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Ontario Mining

Minister Lecce talks about his new expanded portfolio, meetings in Washington – by Barbara Patrocinio (iPolitics.ca – April 1, 2025)

https://www.ipolitics.ca/

“The Americans are waking up to the reality that they are dependent on China for critical minerals, and they need an alternative,” Lecce said. “Ontario is the answer.”

A day before President Trump is poised to announce tariffs that experts say will harm the economy in both countries, Ontario’s Energy and Mines Minister Stephen Lecce went to D.C. trying to position the province as Washington’s most reliable partner.

“The Americans are waking up to the reality that they are dependent on China for critical minerals, and they need an alternative,” Lecce said. “Ontario is the answer.” Minister Lecce attended the SAFE Summit in Washington, a meeting with the global leaders in energy, transportation and supply chain.

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Ring of Fire road will be ‘real opportunity’ for northern Ontario, minister says – by Isaac Callan and Colin D’Mello (Global News – March 31, 2025)

https://globalnews.ca/

Sensing a potential change in tone from the next federal government as U.S. President Donald Trump slaps tariffs on Canada, the Ford government is ramping up its efforts to build a road to the Ring of Fire. Creating a way to mine the mineral-rich area in northern Ontario has been on Premier Doug Ford’s to-do list since he was elected for the first time in 2018, but little progress has been made.

Now, with a federal election in full swing, Ontario sees a potential opportunity to move its long-held ambitions forward. Prime Minister and Liberal Leader Mark Carney has said he wants to create a process for the federal government to support nation-building projects if he’s elected, with the Ring of Fire being one option.

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In the hot seat: Algoma Steel faces dual pressures of electric arc furnace rollout while fighting Trump tariff turmoil – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – March 29, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

More than 30 years after serving in the U.S. military, Algoma Steel Group Inc. chief executive officer Michael Garcia is once again in the line of fire. But instead of facing a foreign military foe as he did in the 1990/1991 Gulf War, the threat is economic, and the aggressor is his own countryman.

On March 12, U.S. President Donald Trump levelled a 25-per-cent tariff on Canadian steel imports, making it significantly harder for Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.-based Algoma to win business in the United States, which accounts for more than half of its revenue.

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Why Sudbury can be a critical minerals processing hub to the world – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – March 28, 2025)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Mayor Paul Lefebvre pitches a compelling case to the Toronto corporate crowd to expand nickel processing capacity in the city

Sudbury has a strategic role to play in Canada’s natural resources security and economic sovereignty. Greater Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre delivered that message to an audience of corporate leaders and influencers at the Canadian Club Toronto, March 27, by inviting strategic partners and government funders to come north and invest in critical metals processing capacity in the city.

Lefebvre took part in a panel discussion that Canada is falling short in realizing its full potential due to the lack of investment in mid-stream processing that’s needed to feed the burgeoning battery, energy and defence sectors.

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Lots of mining left in Sudbury but there are challenges: Gord Gilpin – by Hugh Kruzel (Sudbury Star – March 21, 2025)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Vale’s director of Ontario Operations speaks to a Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce luncheon

Sudbury has another hundred years of good mining left in its ore bodies but it will have to work to remain competitive in a difficult market for nickel, Vale’s director of Ontario Operations says. Gord Gilpin told the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce this week that Indonesia has flooded the world market with nickel, depressing the price of the mineral.

Gilpin made a parallel to the turbulent 1970s and 80s. “They (Indonesia) are the OPEC of nickel. They will set prices. We do expect it to balance out but in the short term, there is a surplus that is why pricing is under pressure.”

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Canada scraps federal review of large projects – by Colin McClelland (Northern Miner – March 23, 2025)

Global mining news

Canada’s federal government will permit major infrastructure and mining projects with provincial and territorial approvals alone, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday evening after meeting with the country’s 13 premiers.

“We will eliminate federal duplicative requirements by recognizing provincial assessments for major projects, the so-called mutual recognition,” Carney told reporters in Ottawa. “So, one project, one review, and we will work with the provinces and other stakeholders, Indigenous groups, to identify projects of national significance and accelerate the time frame to build them.”

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Sudbury, Ont., mayor not fazed over what tariffs could mean for nickel mining – by Jonathan Migneault (CBC News Sudbury – March 21, 2025)

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

The U.S. only has one nickel mine and it would take years to start new ones

Sudbury’s mayor says he’s not worried that an ongoing trade war between Canada and the United States will hurt the city’s nickel exports to the south.

“I believe critical minerals, which obviously we are endowed with here in Greater Sudbury, play a role to maybe bridge that divide that we are currently living with the U.S. administration,” said Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre. “For them to realize the importance that they can’t source this in the U.S.”

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[Ring of Fire] For the love of peat — how Liberals let moss block development of the ‘oilsands of Ontario’ – by Jesse Kline (National Post – March 21, 2025)

https://nationalpost.com/

The Grits have mired the development of vast wealth in a bureaucratic nightmare. The Tories pledge to change that

A video posted by Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on Wednesday highlights one of Canada’s enduring problems: our chronic inability to get anything done and, by extension, our propensity to handicap our own economic prosperity.

