Ottawa’s vision shapes Canadian mining strategy

Hodgson’s federal investment remarks followed an address delivered on Sunday (March 1) by Claude Guay, parliamentary secretary to the minister, during PDAC’s opening ceremonies.

He underscored that Ottawa sees critical minerals as much more than commodities.

“Critical minerals are not just important, they’re foundational. They are the backbone of the clean energy transition and increasingly essential to our national security,’ Guay told the audience.

“In a time of geopolitical tension, accelerating climate ambition and growing competition for strategic resources, Canada is acting decisively,” he continued. “Not only in what we extract, but in how we build, process, refine, recycle and deliver value across the entire supply chain.”

Guay framed the current moment as a structural shift: “Canada and the world are entering a new era. An era where critical minerals have become a strategic asset — where energy security, economic competitiveness and industrial sovereignty are inseparable from how we develop and manage our natural resources.”

Canada, he argued, is uniquely positioned. It hosts roughly 170 advanced-stage mineral projects, more than half of which are expected to come online in the coming years, spanning rare earths, lithium, copper and graphite.

Combined with a stable governance framework and environmental standards, that resource base gives Canada a “privileged position at home and abroad.”

“Canada is not just rich in resources,” Guay said. “Canada is rich in trust and reliability.”

But Ottawa’s strategy goes beyond extraction. The federal government is pushing to build end-to-end value chains, turning raw materials into processed inputs and advanced products within Canada.

“Our approach is not simply about digging minerals out of the ground,” he said. “It’s about creating good jobs, strengthening rural and northern communities and supporting our industrial and national security needs.”

Critical minerals are now explicitly tied to defense, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing, he added. “Their availability is a matter of sovereignty as much as prosperity.”

A key pillar of that strategy is Canada’s Major Projects Office (MPO), established to streamline approvals and coordinate federal decision making on large-scale developments.

Since its creation, Guay said, more than C$116 billion worth of nation-building projects have been referred to the office, including several aimed at advancing critical minerals supply chains.

“These projects will accelerate and anchor Canada’s copper, nickel and tungsten supply chains — minerals fundamental not only to clean technology, but also to defense systems, aerospace and telecommunications,” he said.

Guay stressed that while the MPO aims to provide greater certainty for investors, it will do so while upholding Indigenous rights and strong environmental standards.

The federal government’s 2026 budget further reinforces that direction. Guay noted that the spending plan, recently approved in parliament, introduced a new Critical Minerals Sovereign Fund, which is designed to mobilize private capital and provide anchor investments for strategic projects.

“The goal is simple,” he said. “Provide the certainty needed to get projects over the line.”

As mentioned, the First and Last Mile Fund is also now in action with the aim of closing infrastructure gaps that often stall mining developments, ensuring minerals can reach processors, manufacturers and export markets.

In addition, the government has expanded eligibility for the Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit to include 12 further minerals deemed essential for defense, semiconductor and energy technologies.

“Together, these measures serve one clear objective: building more at home than anyone, anywhere else,” Guay said.

Aside from that, he emphasized the importance of alliances.

Canada is working with partners under initiatives such as the Critical Minerals Production Alliance and within the G7 framework to strengthen supply chains and reduce overreliance on dominant producers.

“We are in a context where materials are too often controlled by a few actors, some better than others,” Guay said. “Canada stands ready to be a reliable partner.”

Domestic collaboration

At the center of the federal vision, he said, is reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.

More than 500 Indigenous mining agreements are currently active across the country, formalizing long-term community benefits and social license arrangements.

Indigenous groups are increasingly participating as equity partners and co-managers in resource and infrastructure projects, supported by federal programs, including C$80 million through the Indigenous Natural Resources Partnerships Program, C$13.5 million under a critical minerals infrastructure grants stream and up to C$10 billion in loan guarantees through the Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program.

“This is economic partnership and reconciliation in action,” Guay said.

Guay underscored the global implications of the conversations and deals that happen at PDAC.

“What happens in these rooms does not stay in these rooms,” he said. “These conversations will shape supply chains, energy systems and economic resilience on every continent.”

For Canada, the objective is clear.

