Officials, including Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Marten Falls First Nation Chief Bruce Achneepineskum, were on hand Monday as construction began on an 184-kilometre road into the Ring of Fire mineral deposit in northwestern Ontario. The Marten Falls section is part of a 514-kilometre network of all-season roads planned to offer access into the multi-billion-dollar critical minerals deposit. “We’re delivering on our promise to protect Ontario and stand up to President Trump by unlocking the Ring of Fire,” Ford said in a news release Aug. 31. “The Marten Falls Community Access Road is a critical link in the Ring of Fire road network, connecting the people of Marten Falls to better services and good-paying local jobs while connecting the rest of Ontario to the incredible economic potential of the Ring of Fire.” Building an all-season road network is a critical part of unlocking “the vast economic potential of critical minerals in the region, add $22 billion to Ontario’s economy, create 70,000 good-paying jobs, strengthen domestic supply chains and support long-term economic growth and shared prosperity for First Nations communities and northern Ontario, the release said. The Marten Falls road is scheduled to open by November 2031, four years ahead of schedule. Crews will start clearing trees, setting up a work camp and establishing access to aggregate sites along the route. In November 2025, Ontario and Marten Falls First Nation signed a historic community partnership agreement to build the road, offering the area a year-round road “and future economic opportunities, while ensuring that Marten Falls First Nation has a meaningful role in development, construction and maintenance of the road.” “Today marks the beginning of a new chapter for Marten Falls First Nation,” Achneepineskum said in the release. “This road is about more than transportation — it is about reducing the challenges of living in a remote community and creating new opportunities for our people. Reliable, year-round access will strengthen connections to health care, education, essential services, affordable goods and help accelerate community growth.” In addition to the Marten Falls road, construction of the Webequie Supply Road started in June and will be open in November 2030, four years ahead of schedule. Upgrades to Anaconda and Painter Lake roads started in June 2026, two years ahead of schedule. The Northern Road Link is scheduled to start construction in spring 2028 and open by November 2031, five years ahead of schedule. Ontario’s Ring of Fire region, located about 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay and covering about 8,000 square kilometres, has enormous economic potential due to its vast supply of critical minerals. Marten Falls First Nation is located about 400 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, where the Albany and Ogoki Rivers meet. Currently, it is accessible by air and by a winter road seasonally. “All-season road access to Marten Falls First Nation will reduce transportation costs, facilitate access to key services and improve economic conditions in the community while increasing business development and job opportunities because of road construction, road maintenance, critical minerals exploration and mine development,” the release said. In June, the province broke ground on the Geraldton Main Street Rehabilitation Project, “a key gateway leading to the Ring of Fire.”
