Ottawa has approved the construction of a mine in Ontario that’s expected to be the largest nickel sulphide operation in the west, a key metal that’s used to build stainless steel and batteries of electric vehicles. Canada Nickel Company Inc. received the federal government’s approval for its Crawford Nickel Project, located about 42 kilometres north of Timmins in Ontario. The project is expected to attract $5 billion in investment and create 4,000 new careers, the federal government said in a statement on Friday. “Nickel is one of those commodities that China has been able to garner significant influence,” said Mark Selby, chief executive of Canada Nickel. “ Two-thirds of the world’s nickel now comes from Indonesia through plants that are largely Chinese controlled.” The Crawford project is one of 18 projects that the federal government has referred to the Major Projects Office , an agency created by prime minister Mark Carney’s government to speed up the building of key projects that are likely to boost Canada’s economy and, in the process, reduce the country’s reliance on the United States. The metal, which is used in the aerospace, defence and automotive sectors, is also considered one of Canada’s critical minerals . These are minerals that are likely to play a key role in the gradual transition of the global economy towards clean energy. In case of electric vehicles, nickel is used primarily for big cars and trucks and luxury vehicles, since the metal, that’s used as a battery cathode, helps provide a longer range. While Canada Nickel has received an approval from the federal government, it doesn’t expect to begin construction until the fourth quarter of 2027. It will take about two more years after the start, to finish building the mine. It’s expected to run for 41 years. “This is the main permit in terms of approval, but there’s a number of supplementary permits, both at the provincial and federal level that you require. They are not sort of a big yes or no permits, but we need to get through the work before we break ground,” said Selby. The cost to build the mine would be about US$2 billion, but Canada Nickel will have to raise US$2.5 billion to cover interests and other aspects. US$1.5 billion will be raised through debt, while another billion through equity, Selby said. Canada’s environment minister Julie Dabrusin deemed that the potential effects as a result of the mine are justified when taking into account the benefits of the project, the federal government said in a statement. The decision was informed based on scientific evidence and consultation with Indigenous groups, the statement said. Tim Hodgson: A divided Canada cannot build what the world needsCanada has the critical minerals the world needs, but there isn’t a ‘cookie cutter’ approach to getting them out: Hodgson Canada’s energy minister Tim Hodgson said in the same statement that the approval of the project is evidence that the government is working towards streamlining permitting processes. Canada, in general, has been criticized for taking several years to provide approvals to build mines. Selby said that the approval for his project took fraction of the time required by most big mining projects. • Email: nkarim@postmedia.com