“As a strong sovereign country that has chosen to transform its mineral wealth into a strategic national asset, Canada has what the world wants,” Guay said. “We stand ready to lead, ready to partner and ready for business.”

“We are not only preparing for this new global era,” he added. “We are shaping it.”

Platinum investment strength offsets softer overall demand

The forecast marks a shift from earlier expectations that the platinum market would return to balance in 2026.

Instead, strong investment sentiment and resilient exchange-traded fund holdings have pushed the market back into deficit territory. Even so, total demand for platinum is expected to decline moderately this year.

The WPIC projects overall demand will fall about 8 percent year-on-year to roughly 7.619 million ounces.

Much of that drop reflects a normalization in investment demand after a surge in 2025, when inflows into platinum exchange-traded funds and physical investment products climbed sharply.

However, demand for physical platinum bars and coins is expected to continue growing.

The WPIC forecasts that bar and coin investment will jump 35 percent in 2026 to 725,000 ounces, reaching the highest level recorded in the Platinum Quarterly dataset.

Investment purchases of platinum are increasing as the metal gains attention as a lower-priced alternative to gold, and as retail investment products become more widely available.

Supply growth lags as platinum deficit persists

While demand patterns shift across sectors, platinum supply growth remains limited.

Total platinum supply is expected to rise just 2 percent in 2026 to about 7.379 million ounces.

Mine output is forecast to remain essentially flat at roughly 5.553 million ounces, with production gains in South Africa and Zimbabwe offset by declines in North America and Russia.

The modest increase in supply will largely come from recycling. Higher platinum prices have encouraged the recovery of spent autocatalysts and recycled jewelry, pushing recycling supply up about 10 percent in 2025. That trend is expected to continue this year, with recycled metal rising another 10 percent to approximately 1.827 million ounces.

Still, the additional recycled material is unlikely to fully offset the underlying market tightness. As Raymond noted, another factor that could further deepen the deficit has yet to be fully reflected in current forecasts.

“One item not yet captured in the supply/demand balance is any exchange stocks warehoused with the Guangzhou Futures Exchange, which could potentially deepen the deficit versus current projections once these are made publicly available,” he said. For platinum investors, the persistence of deficits suggests that the market’s underlying fundamentals remain supportive even as demand moderates from last year’s highs.

“The price rally we’ve seen this year has not solved the deficit,” he said.

“Normally, in a deficit market, you would expect the price to increase. Clearly, the elevated prices we’ve experienced is still insufficient to attract more supply into the market or drag more metal out of aboveground stocks.”

With supply growth limited and inventories shrinking, the platinum market is likely to remain structurally tight, sustaining investor interest through 2026.

Oreterra Metals (TSXV:OTMC) is a mineral exploration company focused on delivering large-scale discoveries and the shareholder value that typically follows. Its strategy targets copper-gold porphyry systems in North America, selected for their scale, comparatively lower discovery costs versus high-grade vein systems, and strong appeal to major mining companies as potential long-life operations. The company emerged in February 2026 following the restructuring and rebranding of its predecessor, driven by the exceptional potential of the Trek South prospect.

Oreterra’s flagship asset is the wholly owned Trek South copper-gold porphyry prospect on the 6,379-hectare Trek property in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle. The prospect has only recently become accessible due to glacial retreat and remains effectively new to modern geological exploration. First identified in 2019, work conducted since 2021 has advanced the project to drill-ready status.

The company is led by a veteran management team with more than 100 years of combined experience in exploration, finance, and governance. Following a recent $9.7 million financing and supported by a lean share structure, Oreterra is fully funded to test its high-conviction targets, with the first-ever drill program at Trek South planned for the 2026 field season.

