Stephen Lecce said political unity with the federal government will unlock the region’s mineral potential
Energy and Mines Minister Stephen Lecce expressed his approval of Ottawa’s recent decision to match the province’s $1 billion investment into the Ring of Fire road network.
However, he anticipates further support from the federal government down the line.
“We welcome the action. We want to see more,” said Lecce on Oct. 27 during a news conference where he announced a comprehensive set of legislative and regulatory reforms aimed at updating the province’s distribution system.
The event was streamed live from Toronto.
The discovery of nickel and chrome in the James Bay lowlands occurred in 2007-08, but both the Harper and Trudeau governments held back federal support for mining-related infrastructure until Carney’s government showed its commitment on Oct 21.
In 2013, former Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne tried to persuade the Harper government in Ottawa without success. The Trudeau administration added more layers of environmental review.
When Lecce was asked yesterday by a reporter about what prompted Ottawa’s change, he mentioned it was about persuading them to stop duplicating environmental assessments already being done by local First Nations and funded by Ontario.
Unlike previous leaders, Prime Minister Mark Carney seems more open to funding large-scale ‘nation-building’ energy, mineral, and infrastructure projects.
The Ford government began road construction leading to the Ring of Fire last summer. Crews are currently working on different segments of the approximately 500-kilometre corridor with completion dates scheduled between 2030 and 2031.
Lecce credited his government’s political determination and relationship-building with First Nations as crucial for progress on this “multi-billion-dollar” road and power line corridor.
The Ford administration claims development in the Ring of Fire could generate 70,000 jobs and contribute $22 billion to Canada’s GDP.
“We welcome the investment and we want to see more commitment from the feds,” said Lecce.
Lecce didn’t specify what that commitment should look like. The reporter did not follow up on that point.
With Ontario’s legislature back in session, Lecce indicated that more information regarding permitting reform aimed at bringing new mines into production can be expected soon.
Lecce attended another news conference yesterday announcing a new Building Ontario Faster Act-an omnibus bill designed to reduce wait times for business permits, speed up project approvals, and modify environmental processes to facilitate quicker landfill creation.
The government had already hinted at some approval reforms aimed at accelerating four-laning on Highway 69 and cutting down archaeological approval timelines.
No part of this bill specifically addressed additional mine permitting or approvals directly.
A lot of that foundational work was completed last year through Lecce’s One Project, One Process framework via changes made under Bill 5, Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act. This established the Ministry of Energy and Mines as a single point of contact for coordinating all approvals within a targeted two-year timeframe.
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