Current Status
Status: Not Started
No concrete actions have been taken by the Carney government to expand existing tax credits for critical minerals exploration and extraction.
Background
Critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements are essential for technologies driving the green energy transition, including electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy systems. During the 2025 federal election campaign, Mark Carney positioned this promise as part of a broader strategy to bolster Canada's economic resilience by enhancing domestic supply chains and reducing reliance on foreign sources amid global competition. Fulfilling it would require legislative or regulatory changes to broaden tax incentives, potentially building on frameworks like the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit, to encourage private investment in exploration and extraction projects across the country.
Evidence
On November 13, 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the referral of a second tranche of nation-building projects to the Major Projects Office, including investments in critical minerals as part of a $60 billion package that also encompassed nuclear power, LNG, and trade corridors [5]. This followed the establishment of the Major Projects Office earlier in his term to accelerate infrastructure development. No further documented actions by the Carney government, such as legislative proposals or regulatory expansions of tax credits, have occurred by March 10, 2026.
Assessment
The Carney government has yet to deliver on its campaign promise to attract, expand, and derisk investments in critical minerals through the expansion of existing tax credits. While the November 2025 announcement highlighted critical minerals within a larger infrastructure push, it stopped short of any tangible steps toward tax credit reforms, leaving the core mechanism of the promise untouched. Without legislative or policy moves to fulfill this commitment, the government risks falling behind in a sector vital to Canada's economic future.
Sources
- Improving mineral exploration: Targeted Geoscience Initiative - Natural Resources Canada
- Search
- Northern Mineral Exploration Assistance Regulations
- G7 Critical Minerals Action Plan | Prime Minister of Canada
- Prime Minister Carney announces second tranche of nation-building projects referred to the Major Projects Office | Prime Minister of Canada
- Horizontal Initiative – Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy - Natural Resources Canada
- Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada’s 2025-26 Departmental Plan
- Request Rejected