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Selkirk First Nation sues Minto Metals Corp for unpaid royalties

Thursday, 20 July 2023 12:31

By Stuart Bonell

Minto Mine near Pelly Crossing (Photo Yukon Government)

Minto Metals owes SFN over $1.3 million, claims lawsuit

Selkirk First Nation (SFN) is suing Minto Metals Corporation, alleging that they owe more than $1.3 million in royalties that had not been paid in the months before shutting down this spring.

Located near Pelly Crossing, the Minto mine is on SFN Class A settlement land. That means the SFN legally owns surface and subsurface rights, according to its Land Claim and Self-government Agreements with the governments of Yukon and Canada.

The royalty agreement between the two parties requires Minto Mine pay Selkirk First Nation (SFN) between 0.5 and 1.5 per cent of minerals and concentrates sold from the mine each quarter, according to the lawsuit.

Minto was supposed to pay the $1.3 million by May 20, the lawsuit says.

SFN is the latest among 24 separate legal actions filed against Minto Metals Corporation since the mine was abandoned. The claims total tens of millions of dollars.

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