The Québec Mining Association (QMA) is pleased to release its latest study on the economic benefits generated by the mining industry in Québec, covering the year 2020. The study confirms the extent of the mining industry’s contribution to Québec’s economy and quantifies the benefits generated in terms of the jobs maintained and created, Québec’s gross domestic product (GDP), the state finances, and the distribution of the benefits in various regions of Québec.
The study provides concrete evidence of the role played by the mining industry in the Québec economy. In 2020, mining industry activities in Québec amounted to $12.5 billion, including $11.7 billion for extraction and exploration. The contribution to Québec’s GDP has increased steadily over the period covered by the QMA’s studys on economic benefits from 2014 to 2020, and has now reached $10.5 billion, an increase of 36.4%.
The study highlights the mining industry’s importance in the mining regions and also in major urban centres. In the view of the QMA, this means that regions such as Montréal and Montérégie are a lot closer to the mining industry than at first appears. For example, all mining activities (extraction, exploration and investment) in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, the leading mining region, attained $3.52 billion, while Montréal was in third place with total activities of around $1.3 billion.
In terms of jobs, the study shows that mining in Québec supported 48,187 person-years of employment in the form of direct, indirect and induced jobs, including 15,589 person-years for residents of the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, 7,585 for residents of the Côte-Nord region and 10,618 for residents of the Montréal and Montérégie regions. Women are increasingly present in the workforce, and the number of direct jobs held by women increased by 42% from 2014 to 2020. The situation is similar for workers from Indigenous communities, whose numbers increased by 69% over six years.
The mining sector is made up of a network of more than 4,850 suppliers having their place of business in Québec – including 1,483 in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, 906 in Montréal and 556 in the Montérégie region.
By updating the study every two years, the QMA is able to answer some frequently-asked questions. For example: how much do governments collect from mineral resource development? The answer for 2020 is $2.4 billion. More specifically, $1.8 billion was paid to the Québec government and $620 million to the Canadian government, without counting corporate income tax.
The main driver in increased tax revenue is mining royalties, which increased fivefold from $121.1 million in 2014 to $631.7 million in 2020.
To view the complete study, click here.
« The mining industry has demonstrated its resilience and introduced a range of solutions to limit the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on its operations. These actions have had positive repercussions and saved the jobs of a large number of workers, helping the regions survive the pandemic. »
« Québec is rich in minerals, and mining industry activities add to its economic vitality. The mining sector’s contribution to Québec’s GDP cannot be ignored. The clear growth in fiscal and parafiscal revenue and mining royalties is a convincing sign of the added value that the industry generates for Québec and its government. From 2014 to 2020, revenue jumped by 77%. The increase is largely based on a 422% increase in mining royalties, which reached $631.7 million in 2020. »
– 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.