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New projects and big deals Northerners take care of business in 2011Sarah Wilson Northern News Services Published Monday, January 2, 2012
Local businesses and mining projects were forged throughout the year, proving the North is a viable option to invest in.
Jet service discontinued
Air Canada announced in August that the national carrier will discontinue its Iqaluit-Ottawa-Montreal nonstop jet service, due to low profitability.
"The route did not meet our profitability targets," Peter Fitzpatrick said in an e-mail.
"We cannot disclose any specifics due to competitive concerns, but in an environment of high fuel costs, we have to look to ensure each and every route we operate meets our profitability targets."
While Air Canada cut back its Northern presence, Canadian North added to it, with a new Boeing 737 passenger aircraft to its fleet, and a second one on the way, says president Tracy Medve.
"The important part about this airplane is that obviously it's newer," said Medve. "It has better maintenance costs to it, more reliability, better fuel burn and it has longer range than the 200s."
The new addition will see an extra 24 seats - up to 136 from 112 available for passengers.
As for what it will be used for: "What we're planning to do with it is to use it to transport oilsands workers from as far away as Newfoundland into Northern Alberta."
Mackenzie Valley corridor
Medve said the company is in the process of purchasing a second 737, which will be used to service the company's Mackenzie Valley corridor.
Newmont Mining Corporation announced that it will spend $300 million to develop the Hope Bay gold project south of Cambridge Bay.
The $300 million is the largest amount invested in mineral exploration in Nunavut and it suggests spending could go back to pre-recession levels of $432 million in 2008.
Jerry Clyne, Newmont's Hope Bay business manager, told attendees of the 2011 Kitikmeot Trade Show, Inuit-owned companies in the Kitikmeot region stand to see a good piece of Newmont's investment. "Suffice to say, an Inuit-based contractor could have prices up to about 25 per cent higher than a southern-based contractor and still win the contract," said Clyne.
Agnico-Eagle Mines presented plans to move forward with its Meliadine Gold Project 25 km Northeast of Rankin Inlet in Nunavut.
The company released its plans for the project to council and the Nunavut Water Board on Feb. 8, bringing it one step closer to beginning work on an all-weather road from the project site to Rankin Inlet.
Agnico-Eagle who owns of the Meadowbank gold mine, acquired Meliadine project from Comaplex Minerals.
The company began a $62 million exploration program with about 200,000 metres of drilling planned to run through early 2013. The company has budgeted another $68 million through early 2013 to complete an underground bulk sample, feasibility study, permitting and all-weather road construction.
100 per cent Inuit owned
Two Baffin Island fishing groups joined forces in February to create the first 100 per cent Inuit owned company to manage and operate fishing vessels, licences and quotas.
Cumberland Sound Fisheries Ltd. of Pangnirtung and the Arctic Fishery Alliance (AFA) came together and announced the formation of the Umiat Corporation in Iqaluit.
"This is a historic event," said Roger Alivaktuk, chairman of the Cumberland Sound Fisheries Ltd. board of directors, and now chairman of the corporation.
Lootie Toomasie, chairman and CEO of the AFA and now president and CEO of Umiat, said the decision to band together was in part because of the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board's
commercial fishery allocation policy.
Mine evacuated
Three hundred people were evacuated from the Meadowbank Gold Mine March 11 after a fire broke out in the mine's kitchen in the early morning hours. No injuries were reported but the accident caused the mine to drop its production levels. The mine bounced back early in the second quarter with the addition of a second crusher.
"Despite a difficult start to 2011, our Meadowbank mine has made good progress in ramping up operations and adding additional processing capacity," vice-chairman and chief executive officer Sean Boyd said in a news release.
New co-op
Sanikiluaq residents welcomed the Mitiq Co-op, a new 7,000-square-foot (approximately 650 square metres) store, double the size of the old one.
The new addition features wider aisles and a new exterior entrance, said Ann Wheddon, manager of the communications department at Arctic Co-operatives Limited in Winnipeg. She added the Mitiq Co-op wanted a new store to enhance its products and services as it had outgrown its old facilities. "They just needed a bigger store," said Wheddon. "The intent is to give the store a larger concentration of produce and frozen produce."
New taxi
Arviat now has a new option for a taxi service, since Joe's Taxi Service started in early May. Owner Joe Ishalook and another driver are offering taxi rides for $5 per person for a ride in either a four-door vehicle or a 15-passenger van.
Tourism funding
The Government of Canada announced in June that they would dole out $200,000 toward Nunavut's tourism industry.
The announcement brought a welcomed sigh of relief from organizers of the Kugluktuk visitor and culture centre.
The proposed centre was among five tourism-related projects supported by the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency's (CanNor).
"The Government of Canada is proud to support the tourism industry, because it makes an important contribution to the Nunavut economy," CanNor Minister Leona Aglukkaq stated in a written statement. "These projects increase opportunities for Nunavummiut, ensuring they can continue to build a vibrant and diversified tourism sector and ultimately help create jobs and new business opportunities in the North."
Kugluktuk has been considering building a visitor and culture centre for about a year according to Don LeBlanc, senior administration officer for the hamlet.
Pangnirtung is the eighth Nunavut community to receive cell phone service as the hamlet was connected to the wireless world in October.
"We hope that residents of the community will enjoy having this new access to a cellular and mobile Internet service that is comparable in quality and price to all other cellular providers in Canada," NorthwesTel president and CEO Paul Flaherty said in a news release.
Monopoly ended
The telecommunications company currently provides cell phone service in Arviat, Baker Lake, Cambridge Bay, Kugluktuk, Pond Inlet, Rankin Inlet and Iqaluit.
Later in the year, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ended NorthwesTel's regulated monopoly over telephone service in the North, opening the telecommunications market to competition in a decision announced in December.
The commission also denied NorthwesTel's request to raise land line rates across the North by $2, stating, NorthwesTel has "insufficiently invested in its network despite its strong financial performance during the past few years."
The commission gave a stinging review of the company's service in the North, raising concern that its "ageing infrastructure" is affecting the quality and reliability of its service.
NorthwesTel was given six months to provide a plan detailing how it will modernize its network, which will form the basis of a two-year comprehensive review.
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