Northern Dynasty to file for key permit for its controversial Pebble Project

VANCOUVER – Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. is starting the federal and state permitting process for its controversial Pebble Project in Alaska.

The company says it has finalized documentation and will file Friday for a US Clean Water Act 404 permit with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Northern Dynasty (TSX:NDM) reached a settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency earlier this year that saw the federal agency clear the way for Pebble to apply for the permit.

The company has struggled to advance the project in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska, home to a major salmon fishery that environmentalists and Indigenous people have fought to protect.

It unveiled plans for what it says will be a smaller, safer project earlier this year in hopes of moving it forward.

Earlier this week, First Quantum Minerals Ltd. signed a deal for an option to acquire a 50 per cent stake in the Pebble copper-and-gold mine project.

First Quantum (TSX:FM) has agreed to pay a total of US$150 million in four equal payments over four years for the option to acquire a 50 per cent stake in Pebble for an additional US$1.35 billion.