Ontario Premier Doug Ford vowed to accelerate critical minerals extraction in the province’s Ring of Fire region on Monday, citing US trade policies as a catalyst for building domestic resource independence.
Speaking to mining executives and prospectors at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada conference, Ford framed his mineral development push as a direct response to economic pressures from the United States.
“President Trump’s tariffs take aim at the Ontario economy, and we need to prepare for anything and everything,” Ford told attendees. “Together we need to build the most competitive economy in the G7 to invest, create jobs and do business.”
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The premier reaffirmed previously announced plans to establish special zones where critical minerals projects can receive expedited approvals, though he provided no new policy announcements at the conference.
Ford has positioned Ontario’s mining sector as crucial to the province’s economic strategy, particularly as demand grows for minerals used in electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy technologies. His government has pledged to streamline resource development approvals to attract investment and create jobs in northern regions.
“We’re going to sit down with them and have a great conversation,” Ford said when asked if his acceleration plans would impact environmental assessment processes involving First Nations communities.
The premier’s mining agenda includes financial commitments aimed at Indigenous participation, including a promised $70 million addition to the Aboriginal Participation Fund and the transformation of the Aboriginal Loan Guarantee Program into a $3 billion First Nations Opportunities Financing Program.
Ford directed criticism toward Ottawa during his remarks, describing federal environmental assessment processes as redundant obstacles to development.
“We cannot afford to add years and years of delays, massive costs to critical mineral projects so that the federal government can waste time repeating and replicating assessments that Ontario has already done,” he said.
However, the mining push has sparked concerns from Indigenous leaders. Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler released a statement last month warning that the premier’s promise to “unlock” the Ring of Fire infringes upon Indigenous rights.
“These are not ‘Ontario’s minerals’; they exist within our territories,” Fiddler said. “The unilateral will of the day’s government will not dictate the speed of development on our lands.”
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