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Results: 91 - 105 of 206
View Brian Masse Profile
NDP (ON)
View Brian Masse Profile
2021-02-25 13:01
Thank you, Madam Chair. Hopefully I won't lose Mr. Dias this time.
With regard to building back from COVID, Kevin Laforet for Casino Windsor, and I'm sure it's across the other sectors as well—you mentioned Dana Dunphy and her crew there, and others.... If this is passed, even with restrictions, they've indicated that they can increase employment right now to prepare for it.
View Brian Masse Profile
NDP (ON)
View Brian Masse Profile
2021-02-25 13:02
They're ready to go; they're eager.
Can you express a bit the frustration for some workers right now, the pride they take and their not being able to work at all?
Jerry Dias
View Jerry Dias Profile
Jerry Dias
2021-02-25 13:02
First of all, having a restriction of 50 people.... I understand the preoccupation with safety, and that has to be everyone's preoccupation today; but this can't be a situation in which one solution fits all. You can't have a casino the size of Casino Windsor being restricted to 50 people and have a casino a fraction of its size being restricted to 50 people. That doesn't make a lot of sense to me.
There is no question that if in fact the single-sports betting is allowed, there will be infrastructure spending, jobs created preparing the casino for a new form of betting, and obviously it will create more jobs for the implementation of the strategy.
View Brian Masse Profile
NDP (ON)
View Brian Masse Profile
2021-02-25 13:03
Thank you.
Let me move quickly over to Mr. Burns.
I was in Niagara Falls and heard the same thing. They're looking at doing millions of dollars of expansions right now and using this as an opportunity—if we can get this done quickly through here and the Senate—with the numbers down, to invest and prepare.
Is that what you're hearing?
Paul Burns
View Paul Burns Profile
Paul Burns
2021-02-25 13:03
It very much is. They would be able to move very swiftly to create an environment. They've identified the parts of the building they would like to renovate and then move to get the product available as soon as possible.
Bringing people back into gaming facilities is a priority, and having a new product and a new offering is what is really giving them some optimism at this point in time. Niagara Falls has not reopened at all since last March.
View Brian Masse Profile
NDP (ON)
View Brian Masse Profile
2021-02-25 13:04
I assume that it's going to be the same thing across Vancouver and other places like that. They'll all look at their operations now and at what they can do and use this to their advantage, because there's no getting back time.
Paul Burns
View Paul Burns Profile
Paul Burns
2021-02-25 13:04
That's correct. We've been talking with provincial gaming organizations, the lottery and gaming corporations across the country. We want to see land-based gaming operators have the opportunity to offer sports books as quickly as possible and to find the right products to put in place. Those discussions are happening.
Really, across the country, everybody is quite eager. You heard from Mr. Hansen earlier. Also, the Alberta gaming and liquor commission and the British Columbia Lottery Corporation all have been publicly saying that we need to see this passed soon.
Liz Lappin
View Liz Lappin Profile
Liz Lappin
2021-02-22 11:14
Good morning. My name is Liz Lappin, and I am the president of the Battery Metals Association of Canada, or BMAC for short. In addition to BMAC, I also work for E3 Metals Corp., just recently mentioned by Mr. Bubar. We're working to develop a first-of-its-kind lithium project in Alberta. Thank you for the opportunity to present today.
Development of the battery metals sector, from mines to mobility, is essential to support the continued expansion and adoption of clean tech as the world transitions to a low-carbon future. Relative to the EU and Asia, the Canadian battery metals supply chains are currently in their infancy. However, with surging demand for battery metals to feed the expanding EV supply chain, the market opportunity for Canada is growing.
BMAC was formed to help develop the united industry voice. Through a collaborative approach, we're working to connect, align and advance the industry so that it can meet its full potential for Canada. Our community is predominantly based in western Canada; however, our vision is pan-Canadian.
This brief is divided into three sections that outline recommendations for the sector.
The first area of focus is support for critical minerals project development. The World Bank and a host of forecasters anticipate greatly increased global demand for critical minerals in the years ahead. While Canada has an abundance of resources, they have been slow to develop due to a variety of challenges. Examples include high volatility in emerging pricing, competition for capital against established critical minerals jurisdictions, the highly complex nature of battery metals production, and delays in regulatory and policy development. Canada needs to move swiftly to support the needs of its domestic economy.
To support critical minerals development, BMAC recommends financial support for qualified domestic battery metals companies that are capable of demonstrating viable prospective projects; promoting exploration and identification of resources by amending the Income Tax Act to ensure that lithium brine resources are eligible for flow-through shares; encouraging provinces to rapidly develop responsible yet industry-friendly mineral policy and regulations to accelerate critical mineral resource development; and promoting streamlined tenure and regulatory frameworks to incentivize responsible development. Finally, we recommend prioritizing innovation funding for industry cluster applications, which would incent Canadian collaborations and strengthen connections along the supply chain.
