A large nickel deposit was discovered in the hills along the western shore of Potato Island in September 1993 by Archean Inc., a prospecting firm hired by Diamond Fields Resources Inc promoters Robert Friedland and Jean-Raymond Boulle. This deposit is considered to be one of the most substantial mineral discoveries in Canada in years and was estimated in 2007 to contain 141 million tonnes at 1.6% nickel.
In 1996, Inco managers purchased the mine for $4.3 billion Canadian dollars.