The 38^th annual Mineral Exploration Roundup, hosted by the Association for Mineral Exploration (AME), kickstarted on Jan. 18 with a keynote address by mining financier, Robert Friedland on what a post Covid-19 economic recovery will look like and an announcement by the Minister of Natural Resources Seamus O’Regan on three new project investments.

As founder and executive co-chairman of Ivanhoe Mines, Friedland’s talk touched on a concept of “the revenge of the miners” where for years investors favoured technologies such as broadband internet, the cloud, telecommunications and other disruptive technologies above mining. But now, especially with the “shock” effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, he predicts that there will be a higher demand for metals and minerals in future as developed economies move toward adopting zero-net emissions targets and begin focusing on a green recovery.

“The mining industry has been down for such a long time that most participants forgot what ‘up’ looks like,” said Friedland. By 2023-2025, he believes governments and businesses will invest $50 to $100 trillion as they focus on electrifying and creating a green world’s economy. But the increasing opportunities for mining also raises challenges such as supporting environmental, social and governance (ESG).

“The countervailing pressure to meet very high ESG standards in mining is going to make the whole enterprise even more interesting and difficult to do properly,” said Friedland. “It is possible to mine responsibly, in a better way, and we as an industry have to find a way to do that and that applies to all aspects of the enterprise from exploration, development, construction, tailing disposal and reclamation.”

Friedland added that the people in the industry that will solve these problems is also evolving.

“It’s not just going to be an enterprise for the old white guys from Canada…There’s going to be women in mining, and there’s going to be people of every colour, race and description; mining is going to be required to help change this little planet that we’re living on.”

To support the changing faces of the mining industry, the federal government, under its Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP) launched back in 2019, will provide $50,000 in funding to the Council for the Advancement of Native Development Officers for two projects. The first project aims at boosting awareness of Economic Development Officers working in Indigenous communities to increase their knowledge of the mining sector and the opportunities that generate benefits for the community.

The second project will focus on opening more doors for Indigenous peoples in exploration and mining by helping them develop an understanding of the mining cycle, from early exploration through production to mine closure and site reclamation, in order to increase their ability to engage in the industry.

O’Regan also announced a $50,000 investment to the Mining Suppliers Trade Association to help increase innovation and collaboration towards the faster deployment of cleaner mining technologies.

“Global competition for both investment and trade has rarely been more intense,” said O’Regan during the opening ceremony. “The market appetite for combating climate change in terms of both profits and in terms of how we treat the planet has never been stronger and the need for corporate responsibility and social inclusion has never been more clear.”

Related: The government of Canada will commit $1.5 billion towards fostering a future hydrogen economy for the country

The federal government has also committed $135 million for two of its renewed flagship initiative programs under the first action plan of the CMMP. The Targeted Geoscience Initiative, with a budget of $35 million, is a research program that aims to improve mineral exploration effectiveness. The program is currently accepting proposals for two-year projects with grants of up to $50,000 per year. The grants will finance research that improves understanding of the geological background around Canadian mineral deposits and enhances the efficacy of mineral exploration.

The other significant initiative is the Geo-mapping for Energy and Minerals Program, which will help provide more geoscientific information on the untapped resources in Canada’s north.

“We may have launched the CMMP well before the pandemic struck, but the vision it puts forward is one that this pandemic has shown we absolutely need,” said Paul Lefebvre, MPP for Sudbury and parliamentary secretary to the minister during the opening remarks of the government industry forum panel. “A vision for a future that puts a premium on innovation, [and] a vision in which critical minerals will play an essential role in everything, restarting our manufacturing industry, next generation batteries and electric vehicles, solar panels, and a clean energy technology that we will need to transition to a greener future. Canada is well placed to lead, and we will lead.”