Ottawa reverses course, funds Ring of Fire roads after years of Ontario pressure

The federal government is matching Ontario’s $1 billion investment into roads to reach the Ring of Fire region in the province’s northwest. 

This is a major win for the provincial government, which has long wanted Ottawa to pitch in and has pressed harder in recent months as it began construction.

Ontario has included money for the Ring of Fire roads in its provincial budget for years, including under former premier Kathleen Wynne’s government. But at roughly $2 billion, the network needed federal funding too. 

Until recently, Ottawa maintained the roads were Ontario’s responsibility, as Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson told the Senate in a recent appearance. 

It is not yet clear where the $1 billion will come from, but the federal government says the money will be spread over three years. A spokesperson could not immediately be reached to clarify this. 

The federal government recently signed off on the longest stretch of the Ring of Fire road network running from Nakina to Marten Falls First Nation. In a decision published in early September, Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin wrote the road “is likely to cause adverse effects within federal jurisdiction that are, to some extent, significant” but that these are “justified in the public interest.”

The Ford government hopes to finish the road network by 2031, but that timeline depends on completing a stretch of road that is less advanced. 

The northern road link, which would connect the two community access roads, has a preliminary route but no final corridor. That is still being settled through an environmental assessment expected to run several more months, with separate federal and provincial approvals still to come. 

Ontario and Ottawa have a co-operation agreement in place for project assessments in a bid to speed up the regulatory process.

In the announcement Wednesday, the two governments said they would work on a coordinated process for provincial and federal permitting. It is not clear if that is new, or different, from the co-operation agreement signed last year.

The federal government also said it would work with the province to identify which projects in the Ring of Fire region could benefit from federal funding, including the Canada Critical Minerals Accelerator fund created as part of Budget 2025 and the First and Last Mile Fund. 

The main developer in the region, Wyloo Metals, is currently completing a feasibility study for the proposed Eagle’s Nest mine, and is working on doing advanced exploration work. It told iPolitics earlier this year that it could launch into production some 18 months after the roads are built. 

READ MORE: Ring of Fire mine prioritizing First Nation partners over regulatory fast track

Another important player in the area, Juno Corp., is conducting early-stage mineral exploration. It was featured as one of the companies on the federal government’s radar during the first Canada Investment Summit in Toronto in September, advertising the project’s financing goals included finding investors that have “long-term (10+ years) investment horizons.” 

The federal and provincial governments have recently been stating that unlocking the Ring of Fire region could generate $22 billion in economic benefits and create up to 70,000 jobs.