NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR REGULATION 66/02

Short title

1. This Order may be cited as the Voisey's Bay Nickel Company Limited Nickel Concentrate Exemption Order.

Interpretation

2. (1) In this order

(a) "Act" means the Mineral Act;

(b) "development agreement" means the Development Agreement made as of September 30, 2002 among Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Newfoundland and Labrador, the lessee and Inco Limited;

(c) "lease" means the valid and subsisting lease number 184 dated September 30, 2002, issued to the lessee under the Act for an area situated near Voisey's Bay;

(d) "lessee" means Voisey's Bay Nickel Company Limited; and

(e) "production order" means the Voisey's Bay Nickel Company Limited Primary Production Order.

(2) In interpreting this Order, the terms "commercial production date", "construction completion date", "decision", "demonstration plant", "demonstration plant completion date", "government", "hydromet plant", "implementation plan", "nickel concentrate", "processing plant" and "proponent" have the meanings given to them in the development agreement.

Exemption

3. Subject to sections 4 and 5, the lessee shall be exempt from the provisions of the production order with respect to the quantity of nickel concentrate containing up to a maximum total of 355,000 tonnes of contained nickel commencing the later of

(a) the date of the first shipment of nickel concentrate to the demonstration plant; and

(b) the demonstration plant completion date.

Termination of exemption

4. The exemption contained in section 3 shall terminate on the earliest of the

(a) date on which the shipments of nickel concentrate by the lessee have reached a total of 355,000 tonnes of contained nickel;

(b) construction completion date; and

Suspension of shipping rights

5. The lessee may ship quantities of nickel concentrate out of the province up to the maximum total of 355,000 tonnes of contained nickel referred to in section 3 but where the proponent

(a) has not delivered the decision to the government by November 15, 2008;

(b) has not delivered to the government an implementation plan as required by section 4.7.4 or 4.7.5 of the development agreement; or

(c) the proponent is not proceeding diligently to complete the engineering and construction of the processing plant as required by section 4.7.4 or 4.7.5 of the development agreement

the right of the lessee to ship nickel concentrate out of the province under section 3 shall be suspended, subject to sections 5.3 and 6.5.2 of the development agreement.

Determination of diligence

6. Whether the proponent is proceeding diligently to complete the engineering and construction of the processing plant as required by section 4.7.4 or 4.7.5 of the development agreement shall be determined in accordance with section 4.7.6 of the development agreement.

Construction of hydromet plant

7. (1) If the proponent has constructed a hydromet plant, in addition to the exemption in section 3, the lessee shall be exempt from the provisions of the production order with respect to the shipments of nickel concentrate containing up to a maximum total of 85,000 tonnes of contained nickel, commencing on the construction completion date.

(2) The exemption referred to in subsection (1) shall terminate on the earliest of the

(a) commercial production date;

(b) date on which the shipments of nickel concentrate by the lessee reach the total of 85,000 tonnes of contained nickel; and