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Canadian Media Resource Articles

Uranium added to Nova Scotia critical minerals list as province seeks exploration – by Keith Doucette (Canadian Press/CBC Nova Scotia – May 14, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/

Potential exploration sites are in Pictou County, Annapolis County and Hants County

The Nova Scotia government added uranium to its list of priority critical minerals on Wednesday and issued a request for exploration proposals at three sites the province says have known deposits of the heavy metal.

Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton says the government hopes to reap economic benefits from the exploration in the future, although a department official said any potential mining project could be “decades” away.

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Ice roads are a lifeline for First Nations. As Canada warms, they’re disappearing. (Grist.org – May 15, 2025)

https://grist.org/

Indigenous peoples are navigating the slow collapse of winter roads — and an even slower pace of help.

It was the last night of February and a 4×4 truck vaulted down the 103-mile winter road to Cat Lake First Nation in northern Ontario, a road made entirely of ice and snow. Only the light of the stars and the red and white truck lights illuminated the dense, snow-dusted spruce trees on either side of the road. From the passenger seat, Rachel Wesley, a member of the Ojibway community and its economic development officer, told the driver to stop.

The truck halted on a snow bridge over a wide creek — 1 of 5 made of snow along this road. It was wide enough for only one truck to cross at a time; its snowy surface barely 2 feet above the creek. Wesley zipped up her thick jacket and jumped out into the frigid night air. She looked at the creek and pointed at its open, flowing water. “That’s not normal,” she said, placing a cigarette between her lips.

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Canada could unlock C$1.1tr GDP boost by fast-tracking resource projects, think-tank says – by Staff (Mining Weekly – May 16, 2025)

https://www.miningweekly.com/

Canada could add as much as C$1.1-trillion to its economy by 2035 if it accelerates investment decisions on more than 500 energy, mining and infrastructure projects, according to a new report by the Public Policy Forum.

The ‘Build Big Things’ report, released on Thursday, offers a policy playbook aimed at boosting Canada’s sluggish productivity and countering global competition in critical minerals and energy. It calls for regulatory reform, streamlined permitting, expanded Indigenous participation and a national strategy to accelerate project approvals.

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Could thorium be the world’s next great source of fuel? – by Naimul Karim (Financial Post – May 16, 2025)

https://financialpost.com/

“Rabbits sometimes make mistakes or grow lazy. That’s when the tortoise seizes its chance.” That’s how a scientist from China recently described the Asian giant’s progress in using thorium — a silvery-white radioactive metal that’s more abundant in the earth’s crust than uranium — to generate power.

Xu Hongjie reportedly used the folklore saying in a closed-door meeting at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in April to suggest China had overtaken the United States in this specific field, according to the South China Morning Post. But could thorium really be used as a viable source for fuel in the near future or even replace uranium in nuclear reactors? Here’s what you need to know.

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OPINION: Too long has the Toronto Stock Exchange been shrunken and battered. No more – by Bryce C. Tingle (Globe and Mail – May 15, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Bryce C. Tingle is the N. Murray Edwards Chair in Business Law at the University of Calgary’s faculty of law. His book Hard Lessons in Corporate Governance was shortlisted for the Donner Prize.

Canada has been shaken out of its complacency by the actions of the Trump administration over the past 100 days. As this country considers how it can compete against a suddenly antagonistic southern neighbour, some consideration should be given to the woeful state of our public markets.

The Toronto Stock Exchange, long the crown jewel of Canada’s financial system, has shrunk almost by half in terms of the number of operating companies it supports. Most of the missing companies have gone to the U.S. In the terminology we generally use for businesses, the TSX is being badly outcompeted by the U.S.

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Northern Ontario First Nations fear uphill battle to preserve rights as Bill 5 speeds through legislature – by Aya Dufour (CBC News Sudbury – May 16, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/

Ford government says it’s cutting ‘red tape’ to speed up resource development projects

Bill 5 is a broad piece of legislation that has implications for mining development, endangered species, archeology and Indigenous peoples. It’s part of the Ford government’s “plan to protect Ontario” by cutting “the red tape that has held back major infrastructure, mining and resource development projects.”

The bill was tabled a few weeks ago and is now slated to be examined by a standing committee at Queen’s Park, whom Friends of the Attawapiskat river founder Michel Koostachin is set to address in the coming weeks. “There’s not going to be any consultations whatsoever with this bill,” said Koostachin.

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Expert tells U.S. senators Canada is a key ally on critical minerals – by Kelly Geraldine Malone (Canadian Press – May 14, 2025)

https://www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/

WASHINGTON – An expert in critical minerals told U.S. senators Wednesday that Canada will be a key ally in efforts to reduce America’s reliance on Chinese supply — after President Donald Trump spent months claiming the United States doesn’t need anything from its northern neighbour.

Gracelin Baskaran, director of critical minerals security at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., told the Senate finance committee that the U.S. only has 1.3 per cent of the world’s rare earths. “The uncomfortable truth is we are not going to do this alone,” she said.

