Canada has the critical minerals Donald Trump wants. So what should we do with them?

A stream runs along the outskirts of Neskantaga First Nation, which is part of northern Ontario's mineral-rich Ring of Fire, on Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

An ongoing trade war and U.S. President Donald Trump’s hunger for critical minerals have brought Canada’s rich mineral deposits into the spotlight, with federal and provincial politicians promising to accelerate natural resource projects.

Interest in the country’s critical minerals surged after Trump started musing about annexing Canada, experts say, and grew as the president’s global trade war intensified.

“This is now a domestic conversation about how we treat natural resources or natural resource development projects here in Canada,” said Elizabeth Steyn, a mining and finance law expert at the University of Calgary.

A key element of that conversation is northern Ontario’s mineral-rich Ring of Fire, a region spanning roughly 5,000 kilometres where vast reserves of nickel, chromite, zinc, platinum, copper and many other critical minerals are believed to be buried.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has said that his government would aim to approve all federal permits for mining in the Ring of Fire region within six months, and commit $1 billion to build a road network to help facilitate that.

As part of his promises to invest in critical minerals, Liberal Leader Mark Carney has said that he would work “very closely” with the Ontario government to “rapidly” develop the Ring of Fire.

Ontario’s government tabled legislation Thursday aimed at speeding up the development of mines — and other large-scale projects — by designating some of them as “special economic zones.” The Ring of Fire will be one such zone.

Premier Doug Ford said the need to fast-track mining projects is a direct response to Trump’s threats.

But Ontario’s move has triggered concerns from Indigenous groups who say any Ring of Fire developments must include consultations with First Nations and respect their rights.

“We urge the provincial government to commit to genuine, nation-to-nation dialogue grounded in the recognition of First Nations’ jurisdiction, consent, and shared prosperity,” the Chiefs of Ontario said in a news release before the bill was tabled.

Sol Mamakwa, the New Democrat who represents the riding of Kiiwetinoong where the Ring of Fire is located, said the province is continuing its long tradition of dividing First Nations in order to conquer them.

“Our lands are not for sale,” he said. “If you want to do any work, you’ve got to do the proper relationship process of acknowledging the treaties that we have with the Crown. We’re supposed to share the benefits of the resources that are there and this government has failed miserably over the last seven years.”

Mamakwa warned the province’s rush to mine the north will meet resistance.

“You cannot use a tariff war, a tariff issue with the United States of America to override the rights of the First Nations people that live in these lands,” he said.

The urgency surrounding natural resource development also stems from Trump’s musings about annexing Canada and making it the 51st state, both before and after his January inauguration.

Trump’s comments were broadly downplayed as a joke at first. But in comments captured by a hot microphone and widely reported by Canadian media, former prime minister Justin Trudeau told a crowd of business leaders in early February that Trump’s threats are real and motivated by a desire to absorb our resources.

Carney echoed Trudeau’s concerns after he won the Liberal leadership race last month, saying that Americans “want our resources, our water, our land, our country.”

Trump’s rhetoric seemed to cool off after an initial call with the newly sworn-in prime minister last month, but he and his White House brought back the notion of a 51st state this week.

Steyn, the University of Calgary professor, agreed that Trump’s comments are partly motivated by the United States’ need to transform its energy and digital sectors, as well as boost national security by accessing more critical minerals.

“I think we are being put under economic pressure as a way to soften us up for a kind of reciprocal mineral deal,” she said, adding that Trump’s advisers would “certainly” have knowledge of the Ring of Fire deposits.

Trump signed an executive order this week to start an investigation into all U.S. critical minerals imports, which could set the stage for new tariffs and put pressure on China, which restricted its exports of rare earth minerals in response to American tariffs.

He had previously signed another order to increase the production of domestic critical minerals, and the U.S. administration is currently negotiating critical minerals deals with Ukraine and the Democratic Republic of Congo — both war-torn countries.

The United States is one of the largest importers of gallium, niobium, aluminum, palladium, platinum and dozens of other minerals the country deems crucial to its economic development and industries such as renewable energy, electronics and military technology.

Canada, on the other hand, is a mining country with a rich supply of minerals buried in the ground — though the Ring of Fire, in particular, remains in development with few active mines and years-long timelines for new projects. Canadian companies also have mining operations elsewhere in the world.

The fact that Trump has imposed lower tariffs on energy materials from Canada, such as uranium and potash, shows he knows the importance of Canadian minerals, Steyn said.

“Canada is the storehouse of every one of the critical minerals that American industry needs. Every one of them. And yet, we don’t ever hear about that,” said Michigan-based Jack Lifton, co-chair of the Critical Mineral Institute, a global organization.

“I don’t know what Washington thinks about this, but I don’t think they realize that Canada is the solution to the problem, not the problem,” he added.

China has so far been the largest supplier and exporter of critical mineral resources in the world. Like Americans, Europeans are trying to find alternative sources for their needs and Canada has the potential to fill that gap, said Ian London, executive director at Canadian Critical Minerals and Materials Alliance.

London argued Canada’s mining sector should break away from selling raw minerals and instead use them to build an advanced domestic manufacturing industry.

“My counterargument is I want to re-industrialize Canada’s value chains and industrial and export economic base,” he said. “Why would we just take it out of the ground and give it to others who would then, you know, add (value) there, but we buy back the finished product? (It) makes no sense.”

China has built companies, universities and research centres around its mining industry, in the process becoming the largest producer of electronic goods and electric vehicles.

London said current tensions with the United States have provided an opportunity for Canada to do exactly that.

Building up Canada’s own critical minerals industry would come with some short-term pain, but Canadians shouldn’t give in, he said.

“We should not give this country away.”

Tracy Hughes, the executive director of the Critical Mineral Institute, said given the United States’ economic reliance on minerals, it is not clear why the country is alienating a next-door neighbour that possesses so much of what they need.

“It is a dark comedy that is taking place right now, is how I would describe it,” she said of the tariff war.

Hughes said whoever becomes Canada’s prime minister after the federal election should negotiate a mineral deal with the Trump administration, which could clear the path toward a renegotiated trade agreement between two countries.

“Bring the two leaders together, create a critical mineral agreement, and then we can figure out the rest,” she said.

With files from Liam Casey.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2025.

Sharif Hassan, The Canadian Press