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Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby says the company is pressing ahead toward a late-2026 construction start for its , with the commencement of mining at the site near Timmins, Ont. targeted for 2028 at the latest.

The current estimate for capital spending on road infrastructure, rail spurs, power supply, water management systems, onsite mining and processing facilities, a tailings storage facility and ancillary infrastructure is US$2 billion, Selby confirmed Jan. 26.

Earlier that day, Canada Nickel announced it had awarded its long-time consultant Ausenco Engineering Canada a contract to begin detailed engineering for the processing plant and supporting infrastructure.

Major milestones

It was the latest major milestone for the project.

On Nov. 13, it was officially referred to Canada’s Major Projects Office, signalling it would be given permitting priority among nation-building projects by the federal Mark Carney government, and on Jan. 13 the Ontario government designated Crawford for advancement under the province’s new One Project, One Process framework.

Selby said Canada Nickel expects to obtain the main federal permit to launch the project this summer and that with Ontario’s support, permitting for roads and similar infrastructure is expected to move quickly.

“It was great to get that recognition that we received with the Major Projects Office,” he said. “We think we’re setting a benchmark in terms of First Nations and mining project relationships, on the sustainability front.”

Canada Nickel is positioning itself as a clean supplier of nickel, in contrast to major producers in Asia, with Ontario’s clean energy grid a major asset in addition to the firm’s development of a carbon storage process enabling 1.5 million tonnes of storage annually.

“We developed a process that allows us to inject CO2 into the mill as we’re processing the material,” Selby noted. “We’ll have effectively for the mining operation a net negative carbon footprint.”

Agnico Eagle, Samsung and Anglo American are major investors and Selby said there has been significant additional interest following the regulatory recognition from the federal government.

Canada Nickel will also explore a “series of government funding envelopes,” he said, and it has established an equity relationship with the Taykwa Tagamou Nation, among other First Nations supporters.

FID still to come

The final investment decision (FID) will be made later this year after all permits and the financing package have been finalized, Selby said.

“We’re targeting to make that decision before year end and break ground immediately thereafter,” he said.

“You need to start getting the site prepped while the ground is freezing, given it is a relatively wet environment there. And then, once the site’s prepped, through that first winter, we’re getting into pouring concrete and getting the steel up so we can get the building closed before the next winter season commences.”

As the regional and site infrastructure is developing, he said, teams will be fitting out the buildings and installing processing equipment.

“Then we’ll be ready to hit the switch and start putting ore through the mill before the end of 2028.”

Canada Nickel describes the project as greenfield but the existing infrastructure it will link to is all close at hand, Selby said.

Works include:

• roadworks will require a realignment of provincial Highway 655 for about 13 to 27 kilometres where the planned open pit cuts across the current route. Internal haul roads and access roads will also be built.
• a 20-kilometre rail spur will be built from the processing plant area to link with the Kidd operations rail line.
• power infrastructure will include a 2.5-kilometre powerline connecting into existing Hydro One transmission lines and a new 38-kilometre, 230-kilovolt transmission line that ties into an existing line near Timmins and feeds into a new substation.
• water management systems will include a sedimentation pond and groundwater wells, water recycling systems, a water treatment plant and surface water diversion channels.
• mining facilities to be constructed include open pits, primary and secondary crushers, concentrate load-out buildings, and maintenance, warehouse and office buildings.

Canada Nickel subsidiary NetZero Metals will develop downstream nickel processing and stainless steel facilities in the Timmins region – the plants will be among the largest of their type in North America.

“There’s a whole corridor that comes up north from Kidd Creek that will contain the highway relocation, the rail line and the powerlines that we need,” said Selby. “That makes it pretty straightforward for us to be able to get that alignment in place.”

Crawford will produce two primary concentrates ready for market, Selby said: a nickel‑cobalt concentrate for the battery and electric vehicle markets, and a magnetite concentrate for stainless and alloy steel production.