Our second area of focus is investing in value-added manufacturing. To avoid simply being an exporter of raw materials, Canada needs to further develop its domestic value-added industries across the country. Developing a complete, made-in-Canada, end-to-end, coast-to-coast supply chain is key to ensuring that Canadians have access to the resources and products they need, including batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage. To do this, we recommend prioritizing investment in the battery component and cell manufacturing sector as part of Canada's “build back better” strategy, developing policy and financial incentives to support Canadian industry and government to buy local, and, finally, harnessing the purchasing power of government, public institutions and publicly owned businesses to provide scale.
Our third and final focus area is developing a cohesive strategy. To borrow an analogy from the arts, it is commonly said that in order to play a symphony, you need an orchestra. Today what I hear are a variety of notes of music or even sometimes a few lines of music strung together. If the entire orchestra—including government, industry, academia and stakeholders—can all get organized behind a conductor, or essentially an overarching strategy, we could play some pretty incredible music. A symphony, like art, can be transformational, and a successful build-out of this industry in Canada can also be transformational, but only if we can all get behind that strategy, acting as a system rather than as individual actors or musicians just playing our own parts.
Canada is on the cusp of a rare, once-in-a-generation opportunity to develop its critical mineral industry and compete in this major new market. The global pandemic, in particular, has laid bare the shortcomings in Canada's ability to produce critical goods needed for our country. We do not wish to face similar circumstances in the resources, components or products that will deliver a greener future to Canadians. While it's true that Canada has fallen behind in this respect, it can still catch up, particularly as the sector continues to evolve to meet Canada's own needs.
BMAC believes that by acting swiftly, together, efficiently and responsibly, we will realize the abundant opportunities before us.
Thank you.
View Patrick Weiler Profile
Lib. (BC)
Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thanks to the witnesses for joining us today for some very interesting discussions.
My first question is for Mr. Bubar. You mentioned that you have a number of exploration projects for a number of rare earth elements. You mentioned that demonstration projects funded by the government on different topics would help with this. What is needed to bring these projects into production, beyond simply going through the regulatory process?
Donald Bubar
View Donald Bubar Profile
Donald Bubar
2021-02-22 12:36
As I mentioned earlier, the Saskatchewan Research Council has created a very positive precedent there for a modest-scale demonstration plant to process rare earth minerals and also a facility to do the separation part of the processing required to make the individual rare earth oxides. That's where a lot of the costs and challenges are for aspiring new producers.
Getting that started is actually helping us with our project in the Northwest Territories, where we have an Australian company now as a partner. They are now working directly with the Saskatchewan Research Council on getting that started. Once we do, then we see the potential there to grow production over time as we get the market established and can expand production capacity. That's the way you have to look at these things.
View Patrick Weiler Profile
Lib. (BC)
Just as a follow-up to that, apart from China, what other countries are doing this effectively right now, and what can we learn from them?
Donald Bubar
View Donald Bubar Profile
Donald Bubar
2021-02-22 12:37
Not many. China has been way ahead of us on this all along, recognizing that they have to build out the downstream to justify the development of the upstream side. It looks like the EU is now starting to really take the reins on it over there, from what Simon was saying earlier and from what I've been witnessing.
Pierre Gratton
View Pierre Gratton Profile
Pierre Gratton
2021-02-19 14:44
Mr. Chair, members of the committee, and fellow witnesses, I am Pierre Gratton, President and CEO of the Mining Association of Canada (MAC). I’m accompanied by Brendan Marshall, Vice President of Economic and Northern Affairs.
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the important matter of critical minerals with you today.
Increasing geopolitical uncertainty has focused attention on the precariousness of existing supply sources for many primary materials, including critical minerals classified by Canada's allies as the primary materials on which their economies and national security depend.
An increasingly uncomfortable reliance upon China for many of these commodities has led Europe, the U.S., Canada, Australia and other allies to come together to develop strategies and policy instruments to lessen this dependence.
Within Canada, there is a growing desire to source and procure locally, where possible, especially when doing so achieves better environmental and health outcomes. Recent polling data finds that almost 90% of those surveyed liked the idea of Canada being a preferred global source of critical minerals and would like to see government take a number of steps to support this approach.
The environmental, social and corporate governance leadership of mining companies operating in Canada, boosted by MAC's unique and increasingly globally recognized “Towards sustainable mining” initiative, reinforces confidence that when it comes to world-leading sustainable mining practices, Canadian mining is a leader.
The government has recognized that a resilient Canadian mining and metal manufacturing sector is essential to the 2030 climate plan's goal of establishing a domestic battery electric vehicle manufacturing supply chain. If a prosperous transition economy in Canada is contingent on the establishment of a domestic BEV supply chain, then strategic critical mineral investments are essential.
How do we make it happen? We propose two types of investments: first, programs that de-risk investments currently subject to China's market dominance, thus enabling current gaps in critical and BEV supply chains to be filled domestically in Canada; and second, investments that strengthen and enhance Canada's current levels of critical and BEV mineral and metal production.
For decades, China has held monopoly-like control over critical minerals production and distribution, rendering the rest of the world reliant on procurement and creating a level of risk that deters investors from entering these markets.
