NWT MP Michael McLeod has announced up to $25 million for the construction of an all-season gravel road in the Dehcho region.
The money is going to NorZinc Ltd. under the National Trade Corridors Fund, according to the Government of Canada and it's meant to help move goods to local communities by providing year-round transportation access.
The road is expected to be 170 km long, stretching from the Liard Highway to the Prairie Creek mine. On Monday at the Greenstone Building, McLeod said it will help transport critical minerals such as zinc and silver from the mine to reach international markets.
It has the potential to contribute $8 billion over the next 20 years, he added.
That figure includes ancillary jobs, business created by building this road, and the lifespan of the mine, explained Robin Bienenstock, executive chair of NorZinc Ltd.
She added that zinc production has been cut in half in Canada over the past decade and the start of the Prairie Creek mine should help Canada increase its zinc output by at least 30 per cent.
Construction should start in 2025, Bienenstock added, and it should be complete by 2027. NorZinc Ltd. will own the route. However, Claudine Lee, who also works at NorZinc Ltd., explained it's an active haul road not for public use.
She said she hopes that building this new road could be the impetus for the federal government to improve Highway 7 as well.
"I think that's not just good for us, I think that's good for everyone," she said.
Kele Antoine, chief of the Liidlii Kue First Nation, added that the timing for upgrading the highway is right. He mentioned the two past summers in the NWT have brought crises and there's a need to put some money into local infrastructure to ensure safety.
In the meantime, the new road is meant to provide new opportunities for some, in particular to Indigenous communities as its meant to provide access to the Naha Dehe Dene Band’s territory in Nahanni Butte.
Antoine said it will provide a lot of opportunity for training for his people as well.
"There's opportunity for them, not just to work for NorZinc, but work for other mines in the world. And so we we want to make sure all of our people have an opportunity to get trained up and to grow and hopefully contribute back to our First Nations," he said.