Chinese state-owned companies have free rein to prospect for critical minerals in Canada
, and as fears over China’s domination of the global critical minerals supply chain reached a boiling point.producers by state-owned Chinese companies, at the prospecting stage there are almost no restrictions at all. After filling out basic paperwork, passing a rudimentary knowledge test and paying nominal fees, foreign firms with ties to authoritarian regimes are allowed to buy claims across Canada.
“A lot of times companies that are staking are just numbered companies. So, you have no idea what their background is,” said Mr. Tremblay.groups in British Columbia and Ontario have also raised concerns about Canada’s free entry system for prospecting and are calling for the provinces to at the very least consult with them before granting claims.
Laurie Bouchard, a spokesperson for François-Philippe Champagne, the federal Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, eventually wrote in an e-mail that mining claims could fall within the government’s auspices to police under the Investment Canada Act, because they could be classified as “an entity that has operations in Canada.”
“I have not personally seen an instance where [federal] jurisdiction has been asserted over the acquisition of simply a mineral claim,” she said. Late last year, China Metallurgical gave up its claims in Ontario, much to the relief of Mr. Tremblay. Fleming Huang, who described himself as a “handyman” for China Metallurgical in Canada, said that it was a business decision and was in no way motivated by any scrutiny from Ottawa.
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