Demand, commitments position Canada’s mining sector for success – MAC

27th January 2020 By: Tasneem Bulbulia - Senior Contributing Editor Online

Recent commitments to mining, particularly the new Canada-US Joint Action Plan on Critical Minerals Collaboration and the Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP), show great promise for the country’s mining sector, Mining Association of Canada (MAC) CEO and president Pierre Gratton said last week, in his yearly address to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade.

“The US is looking to Canada to be a supplier of critical minerals, essential to new, advanced technologies in major sectors of the North American economy, and the government of Canada, as expressed in Prime Minister [Justin] Trudeau's most recent Mandate Letters to his Cabinet, is committed to meet US demands,” Gratton said.

"Richly endowed with natural resources and with a globally leading mining sector committed to responsible mineral development, Canada is uniquely positioned to supply the US with critical minerals, representing a significant opportunity for new investment and growth in mining and mineral processing."

Canada ranks among the top five countries in the global production of 15 minerals and metals.

The new Canada-US Joint Action Plan is posited to improve collaboration to ensure the responsible sourcing of the critical minerals that are essential to many different sectors, including clean technology and defence.

Further to this, there is the CMMP, a federal-provincial initiative which includes measures that aim to enhance the sector's competitiveness, stimulate innovation, advance the participation of Indigenous communities and promote Canada's role as a global leader in the mining sector.