FUNDING: CLEER proposal falls short of federal funding

OTTAWA – The consortium behind the CLEER supercluster proposal remains committed to transforming Canada’s mining industry through innovation, despite not being amongst the five projects selected by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada for supercluster funding. The Canadian mining industry developed the pan-Canadian supercluster initiative, CLEER (Clean, Low-Energy, Effective, Engaged and Remediated) to power clean growth through mining innovation. The CLEER submission was prepared on behalf of the mining sector by CEMI, CIMRE, CMIC, COREM, IMII, and MSTA. The CLEER proposal was one of nine projects that was shortlisted by the federal government and the only proposal focused on clean resources. The CLEER consortium included 162 members across Canada. It was designed to generate economic benefits across Canada by leveraging existing regional mining clusters in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. As detailed in its proposal to government, this pan-Canadian “cluster of clusters” would have created an estimated 140,000 new direct and indirect jobs and contributed $26 billion to Canada’s GDP after five years. For further information, contact Carl Weatherell, CMIC executive director and CEO, at 613-627-0771 ext. 105 or Carl@cmic-ccim.org.