Canada’s Critical Minerals List has been reviewed and updated following substantial consultations.

Canada released its first Critical Minerals List in March 2021 with a commitment to review the minerals identified as critical every three years. The list guides federal policy and programs and signals government areas of priority to stakeholders.

Public consultations took place with provincial and territorial governments, other government departments, industry, Indigenous groups and other interested or affected stakeholders.

An analysis was undertaken to review all minerals included in the 2021 Critical Minerals List and consider potential candidates for addition. These analyses resulted in an updated Critical Minerals List that retains all 31 minerals from the 2021 list and an additional three minerals, namely high-purity iron, phosphorous and silicon metal, for a total of 34 critical minerals.

Canada’s Critical Minerals Strategy is part of its strengthened climate plan, 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan: Clean Air, Strong Economy, which advances Canada’s goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 to 45%below 2005 levels by 2030 and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

In 2022, Canada set aside over US$3Bn for investment over the eight years into the critical materials sector, in a move hailed by domestic producers and projects. Combined with money drawn from existing program funding, the budget made available nearly US$1.2Bn in targeted support towards critical minerals projects, with prioritization given to manufacturing, processing, and recycling applications. The total also included US$1.2Bn for infrastructure investments, starting in 2023-24 and running until 2030, which it is hoped with help attract further private sector investment into the sector.