N.W.T.’s ice road to 3 diamond mines unlikely to open for 2027 season
Annual Tibbitt to Contwoyto winter road has serviced mines since 1982
The Northwest Territories’ Tibbitt to Contwoyto Winter Road is unlikely to open for the 2027 season, the first time since the ice road opened in 1982.
Operated annually from roughly February to March, the road connects to three diamond mines northeast of Yellowknife: Diavik, Ekati and Gahcho Kué.
With the end of commercial mining operations at two and financial troubles for the other, the mines’ owners agreed that there is likely no need for the road to operate for the upcoming season.
The decision was first reported by Cabin Radio, which received a statement from the road’s management committee that confirmed the decision, but still leaves open the possibility of operations this winter.
“Out of respect for the contractors, service providers and communities that support winter road operations, it was important to provide clarity on our 2027 plans as early as possible,” winter road director Howard Nowell said in the statement.
“We will continue to monitor business requirements and engage with stakeholders and could restart planning if future needs support a 2027 winter road,” Nowell said.
The Rio Tinto-owned Diavik mine ended production earlier this year and is in active remediation. Ekati shut down suddenly this year, after its parent company filed for creditor protection. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is now overseeing the shutdown and clean up at the mine.
De Beers’ Gahcho Kué, meanwhile, has encountered serious financial issues with a planned closure date moved up from 2031 to 2028.
PwC told the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board in a letter last week that no winter road would be constructed to Ekati.
A Diavik spokesperson confirmed in a statement to CBC News that it had agreed with the other mines that there was no need for an ice road this season after considering its current need for fuel, equipment and other essential supplies.
“Looking ahead, Diavik expects to use the winter road in 2028 and will continue to monitor winter road requirements in future years relative to closure activities,” the spokesperson said.
Marc Whitford, president of the North Slave Métis Alliance, said that if the road doesn’t open this season it is “going to be another kick in the head, so to speak, to the Indigenous corporations.”
“This is not unexpected in the last couple of years, anyone could see that coming. Sad as it is,” he said.
Through Indigenous contractors such as Det’on Cho Logistics, owned by the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, the road has provided jobs for those building and maintaining infrastructure and operating lodges for truckers to stop-over along the way from Yellowknife to the mines and back.
Whitford noted the lack of easy access to the region by road is likely to give caribou herds in the area a break from hunters.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Unseasonably mild weather wreaking havoc on N.W.T. winter roads, CBC News
Finland: Finland’s roads remain hazardous following first winter storm, including Lapland, Yle News
