MEASURES TO SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CRITICAL MINERALS VALUE CHAIN
Québec City, March 29, 2023 – The measures set out in the federal budget announced yesterday will support growth in the critical minerals value chain in Canada and Québec. The Québec Mining Association (QMA) welcomes all the proposals, which will affect the mining industry since extraction is the first link in the value chain.
Québec is seeking to establish a role as a world leader in the development of critical and strategic minerals, and the federal budget, combined with the measures in the latest provincial budget, matches the goal of the mining industry to be a key player in the fight against climate change.
The QMA therefore reacts positively to the measures that will support mineral development, including the refundable tax credit equal to 30% of the cost of investments in new machinery and equipment to extract, treat or recycle the critical minerals that play an essential role in clean technology supply chains: lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, copper and the rare earth minerals.
The QMA also welcomes the assignment of $1.5 billion in the Strategic Innovation Fund to support projects in sectors such as clean technologies, critical minerals and industrial transformation, as well as the establishment of an infrastructure fund for essential minerals totalling $1.5 billion, to be managed by Natural Resources Canada, for energy and transportation projects to unlock priority mineral deposits.
The federal government’s commitment to improving the efficiency of the impact assessment and authorization process for major projects by the end of 2023 and to extending federal-provincial cooperation to meet the “one project, one assessment” objective is well received by Québec’s mining industry. Both actions have been QMA demands for several years.
Support for Indigenous communities, in the form of loans to purchase a stake in major projects through the Canada Infrastructure Bank, is also a step in the right direction that will promote economic development in communities and regions that are home to mining activities.
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“This federal budget is a logical continuation of previous federal government budgets and actions to position the mining industry in Canada and Québec and to make them attractive destinations for investment. The measures extend the efforts and commitments made by the Québec government to develop the mining industry in order to extract critical and strategic minerals and base minerals. Québec’s mining industry will step up to make its own contribution to a broader effort to ensure a worldwide energy transition.”
Josée Méthot, QMA president and CEO
About the Québec Mining Association
The Québec Mining Association (QMA) was founded in 1936 and speaks proactively for mining companies involved in exploration, extraction and processing, mining contractors and junior mining companies, along with suppliers, institutions, non-profit organizations and other mining sector partners. It is proud of the 48,187 jobs and activities totalling $11.7 billion generated by Québec’s mining industry in 2020. The QMA’s mission is to promote, support and proactively develop a responsible, committed and innovative mining industry in Québec.