Source: Government of Canada News
Good afternoon, everyone. Bonjour.
I want to begin by acknowledging the current wildfire situation in Manitoba, and particularly those from Snow Lake and Garden Hill who have been evacuated. The Canadian Armed Forces are on the ground assisting with these emergencies, and my heart goes out to every person in my home province currently affected. Your federal government is here to support you today and to rebuild with you when that time comes.
At this pivotal time for Canada — a time when thirteen jurisdictions and the federal government are unified in a way I’ve never seen in my lifetime — it was a privilege to co-chair my first Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference as Federal Minister of Energy and Natural Resources.
Thank you to my co-chair, Gilles Arsenault, for hosting this event — here in the birthplace of Confederation, no less. It’s hard to think of a better place to spend a few Canadian summer days than Charlottetown.
Over the past few days, federal, provincial and territorial partners came to the table for honest, forward-looking discussions.
We also had productive exchanges with national and regional Indigenous leaders, and were privileged to hear their thoughts on how to transform how we think about Indigenous partnership in major projects.
Let’s be clear: Indigenous Peoples are not just participants in our economy. They are rights holders. They are the original stewards of this land. They are governments. They are builders.
If we are serious about retooling our economy, then economic reconciliation must be front and centre.
From advancing “one project, one review” to reducing duplication and advancing new infrastructure, the goals of this meeting were clear: we need to build faster; strengthen regional economies; advance economic reconciliation and clean growth; enhance Canada’s global competitiveness; and secure our rightful place as an energy and resource superpower.
If this sounds ambitious, that’s because it is. But one government cannot do it alone. What is clear is we must work together as one Canada.
On the federal side, to begin making this vision a reality just two weeks ago we passed the One Canadian Economy Act — a nation-building piece of legislation that will ensure Canada builds the strongest economy in the G7.
It’s an important step toward improving Canadian productivity, growth, economic competitiveness and — crucially — regulatory certainty.
That is an imperative, and an urgent one at that.
Because, let’s face it: Global economies and markets are more volatile than they have been at any time since the Second World War. President Trump’s tariffs are disrupting trade and impacting our natural resources, energy, mining, manufacturing and many other sectors.
However, despite what the President may say, Canada has many important cards in these negotiations. And several of the most important ones are energy and natural resources.
At the G7, it was abundantly clear: Canada has the energy and minerals the world wants.
That’s why, in Kananaskis, Canada led the way in forming an agreement to take decisive action to respond to supply chain vulnerabilities through the Critical Minerals Action Plan.
This includes the recently announced Critical Minerals Production Alliance, which will help to mobilize capital, reduce our dependence on non-democratic suppliers and reward countries that, like Canada, mine the right way: with high environmental and labour standards.
Following on that, at this year’s EMMC, Ministers agreed to identify priority critical minerals projects that could be leveraged by the Critical Minerals Production Alliance. This will further position Canada as a leader in disrupting non-allied dominance in the sector by de-risking projects, enhancing certainty and supporting economically viable production.
We will also take steps to strengthen mineral titles policies to protect Canada’s mineral potential and national security.
Finally, all thirteen jurisdictions and Canada agreed to work together to use AI together to strengthen Canada’s geoscience data assets to support critical mineral exploration and attract investment. After all, as the Prime Minister always says, we can give ourselves more than anyone else can take away, and that starts with the minerals beneath our feet.
To serve as a model, we partnered today with the Northwest Territories on a pilot project to scan, digitize and analyze drill cores from their collection to highlight new areas of high critical mineral potential, especially in the Northwest Territories’ Slave Geological Province, one of Canada’s most promising regions for mineral exploration and critical mineral development.
These core scans and their associated data will be made available through a centralized digital platform, helping to reduce exploration risk, re-evaluate existing discoveries, spur investment and accelerate new mineral development — all without further land disturbance.
We are also having advanced conversations with British Columbia and Ontario, and I expect to have more to share in the coming days on that.
A key part of our discussions also centred around building major projects. There was consensus that we can — and must — do better together to get things built and grow our economy, both to access new markets and to furnish domestic resilience.
To keep this momentum going, Energy and Mining Ministers will come together again in the fall to ensure progress on key initiatives, including designating projects of national interest under the One Canadian Economy Act.
Let me close with this. Canada is, at its core, an energy and mining nation. It touches, in different ways, every single part of this country.
In 1858, the first major oil discovery in North America occurred in Oil Springs, Ontario, where James Miller Williams drilled the continent’s first commercial oil well, leading to incorporation of Canada’s first oil company.
Forty years later and further west, the Klondike Gold Rush drew tens of thousands north into the Yukon, a place most of the world saw simply as a frigid wilderness. But after less than ten years, the Yukon’s first hydro plant was developed to power the gold dredges near Dawson City.
At the time, hydroelectric power was just beginning to spread around the world globally. Yet Canada, with its rushing rivers and glacier-fed lakes, had already begun harnessing water to generate electricity. By 1910, we had become one of the largest producers of hydroelectricity in the world.
Canadian ingenuity in harnessing hydropower was also taking off in Quebec and powering new industries that changed the face of the province. In 1901, the first ingot of Canadian aluminum was cast at the Shawinigan Aluminum Smelting Complex, the oldest still in existence in North America. Using hydroelectric power, industrial production at this complex on the Saint-Maurice River began a new era of heavy industry and established the long-standing alliance between the hydroelectric and aluminum industries.
By the 1940s, Canada had added uranium to its growing portfolio, and mines in the Northwest Territories became essential to the Allied nuclear program in the Second World War, supplying uranium under top-secret agreements to support our fight against the Axis powers. Post-war, discoveries of significant deposits in Saskatchewan clinched our spot as a leader in mining and nuclear energy.
Then came Alberta. It was 1947, and after drilling 133 dry holes in a row, Imperial Oil was about to abandon oil exploration altogether. Leduc No. 1, about 15 kilometres west of Edmonton and more than 80 kilometres from any previous drilling sites, was one of six “last-chance” wells for the company.
But when they struck oil there on a chilly February morning, it marked the dawn of Canada’s modern oil era — leading to further discoveries that transformed the province into a major oil producer and moved Canada away from relying on the U.S. and toward self-sufficiency.
Smaller provinces have played outsized roles in this country’s energy and mining story. Prince Edward Island has emerged as a national leader in renewable power, with 99 percent of power generation on the island coming from wind farms. In fact, there are several times a year when P.E.I .is producing so much renewable energy that a province that has traditionally needed to import power becomes an energy exporter.
I could go on and speak to how every single one of our thirteen provinces and territories has a story when it comes to energy and natural resources; but I don’t think anyone wants to hear me talk for that long.
However, the reason I mention all of this is to show how deeply embedded energy and natural resources are in the story of Canada, a country I love deeply.
That means I see my job as Minister of Energy and Natural Resources as not just about industries but also about national unity.
As the Prime Minister says, we can give ourselves more than any country can take away.
Our resources give us tinder and kindling. Our innovation and workers are the fuel. Now, it is time for all thirteen governments to come together and light the match to start the fire.
To start to build big things again, in a responsible, environmentally conscious way. To use our resources to create prosperity that will lift all boats, so that every single Canadian — no matter where they live — can have a good education, a roof over their head, a stable job and, most importantly, a fair shot.
We will act. We will deliver. And we will show results — for Canadian workers, for businesses and for communities.
Canada will no longer be defined by delay but by delivery. Together, we will rise to the challenge.
Thank you. Merci.
MIL OSI Canada News –