TORONTO — Ottawa and Ontario are set to sign an agreement Thursday that will reduce regulatory burdens on major projects including the Ring of Fire road, The Canadian Press has learned.
Provincial and federal government sources who are not authorized to speak publicly say Ottawa has agreed to eliminate any duplicative impact assessment work on major projects.
A draft agreement posted on Impact Assessment Canada's website says the goal is to work together to implement a “One Project, One Review, One Decision” approach.
Webequie First Nation and Marten Falls First Nation are conducting an environmental assessment of three roads that will connect the provincial highway system to their communities and mining activities in the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region of northern Ontario.
As part of the Ring of Fire roads side deal, the federal government has committed to completing an impact assessment in the same time frame as the province's environmental assessment, as both First Nations say they expect to begin road construction in 2026.
Neither the province nor Ottawa responded to requests for comment.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Ontario Premier Doug Ford will sign the agreement at a ceremony in Ottawa on Thursday.
The Canadian Press learned the details during a recent trip to the Ring of Fire region as part of a reporting project supported by the Pulitzer Center.
Both the Webecks and Martin Falls say the roads will help lift fly-in communities out of poverty, although other nearby First Nations do not support the plan.
A source in Ford's office, who is not authorized to speak publicly about the yet-to-be-announced deal, says the changes will significantly speed up major projects across the province, including roads, highways and mines.
“This is a huge figure not only for the Ring of Fire, but for the mining industry as a whole, as well as for the construction of roads and highways,” says a source in the Prime Minister’s Office. “It will be 10 times more transformational than any major project.”
A senior federal government source, who also was not authorized to speak publicly about the deal, says it's all about eliminating duplication. Standards will remain strict and rights and protections will be respected, the source promises, including on roads to the Ring of Fire.
The federal government has created a regional assessment task force to better understand the impacts of the development, but the province and Webecki and Martin Falls say it will not affect the road.
The two governments are committed to working together to assess navigable waters, threatened species and migratory birds, all of which have long been the responsibility of the federal government.
With these agreements in place, the province is expected to no longer use the controversial new authority to designate the road to the Ring of Fire as a special economic zone. The provision would allow the province to suspend provincial and municipal laws to speed up construction of a proposed mine in the Ring of Fire.
The area is said to be rich in critical minerals, but many other indigenous peoples oppose development in the region, including the roads and mines they lead to.
Wyloo, the Australian mining giant, is close to completing a feasibility study for two proposed linked underground mines at its Eagle's Nest site.
Wyloo and Juno Corp., a Canadian junior miner formed in 2019, own the vast majority of the more than 40,000 claims located in the Ring of Fire. Two other companies, Teck Resources (which recently merged with Anglo American) and Canada Chrome Corporation, also made significant claims.
The companies say they have discovered a wide range of critical mineral and base metal deposits, including nickel, copper, chromite, titanium, platinum, vanadium, iron and gold. They are used to make all types of batteries, mobile phones, stainless steel, semiconductors, drones, satellites, data centers and computers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.