In the video, and at a pre-campaign stop in Sudbury, Ont., Poilievre highlighted a story that should have sparked a modern-day gold rush. In 2007, prospectors found vast deposits of critical minerals — including chromite, which is used to produce stainless steel, cobalt, nickel, copper and platinum — in a remote part of northern Ontario, about 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, that came to be known as the “Ring of Fire.”

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Restart date for White River mine remains in the vault – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – March 19, 2025)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Vault Minerals charts a new mine plan, eyes more ounces at Sugar Zone

The cone of silence prevails on a possible restart date of the Sugar Zone mine, north of White River. Vault Minerals, however, is shedding some light on how things will come together to resume production at the mothballed underground operation based on some details in a February news release and an investor presentation this month.

Vault is a merged entity of two Australian mining companies, consisting of Silver Lake Resources, which originally acquired Sugar Zone in 2022, and Red 5. The companies rebranded to its current name last June.

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Poilievre criticized for pledging to fast-track Ring of Fire without Indigenous consultation – by Rajpreet Sahota, Faith Greco, Kate Rutherford (CBC News Canada – March 19, 2025)

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

Conservative leader’s ‘proposed shortcuts ignore our rights and our connection to the land’: Alvin Fiddler

Pierre Poilievre’s pledge on Wednesday that a Conservative government would fast-track development of the Ring of Fire has been criticized by Nishnawbe Aski Nation’s (NAN) grand chief, who accused the federal party leader of ignoring First Nations’ rights.

Alvin Fiddler was among those responding to Poilievre’s comments on the mineral-rich area of northwestern Ontario during his visit to Sudbury. NAN is a political organization representing 51 First Nation communities across Treaty 9 and Treaty 5 areas of northern Ontario.

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Pierre Poilievre blasted over pledge to fast-track Ring of Fire permits – by Alex Ballingall and Raisa Patel (Toronto Star – March 19, 2025)

https://www.thestar.com/

The grand chief of a group of northern Ontario First Nations is blasting Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over his promise to fast-track approvals and pump money into the Ring of Fire mineral region.

OTTAWA — The grand chief of a group of northern Ontario First Nations is blasting Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over his promise to fast-track approvals and pump money into the Ring of Fire mineral region.

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NEWS RELEASE: Webequie and Marten Falls First Nations Welcome Commitment to Advance Ring of Fire Infrastructure (March 19, 2025)

Project Location & Study Area (CNW Group/Webequie First Nation and Marten Falls First Nation)

A HOME PAGE

Thunder Bay, Ontario – Webequie First Nation and Marten Falls First Nation welcome Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s commitment to invest $1 billion in road infrastructure to the Ring of Fire and to improve the federal permitting process.

This investment responds directly to requests made by both First Nations for funding and aligns with their longstanding efforts to lead the development of sustainable infrastructure that will connect our communities, unlock critical resources, and create long-term economic opportunities. The promise to share tax revenues at the federal level is also a welcomed new commitment and pathway to economic reconciliation.

The Northern Road Link, a project led by Webequie and Marten Falls First Nations, is a crucial component of the broader effort to connect remote First Nations to the provincial highway network. By securing reliable infrastructure, the all-season roads will enable safe transportation, increase access to essential services, and support responsible resource development in the Ring of Fire region.

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Conservative leader vows action on Ring of Fire within six months – by Darren MacDonald (CTV News Northern Ontario – March 19, 2025)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/northern-ontario/

Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre announced Wednesday that within six months of taking power, he would green-light all federal permits for the Ring of Fire and commit $1 billion to build new roads.

Poilievre, who is holding a rally in Greater Sudbury on Wednesday evening, said progress on the Ring of Fire is key to “unlocking billions of dollars in resources and taking back control of our economy from the Americans.” The long-delayed mineral project 500 kilometres east of Thunder Bay in northwestern Ontario includes large deposits of high-grade chromite, cobalt, nickel, copper and platinum.

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Federal Conservative leader stops in Sudbury with promises of ‘unlocking’ Ring of Fire – by Faith Greco and Kate Rutherford (CBC News Sudbury – March 19, 2025)

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

Pierre Poilievre vowed to approve all federal permits in Ring of Fire within 6 months

The federal Conservative leader is in Sudbury today making promises, if elected, to unlock access to critical minerals in the Ring of Fire and build a new road into the remote mining camp in northwestern Ontario.

“[The Ring of Fire] could make Canada very rich. It would be life changing for northern Ontario towns, galvanizing thousands of paycheques and modern infrastructure,” Pierre Poilievre said at a news conference Wednesday.

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‘At Sudbury, we are nowhere near having found it all’ – by Stan Sudol (Sudbury Star – March 18, 2025)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Magna Mining’s critical mineral transformation in the Sudbury Basin to create new wealth, jobs

From American President Donald Trump’s desire to take over Greenland and perhaps Canada, and his recent confrontation with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as Premier Doug Ford’s determination to get Ring of Fire infrastructure built, the general public is now acutely aware of the strategic and geopolitical importance of critical minerals.

And yet, Canada’s largest critical mineral mining camp – the legendary Sudbury Basin, which has been in operation for slightly over 140 years and controlled by two of the world’s largest miners, Brazilian-based Vale and Swiss-owned Glencore – seems to have been largely ignored by the mainstream media.

Since both Vale and Glencore have historically controlled much of the land package in the region, few juniors have thrived.

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