Canada’s mining advantage is not difficult to define. It lies in the country’s natural resource endowment, in its institutions and in a global reputation for stability that few jurisdictions can replicate.

What is different in the last year or two is the level of attention the industry is now receiving. From governments to the broader public, mining has moved firmly into focus, driven by a wider shift across the global economy. Demand for metals and minerals is accelerating, fuelled by energy systems, data infrastructure and geopolitical pressures.

“This is Canada's moment,” said Teck CEO Jonathan Price, keynote speaker at the 2026 CIM CONNECT Convention and Expo on May 4. “Canada has what the world needs...But ultimately, leadership is a choice.”

What follows from that choice, he said, is the need for alignment on policy, infrastructure and partnership if Canada’s mining industry is to deliver at the scale and speed now required.

Against this backdrop, mining is being asked to do more than simply respond to demand. It must find ways to move faster, collaborate more effectively and operate within rising expectations from governments, communities and investors.

Policy certainty

Policy has emerged as one of the most decisive and challenging factors in determining whether projects move forward or not.

While governments have elevated critical minerals as a priority through initiatives such as the Major Projects Office and the Canada Growth Fund, industry leaders said the gap lies in the execution and specifically, the need for more predictable and reliable regulatory frameworks.

“Government’s expectation is that if they put in place the regulatory parameters and the ecosystem that we will invest and that we will invest quickly,” said Price. “There haven’t been too many examples of that yet as a direct result of changes in government policy.”

Panellists agreed that capital and technical expertise are available in Canada, but uncertainty around permitting timelines and shifting expectations continues to slow investment decisions.

“I think our industry is fully capable of raising money for strong projects, but strong projects need what governments can give us…reliable permitting,” said Catherine McLeod-Seltzer, corporate director at Teck.

In that environment, clarity becomes just as important as speed.

“Just give us some firm goalposts,” said Randy Smallwood, non-executive chair of Wheaton Precious Metals.

He pointed to recent efforts to accelerate permitting in jurisdictions such as Ontario as a step in the right direction, noting that clearer timelines are critical to maintaining investor confidence over the long development cycles typical of mining projects.

Enabling infrastructure at scale

Infrastructure constraints also remain a defining challenge.

Canada’s mineral wealth is well established but accessing it—particularly in remote regions—depends on infrastructure that often does not yet exist. From power to transportation to processing capacity, these gaps continue to limit what can be developed economically.

“The constraint is not what’s in the ground, but whether there are roads to reach it, transmission to power it, and ports to move it,” said Price.

Price and Smallwood pointed to regions such as northwestern British Columbia and the Yukon, where significant resource potential remains undeveloped due to high infrastructure costs.

“There’s an incredible opportunity within Canada…we’ve barely scratched the surface,” Smallwood said.

Addressing these challenges will require a shift away from project-by-project solutions towards shared approaches.

“As an industry, we haven’t been particularly good at working together,” Price said. “We’re going to have to crack that not just to share resource development, but to share enabling infrastructure…in a multi-user capacity.”

Multi-user infrastructure, shared infrastructure corridors and coordinated public-private investment were repeatedly highlighted as essential to while minimizing environmental impact.

Rising expectations for partnership

If policy and infrastructure define what is possible, partnerships increasingly define what is acceptable.

Expectations of the mining industry from Indigenous communities, governments and broader society have shifted significantly, placing greater emphasis on long-term benefits, transparency and shared value.

“The expectations are always being raised,” said McLeod-Seltzer. “Our industry has stepped up on sustainability and environmental performance, but we haven’t always been good at telling that story.”

Panellists noted that engagement is no longer transactional. Indigenous communities expect meaningful participation not only in consultation, but in the economic outcomes of projects operating on their lands.

“Indigenous groups rightly expect to better share in the benefits of mining going forward,” Price said. “We have a delicate balance to manage between the speed at which we want to move to bring new mines into production and the necessary consultation and partnerships that have to be put in place with those communities.”

Balancing those pressures will be critical to advancing projects in a way that is both timely and sustainable, panellists agreed.

Collaboration as a requirement

Running through each of these themes—policy, infrastructure and partnership—was a common thread: collaboration.

Whether in building infrastructure, aligning with governments or working across the value chain, the scale of the challenge is forcing a shift in how the industry operates.

“Taken together, these choices on policy, infrastructure and partnership determine whether Canada seizes the opportunity to become a trusted supplier of critical minerals in a more fragmented world,” Price.