Home > News > Minister Greg Rickford...

Minister Greg Rickford comments at Queens Park News Conference

Jan 13, 2025


"The central feature behind the four mines that we opened in the first four years as government, the major legacy infrastructure projects that we are involved in right now and embarking on very soon, all have to do with First Nations economic reconciliation. They are an integral part of the opportunity. They are leading our environmental assessments, particularly with respect to the Ring of Fire. Across northern Ontario, we see the opportunity, and so does the United States.

In addition to the compelling story that the Premier has been telling our country and our friends to the south, Ontario is uniquely poised to meet the opportunity of Amcan, particularly when it comes to mineral production. Competition is stiff with China processing, and it’s important that First Nations are involved and engaged, leading our environmental assessments and as an integral part of the legacy infrastructure that doesn’t just serve to make their community stronger but puts our collective interest in developing our critical minerals the right way.

Ontario itself is a producer of more than 77% of the platinum group elements in Canada and almost half of its nickel and one-third of its copper. We know how to do this, and so it’s so exciting from where I’m standing.

As a northern, northwestern Ontario guy—whether it’s Separation Rapids—we have a partnership with the federal government to build a bridge across the Barrens River and access that part of an otherwise isolated part of Northern Ontario. Whether it’s Thunder Bay, the new epicenter, if you will, for a bunch of critical mineral mining activities, processing capacity, and then of course farther north into the Ring of Fire with one of the most exquisite, quantitative, and qualitative supplies of critical minerals, we’ll do it as partners.

We’ll do it with the tremendous leader who has been quite recently telling the world, importantly, that Canada, but particularly Ontario, can do this. We offer up to the world one of its friendliest environmental policies with the critical minerals that we have so that, from Earth to electric vehicles and mines to motors, Ontario has got it all.

Our partners—our First Nations, private companies, and other levels of government—but at the end of the day, it’s the leadership of this Premier in our amazing caucus who will move forward on these initiatives. I think it’s compelling, and I’m just glad to be a part of it. So thank you very much, and I’m going to call on my friend and colleague, George Pirie, from the other side of Northern Ontario."



Tags: Northern Ontario / Government / Metals / All Articles