Mr. Bruce McLeod reports

SABINA GOLD & SILVER REPORTS MINISTER OF INDIGENOUS AND NORTHERN AFFAIRS CANADA DEEMS NUNAVUT IMPACT REVIEW BOARD REPORT DEFICIENT, REFERS BACK TO NIRB FOR FURTHER REVIEW

Sabina Gold & Silver Corp. has provided an update. The Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), with the agreement of other responsible ministers, has decided that the Back River project should be returned to the Nunavut Impact Review Board (NIRB) for further consideration under Section 12.5.7 (e) of the Nunavut agreement.

On June 15, 2016, the NIRB recommended to the Minister of INAC that the Back River project not proceed to the next phase of permitting at this time. Since that time, the Minister of INAC and the other responsible ministers have been considering the NIRB report.

In her letter of Jan. 12, 2017, to the NIRB, the Minister of INAC stated: "After careful consideration ... we are referring the report back to the board for further review or public hearings as the report is deficient with respect to some ecosystemic issues. In our view, based on the process to date, it is premature to conclude that the project would lead to unacceptable or unmanageable ecosystemic or socio-economic impacts. There were a number of areas where there was insufficient information presented in the [NIRB] report to support the conclusions of the board, and where further information is required so that the ministers may understand the rationale behind the conclusions presented by the board prior to making a decision on whether the project should proceed. This is particularly important in areas where the board has expressed a lack of confidence or significant uncertainty while the report and the broader record indicates that many of the participants (including indigenous and non-indigenous witnesses and subject matter experts) expressed confidence that the measures presented could mitigate and manage potential adverse effects to an acceptable level. A deeper inquiry into the issues identified by the board might point to sound management approaches."

With respect to Caribou, the Minister of INAC referred to the jointly proposed terms and conditions for Caribou submitted by Sabina, the Kitikmeot Inuit Association (KIA) and the government of Nunavut and recommended further in-depth review of that submission to provide an opportunity for the board and others to clearly understand the effectiveness of the proposed measures.

Sabina has received broad-based Inuit support for the project both at the final hearings in April and since the NIRB report in mid-June. Written letters to the minister on behalf of Sabina and the project have been received from the KIA (the landowner) hamlet councils, hunters and trappers organizations, community representatives, as well as the government of Nunavut.

Next steps

Sabina will await direction from the NIRB on how the additional review of the project is to proceed. The company remains confident that there are no unresolvable issues which cannot be addressed during this period and looks forward to working with the NIRB and others to address any outstanding concerns.

"We are extremely pleased that the minister has determined that the NIRB should reconsider its recommendation regarding the project," stated Bruce McLeod, president and chief executive officer. "We understand and support the NIRB's desire for a high level of confidence in the mitigation and management proposed and believe that we have defined programs to address their issues. Sabina has continued to engage with the communities and work with the KIA and responsible government agencies since the final hearings to further advance our plans, including additional enhancements of our wildlife mitigation and monitoring program. We would like to thank the KIA, the government of Nunavut and the various Kitikmeot community representatives and groups who expressed their continued support for the project, and we look forward to re-engaging with the NIRB to determine the best path forward. Back River is aiming to be one of the next gold mines in Nunavut providing much desired jobs, training, infrastructure and economic opportunities to the territory with a best-in-class approach to protecting the environment."

We seek Safe Harbor.