NWT seeks federal funding commitment for key all-season road project
Devon Tredinnick April 28 2025
Northwest Territories Premier R. J. Simpson said creating infrastructure in the North is an assertion of sovereignty. Mr. Simpson during an event at Global Affairs Canada headquarters, in Ottawa, on Dec. 6, 2024.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
The Northwest Territories government is pressing whoever forms government after Monday’s
federal
election to fund a billion-dollar transportation project through Canada’s North that can only happen with money from Ottawa.
The Slave Geological Province Corridor is a proposed all-season road that would cover almost 190,000 square kilometres. The project would reach the boundary with
Nunavut and
run through an area that has a high potential for gold, base metals and diamond production, according to the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency.
The project has been under consideration for years and in 2019 was estimated to cost about $1-billion. While the
territory says
it isn’t ready to formally ask Ottawa for funding to build the corridor, the territory’s deputy premier, Caroline Wawzonek, said in an interview that she still needs reassurance now from the federal government that it is prepared to fund it.
“This is ultimately going to need some pretty significant dollars,” said Ms. Wawzonek. She noted that the cost has likely risen since the initial estimate six years ago.
The project envisions a two-lane, all-weather gravel corridor that would run 413 kilometres, including a section that is currently a winter-only road. The corridor would start at Tibbitt Lake, about 80 kilometres east of Yellowknife, and run northeast to the
Nunavut boundary.
The federal government has funded planning studies but has yet to commit to the overall project. The territory is currently preparing for the environmental assessment process.
The territory expects the environmental assessment application to be submitted to the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board this year, with a decision by 2028.
On top of the economic benefits, the president of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, Kenny Ruptash, is also arguing that the federal government could count the corridor as
defence
spending. Both the Liberals and the Conservatives have pledged to increase defence spending to meet NATO funding commitments.. Ruptash said the minerals in the corridor’s area are critical for Canada’s defence
and energy security. He suggested that if the road can reach the Arctic Ocean, then it could also connect to the Grays Bay Port project, a proposed deepwater facility that would link the territory’s corridor to Arctic shipping routes in Nunavut.
The two projects combined could provide direct access to coastal waters if there were to be a security threat there, Mr. Ruptash said. If that happens, he argued that funding to build the corridor could qualify for defence spending.
The Conservatives have
announced an Arctic defence plan that includes funding the corridor, which the party’s platform describes as a “security corridor.” The
platform also
promises a ”strategic upgrade" to the Port of Grays Bay.
The Liberals did
not respond to a request for comment.
The New
Democrats said in a statement that the party is committed to building infrastructure that protects the Arctic, as well as economic development and security.
“It’s within that framework that we would approach projects like the [Slave Geological Province Corridor],” the party said.
The NDP added that decisions on resources, the environment and infrastructure in Canada’s Arctic must be made in partnership with the territories, Indigenous communities and Northerners.
R.J. Simpson, the Premier of the Northwest Territories, also said creating infrastructure in the North is an assertion of sovereignty.
“If you look around the circumpolar world, there is infrastructure everywhere, and then when you get to Canada, we have a lot less of that. And so these types of investments, I think, do promote Arctic security and Arctic sovereignty.”
Ms. Wawzonek acknowledged the corridor project still needs approval from the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board, without which the project won’t receive any permits to develop. Ms. Wawzonek added that she wants to hear more from Indigenous governments
first.
Most of the corridor is within Chief Drygeese territory. Yellowknives Dene First Nation (YKDFN) monitors that land. Ernest Betsina, the Dettah Chief for YKDFN, said one of his main concerns is the potential impact on caribou.
“They must be protected,” said Mr. Betsina. “It must be, at the utmost, protected because we’re getting close to the calving grounds, the Bathurst.”
Mr. Betsina was referring to the Bathurst Caribou Management Zone. Under the Wildlife Act, caribou are protected in this zone. Developing near, on or around that land could disturb the animals.
On the other hand, Mr. Betsina noted the project could offer jobs for Indigenous people and more long-term opportunities down the line.
“Hopefully some journeymen will come out of there, or heavy equipment operators,” he said, explaining that a project this size could give people in his community educational and training opportunities, leading to certificates and diplomas.
Mr. Simpson said protecting caribou is one of his top concerns too.
“That’s the point behind things like the environmental assessment process, behind looking at the traditional knowledge that Indigenous governments are providing, to ensure that we are doing everything we can to ensure that the wildlife is protected in perpetuity.”
