Noront retracts chromite estimates at request of OSC

Noront Resources Ltd. [NOT-TSXV], said that following a review by staff of the Ontario Securities Commission, the company is issuing the following news release to clarify certain disclosures made in connection with its chromite properties in the James Bay Lowlands area of northern Ontario.

Specifically, Noront said it wishes to clarify that in its first quarter 2018 corporate presentation, made available on the company’s website, certain disclosure was made with respect to the development of the nearby Blackbird chromite deposit and to certain cost estimates and initial capital development amounts. Noront now says the corporate presentation has been revised to amend certain of these references and delete other sections.

In the company’s annual information form dated April 17, 2018, its management discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2017, its MD&A for the quarter ended March 31, 2018, as well as its annual report, reference was made to Noront’s internal estimate that the internal rate of return is sufficient to the Blackbird chromite project. This statement is not supported by a technical report and so the corporation retracts this statement from its continuous disclosure documents.

The clarification comes after Noront recently launched what it has dubbed the next and final phase of the site selection process for a proposed ferrochrome production facility that it hopes to build in Ontario.

The move comes after Thunder Bay and Sudbury were eliminated two weeks ago as possible locations for the facility.

The company now says Timmins and Sault Ste. Marie are the two northern Ontario cities that are vying for the project.

Noront is a company that is hoping to mine chromite from properties located in northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire region, an area that Ontario government officials have previously described as “one of the most promising mineral development opportunities in Ontario in almost a century.”

It was envisioned that the chromite would be extracted and then concentrated at source. It would then  be shipped by road or rail to processing facilities further south in one of Ontario’s major mining centres, where it would be turned into Ferrochrome, a critical ingredient used to manufacture stainless steel.

However, Noront faces significant challenges in carrying out such a plan. They include the uncertainties associated with mining in a region that is so far away from crucial processing and transportation infrastructure.

Mining industry officials say a railway that will be needed to ship concentrates from the Ring of Fire will likely be the most challenging part of the project. That is because the nearest railway is located 285 km south of the Ring of Fire region in Nakina, Ontario.

At the close of trading on July 24, 2017, Noront shares were priced at 35 cents, leaving the company with a market cap of $126.67 million, based on 360.76 million shares outstanding. The 52-week range is 52 cents and 27 cents.