Deninu K'ue chief questions timing of Avalon mine announcement

The chief of the Deninu K'ue First Nation in FortResolution, N.W.T.,is questioning Avalon Rare Metals' plans to look at building a processing facility outside the territory.

Last week,Avalon announced it'sconsidering changing the location of its hydrometallurgy plantfor the raw materials extracted from its proposed Nechalacho mine.Pine Point, N.W.T., had beena proposed location for the plant.

• What are rare earth metals?

In a written letter, Chief Louis Balsillie said the news didn't come as a surprise, but the timing raises some questions.

Balsillie says Avalon waited until it received approval from regulatory boards before making the newspublic. Balsilliewonders whythe company didn't include their plans in talks with the band and the territorial government before those approvals were granted.

In its feasibility study, Avalon said about 300 jobs would be created in the N.W.T. as a result of its mine. Roughly 80 of those jobs would beat the Pine Point hydrometallurgy plant.

The letter says theprospect of jobs related to the Pine Point plant helped Avalon acquire the co-operation of the Deninu K'ue.

Rare earth metals are a collection of 17 elements that are used in high-tech devices like batteries, magnets, wind turbines, cellphones, electric cars, flatscreen televisions and missile guidance systems.

There's a global rush to discover and process new rare earth mining facilities.The vast majority of the world's supply comes from China, where there are now signs ofwanting to limit exports of the rare earth metals.

Avalonhopes the Nechalacho minewill beoperational by 2017.