The company sought the injunction after a stop-work order and an eviction notice was received from the Red Sucker Lake First Nation on July 2. The injunction is valid until July 11 when the band will make its case in court.
In a July 4 release, the company said it was “surprised and disheartened” with the First Nation since they've been on good terms since 2010.
A Winnipeg newspaper report said the First Nation was frustrated over the lack of jobs, training opportunities and environmental concerns which prompted the band to terminal a memorandum of understanding.
Company claimed it has invested almost $2.1 million into the community to create liaison positions and for a land-use study. The company's workforce on the project is 51 per cent local First Nation and Metis people.
"Mega believes the company has, and continues to, demonstrate our respect for Red Sucker Lake First Nations' Treaty rights," says company president Glen Kuntz in a statement. "Mega plans to continue to meet with community members and provide project updates on a regular basis in an effort to maintain our social license to operate."
Monument Bay has a measured and indicated resource base of 2.9 million ounces of gold.
