Iqaluit (Feb 09/04) - Prospecting permits in Nunavut are up close to 800 per cent from last year.

"This is good news. It means more people are looking for minerals in Nunavut," said Carl McLean, of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. "I think this shows the forecast is good for mining in Nunavut."

As of Feb. 1, the federal department issued 1,518 permits, which is up from last year's 190 permits.

The increase came as a big surprise to the Iqaluit office, which had to process all the paperwork.

The application process started at the beginning of December and mining companies had a month to submit documents.

"I don't think we expected this high number of applications," he McLean.

The application process may have begun in December, but McLean said companies started lining up outside the Iqaluit office in November to get first pick.

"It's a first-come, first-serve basis," he said. "There were a lot of people waiting outside for days."

DeBeers Canada Exploration was issued 633 permits, the most to any single mining company. Another big name in diamond mining, BHP Billiton Diamonds, claimed 94 permits.

One permit was issued to two Nunavut prospectors: Seemeega Aqpik and Christopher Lloyd.

Aqpik was excited to hear that his application was accepted.

"We were hoping that nobody else was looking in the same area," he said. "Hopefully when we start looking we will find a good pay-off."

Aqpik sees the prospecting as promising, because it means Nunavut is developing a mining industry.

"Having mines would mean providing more jobs for people and more money," he said.

The permits that were issued represents close to 26 million hectares of land. Most of the permits were issued for the Kivalliq and Kitikmeot regions and only a small portion is in the Qikiqtani region, McLean said.

While the permits show there is an interest in Nunavut, he said it doesn't translate into mines right away.