Agnico Eagle ships 20 modular homes to Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake
$1.8M contribution puts Nunavut Housing Corp. ‘one step closer to reaching’ Nunavut 3000 goals, minister says
Twenty modular housing units in Rankin Inlet and Baker Lake will be “ready for occupancy” by winter, said Nunavut Housing Corp. spokesperson Alexandria Webb. The units were shipped to the communities by Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. in July as part of a contribution agreement between the company and the territory’s public housing corporation. (Photo courtesy of Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.)
Agnico Eagle has shipped 20 modular homes to Baker Lake and Rankin Inlet, marking a $1.75-million contribution, the company says.
The homes, whose $8 million cost was paid for by the Government of Nunavut, arrived in the communities by sealift in July, the company said Monday in a news release.
A shipment like this is a first-time initiative for Agnico Eagle, says Pujjuut Kusugak, the mining company’s director of Nunavut affairs.
“Everybody has a responsibility to contribute to the betterment of our people in Nunavut and, really, Agnico is wanting to be a responsible corporate citizen as well as a great neighbour,” he said in an interview.
Kusugak is based in Rankin Inlet and is the nephew of Lorne Kusugak, minister responsible for Nunavut Housing Corporation.
Lorne Kusugak also welcomed the contribution, stating it would help move the Nunavut 3000 initiative forward.
Nunavut 3000 — a $2.6-billion initiative the Government of Nunavut unveiled in late 2022 — is a goal to build 3,000 new units across the territory between 2022 and 2030.
“With Agnico Eagle’s support, we are one step closer to reaching our goal of delivering 3,000 homes by 2030,” Lorne Kusugak said in a statement.
Nunavut Housing Corp. and Agnico Eagle said in April they would work together to bring 20 modular homes to Kivalliq Region.
The two communities getting homes are close to Agnico’s two Kivalliq gold mine sites: Meadowbank is near Baker Lake and Meliadine is near Rankin Inlet.
The communities will each get 10 of the 20 houses that are being shipped, said an email from Nunavut Housing Corp. spokesperson Alexandria Webb.
“The lots for these homes have been selected, but details will be confirmed publicly closer to completion, as construction and service connections advance,” she said.
Nunavut Housing Corp. is estimating the homes will be “ready for occupancy” by this coming winter. From there, the units will be filled following “the standard [public housing] allocation process.”
Isnt this supposed to be a Gov’t Led project and not the private sector?
If you read the first few paragraphs, you should see that GNU contributed $8 million to the company’s $1.75 million. The terms of the agreement for the mining company was to provide assistance with the housing crisis. An 18% contribution to the overall cost of these units is heartwarming as the company is assisting the government with their initiative. Yes, it’s a GNU initiative, but it’s nice to see private companies pitch in to help make this happen. Hence the news story.
So what if it is? The more the private sector contributes, the more the government will be able to reach the actual requirements in terms of housing needs across the north.
RRRRRich!
For sure Kivallingmuitaaq! LOL, aaah I miss Baker man!
OR… You can start your own mining company, and pay for ALL the needed housing in NUNAVUT. What have YOU done to mitigate the housing issue in Nunavut? My guess is… NOTHING.
Wow, Nunavut sure hit the jackpot! Agnico Eagle swoops in as a saviour, hauls away billions in gold, then tosses in ‘free’ freight for 20 housing modules the GN paid for. Suddenly they’re the territory’s white-knight.
Because nothing screams ‘corporate citizenship’ like mining riches off Inuit lands while filming feel-good poverty-porn about fixing the very housing crisis decades of under-investment created.
Lucky Nunavut—first-class PR for Agnico, five-year wait-lists and overcrowding for everyone else.
Wow, some serious edgelordship here.
A simple thanks to Agnico-eagle would have been suffice.
Agnico is a guest on Nunavut land. Nunavut does not need Agnico. Agnico needs Nunavut for gold deposits. There are many, many companies, peoples that would extract the same gold on better terms than that offered by Agnico. Real returns to communities are not token empty acts on a very real housing crisis. Get off your knees.
Hi Bob. Have you ever heard of or, better yet, read the Inuit Impact and Benefit Agreement (IIBA) between Agnico Eagle Mines and the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA)?
This is a negotiated agreement between the RIO and the mining company that outlines the benefits to Inuit negotiated by Inuit.
If you don’t think those “terms” are sufficient you should take it up with KIA.
This “free” shipping by Agnico is not part of the impact agreement. It was from a special “contribution agreement” announced between Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. and the Nunavut Housing Corp. And the agreement is not public. It should be. Again it is not clear how this special deal is being administered or if it is part of the auditor general’s review.
Can you add clarity to your point? Are you preferring they didn’t deliver 10 homes to communities in dire need of them?
So average Joe why don’t you combine all your talents and resources with all the residents and do your own mining. Then you get to keep your billions. On wait it takes billions and not just dreams to open a mine.
Ok, open up the mining rights for gold on the claims to other companies, and there are all kinds of companies that would help extract the gold, at better terms than that offered by Agnico. There is so much wrong here. Nunavut deserves better from government, from mines.
Of course there are tons of other companies that would have negotiated much more beneficial deals for Inuit. Everyone knows that!
Totally delusional comment.
If you’re not happy with the agreement you have, maybe talk to KIA about it, they agreed to the current terms.
Thats exactely what iqaluit needs with enough land for a little she and boat
Wow! I mean what can you say? What a monumental moment. Those 20 Modular’s will make a huge dent in NHC’ s NU 3000 already colossal 4 year failure. It’s almost funny how Kusugak who has basically been missing in action since the AG’s Housing report at the end of May and all the subsequent media attention, postings, etc.. but comes out to make an absolutely absurd comment to celebrate the great success of having secured transport of some modulars to two communities and continuing the false narrative of 3000 homes by 2030 that everyone seemingly except him, knows is a gigantic lie. This NU 3000, NHC, government and NCCD debacle gets more nonsensical by the day.
Cost to manufacture around 8 Mil to the gn. Free 1.8 Mil in shipping. Now we have lot costs, plus setup and finishing since presumably they will still need some work and pilings or screw Jack’s
Are we looking at approx 12-14 million in cost for 20 smaller pre fab boxes? Unfurnished.
Even at the low end you’re over 600k for a unfurnished pre fab box and it’s likely more than that.
New homeownership truly is dead in Nunavut.