Prime Minister Justin Trudeau toured Vital MetalsSA国际影视传媒� rare earth processing facility in Saskatoon on Jan. 16.
The facility, which processes ore from the Nechalacho mine 110 km southeast of Yellowknife, was his first stop on a three-day Canadian tour to promote the federal governmentSA国际影视传媒檚 plan to accelerate development of the countrySA国际影视传媒檚 critical metals and minerals. The Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy was released in December.
SA国际影视传媒淧eople are realizing that this extraordinary transformation toward more electric vehicles, more advanced high-tech solutions in everything we do, requires more access to advanced materials and rare earth elements,SA国际影视传媒� said Trudeau.
Speaking without notes, he stated, SA国际影视传媒淭hatSA国际影视传媒檚 why the world is looking to Canada, because Canada has incredible amounts of critical minerals and rare earth elements that the world needs.
SA国际影视传媒淧eople want to see these are doneSA国际影视传媒� in partnership and respect with Indigenous people.SA国际影视传媒�
John Dorward, managing director for Vital Metals, said the company is working on plans to potentially increase the production of the mine by a factor of eight, a vision supported by the federal government.
SA国际影视传媒淲e are engaging with our stakeholders about plans to expand mining operations and value-added processing from 500 tonnes per year of NdPr (magnetic rare earths) to potentially 4,000 tonnes to meet ever-growing demand.
SA国际影视传媒淢uch of the reason that we have been able to advance our vision has been due to the support of the Government of Canada.SA国际影视传媒�
The companySA国际影视传媒檚 previous stated goal was to produce 25,000 tonnes of concentrate annually by 2025.
David Connelly, vice-president of strategy and corporate affairs for Vital Metals, said that the mining company plans to expand to another rare earth deposit to meet the target of 4,000 tonnes annually.
SA国际影视传媒淭he global demand for rare earths, particularly those sourced in a sustainable manner, is growing rapidly, particularly among our friends and allies,SA国际影视传媒� said Connelly. SA国际影视传媒淪ubject to permitting, that would mean the opening of the Tardiff expansion.SA国际影视传媒�
The Tardiff deposit lies two kilometers south of NechalachoSA国际影视传媒檚 camp.
SA国际影视传媒淭he Tardiff deposit is many times larger than (the North T deposit) and could ultimately be a multi-generational supply of rarer earths to many of our friends and allies,SA国际影视传媒� Connelly said.
The North T deposit is a relatively small source of rare earths that Vital Metals has started mining. The company intentionally started work on the smaller deposit to demonstrate environmentally responsible mining practices, according to Connelly.
SA国际影视传媒淲e were demonstrating our environmental and social responsibility credentials, and demonstrating the product to the world,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
He added that the mining expansion would require approximately 250 ongoing employees and several times more than that during construction.
He also stated that the Tardiff expansion would likely be ready in 2026 or 2027, if Vital Metals acquires a permit.
Connelly said that he has been engaging with Indigenous groups, communities, and governments to extend the permit on North T, which expires in June.
He wasnSA国际影视传媒檛 able to meet Trudeau on Monday because he made a commitment to take part in one of the community engagement meetings in the NWT.
Connelly was able to meet the prime minister in August during a visit to Montreal, where German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited and discussed acquiring critical minerals from Canada.
