The BC Kaska Dena and Silvercorp Inc. have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with respect to the Silvertip Project which is located in BC Kaska Traditional Territory. The MOU establishes an effective partnership between the Silvercorp and the Kaska communities which includes a joint objective of maximizing Kaska employment during the exploration, construction and operation of the Silvertip Project.
Silvercorp Inc., a Canadian owned company, is China’s largest primary silver-producing mine, and currently has four permits in the Hunan province of China. In February 2010, Silvercorp acquired the Silvertip silver-lead-zinc project, located in northern British Columbia, Canada, just south of the Yukon/BC border.
First Nations are the only Aboriginal groups with which Silvercorp Canada has entered a resource agreement. The Kaska-Silvercorp MOU provides Kaska members, both on and off reserve, priority access to all project related positions subject to those members meeting the minimum qualifications for the available positions.
As a result of the agreement with Silvercorp, Kaska Dena Council has been developing a strategy to prepare the Kaska workforce to take advantage of the opportunities that this project presents. This strategy attaches the highest priority of providing training benefits, which will facilitate employment of our members at the Silvertip mine and employment on other local and regional projects.
Leadership of the Kaska Dena Council recognizes that working cooperatively on economic development to promote the collective interests of Kaska holds tremendous potential for Kaska members and communities.
