I thought there was some discussion about a new rail connection. I wonder if that may still happen.
news.ontario.ca
Admittedly, my attention to the project has fallen off the past couple of years, and the ownership of the claims has gone through a few hands, so I'm not completely up to speed, but I'm not sure a railway is off the table, perhaps just down the road.
There have been long term talks about year-round roads to all of the remote FNTs in the northwest for years. Interestingly, not all bands have historically wanted it.
The way I understand development plans for the RofF, nickel and other deposits will be exploited first and essentially fund the development of the chromite deposits. Those minerals have pre-existing smelters/refineries (although none in the immediate area). Chromite will require a new ferrochrome smelter, initially slated for Sault Ste Marie. The road, in addition to connecting area FNTs, will be used to move mine development and equipment supplies. One of the owners proposed a private haul road to bring out ore, which obviously went over like a lead balloon.
Frankly, building a year-round road in that topography will be challenging enough. I have my suspicions whether they can build one that will survive the year-round pounding of a haul road used by a high volume of heavy trucks bringing out hundreds of tons of ore per day; heavy haul traffic that will be mixed with private cars and trucks. Then again, not an engineer.
A railway has a higher upfront cost and I doubt a government would be a major player in its funding, so the companies will need output to fund it. Think Cartier Railway in Quebec