View From the Top: An Interview With Pierre Corbeil

In mid-June, CMJ interviewed the Honourable Pierre Corbeil, who was acting Minister of Natural Resources, Wildlife and Parks of Qubec from March to July 2004, in temporary replacement of the Honourable Sam Hamad who was on sick leave.

CMJ: You live in Val-d’Or. What is going on in that area right now in the mining business?

Corbeil: There has been a sharp increase in exploration activity since the price of base metals and particularly gold went up. Many projects are at an advanced stage or are undergoing feasibility studies; these may very well become new mines in the near future. Close by, there is the Goldex project, the Lapa gold project near Cadillac and East-Amphi in the Malartic area. And in the Abitibi-Tmiscamingue region as a whole, there are also Casa Berardi, Perseverance and Gonzague-Langlois. Base metal exploration is also going strong in the Noranda camp, to find ore to supply the Noranda smelter. Deep exploration projects are underway, namely at the Doyon gold mine and the Louvicourt base metal mine, in order to discover new resources.

If we put all those elements together, along with our highly qualified manpower, we have a good recipe for new mining projects in the near future.

In Val-d’Or, we know the difference the price of base metals and gold makes. During the late 1990s, gold was at US$265 per ounce; exploration went down, and many mines closed. We lost some good workers who left the region to work in the diamond mines up north. With the reduction of exploration activities, existing mines are slowly but surely going to close. We have to invest in exploration to make new discoveries and keep our manpower in the region; otherwise our youth will eventually lose interest in mining and leave the region to pursue other goals.

CMJ: Can you characterize the state of mineral exploration spending in Qubec at this time?

Corbeil: For the year 2003, more than $134 million was invested in exploration in all of Qubec, 70% of this in the Abitibi Tmiscamingue and Nord-du-Qubec regions. This is an increase of 40% over three years. For 2004, we are expecting something on the order of $180 million in exploration spending, probably most of that money again in the Abitibi-Tmiscamingue and Nord-du-Qubec regions.

CMJ: What incentives does Qubec offer to make exploration here attractive?

Corbeil: The Fraser Institute recognized that Qubec is #1 in Canada and 4th in the world for its exploration attractiveness. Our government’s last budget includes improvements to measures to support exploration (tax credits and a flow-through-share permanent regime) and other measures to support exploration and mine development (credit on duties refundable for losses, and credit on duties for the cost of bringing an orebody into production). All these incentives put together play a major role in attracting many exploration companies to Qubec, and give mining companies a competitive edge worldwide.

CMJ: Tell me about Qubec’s diamond strategy.

Corbeil: Our strategy is based on the fact that diamond mining in Qubec may well become a reality in the next decade. Worldwide, rough diamond mining is a US$9-billion business. If we include the entire process–exploration, mining, sorting, valuation, cutting, polishing and sales–we are looking at a US$60 billion business around the world. So you see the difference? We want diamond mining in Qubec and we are taking steps to support it, but we also want to become involved in all the other phases of the process.

Last June, we announced an investment of Cdn$20 million in the Matane area. This private/government partnership investment with Diarough Canada was put in place to support diamond cutting and polishing facilities. A journalist asked why the company would want to invest in Matane, and the company answered because the incentives are so good.

Diarough is involved in the valuation, cutting, sorting, polishing and marketing of diamonds. They are based in Belgium but are involved in a dozen countries, and have around US$800 million of business activities. They have a staff of more than 20,000 people around the world, plus they are one of the only companies to buy diamonds from De Beers, Rio Tinto and BHP Diamonds. And they want to invest here in Qubec.