Making the switch is hindered by the Canadian tradition of overregulation

Cheaper refueling and lower maintenance costs are making the switch to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) a win-win situation for mining companies looking to save money while reducing CO₂ emissions. BEVs cost less than their internal combustion engine counterparts over their lifetime. This also applies to passenger EVs. Assuming leadership across the EV supply chain represents an enormous economic opportunity for Canada, creating good manufacturing jobs across the country. Our annual BEV round up article on page 13 takes a close look at several BEVs that are new to the market, with capabilities for the mining industry. BEV demand only goes up in the mining sector, and the selection keeps growing.

Additionally, the critical minerals that are essential for BEVs are also essential for the global energy transition. Critical minerals are not only required for clean technology like solar panels and electric vehicle batteries, but they are also key ingredients for creating middle-class jobs and growing a strong, globally competitive Canadian economy.

Last February, energy minister, Jonathan Wilkinson, announced that Canada plans to boost its energy security by slashing the time it takes to develop new critical mineral mines by nearly a decade with improved permitting processes. Wilkinson said the mining and processing of critical minerals was currently too dominated by China, and Canada plans to reduce the time to approve mining permits by better funding the regulatory agency to get rid of paperwork backlogs and running permitting and environmental assessment processes at the same time. According to our law column on page 9, the issue of overregulation continues to be among the most difficult for Canadian mining companies to overcome. Companies must navigate the complex legal landscape of provincial and federal regulations to take a mining project from concept to production. All levels of government need to work together to reduce the time required for permitting new mines for the six critical minerals key to making electric vehicles and wind turbines: lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper, and rare earth elements. The author argues that Canada needs to act with a sense of urgency on critical minerals, i.e., optimizing the regulatory and permitting processes from a 15-year process to maybe five may not be enough to help Canadian mining sector catch up with its Chinese competitors.

We cannot emphasize enough on the fact that the move toward a global net-zero economy is significantly increasing the demand for critical minerals and the clean technologies they enable around the world, creating a generational opportunity for Canadian workers and Canadian businesses. Geopolitical dynamics have exposed the need to have stable and secure supplies of these resources and technologies. Articles on pages 19 to 26 reflect on this topic.

Also, in this issue, we cover several topics related to haulage and transport in the mining sector on pages 28 to 32. Additionally, we continue to discuss the recent impact of technology on mining workforce shortages on pages 18 and 35. Our next issue, May, is on Mining in the Digital Age. with a report on Mining in Canada.