@HG64Spot on. While we know that the order of permitting will likely be changing in the near future, Leading Edge tried pushing their luck with an exploitation concession before receiving their Natura 2000 permit:
Vancouver, May 5, 2021 – Leading Edge Materials Corp announces that it has received confirmation from the Mining Inspectorate of Sweden (“Bergsstaten”) that it has decided against approving the current mining lease application (the “Decision”) for Norra Karr nr1 (the “Project”). The Company will now evaluate appropriate measures with its legal advisers, the most likely one being using its right to appeal the decision by Bergsstaten to the Government of Sweden.The Company wishes to highlight the Decision is based on a 2013 design of the Project that is no longer relevant since the Company is in the final stages of completing a redesign of the project with a significant change in design and much reduced potential impact on any Natura 2000 areas. The updated technical study will form the basis for the application of a mining lease.Bergsstaten motivates their decision that their opinion is that a Natura 2000 permit is required prior to Bergsstaten being able to evaluate the mining lease application. This opinion is debatable as recently demonstrated by Boliden appealing a similar decision by the Government of Sweden (the “Government”) to the Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden (the “SAC”) and more recently the Swedish Parliament having voted through a statement to the Government that a Natura 2000 permit should not be required at the stage of granting a mining lease.
--------------------------------
Vancouver, June 17, 2021 – Leading Edge Materials Corp announces that it has submitted its full appeal to the Government of Sweden (the “Government”) against the rejection of its mining lease application for the Norra Karr REE project (the “Project”).As previously announced, on May 5th the Mining Inspectorate of Sweden (“Bergsstaten”) rejected the mining lease application Norra Karr K nr1 with the motivation that since the Company had not acquired a Natura 2000 permit for the Project, they were not able to rule on the mining lease application. Bergsstaten in its rejection further relied on the fact that the Government had ruled in a similar matter in December 2020 regarding Boliden’s mining lease application for its Laver project. However, in January 2021 Boliden appealed the Government’s decision to the Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden (the “SAC”) where the outcome is still pending.Leading Edge Materials is therefore appealing to the Government to cancel Bergsstaten’s rejection of the mining lease application and continue the evaluation of the application once the SAC has ruled whether a Natura 2000 permit should be a pre-condition for the granting of a mining lease or not. The Company wishes to point out that recently a majority of the Swedish parliament voted through a statement to the Government asking for a proposal for legislative change so that a Natura 2000 permit should not be required prior to the granting of a mining lease.
The mining lease Norra Karr K nr1 was granted by Bergsstaten in 2013 and in 2014 the Government upheld the granting after an appeal against it. The Government’s decision was subsequently appealed to the SAC which in 2016 ruled to repeal the Government’s decision at which point the Government handed back the mining lease application to Bergsstaten for renewed evaluation. In 2019 the County Administrative Board of Ostergotland (the “CAB”) submitted an opinion to Bergsstaten that a Natura 2000 permit would be required prior to the mining lease.
The Company wishes to stress that the design of the Project currently being contemplated under the denied mining lease application goes back to before 2013. Based on above stated events, further consultation processes with Bergsstaten, the CAB and other stakeholders the Company has since initiated work to redesign the Project with a focus on maximizing resource efficiency and minimizing possible environmental impacts at the local site of the Project. This work in its final stages will be presented by means of the upcoming Preliminary Economic Assessment report and will lead to a revised design of the Project to be evaluated towards a mining lease and any other required permits.
--------------------------------
Vancouver, June 21, 2022 – Leading Edge Materials Corp has taken the decision to initiate a Natura 2000 permit application process for the Norra Karr project. This follows a recent ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden in the Boliden Laver case which confirms that current legislation requires a Natura 2000 permit prior to the evaluation of a mining lease. The Company’s appeal to the Government against the Mining Inspectorate’s rejection of the Norra Karr mining lease application in May 2021 was made on largely the same basis as the Boliden Laver case (see news release June 17, 2021), that a Natura 2000 permit should not be a pre-condition for evaluating a mining lease application, and the Company has hence decided to retract its appeal against the mining lease rejection.
By initiating a Natura 2000 permit process based on the new design of the Project the Company will benefit from authorities and other stakeholders evaluating the merits of the project based on the most recent plans. In parallel, through the various environmental and metallurgical studies that may be required to support the Natura 2000 permit application the Company can further progress the Project towards its next stages of feasibility development.
(20min delay)