Prominent northern leaders have touted the Arctic economic and security corridor as a “nation-building” project that would bring economic benefits to the two territories it covers, but others are divided on how much benefit it will bring.
With mining activity in the Northwest Territories on the decline, Tlychu Grand Chief Jackson Lafferty sees an opportunity to capitalize on a project that crosses Tlychu territory. Along with the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, the Tlychu government signed a memorandum of understanding in November to jointly lead the project on the NWT side.
“[The] Diamond mines have come up in the last 25 years and it was on their terms and they told us what to do and how it would be located. Now it’s on our terms,” Lafferty said.
The corridor was named Potential project for fast track federal review. It will include the construction of a deep-sea reservoir.rt at Grace Bay in Nunavut to service warships as well as large cargo ships capable of loading and transporting materials from future critical mineral mines in both the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
The 230-kilometre all-weather road will connect the port to Jericho Station in Nunavut, home to a defunct diamond mine, and from there to a winter road to Yellowknife.
Lafferty says he is already in discussions with key stakeholders in Ottawa and abroad. He also sees the project as a way to connect the remote communities of Gameti and Wekwiti (NWT) to the rest of the territory by road.
The closest community to Grace Bay is Kugluktuk in Nunavut, located about 200 kilometers from the proposed port. The initiator of the project on the Nunavut side is West Kitikmeot Resources Corp.
CEO Brendan B.Ell says Grace Bay's place was among very few options that had access to tidal water, which is key to accommodating large ships, and there were no nearby Nunavut communities with this level of accessibility. But he still believes villages in the Kitikmeot region will benefit.
“Large ocean-going vessels can come in, break down into smaller barges, which then go out to where they can be received or housed in Kugluktuk and Cambridge Bay. So if you think about building materials or seasonal replenishment, this is access that these communities haven't had to have in the past,” he said.
Is this “nation building”?
Amanda Dumond, manager of the Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization (HTO), doesn't believe in the benefits of the project.
Given the distance to population centers, she worries that most of the jobs will be short-term, rotational, which could be especially difficult for families.
“Look at the existing projects in the North, including some of the mineral exploration towns or even some of the existing mines, they can't even reach full capacity,” she said.
Bell has a different view of job prospects in Nunavummiut and sees Yellowknife as comparable.
“The Ekati, Diavik and Gacho Kue mines are obviously not in the city of Yellowknife. But the economic benefits to the local communities, if you will, have been enormous,” he said.
The project also has an Arctic safety aspect. Bell says building the port will provide greater access for vessels such as Canadian Coast Guard ships and submarines, as well as aircraft access to the proposed runway.
However, Nunavut NDP MP Laurie Idlout says there is a clear distinction between support and endorsement.g Arctic security and Arctic sovereignty, and she does not believe that much attention is being paid to this issue.with this project.
“If this helped nation building, then Nunavut children wouldn't have to go to school hungry, people wouldn't have to live in overcrowded housing conditions, students wouldn't have to go to schools that are deteriorating,” she said, adding that it was unclear what long-term employment opportunities would come from the project.
Idlaut sees a role for Nunavummiut in improving security in the region, but she says that won't happen unless residents live in healthy conditions. She is also concerned that instead of using local Canadian rangers and search and rescue teams, most of the project's resources will be imported from the South.
“We have specific environmental knowledge that should be used to ensure a safe Arctic,” she said.
“They want to bulldoze it, and for what?”
The people of Kugluktuk have a history of the Grace Bay area. Dumond explains that it is a traditional hunting, fishing and camping area with travel to and from Cambridge Bay and Bathurst Bay. She says that this is an untouched area where not even a hut is visible.
“It's so pristine now. It's so beautiful. It's so clean and it's just amazing. And I was just heartbroken because… they want to bulldoze it, and for what?”
Additionally, Dumond says the all-season road runs right through prime Dolphin Union caribou habitat and would disrupt their migratory route to Victoria Island. She's also concerned that the port could increase the risk of ice breaking, which could be dangerous for those traveling to hunting areas and other populated areas.
Bell acknowledges that this will have some environmental implications. He says West Kitikmeot Resources Corp. has been conducting community consultation and basic wildlife conservation work over the past few years that will help them incorporate mitigation measures into the project. It plans to submit an impact report to the Nunavut Impact Review Board in spring 2026.
As for how the project will change Tlychu land, Grand Chief Lafferty says he knows it will have long-term impacts, but he believes community leaders like himself should be the ones to enforce environmental protections.
“It's a clear signal that we're open for business, but we're doing it professionally because we're going to have to take care of our wildlife, our water, our environment,” he said.
Not an easy task
BelHe says the preliminary cost estimate for the Nunavut side of the project is $1 billion, but since construction won't begin until 2030, he expects that estimate to increase.
West Kitikmeot Resources Corp. plans to raise 25 percent of these funds in the private market. Bell says he doesn't expect the Nunavut government to provide money for the project. given the territory's other infrastructure needs, he is pushing for the federal government to help fund the remaining 75 percent.
Building this road will not be an easy task. Arlene Foster, head of territory operations for Stantec, says the engineering and consulting company is working with the NWT government and West Kitikmeot Resources. Preparation Corporationenvironmental assessments.
He says there are many logistical considerations since the road will be built on permafrost and rock.and there are also problems with the delivery of materials. But he's looking at All-season highway Inuvik – Tuktoyaktukktok. as an example that construction in the Arctic is possible.
Foster believes national interest in the project could also draw attention to the need to improve basic infrastructure in communities, such as water treatment plants, community centers and sewage treatment basins.
“When the federal government puts increased focus on the North, we see those ripple effects that can help create other pieces of infrastructure that communities really need and have been asking for for quite some time,” he said.
