January 18, 2018

MPCA posts PolyMet draft water quality permit and Section 401 Certification

Agency releases draft permits to Tribes, EPA and PolyMet prior to public meetings

St. Paul, Minn., January 18, 2018 – The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has informed Poly Met Mining Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of PolyMet Mining Corp. (together “PolyMet” or the “company”) TSX: POM; NYSE AMERICAN: PLM – that it has posted the draft water quality permit and draft Section 401 Certification and supporting permit documentation on its website for the NorthMet copper-nickel-precious metals project.

As previously announced by the MPCA, public meetings on the draft air and water permits and the draft Permit to Mine will be held jointly February 7 and 8, 2018, in Aurora and Duluth, respectively.  The public comment period for MPCA’s draft permits will begin prior to the February public meetings.  The draft Permit to Mine was released for public comment by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources on January 5, 2018.

The water quality permit establishes specific limits and requirements to protect Minnesota’s surface and groundwater quality for a variety of uses, including drinking water, aquatic life and recreation.  It is also known as an NPDES/SDS (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System/State Disposal System) permit.

The 401 Certification is a proposed approval by the MPCA that the company’s plans, as submitted or with conditions written by the MPCA, will protect water quality.

“With the release of the draft Permit to Mine earlier this month and now the draft water quality permit and draft 401 Certification, we move ever closer to fulfilling our commitment to build an environmentally responsible mine and to provide the jobs, mineral diversity, and tremendous economic benefits that this project will bring to the Iron Range and the state,” said Jon Cherry, president and CEO.

The draft water quality permit and 401 Certification posted by the MPCA, including related conditions and other permit documentation, are found at https://www.pca.state.mn.us/northmet.

 

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About PolyMet
PolyMet Mining Corp. (www.polymetmining.com) is a publicly traded mine development company that owns 100 percent of Poly Met Mining, Inc., a Minnesota corporation that controls 100 percent of the NorthMet copper-nickel-precious metals ore body through a long-term lease and owns 100 percent of the former LTV Steel Mining Company site, a large processing facility located approximately six miles from the ore body in the established mining district of the Mesabi Iron Range in northeastern Minnesota. The NorthMet Final Environmental Impact Statement was published in November 2015, preparing the way for decisions on permit applications. NorthMet is expected to require approximately two million hours of construction labor, create approximately 360 long-term jobs directly, and generate a level of activity that will have a significant multiplier effect in the local economy.

 

For further information, please contact:

Media
Bruce Richardson
Corporate Communications
Tel: +1 (651) 389-4111
polymetcommunications@polymetmining.com

Investor Relations
Tony Gikas
Investor Relations
Tel: +1 (651) 389-4110
investorrelations@polymetmining.com

 

PolyMet Disclosures
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements concerning anticipated developments in PolyMet’s operations in the future. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as  “expects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “intends,” “estimates,” “potential,” “possible,” “projects,” “plans,” and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions or results “will,” “may,” “could,” or “should” occur or be achieved or their negatives or other comparable words. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding the ability to receive environmental and operating permits, job creation, and the effect on the local economy, or other statements that are not a statement of fact. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements due to risks facing PolyMet or due to actual facts differing from the assumptions underlying its predictions.

PolyMet’s forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, expectations and opinions of management on the date the statements are made, and PolyMet does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management’s beliefs, expectations and opinions should change.

Specific reference is made to risk factors and other considerations underlying forward-looking statements discussed in PolyMet’s most recent Annual Report on Form 40-F for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2017, and in our other filings with Canadian securities authorities and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Report on Form 6-K providing information with respect to our operations for the three and nine months ended October 31, 2017.

The Annual Report on Form 40-F also contains the company’s mineral resource and other data as required under National Instrument 43-101.

The TSX has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.