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Canada Carbon filing C$96M lawsuit over blocked Miller development

Canada Carbon Inc. is filing a C$96 million lawsuit against the municipality of Grenville-sur-la-Rouge in Quebec and members of its council, alleging that the council acted in bad faith regarding the development of the company's Miller graphite mine and marble quarry.

"That was not our plan," company CEO Bruce Duncan said of the lawsuit in a March 7 statement. "We believe in a sound social acceptability process that can be obtained only by engaging in constructive dialogue with all stakeholders. Unfortunately, this process is being blocked by elected officials who have not responded to our requests to sit down and engage in constructive discussions."

According to the company, the council has said the project sits on a highly protected aquifer, that the project will have a negative impact on the quantity or quality of potable water in the area, and that the surface area to be mined covers more than 1 square kilometer.

Canada Carbon responded in its March 7 release that a hydrogeological study confirmed that the project sits on a different type of aquifer not linked to any public well, that independent consultants had proved that the project would not have a negative effect on local water sources, and that the three planned open pits cover an area of 0.12 square kilometers.

The company said March 5 that it previously filed an appeal to review the decision to close its file, and is seeking to annul a late 2017 resolution of noncompliance by the municipal council related to the rezoning of the planned mine site as agricultural land.

Canada Carbon is also challenging the rezoning decision, according to a March 6 CBC News report.

A 2016 preliminary economic assessment on the Miller property indicated a posttax net present value of C$96 million, using a 10% discount rate. An updated resource estimate completed later that year increased resources by 379% and indicated a minimum 10-year mine life.