The federal government has recognized 31 minerals, together with copper, lithium and nickel, that it considers essential for his or her strategic makes use of in trendy know-how and the power transition, resembling in electrical car batteries.
Below the Funding Canada Act the federal government can approve or reject mergers and acquisitions primarily based on their web profit to the nation.
Champagne mentioned the federal government would now set a excessive bar when assessing the online advantages of any deal involving essential minerals producers, including this mirrored how essential it was to guard what it considers a strategic sector.
“Henceforth, such transactions will solely be discovered of web profit in probably the most distinctive of circumstances,” he mentioned.
A few of the nation’s largest mining corporations are copper producers, which suggests any international funding involving these miners would face intense scrutiny.
Canada within the final two years has taken a troublesome stance on international investments within the essential minerals area, particularly from China the place it has requested buyers to divest from Canadian corporations as a consequence of their Chinese language involvement.
(By Divya Rajagopal; Enhancing by Sonali Paul)