Red tape delays Doris North mine

Miramar Mining Corporation will not start work on the Doris North mine until 2006, a company press release said this week.

The company cites the uncertainty of the federal election as one factor holding up the proposed gold mine at Hope Bay. Permit delays are also holding up the project.

The Nunavut Impact Review Board was to have held a final round of public hearings on the project next week. Instead, they will hold the meetings July 11 to 16.

Miramar president and CEO Tony Walsh said he is “disappointed” with the delay, but still expects NIRB to complete its review this summer. But more delays could push the start date even further into the future.

“We continue to be encouraged that, after 26 months of meetings and input from the public, regulators and other stakeholders, no party has asserted that the mine should not be permitted for production,” Walsh said in the release.

If the hearings are positive, DIAND will be next to give its rubber stamp to the project, before the Nunavut Water Board begins its review.