Sudbury– Viviane Lapointe, Member of Parliament for Sudbury, announced that the Government of Canada is investing $960,000 to support the ongoing operations of the Nickel Basin Federal Development Corporation (Nickel Basin) for a three-year period. MP Lapointe was joined by Marc G. Serré, Member of Parliament for Nickel Belt and Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministers of Energy and Natural Resources and Official Languages for the announcement, which was made on behalf of Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for FedNor.
Provided through FedNor’s Northern Ontario Development Program, the funding will allow Nickel Basin to provide business counselling and investment services to small and medium-sized businesses and support socio-economic development in the community. As result of this investment, Nickel Basin will assist approximately 60 businesses with start-up, maintenance and expansion efforts, which are expected to help create and maintain up to 900 local jobs.
For 25 years, Nickel Basin has been helping local entrepreneurs start or expand their businesses, create local jobs and support a stronger, more diversified economy. Based in Sudbury, Nickel Basin provides a full range of business development services, including access to capital, mentoring, information and referrals. To accelerate the growth of scalable technology start-ups, the organization also administers the Sudbury Catalyst Fund, which makes equity investments in start-up companies in key sectors including clean tech, biomed and advanced manufacturing.
“Local leadership and organizations understand the communities they serve and are best positioned to respond to their unique needs, supporting Canadians where they live. The Government of Canada is supporting organizations like Nickel Basin so we can achieve our shared goal and build a strong, sustainable economy in Northern Ontario. We invest in regional economies because Canada is strongest when we are succeeding together.” – Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister Responsible for FedNor
Also, Investments in critical minerals infrastructure are essential for Canada to seize the enormous economic opportunity presented by the low-carbon economy and to capitalize on our rich mineral resources. Canada is well positioned to be a global leader in critical minerals and a first-class producer of a wide variety of these minerals, which are essential for powering the clean economy, strengthening national defence capabilities and ensuring national and economic security. By developing and expanding critical minerals value chains—from mining and processing to manufacturing and recycling—Canada can create good jobs, support economic opportunities and contribute to a resilient and secure future.
Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, on behalf of François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced a $41 million investment in Foran Mining Corporation. This investment, being made through the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), will support the company’s $263.7 million project to adopt and integrate clean innovative technologies at Foran’s McIlvenna Bay mine in Saskatchewan. Foran is striving for its project to be the first carbon-neutral copper project in Canada.
