An individual proposes mechanized drilling, mechanized stripping, pitting and trenching of bedrock, and line cutting on 13 mining claims covering 6,443 hectares in Hopkins Township and Mowbray Township, Cochrane District, about 21 kilometres south of Little Long Rapids and about 48 kilometres north of Kapuskasing.
The model puts an 8 in 10 chance on a decision between 10 Nov 2026 and 28 Apr 2027 (our 80% credible interval, shortened elsewhere to the 80% range).
30 Oct 2026Nov 2026Dec 2026Apr 2027
Middle half of the chances (50%)80% range
Forecast made 30 October 2026. Dates are spaced so that the next few weeks and the next few years both fit: the distance from the forecast date grows with the square root of the days.
How it ends
Issued
95%
Refused or withdrawn
3%
Still undecided at the furthest date we look ahead
1%
Key dates
A 1 in 10 chance it is decided by10 Nov 2026
Even odds it is decided by27 Nov 2026
A 9 in 10 chance it is decided by28 Apr 2027
Chance it is decided within 3 months, by 29 Jan 202782%
Chance it is decided within 6 months, by 30 Apr 202790%
Chance it is put on hold before a decision11%
What pushes it earlier or later
The named factors that move the middle date most for this application, in days, compared with an application that is typical on that factor: + means later, − means earlier. They are the largest pieces, not the whole account.
EarlierLater
Heavy drilling planned (drills over 150 kilograms)−11 days
The plan includes drilling+4 days
How many decisions the ministry office made in the past six months+3 days
Applied in 2023 or later+2 days
Outside the Treaty 9 area−1 day
Some factors about how the ministry handles the file are used but not shown here.
Not yet counted, because the model does not measure them yet: Indigenous nations affected; an impact and benefit agreement; an Indigenous-led assessment; a contested duty to consult; referral to the Minister.
How the forecast has moved
Forecasts for this application side by side. Across: the Friday each was made. Up: the date of the decision. The wider a shape at a date, the likelier a decision then; the dark mark is that week's middle date, and the newest is shaded darker.
Showing 3 of 4 Friday forecasts: the first, the latest, and the weeks it changed, when something happened to the application or the forecast moved more than its usual weekly wobble.
Questions already settled
None of the questions we have asked about this application has been settled yet. The first to settle is whether it is decided by 29 Jan 2027.
The application so far
14 Sep 202630 Oct 2026
Open for public commentUnder review
14 Sep 2026Application submitted to the ministry
3 weeks later
5 Oct 2026Posted to the registry and opened for public comment
4 weeks later
30 Oct 2026Forecast made; still waiting
Dates are the ministry's own. Hover over or tap the strip for the dates and how long each stage took.
Where it is
The registry's own map places this application about 42 kilometres from the mining claims it lists. We cannot tell which place is right, so we show no map.
What the application asks for
Activities
Line cutting (wider than 1.5 metres)
Mechanized stripping (over 100 square metres within a 200 metre radius)
Pitting and trenching of bedrock (over 3 cubic metres within a 200 metre radius)
Mechanized drilling (drills over 150 kilograms)
Mining claims covered
13
Area of those claims
6,443 hectares
Surroundings
Holds within 50 kilometres in the past year
none held for consultation with an Indigenous nation; none put on a temporary hold
Other exploration plans in circulation within 50 kilometres
2
Workload at the ministry office handling it
13 applications waiting; it decided 18 in the past six months
Applicant
An individual
The applicant’s earlier exploration permits
None before this one
Published Mondays, noon Toronto timeKestrel EconomicsBULLETIN