The Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion project was quashed in court due in part to the government failing its duty to perform proper engagement. Courtesy of Trans Mountain

Professional services firm EY released the results of its Top 10 Business Risks and Opportunities - 2020 survey, in October, and for the second year in a row nearly half of the participating mining companies listed licence to operate as the biggest risk to their businesses. While the factors involved in obtaining a social licence have expanded in recent years – increased pressure from activist shareholders and increasingly resource-nationalistic countries being some of the newer concerns – mining companies in Canada and abroad continue to have issues with the Indigenous engagement required for most projects.