Prime Minister Mark Carney announced $80.3 million to strengthen critical mineral supply chains, framing the move as part of Canada’s wider push to secure inputs for clean energy technologies and reduce exposure to geopolitical shocks.
The package, unveiled on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, sets out targeted support for domestic research and international partnerships that aim to move ideas from lab to plant floor while diversifying where Canada buys and sells key materials.
In Saguenay, Quebec, the department said Arianne Phosphate received conditional approval for up to $735,000 from the Critical Minerals Research, Development and Demonstration program to advance processing of phosphate rock from its Lac à Paul site and optimize phosphoric acid purification.
If the work proves out at scale, it could establish a Canadian source of phosphorus used in lithium-iron-phosphate batteries. Ottawa added that phosphate was recognized as a critical mineral last year.
The $80.3 million plan breaks into three tracks. The largest piece, $50.3 million over 3 years, backs innovation to secure global critical mineral supply chains, including domestic R&D that tackles processing gaps and collaborations with G7 partners.
A second stream directs $20 million over two years to a Resilient and Inclusive Supply Chain Enhancement partnership that helps developing economies capture more value from the minerals they produce.
The final $10 million over 2 years funds capacity building in emerging markets through training and technical assistance. The government has cast these measures as a way to “level the playing field” when markets face deliberate disruption.
The immediate signal is a policy tilt toward upstream and midstream resilience rather than only plant level megadeals. Grants under the research and demonstration program tend to be smaller and faster to deploy, which can shorten the path from pilot to commercialization for technologies in beneficiation, refining, and recycling.
The first award in Quebec points to battery chemistry optionality, since LFP cells have gained share in mass market electric vehicles and grid storage.
The approach also fits with ongoing permitting and delivery reforms after Carney named the first projects for Canada’s Major Projects Office in September, an effort to move nationally significant energy and mining files through the system with clearer timelines.
Ottawa’s battery strategy has mixed large incentives for cell manufacturing with supply chain insulation, a balance that matters as Canada recalibrates EV rules and trade exposure.
Earlier this year the government hits pause on the EV mandate while it reviews competitiveness and jobs, a move that sharpened focus on costs and inputs.
Copper, nickel, graphite, and now phosphate sit at the center of that debate, echoing policy arguments about what Ottawa sees in copper as a backbone of electrification.
Junior miners and process innovators that can prove lower carbon flowsheets or secureft supplies may be best placed to compete for funding.
Mid-tier producers with expansion options could see de-risking if the R&D grants close technology gaps that have slowed permits or financing.
Recent moves like the Teck and Anglo merger kept copper in focus, while capital allocators have rolled out vehicles such as Sprott launches an active metals and miners fund to capture a potential upcycle.
