Canada has the critical minerals Donald Trump wants. So what should we do with them?
Global News
A trade war and U.S. demand for critical minerals have put Canada’s rich deposits in the spotlight, prompting promises to fast-track resource projects.
An ongoing trade war and U.S. President Donald Trump’s hunger for critical minerals have brought Canada’s rich mineral deposits into the spotlight, with federal and provincial politicians promising to accelerate natural resource projects.
Interest in the country’s critical minerals surged after Trump started musing about annexing Canada, experts say, and grew as the president’s global trade war intensified.
“This is now a domestic conversation about how we treat natural resources or natural resource development projects here in Canada,” said Elizabeth Steyn, a mining and finance law expert at the University of Calgary.
A key element of that conversation is northern Ontario’s mineral-rich Ring of Fire, a region spanning roughly 5,000 kilometres where vast reserves of nickel, chromite, zinc, platinum, copper and many other critical minerals are believed to be buried.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has said that his government would aim to approve all federal permits for mining in the Ring of Fire region within six months, and commit $1 billion to build a road network to help facilitate that.
As part of his promises to invest in critical minerals, Liberal Leader Mark Carney has said that he would work “very closely” with the Ontario government to “rapidly” develop the Ring of Fire.
Ontario’s government tabled legislation Thursday aimed at speeding up the development of mines — and other large-scale projects — by designating some of them as “special economic zones.” The Ring of Fire will be one such zone.
Premier Doug Ford said the need to fast-track mining projects is a direct response to Trump’s threats.
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