by John Chilibeck, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Source: Telegraph-Journal
August 20, 2026
Lawn sign being distributed by The Coalition to Stop Sisson Mine
The company that wants to build what the prime minister calls a “nation-building” mine in central New Brunswick has met again with the local government that has serious qualms about the large-scale project.
David Sweeney, the mayor of Nashwaak Rural Community, told Brunswick News his municipal council met virtually with officials from Northcliff Resources on August 11th.
The council includes the mayor and seven ward councillors, whose chief concern when it comes to the development of the Sisson mine is the Nashwaak River that flows through their rural community, centred around the old village of Stanley.
“Our council has always said the protection of the river is of utmost importance,” Sweeney said in an interview on Wednesday. “We want to protect it from any unnatural disaster.”
The politicians learned on the call the Vancouver company’s updated feasibility study on the mine, first expected in June, won’t be completed until September 30th, as previously reported by Brunswick News.
Sweeney said they didn’t hear much new information on the call, and the councillors only posed five or six questions. One of them asked if First Nations were being consulted, and Northcliff assured them private meetings were taking place with Indigenous groups.
First and foremost, the local politicians want proof the mine won’t threaten their waterways, including the Nashwaak and Tay rivers.
CEO Andrew Ing did not reply to a request for comment, nor did anyone else at Northcliff.
The firm, whose major shareholder on the project is the Todd Corporation, based in New Zealand, wants to build an open-pit tungsten and molybdenum mine, with a large tailings pond and earthen dam, near Napadogan, between the communities of Stanley and Juniper, 100 kilometres northwest by road from Fredericton.
Expensive project
On Monday, Northcliff announced it had settled a $7.3-million convertible loan agreement in the full amount plus accrued interest for a total amount of $7.6 million by issuing nearly 32 million shares to Todd Sisson (NZ) Limited. The deal was approved by the company’s board of directors on July 31st.
But that kind of money only scratches the surface. The last feasibility study, already 13 years old, stated that the project would cost more than half a billion dollars to build.
The federal and provincial Liberal governments back the mine, which would mostly dig up tungsten, a heavy metal whose market is largely controlled by China.
“What the world wants is Canada to be the reliable supplier of critical minerals,” Prime Minister Carney said in November 2025 when he announced Sisson would be on the federal government’s major projects list, a huge boost to Northcliff, which has struggled to get the mine up and running.
Talk of a mine opening in the area goes back to 1978, when exploration first took place. Nearly 50 years later, the project is still inching along.
Tungsten is used in heavy industry, largely for cutting and drilling, for military hardware, and everyday household products such as lights, ballpoint pens and cell phones.
Molybdenum is mostly used for steel alloys.
This story from Brunswick News was written by Local Journalism Initiative Reporter John Chilibeck.
For previous coverage, click here.
