Critical Minerals & Mining
Critical Minerals & Mining
NRCan open data, 160 active sites. Canada's position as the allied alternative to China-concentrated critical mineral supply chains.
The Canadian Mining Intelligence Map
Explore the Canadian Mining Intelligence Map →
Active mines, projects, and processing facilities, filterable by mineral, type, and province. Permitting status, processing capacity, and Indigenous partnership data all live alongside it.
Sanctions Screener → · Tariff & Trade Lookup → · Field Guide →
The geological case
Uranium
Athabasca Basin: ore grades 10 to 100x higher than any other deposit globally. Full profile in the Field Guide →
Lithium
Quebec spodumene belt and NWT brine potential, one of the largest hard-rock lithium resources in the Americas. Full profile →
Cobalt
Ontario's Cobalt Belt: one of the only North American facilities producing battery-grade cobalt sulphate outside China. Full profile →
Rare earths
Separation Rapids and Nechalacho: Canada's first rare earth mine in production. No dedicated rare-earth entry in the Field Guide yet, worth adding.
Where minerals go, what comes back
Top export markets
A 75% share to one buyer is the concentration Ottawa is actively working to reduce over the next several years. For exporters, that's the opportunity, not just the risk.
What Canada imports
Uranium production, global share, 2024
Source: World Nuclear Association, 2024.
Canadian mining companies operating abroad
| Company | Key international assets | Exchange |
|---|---|---|
| Barrick Gold | Nevada, Tanzania, Papua New Guinea, Dominican Republic | TSX/NYSE: ABX |
| Kinross Gold | Mauritania, Chile, Alaska, Nevada | TSX/NYSE: K |
| Lundin Mining | DRC (copper/cobalt), Chile, Portugal, Michigan | TSX: LUN |
| Hudbay Minerals | Peru, Arizona, Manitoba | TSX/NYSE: HBM |
| Teck Resources | Chile, Alberta | TSX: TECK |
| First Quantum Minerals | Zambia (nationalisation risk), Panama (Cobre Panama suspended, 2023) | TSX: FM |
First Quantum's Cobre Panama suspension, one of the world's largest copper mines shut by government decree, remains the reference case for Canadian mining political risk. A candidate for the international-operations layer on the map above.
Canada vs. peer producers
| Country | FTAs | Uranium | Rare earths | ESG | Rule of law |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | 15 FTAs, 51 countries | #2 global | Significant | AAA | Top 10 |
| Australia | 18 FTAs | Minor | #4 global | AAA | Top 10 |
| Chile | 32 FTAs | None | Minimal | BB+ | Mid-tier |
| DRC | Few | None | Minimal | High risk | Bottom 20% |
Canada's combination of rule of law, ESG credentials, FTA network, and uranium output positions it as the preferred alternative supplier for allied nations diversifying away from China and higher-risk producers.
Regulatory environment & government programmes
Regulatory snapshot
Government programmes
Jurisdiction risk & competitive landscape
Geopolitical risk by jurisdiction
Fraser Institute Annual Survey of Mining Companies. Ukraine is an opportunity signal, not a risk rating: Canada's FIPA and reconstruction support create early-mover conditions.