Ontario allocated an additional $6 million to support junior miners in this year’s budget, as Premier Doug Ford looks to meet the rising demand for critical minerals such as nickel and lithium that power electric vehicles.
Junior miners are small-scale miners that focus more on exploring mining deposits than producing minerals. These companies are more likely to sell their deposits to bigger miners and are considered critical in the electric vehicle supply chain.
Theo Yameogo, Ernst & Young Global Ltd.’s mining and metals leader for the Americas, said that while miners have “bigger needs than just six million,” the move was positive.
“Everybody understands that there is a potential recession coming up and every government is afraid to commit,” Yameogo said. “This is another confirmation that they actually have their eye on the ball.”
The demand for electric vehicles has increased globally as nations work on ways to meet their climate goals. Canada is looking to build a low-carbon EV industry and has announced a series of measures in recent years which include deals with auto and battery companies and investments in various segments of the battery supply chain.
The head of Canada’s top mining association, Pierre Gratton, told the Financial Post this week that Ottawa’s strategy to build an electric vehicle industry could fail if it doesn’t encourage bigger miners through tax credits and other incentives to construct mines when the federal government releases its budget next week.
[More]
