NWT Chamber welcomes GNWT efforts aimed at regulatory reform
March 13th, 2009
The Board of Directors of the NWT Chamber of Commerce is applauding the Government of the Northwest Territories’ commitment to work towards solutions addressing the problems that currently plague our regulatory regime.
“This has been a critical priority for the Chamber for some time now,” said Eitan Dehtiar, Vice President of the NWT Chamber of Commerce. “Even before the financial crisis hit it was clear exploration spending was on the decline in the NWT due largely to uncertainty created by the current regulatory regime.”
In 2007, companies spent approximately $193.7 million on exploration and deposit appraisal activities in the NWT, he said, adding that in 2008 that total dropped to $133.1 million.
“That amounts to an almost 35 per cent decline in the NWT while nationally total exploration spending actually grew by about 11 per cent,” said Dehtiar. This year total exploration and deposit appraisal spending in the NWT is expected to plummet to $28.4 million.
In the Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies: 2008/09, more than 50 per cent of the 658 respondents identified the uncertainty concerning the administration, interpretation and enforcement of existing regulations as a deterrent to their willingness to invest in the NWT. Overall the NWT ranked 46th in this category and last among Canadian jurisdictions.
“The NWT Chamber looks forward to discussing the issue of regulatory reform further with the GNWT and, together with other likeminded organizations, carrying forward a unified message to Ottawa that change is desperately needed in the NWT,” said Dehtiar. “When this temporary downturn ends, we need the rules and processes regarding exploration in our territory to be much clearer than they are today if we ever hope to grow the economy of the NWT.”
A full PDF version of the Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies: 2008/09 is available for download from the Members Only documents section of the Chamber’s website, www.nwtchamber.com. If you have misplaced your password, please call Executive Director John Curran at 867-920-9505 or e-mail him at admin@nwtchamber.com for assistance.
In association with the network of community Chambers of Commerce in Fort Simpson, Behchoko, Norman Wells, Fort Smith, Hay River and Yellowknife as well as the Northern Aboriginal Business Association, the NWT Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of more than 865 members. For more than 35 years, it has been the only pan-territorial voice of businesses across all sectors of the Northern economy.
