The Supreme Court of British Columbia ruled that the BC Environmental Assessment Office's determination that Seabridge Gold Inc.'s (NYSE: SA) KSM project was substantially started as of July 24, 2024 was reasonable, according to a company statement.

The court found that while the determination was reasonable, the Environmental Assessment Office had not sufficiently consulted with the Tsetsaut Skii km Lax Ha. The court ordered the office to provide a 90-day period for the group to submit written comments on whether the project was substantially started, after which the office must reconsider its determination.

The court dismissed a separate petition filed by SkeenaWild Conservation Trust against the substantially started determination.

Seabridge Gold Chair and CEO Rudi Fronk stated that work at the KSM project, located in northwestern British Columbia, would continue during the consultation process. The company has spent an additional $208 million on permanent works at KSM since applying for substantially started status in January 2024, bringing total project expenditures to $1.2 billion.

The KSM project is one of Seabridge Gold's principal assets in British Columbia's Golden Triangle region. The company also holds the Bronson Corridor project in the same area, along with the Snowstorm project in Nevada and the 3 Aces project in the Yukon.