Trilogy Metals Inc.is pleased to provide an update on the Ambler Access Project ("AAP") – the proposed 211-mile, industrial-use-only road from the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects ("UKMP") to the Dalton Highway that will enable the advancement of  exploration and development at the Ambler Mining District, home to some of the world's richest known copper-dominant polymetallic deposits.  The United States Bureau of Land Management ("BLM") has filed the draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement ("SEIS") for the AAP on its website https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/57323/570 and anticipates being in the federal register on October 20, 2023.

It is envisioned that the AAP be financed and maintained by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority ("AIDEA"), and companies such as Ambler Metals LLC ("Ambler Metals"), Trilogy's 50/50 joint venture with South32 Limited (ASX, LSE, JSE: S32; ADR: SOUHY), would enter into commercial agreements to use the road and pay tolls to AIDEA and its financing partners. More information about the Ambler Access Project is available at https://ambleraccess.org.

Road Permits - Litigation and Remand
During the summer of 2020, the BLM granted permits that authorized a right-of-way across federally managed lands for AIDEA and the AAP. Shortly thereafter, a coalition of national and Alaska environmental non-government organizations ("ENGO") filed lawsuits against the federal agencies responsible for issuing the permits for the AAP. The ENGOs' main position is that due process was not carried out during the permitting of the road. In May 2022, the right-of-way permits issued to AIDEA for the AAP were suspended by the federal agencies based upon a request to remand the lawsuits. This remand request was made by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of the federal agencies and was granted by the U.S. District Court. The purpose of the remand is to allow the BLM to carry out additional supplemental work in response to the lawsuits.

The original lawsuit was filed by the Northern Alaska Environmental Center and several other environmental and conservation groups, and a subsequent separate lawsuit was filed by Tanana Chiefs Conference and several tribes.

In April 2023, several Alaska Native leaders travelled to Washington, D.C., with representatives of Ambler Metals and AIDEA to urge the fair review and timely completion of the Ambler Access Project's SEIS. There is strong support for the AAP from local residents and the Alaska delegation in Washington.

Further to Trilogy's previous update on the SEIS, provided in its news release dated October 11, 2023, the BLM has filed the draft SEIS on its website https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/57323/570 and anticipates being in the federal register on October 20, 2023. The draft SEIS is open for a 60-day public comment period, until December 19, 2023. The BLM reconfirmed they anticipate a final SEIS is expected in the first quarter of 2024, and a Record of Decision within the second quarter of 2024.

 

Source:prnewswire.com

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