Company Highlights

• Fully Funded for 2026 Exploration: Recently completed a massively oversubscribed $9.7 million financing to support the first-ever drilling this summer of the wholly owned, large-scale Trek South prospect, only recently revealed by glacial ice melt.
• Drill‑Ready Flagship: The Trek South target has everything one seeks in a new porphyry copper-gold discovery prospect: i.e. large scale, terrific rock exposure, intense porphyry-style changes and metal values on surface in those rocks, and stacked (coincident), strongly positive, magnetic and geophysical anomalies directly below.
• Infrastructure Advantage: The Trek South prospect is just 3 kilometres up-slope from the nearest work camp, bridges and road presently under construction by the Teck/Newmont GCMC joint venture, and 12 kilometers from their proposed mill site.
• Proven Management: Led by CEO Kevin Keough, founding CEO of GT Gold Corp. which delivered the Saddle North porphyry copper-gold discovery (Dec. 13, 2017), later sold to Newmont for $523 million cash in current dollars following just $16.7 million of exploration outlays (Saddle North only).
• Asset Portfolio: Beyond the flagship, Oreterra holds high-grade gold and porphyry copper-gold assets in Nevada and Ontario.

This Oreterra Metals profile is part of a paid investor education campaign.*

Click here to connect with Oreterra Metals (TSXV:OTMC) to receive an Investor Presentation

Investor Insight

Oreterra Metals is focused on the discovery of large-scale porphyry copper-gold systems in Canada and the US, led by a management team with a proven track record delivering multi-million dollar exits in the same world-class mining jurisdictions.

Overview

Oreterra Metals (TSXV:OTMC) is a focused mineral exploration company dedicated to delivering for its shareholders large-scale discoveries and the capital gains opportunities that typically come with such discoveries. The company’s strategy centers on copper-gold porphyry systems in North America, chosen for their scale, relatively low finding and resource proving costs in relation to high grade vein systems, and their high attractiveness to major mining operators as potential long-life mines. Oreterra emerged early in February 2026 following the comprehensive restructuring and rebranding of its predecessor company, a restructuring warranted by the exceptional prospectivity of the Trek South prospect.

Oreterra’s flagship asset is the wholly owned Trek South porphyry copper-gold prospect, located on the 6,379-hectare Trek property situated in the heart of British Columbia’s Golden Triangle. Effectively new to modern geological science, the prospect has emerged due to rapid glacial ice retreat. First identified in 2019, all of the work required to reveal it as a highly prospective porphyry copper-gold prospect and to bring it to drill-ready status has occurred only in the period since 2021.

The company is led by a veteran management team with over 100 combined years of experience in mineral exploration, finance, and corporate governance. With a lean share structure and strong institutional support following its recent $9.7 million financing, Oreterra is fully funded and ideally positioned to test its high-conviction targets, starting with the first-ever drill of Trek South commencing in the approaching 2026 field season.

Company Highlights

• Fully Funded for 2026 Exploration: Recently completed a massively oversubscribed $9.7 million financing to support the first-ever drilling this summer of the wholly owned, large-scale Trek South prospect, only recently revealed by glacial ice melt.
• Drill‑Ready Flagship: The Trek South target has everything one seeks in a new porphyry copper-gold discovery prospect: i.e. large scale, terrific rock exposure, intense porphyry-style changes and metal values on surface in those rocks, and stacked (coincident), strongly positive, magnetic and geophysical anomalies directly below.
• Infrastructure Advantage: The Trek South prospect is just 3 kilometres up-slope from the nearest work camp, bridges and road presently under construction by the Teck/Newmont GCMC joint venture, and 12 kilometers from their proposed mill site.
• Proven Management: Led by CEO Kevin Keough, founding CEO of GT Gold Corp. which delivered the Saddle North porphyry copper-gold discovery (Dec. 13, 2017), later sold to Newmont for $523 million cash in current dollars following just $16.7 million of exploration outlays (Saddle North only).
• Asset Portfolio: Beyond the flagship, Oreterra holds high-grade gold and porphyry copper-gold assets in Nevada and Ontario.

Key Projects

Trek Project – Golden Triangle, British Columbia

Potential for a Major Discovery in the First Few Drill Holes

A large-scale porphyry copper-gold prospect ready for its first-ever drilling, in 2026

The wholly owned Trek property spans 6,379 hectares in the heart of BC’s Golden Triangle, one of North America’s geologically most fertile copper‑gold-silver belts. Within the property, the Trek South target represents a very large, entirely new, porphyry system identified in the period since 2021 by mapping, sampling and geophysical programs.

