ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Ottawa restricting foreign state-owned investments in critical minerals

Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne rises during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne rises during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Share
Ottawa -

The federal government is restricting the involvement of foreign state-owned companies in Canada's critical minerals sector amid a global rush for the resources and growing tensions with China.

Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announced the new approach in a statement Friday, saying critical minerals are key to Canada's prosperity and security.

"Increasing demand and constrained supply of these all-important minerals are presenting Canada with a generational economic opportunity, and the government of Canada is committed to seizing that opportunity while delivering on its ambitious climate goals," the ministers said.

"While we continue to welcome foreign direct investment that supports this goal, Canada will act decisively when investments threaten our national security and our critical minerals supply chains."

The new rules will make it more difficult for companies owned or operated by foreign governments to buy or invest in the industry, with the government planning to set a higher bar for whether such a transaction is considered beneficial to Canada.

Among the factors that will be considered are the extent to which a foreign government might have control over Canadian assets, the amount of competition in the sector, and whether the deal might endanger Canadian security.

The new rules come as companies and countries around the world are moving to secure critical minerals such as aluminum, lithium and cobalt, many of which are vital for electronics and low-carbon technologies including semiconductors, batteries and electric-vehicle motors.

The rules also coincide with growing tensions with China, which has purchased or invested in Canadian mines and other natural resources to feed its own domestic industries.

The federal government is expected to release by the end of the year what it is calling a critical minerals strategy, which will seek to position the country as a leader in supplying the resources to industries and other countries around the world.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2022.

IN DEPTH

Opinion

opinion

opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster

A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?

opinion

opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike

When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.

An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

DEVELOPING

DEVELOPING Here's what we know about Israel's latest strike in Beirut

Smoke is rising over Lebanon’s capital of Beirut Friday after Israel’s military struck southern suburbs – a dramatic escalation in a year-long period of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

BREAKING

BREAKING

Emergency crews in northern Ontario found the bodies of four people inside a home where a fire broke out Thursday night.

The Montreal couple from Mexico and their three children facing deportation have received a temporary residence permit.

Local Spotlight

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.

Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.

Stay Connected