Canada and the United States announced a joint investment to finance the construction of infrastructure necessary for the exploitation of the Mactung tungsten mine, located on the border between Yukon and the Northwest Territories.
The tungsten deposit, one of the largest in the world, is located on the traditional territory of the Kaska and Na-Cho Nyäk Dun First Nations.
The investment, which represents $12.9 million from Ottawa and $22.1 million from Washington, will mainly be used to improve approximately 250 kilometers of road, modernize an electricity transmission line between Faro and Ross River, and the construction of a transmission line between Ross River and the Macmillan Pass site, we can read in a press release.
The Canadian funding comes directly from the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund and will be provided entirely to the mining company Fireweed Metals. The company bought the mine from the NWT government in 2022 after it bought the project in 2015, during the bankruptcy of what was then the Cantung mine.
Fireweed Metals now owns both the Mactung mine and the adjacent Macpass project, where it began mineral exploration in 2017.
It’s on the border of Macpass, that’s what attracted us in the first place, explains CEO Peter Hemstead. But, the more we were interested in it, the more we understood the global dynamics around tungsten, and the more we wanted to acquire it.
Tungsten is particularly heavy, hard, and heat-resistant, making it a material of choice for a variety of ammunition. It is a resource coveted by the United States, especially since the country has tense diplomatic relations with China, the largest producer of tungsten.
The United States is dependent on tungsten sources elsewhere in the world. Having a reserve in North America would reduce one of our biggest material risks, says Laura Taylor-Kale, assistant secretary of defense for industrial policy at the U.S. Department of Defense, who qualifies tungsten essential to national defense.
“Ethical questions”
“The Na-Cho Nyäk Dun First Nation is morally opposed to the production of weapons,” underlines the person responsible for implementing the governance of the First Nation, Adrienne Hill. »
The link between mining and missile production raises several ethical questions about supporting industries that are linked to conflict and violence, she said.
She adds that Canada and the United States must harmonize with the disarmament objectives established by the United Nations Disarmament Commission.
When the consultation process begins, the First Nation will make sure to work with Canada and the United States to collaborate and actively advocate for disarmament objectives, she assures.
The Fireweed mining project was submitted to the Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Office.
An important project, according to Ranj Pillai
It’s not just important for Yukon, says Ranj Pillai, Yukon’s premier. It’s also on the border with the NWT. It is extremely important for indigenous communities to be able to partner with the company on this project.
“I think it’s incredibly important for North America from a security and defense perspective,” he said, adding that there would be enough tungsten in the deposit to provide the US Department of Defense for the next 50 years.
Based on information from Caitrin Pilkington
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