Two Canadian companies developing critical minerals deposits will receive $24 million.
Canada and the United States are gearing up efforts to bolster their critical minerals supply chains. On Thursday, Natural Resources Canada and the U.S. Department of Defense announced the first co-investment in the field. A combined $24 million will be awarded to the two Canadian critical mineral deposit developers, Fortune Minerals and Lomiko Metals. This marks the first joint financing of projects since the two North American neighbors finalized an action plan on critical minerals in 2020. The plan aims to establish secure and reliable supply chains for critical minerals in North America. Fortune Minerals is developing a cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in Canada’s Northwest Territories. Lomiko Metals holds rights to two graphite and lithium projects in the Eastern province of Quebec.
On Tuesday, the U.S. announced sweeping import tariffs on Chinese goods, including critical minerals, to boost domestic production and incentivize the formation of alternative supply chains outside industry-leading China. Canada and other partner countries, such as resource-rich Australia, could eventually benefit from the tariffs. While most raw materials from Down Under are currently processed in China, emerging refining capacities in other nations could shift this in the future.
Photo: iStock/mg7
