Tahltan Nation Development Corporation (TNDC), the business arm of the Tahltan Nation in northwest B.C., and Central Mountain Air have renewed an agreement with Newcrest Mining to provide transportation for its Red Chris mine crews.
As part of a partnership agreement first signed in 2021, Central Mountain Air operates weekly flights from several marshalling points –Vancouver, Nanaimo, Kamloops, Kelowna, Williams Lake, Prince George and Calgary – into Smithers and then to Dease Lake which is the central access point for the mining and exploration sector.
TNDC already provides passenger transport by highway coach between the Dease Lake Airport and the Red Chris mine site, through another partnership. The organization said this renewed agreement is expected to provide a full transportation solution to the mining sector that operates in the Golden Triangle area in northwest B.C.
“This agreement is an excellent example of the power of partnerships between the mining industry and Indigenous service providers,” said Paul Gruner, CEO of TNDC.
“It is also another example of TNDC diversifying our business and becoming an integrated full-service provider and trusted partner to our clients. Air charter services is critical to Newcrest’s operations, and we are pleased our aviation partner, Central Mountain Air, continues to provide air charter services to this important client,” Gruner added.
As part of its diversification process, TNDC also signed an agreement with Stikine Airport Society in March and assumed operation of the Dease Lake Airport (YDL) making it the only Indigenous organization to manage an airport in B.C.
The organization is now in the process of attaining federal certification for the airport.
If approved, Dease Lake Airport will qualify as a base for emergency management for northwest B.C. as well as scheduled services such as daily mail delivery and a regular rotation of out-of-town medical professionals.