For example, who would invest in a rare earth mine with no access to a downstream facility to create value-added rare earth products? Who would invest in a value-added manufacturing facility when there is no upstream mine to source from? What advanced manufacturer would set up shop where they didn't have access to the materials they need to produce their end products—BEVs, high tech, medical or otherwise? The answer is no one, at least not without strategic government support that prioritizes economic security and autonomy enough to enable companies that play by the rules to thrive.
To address these challenges, we propose the establishment of a five-year, $250-million program to de-risk projects across the critical minerals supply chain using a two-tier approach: first, advancing pilot and demonstration projects; and second, scaling the successful ones to a level where operational independence is achieved.
Beyond plugging current supply chain gaps, government must also not compromise existing supply, with the impact of carbon pricing on remote mines being the top concern. Off-grid remote mines are virtually exclusively reliant on diesel fuel for power and haul-fleet operations for the time being. With very limited and currently uneconomic options to displace diesel, the competitiveness and longevity of these operations under the proposed clean fuel regulations and the projected $170 per tonne carbon price will erode.
Why does it matter, in the context of critical minerals? In 2018, for which we have data, 52% of nickel and 62% of cobalt shipped in Canada came from off-grid mines. Today, most EV batteries use cathodes with 60% nickel and 20% cobalt. Unless we get climate policy right, a Canadian critical minerals value chain will not materialize. Even if we plug rare earth supply chain gaps, we cannot compromise our ability to produce the materials that make up 80% of the input into batteries.
To this end, we seek your support for an industrial off-grid clean electrification fund.
COVID-19 has put into sharp focus what happens when we let industries slip away, leaving us at the mercy of global supply chains that, in times of crisis, can fail. Let's seize the tremendous opportunities before us to expand and strengthen our economic future.
Thank you very much.
Lisa McDonald
View Lisa McDonald Profile
Lisa McDonald
2021-02-19 14:49
It will be me.
The Chair: Excellent.
Ms. Lisa McDonald: Good afternoon, Chair and committee members. I'm Lisa McDonald, executive director of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. I thank you for the opportunity to speak to the committee today.
As the leading voice of the mineral exploration and development sector in Canada, PDAC represents more than 7,200 members. Our work focuses on fostering a responsible and competitive mineral industry. Mineral exploration and mining form a cornerstone of our economy, employing over 700,000 Canadians and contributing in excess of $100 billion to our GDP in 2020. It is the largest private sector industrial employer of indigenous people on a proportional basis in Canada, and a key partner of indigenous businesses from coast to coast to coast.
Discovery of new deposits is an essential part of the mineral industry value chain. Over the last decade, more than $15 billion has been spent by companies exploring for minerals and metals in Canada. Mineral exploration is a significant economic driver in many northern and remote parts of the country through employment, procurement of services and providing development opportunities for the future. This sector is uniquely positioned to play a key role in reigniting critical parts of Canada's economy as we look beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.
The pandemic has reminded us of the resiliency of our mineral industry, as many companies were able to quickly adapt to find ways to safely operate. It has also reminded us of the value of infrastructure, and how northern and remote regions in Canada suffer from a deficit in transportation and telecommunications links. In fact, Natural Resources Canada estimates that mineral exploration in our three territories dropped by 50% in 2020 versus the year prior, whereas spending in Ontario and Quebec actually increased over the same period.
To ensure that all of Canada can recover from this pandemic, governments must focus on fiscal and regulatory frameworks that support the competitiveness of our mineral industry and development of the infrastructure needed to build back stronger. If something is not grown, it is either recycled or mined. The things that Canadians rely on each day, the inputs of modern society, come directly from the mineral industry. Our industry expertise, vast resources and potential for further discoveries mean that Canada is well positioned to become the global supplier of choice for the clean technology and renewable energy sectors, and lead our transition towards a low-carbon future.
However, mineral exploration is a complex process with low odds of success. Only about one in 10,000 mineral claims reach an advanced exploration stage, and just one in 1,000 advanced-stage projects become mines. Junior exploration companies do the bulk of this high-risk capital-intensive work, and account for upwards of 70% of all mineral discoveries made in Canada. However, new discoveries in Canada are in decline, with grassroots exploration down by roughly 75% over the last decade.
To become the global supplier of choice, Canada must encourage more investment in grassroots exploration and the search for new critical mineral deposits. To do so, we recommend that the government work with industry to improve the effectiveness of the flow-through share incentive and increase the mineral exploration tax credit from 15% to 30% in each province and from 15% to 40% in each territory, as these two mechanisms combine to generate roughly two-thirds of all funds raised for exploration in Canada.
The government also plays a critical role by facilitating public geoscience. Research by Ernst & Young in 2019 showed that every dollar in public geoscience spending by the government in recent programs has generated more than seven times that in overall economic benefit to Canada. PDAC recommends that the federal government take advantage of this value proposition by creating a new funding mechanism to support comprehensive provincial and territorial mineral resource assessments, based on geoscientific evidence, to identify and incorporate critical mineral potential into infrastructure, land management and conservation decision-making.
Thank you for your time today.
Results: 91 - 105 of 206 | Page: 7 of 14

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