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China’s gold market surges in April, but investment demand may cool along with trade tensions – World Gold Council – by Ernest Hoffman (Kitco News – May 14, 2025)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – China’s gold market posted one of its strongest performances of all time in April, with prices, physical and investment demand all sky-high, but demand may wane as U.S.-China tensions ease, according to Ray Jia, Research Head, China at the World Gold Council (WGC).

Jia noted that global gold prices continued their rise in April, and this strength was reflected in the Chinese market. “Our model shows that a weaker dollar, elevated geopolitical/economic uncertainties and strong gold ETF inflows drove gold up,” he said. “While the LBMA Gold Price PM in USD saw its strongest April since 2011, the SHAUPM in RMB recorded its highest April return in 19 years.”

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Trump keeps saying the U.S. doesn’t need Canada’s stuff. We asked experts if he’s right – by Jordan Gowling (Financial Post – May 13, 2025)

https://financialpost.com/

Here’s a look at eight Canadian exports and whether they are essential to America

In his Oval Office meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney last Tuesday, President Donald Trump repeated his refrain that the U.S. doesn’t need or want anything Canada produces, listing off a litany of goods he said his country would rather make itself. But can the U.S. really do without our stuff?

We checked with economists and industry experts to see just how much the U.S. relies on eight of our biggest exports, and whether Trump is right in thinking they can go it alone. rump made it clear during his meeting with Carney that the U.S. does not want Canadian-made vehicles. “We want to make our own cars, we don’t really want cars from Canada,” said Trump. “At a certain point, it won’t make economic sense for Canada to build those cars.”

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Federal government appoints first Indigenous Minister of Indigenous Services Canada – by Willow Fiddler (Globe and Mail – May 14, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The first Indigenous person ever to be appointed Minister of Indigenous Services Canada has a big job ahead of them and high expectations to meet, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations says. Mandy Gull-Masty, from the Cree First Nation of Waswanipi in Quebec, was sworn in on Tuesday to lead the ministry, which administers services and programs for First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities.

AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse told The Globe and Mail that Ms. Gull-Masty will be held to a higher standard because she is a First Nations woman, but that she will prove her leadership to the country.

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‘Diamonds are forever,’ but not necessarily so for northern mining industry – by Aya Dufour (CBC News Sudbury – May 13, 2025)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/

DeBeers renews focus on natural diamonds after closing lab-grown business

DeBeers recently renewed its focus on natural diamonds after experimenting with lab-grown ones. But that probably won’t be enough to revive diamond mining in northern Ontario, according to some working in the sector.

In a news release last week, the mining giant pointed to a sharp decline in prices for lab-grown diamonds and said that trend underpinned the company’s “core belief in rare, high value and natural diamond jewelry.” DeBeers started its lab-grown diamond business around the same time it closed its only diamond project in Ontario — the Victor Mine near Attawapiskat First Nation in the province’s far north.

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Gold continues to hold its own as markets continue to digest improving US-Chinese trade relations – by Neils Christensen (Kitco News – May 13, 2025)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – The gold market may be struggling to attract bullish momentum as it remains well below last month’s all-time high of $3,500 an ounce; however, investors are still reluctant to short the precious metal as it continues to hold support at $3,200 an ounce.

In a note on Tuesday, commodity analysts at TD Securities pointed out that gold is still above its lows following President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day,” when he announced significant global tariffs on imported goods. He later removed the elevated tariffs and implemented a blanket 10% tax on all imports.

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Pan American Silver shareholders give cool reception to proposed $2.1-billion acquisition of MAG Silver – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – May 13, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Pan American Silver Corp. has reached a friendly arrangement to buy its Canadian competitor MAG Silver Corp. in a US$2.1-billion stock-and-cash deal that has not gone down well with shareholders. Vancouver-based MAG’s sole producing asset is its 44-per-cent share in the Juanicipio silver mine, which is located in Mexico, and majority-owned and operated by Britain-incorporated Fresnillo PLC.

Founded by financier Ross Beaty, Pan American is one of the biggest silver producers on the planet with a portfolio of 10 mines in seven countries. The Vancouver-based company expanded its footprint considerably a few years ago when it bought a suite of South American mines from Canada’s Yamana Gold Inc.

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Rio Tinto bets big on Lithium Triangle’s brine riches – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – May 13, 2025)

https://www.mining.com/

Rio Tinto (ASX, LON: RIO) is doubling down on lithium, with chief executive Jakob Stausholm declaring that South America’s Lithium Triangle is the ideal region to secure the metal critical to the energy transition.

Speaking at the Bank of America Global Metals, Mining and Steel Conference on Tuesday, Stausholm said that brine resources in Argentina, Chile and Bolivia offer the best chance for the world to access low-cost, high-quality lithium.

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Honda Canada postpones $15-billion EV investment project in Ontario (Canadian Press/CTV News – May 13, 2025)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/

TORONTO — Honda Canada is postponing a $15-billion electric vehicle investment project in Ontario, including a proposed EV battery plant and retooled vehicle assembly facility.

Honda Canada spokesman Ken Chiu said due to the recent slowdown in the EV market, Honda has announced an approximate two-year postponement of the comprehensive value chain investment project in Canada. “The company will continue to evaluate the timing and project progression as market conditions change,” Chiu said in a statement Tuesday.

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