So anyone who has followed Noront Resources for any length of time will know that their SP has been punished due to the interplay of prickly First Nations relations, the general ineptidude of the various levels of government, and the lack of infrastructure . First nations and governmental issues aside, the market also heavily discounts the Eagle's Nest project as it is perceived to be a stranded deposit due to its lack of infrastructure (estimated to cost ~$2billion). This prompted me to look a bit further regarding the infrastructure situation for the Magie properties. The 43-101 Technical Report (now just over 3 years old ) states the following (p. 16):

"At the present time, there is little infrastructure supporting the Property. Equipment and supplies have to be flown in to the airstrip, some 10 km northeast of the main deposit area, and the exploration camp at the Property has been constructed by flying in equipment by Cessna Caravan. During the recent exploration program at the Property, drilling parts were carried in by helicopter and a float plane was utilized to carry core samples from the camp to the Lac des Plaines float plane base in Havre St-Pierre."

So that is somewhat discouraging...but then we next read the following...

"The project area has an ample supply of fresh water available from its nearby rivers.

HydroQuébec Production has obtained the necessary approvals to build a 1,550 MW hydroelectric complex along the Romaine River, which will bring road access and a potential power source closer to the Property (approximately within 40 km distance) and will include the construction of a power line that will obliquely cross the northern portion of the Property (see Figure 4.2). According to Hydro Quebec, the construction of the project (4 phases) is scheduled to be completed in 2020, while the first Romaine commissioning is planned for 2014."

Very promising indeed! But what are the odds that these plans (laid out more than 3 years ago) have not been stymied, given the downturn in the General economy, Quebec's revamping of its Plan Nord, general government ineptitude and expected mismanagement (my own personal bias based on being an Ontarian and witnessing the boondoggles regarding Hydro One and the Ring of Fire here in Ontario, and perhaps/surely my own personal misperception of corruption in Quebec) ?

...Well it turns out after a doing some brief research that there Hydro Quebec Romaine River Hydroelectric Project is in fact on schedule. This is the Google French-English excerpt translation from a May 1st 2015 news release ( http://www.hydroquebec.com/romaine/ ) :

"Baie-Comeau, on 1 May 2015 - As the construction of the hydroelectric complex on the Romaine enters its seventh year of construction, Hydro-Québec makes a positive assessment of the work, particularly as to the progress of work, the measures put in place to mitigate the impacts and benefits as well as jobs created.

For the whole complex, work is progressing smoothly as scheduled. A first plant was commissioned in December 2014, the Romaine-2, with a capacity of 640 MW. A second development, Romaine-1, should be fully commissioned in spring 2016. Meanwhile, the construction Romaine-3 will be in full swing this summer, so that engineering work is continuing to Romaine-4."

So it seems that the Quebec Government has its act together, and I have not read about any unmitigated First Nations concerns in the area. Not certain as to which of the Romaine phases would bring the power line to the property, but the final phase is expected to be completed by 2020- that's not that far off , especially when one considers the typical timeframe for mine development from permitting to final construction. Additionally, 40km is nothing distance-wise for any resource project in the northern portion of any of the Canadian provinces, or for any resource project these days for that matter,where all of the low-hanging-fruit-deposits has been picked long ago .

Cheers,

Luker