1. What's Up in Alaska?
Matt Ganley
VP Resources and External Affairs
Bering Straits Native Corporation

2. Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 1971
(ANCSA)
• Settled aboriginal land claims for Alaska's Native
groups.
• Provided a monetary ($962.5M) and land based
settlement (44 million acres).
• Established 12 land-based regional corporations and
over 200 village corporations.
• 78,000 Native Alaskans are enrolled in the
corporations.
• ANCSA also mandated a profit sharing plan for all
regional and village corporations (Section 7(i)).

3. 7(i)
• “… 70% of all revenues received by each
Regional Corporation from the timber
resources and subsurface estate patented to it
pursuant to this Act shall be divided annually
by the Regional Corporation among all twelve
Regional Corporations ….” 43 U.S.C. § 1606(i).
• Each Regional Corporation distributes 50% of
7(i) distributions to its Village Corporations
and to its at-large shareholders, pursuant to
ANCSA §7(j)

4. 7(i) Rationale
 Section 7(i) "was intended to achieve a
rough equality in assets among all the
Natives. . . . (The section) insures that
all of the Natives will benefit in roughly
equal proportions from these assets. . . .
Congress required that 70 percent of all
revenues from the development of timber
and subsurface resources be distributed
among the Regional Corporations.” Chugach
Natives, Inc. vs. Doyon, Ltd., 588 F.2d
723 (9th Cir. 1978)

6. Development on Alaska Native
Corporation Lands
• For the first decades after ANCSA, most
corporations played a passive role in
exploration and mining.
• History with development within regions
varied.
• Extractive industry proposals on Native
corporation lands are subject to all federal
and state environmental compliance
requirements.

8. Looking Across Bering Strait

9. BSNC's Land Base and Mineral
Development History
• We've been a passive partner in the exploration of our ANCSA
mineral estate.
• Basic exploration and option to lease agreements have been
executed with major and minor companies, beginning in the
early 1980's.
• The mineral potential of the region is well known, historically
(gold, silver, tin, uranium, thorium, beryllium, molybdenum,
and REE potential).

11. Obstacles to Development
• Remote, arctic setting.
• Short exploration season.
• Limited/nonexisitent transportation and
energy transmission infrastructure.
• High costs and long supply chain.
• Energy costs prohibit ventures.
• Skilled labor and management shortages.

12. Rock Creek: a mine that almost
was--and may yet be--productive
• Alaska Gold Co., a subsidiary of NovaGold, began
construction of the mine in 2006.
• A large area of BSNC mineral estate was contained
within the development block.
• Untimely legal challenges, some poor management
decisions, significant cost overruns, and the
economic downturn of 2008-2009, ultimately forced
the mine into maintenance and standby mode
beginning in 2009.

15. Reclamation or Restart?
• In the spring of 2011 Nova began plans for
reclaiming Rock Creek.
• BSNC entered negotiations with AGC/Nova
regarding the reclamation plan.
• At the beginning of November, 2012, Nova,
AGC and BSNC finalized an agreement--

16. BSNC Purchases Alaska Gold
Company.
• Rock Creek mine facility,
• All patented claims held by AGC in the Bering
Strait area,
• Significant real estate within the City of Nome,
• All material sources (gravel and sand) in the
region,
• The reclamation bond is transferred to BSNC.

17. Challenges Ahead
• “Go” or “No-go” decision for embarking upon
the Nanuuq Gold Project.
• Capitalization of mine start-up.
• Development of a region-wide multi-year
exploration program.
• Lobbying for transportation infrastructure
improvements.
• Maintenance of work force.
• Value-added products from mining.

18. Matt Ganley
VP Resources and External Affairs
Bering Straits Native Corporation
4600 Debarr Road
Anchorage, AK 99508
matt@beringstraits.com
(907)344-7212 Office
(907)632-7197 Mobile