Ontario Launches New Job-Creating Critical Minerals Strategy

Province’s vision paper and consultation focused on jobs and Canadian self-reliance

As part of its plan to protect Ontario’s economy and accelerate growth, the Ontario government is cementing the province’s role as a secure, reliable global supplier of responsibly sourced critical minerals. Today, at the annual Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention, Minister Stephen Lecce announced the government is releasing Fortifying Ontario’s Economy: A Plan to Accelerate Responsible Resource Development, a forward-looking vision to boldly overhaul and modernize Ontario’s Critical Minerals Strategy.

The government is inviting feedback to ensure the next phase of the strategy can respond to a rapidly changing world, with a focus on bolstering Canadian self-reliance, jobs and supply chains, to ensure Ontario continues to be the most attractive place in the G7 to invest and create jobs.

Ontario is also announcing the addition of high-purity iron and aluminum to its Critical Minerals List, the first expansion since its inception, underscoring a firm commitment to bolstering end-to-end supply chains that support manufacturing amid ongoing U.S. tariffs.

“In the fight for Canadian jobs, we transformed one of the slowest mining permitting systems to one of the fastest, emerging in the top two globally for attracting mining investment,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Mines. “Our new Critical Mineral Strategy will send a signal to the world: Ontario has a serious plan to build mines faster and create more jobs here at home. To better protect Ontario’s vital manufacturing workers – from defense, automotive and aerospace – Ontario is also adding high-purity iron and aluminum to the Critical Minerals List. Ontario’s new strategy will accelerate momentum, unlock opportunity, and attract the job-creating investments that will power growth across the province.”

Ontario’s five-year Critical Minerals Strategy, launched in 2022, laid a strong foundation. The previous strategy focused on the electric vehicle market and emphasizing the need for clean technologies, but the world has changed – fast and dramatically. Escalating geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, U.S. tariffs and rising trade protectionism demand a shaper, more agile response focused on ending foreign dominance and protecting Ontario’s vital industries and workers. Renewing the strategy will allow Ontario to stay ahead of that change ensuring the province remains competitive, resilient, and positioned to lead in a more uncertain economy.

The forward-looking vision paper invites feedback on key priorities to unlock our critical mineral wealth to protect economic security, strengthen sovereignty and lead as a trusted G7 partner, including:

• Planning for growth to reduce exposure to global shocks, ensuring Ontario is never left vulnerable to unstable or untrusted supply.
• Building a future-ready workforce to ensure we have the skilled workers to deliver.
• Continue delivering regulatory certainty and faster permitting delivery, creating one of the most advantageous regulatory environments in the world.
• Support exploration to find the mines of tomorrow, today.
• Build, early, meaningful and mutually beneficial partnerships that support reconciliation, equity participation, and shared prosperity with Indigenous communities.
• Scale up innovation, attract global capital, and anchor critical mineral supply chains here at home.

The new strategy will be shaped by direct input from industry, Indigenous partners, communities, and the public – focused on strengthening domestic supply chains, ensuring economic and national security, accelerating responsible development, and building an economy that withstand today’s pressures and capture tomorrow’s opportunities. The feedback received will be instrumental in calibrating the next phase of the strategy to respond to a rapidly changing world and ensure Ontario continues to be the most attractive place in the G7 to invest and create jobs.

“Our updated Critical Minerals Strategy will strengthen Ontario’s reputation as a leader in responsibly sourced minerals that power modern economies,” said George Pirie, Minister of Economic Development and Growth. “By modernizing the strategy, our government will attract new investment, create thousands of good-paying jobs, strengthen communities, and position the North as a global leader in developing the resources the world needs.”

Ontario is also updating the criteria for the Critical Minerals List to better align with the strategic needs of the province, Canada and its allies. Including high-purity iron and aluminum expands the number of critical minerals in Ontario to 35. High-purity iron is essential for the transition to "green steel" manufacturing using electric arc furnace technology in Ontario’s steel mills, while aluminum is a cornerstone material for the province’s world-class automotive, aerospace, and defence sectors. By adding these minerals, Ontario is signaling to the world that it is a premier jurisdiction for investment in the exploration and processing of materials vital to modern advanced manufacturing.

“Ontario’s Critical Minerals Strategy has played an important role in advancing our government’s economic priorities and attracting job-creating investments in the advanced manufacturing, life sciences, tech, and defence sectors,” said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. “By modernizing the Strategy to include new metals and adapting the scope to meet the demands of a changing geopolitical landscape, we’re positioning the province for long-term resilience and ensuring Ontario workers stand to benefit from a new wave of industry opportunity”.

Since launching its first Critical Minerals strategy, Ontario has made significant progress in becoming a global mining powerhouse, including:

• Implementing the transformative ‘One Project, One Process’ framework to cut red tape and target a 50 per cent reduction in government review timelines, with 3 nation-building projects already designated, representing more than 5,000 new jobs and $75 billion added to Canada’s economy.
• Launching the $500 million Critical Minerals Processing Fund to build domestic processing capacity.
• Investing $25 million through the Critical Minerals Innovation Fund to support Ontario-based companies commercializing groundbreaking solutions for the entire supply chain.
• Supporting over 213 projects through the Ontario Junior Exploration Program with a $29.8 investment, driving the discovery of the mines of the future.
• Strengthening Indigenous partnerships by investing $70 million into the Indigenous Participation Fund and sharing nearly $360 million through resource revenue sharing agreements since 2018.
• Investing in new electricity transmission and generation, including refurbishing and expanding northern hydroelectric stations, and new transmission lines into the gateway of the Ring of Fire, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, and Timmins and Dryden.

Quick Facts

• Ontario is recognized as the mining finance capital of the world with 40 per cent of all publicly listed mining companies worldwide listed on the TSX and TSX-V and having a combined market value of over $1.1 trillion in 2025.
• Ontario’s mining sector supports 28,000 direct jobs and 46,000 indirect jobs through associated mineral processing and supply services.
• There are currently 37 active mining operations in Ontario, with the majority located in Northern Ontario, of which nine are base metal (nickel, copper, zinc) mines.
• Currently, there are 33 significant projects in the pipeline, reflecting growing interest in Ontario’s predictable investment and permitting climate, bolstered with proactive investments in transmission, clean energy generation, and infrastructure.
• Since implementing the 1P1P framework Ontario has designated three projects to benefit from the expedited process including: Frontier Lithium’s PAK Lithium Project, Canada Nickel Company’s Crawford Nickel Project, and Kinross Gold Corporation’s Great Bear Project.
• Key accomplishments under the current strategy include major legislative reforms like the Building More Mines Act and the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, and hundreds of millions of dollars in targeted investments in exploration, innovation, and processing.