KINNGUAK/BATHURST INLET - After a year of hibernation, the $270 million Bathurst Inlet Port and Road Project (BIPAR) may re-enter the permitting process next year.

Charlie Lyall, president of the Kitikmeot Corporation, said the Bathurst Inlet Port and Road Project (BIPAR) may re-enter the permitting process in 2010. - Guy Quenneville/NNSL photo

"In early 2010, we hope to request additional funding and proceed with recommencing the technical review process," said Charlie Lyall, president of the Kitikmeot Corporation, during a project update at last week's Strategic Northern Infrastructure Symposium in Yellowknife.

"We hope to conduct further field studies in 2010 and 2011, with the goal of submitting the final environmental impact statement and proceeding through the project approval process."

In August 2008, the Nunavut Impact Review Board (NIRB) had completed its technical review of the project's draft environmental impact statement.

But after the sharp drop in base metal prices last fall, "the potential end users and pro- -ject schedules were uncertain," said Lyall. "NIRB granted our request to suspend the review process at that time."

BIPAR is the brainchild of the Bathurst Inlet Port and Road Joint Venture Ltd., co-owned by Kitikmeot Corporation and Nuna Logistics Limited.

BIPAR will create 260 construction jobs, with possibly 30 per cent of positions held by Inuit.

Payroll over the three-year construction is pegged at $40 million, while operations will employ 57 full-time workers, with a yearly payroll of $3.5 million.

Though the project may re-enter the permitting process, "For this project to proceed, it is imperative that we as the proponents have a commitment from the end users," said Lyall.

There are encouraging signs on that front.

The company heretofore seen as the main user of BIPAR is Minerals and Metals Group (MMG), which is currently developing its Izok Lake base metal exploration project, located 250 km southeast of Kugluktuk.

MMG, formerly OZ Minerals, is reassessing the port and road project after considering other alternatives.

Last year, the company was mulling an alternate $450-million supply road that went up to Grays Bay on the Coronation Gulf, plus a $265 million port.

"That came out without proper returns, so we're looking to see if we can improve the economic returns of the project by using BIPAR," said Andrew Mitchell, development manager of Canadian operations for MMG. "The work we've done so far is encouraging in terms of what it's doing for the economics."

The joint venture has previously stated the project will cost $270 million, but "we're making an effort to basically develop our own cost (estimate)," said Mitchell. "We're not just going to take Nuna Logistics' word for it and run with it. Business is going to have to do its own assessment."

Sabina Silver Corporation, which is developing its precious metals exploration project at Hackett River, located 75 km southwest of Bathurst Inlet, has also been in talks with Nuna Logistics and Kitikmeot Corporation about the road.

"For us, Hackett River is probably the largest deposit in the area that can carry that kind of infrastructure," said Nicole Hoeller, director of investor relations for Sabina. "So if BIPAR is ready and good to go by the time we're ready and good to go, absolutely we'd support that if we could see that happening down the line.

"But we can't really hold our project hostage waiting for something else to happen, on somebody else's schedule."

Current work on Izok Lake is limited to developing the revised pre-feasibility study, which Mitchell said could be ready by the end of 2010.