Strategically positioned approximately 10 km from Teck–Newmont’s rich Galore Creek porphyry copper-gold project and just 3 km up slope from partially completed road access, Trek South is poised for its maiden drilling program in 2026. The project is supported by a National Instrument 43‑101 technical report delivered on January 20, 2026.

The property also hosts additional exploration targets that provide district‑scale upside under a single land package.

Kinkaid Project – Nevada

An Emerging Porphyry Copper-Gold Project on a Proven Nevada Mining Trend

Kinkaid comprises 131 claims covering 1,101 hectares in Mineral County, Nevada, an attractive mining jurisdiction with established infrastructure. The project is subject to a 2% net smelter returns royalty. Exploration has identified two distinct mineralization styles: epithermal to mesothermal veins, and garnet skarns, with evidence for buried porphyry centres.

Oreterra is planning further exploration at Kinkaid, including both airborne and ground geophysical surveys. These programs are intended to refine drill targets ahead of planned diamond drilling on the most prospective areas of the property.

Lundmark Project – Ontario

Emerging copper-gold in northwestern Ontario and an extensive drilling-defined mineral system

The 5,386‑hectare Lundmark property adjoins the Musselwhite gold mine in northwestern Ontario and is subject to a 3 percent NSR royalty. Drilling since 2019 has outlined a significant volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) system characterized by multiple mineralizing events.

These include individual high-grade gold-bearing quartz–pyrrhotite veins, broad zones of stockwork-style copper–gold vein mineralization, and three VMS-style gold–silver–enriched base metal zones. In total, the alteration and mineralization system identified to date now extends for approximately 11 kilometres along strike.

Scossa Project – Nevada

Scossa, a 541‑hectare property, encompasses the historic high‑grade Scossa gold mine, active in the 1930s and 1940s. The epithermal gold system features five known veins, with historical mining limited to the 400‑foot level. Exceptional grades from historical records and previous drilling by the company in the 2003 timeframe, indicates meaningful potential remains.

Management Team

Kevin M. Keough — Chief Executive Officer & Director

A geologist by training, Mr. Keough brings 45 years global exploration, corporate leadership, and capital markets experience, and has founded and led exploration companies that delivered major discoveries of the type Oreterra seeks, later sold for considerable profit.

Stephen Burega — President & Director

With 25+ years in mining and resources, Mr. Burega specializes in corporate development, fundraising, and stakeholder engagement and played an instrumental role in Oreterra’s strategic repositioning.

Brian Crawford — Chief Financial Officer

A chartered professional accountant with deep public company finance and governance experience, Mr. Crawford has co‑founded several TSXV and CSE‑listed companies and continues to support growth‑stage exploration entities.

John Biczok — Vice‑President, Exploration

A professional geologist with over 45 years of field and discovery experience, Mr. Biczok has been involved in significant discoveries globally and brings robust technical leadership to Oreterra’s exploration programs.

Ashley Nadon — Corporate Secretary

Ashley Nadon, a Chartered Professional Accountant, supports governance and financial reporting with a depth of expertise in public company compliance.

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$70,987.43, up by 6.7 percent over the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin price performance, March 4, 2026.

Chart via TradingView

Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,064.63, up by 5.8 percent over the last 24 hours.

Altcoin price update

• XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.40, up by 4.1 percent over 24 hours.

• Solana (SOL) was trading at US$89.34, up by 7.4 percent over 24 hours.

Today’s crypto news to know

Trump presses banks as crypto legislation fight intensifies

President Donald Trump accused major banks of trying to undermine the administration’s digital-asset agenda in a recent post on Truth Social.

Trump warned that the GENIUS Act and the broader Digital Asset Market Clarity Act must move forward quickly, arguing delays could push the industry overseas. “The U.S. needs to get Market Structure done, ASAP,” Trump wrote, adding that banks should not “hold The Clarity Act hostage.”

The remarks come as lawmakers continue debating stablecoin rules and whether crypto platforms should be allowed to offer yield on token balances—a provision banks strongly oppose.

Industry advocates echoed the urgency.

‘American leadership in digital assets is a national priority and it remains imperative that the U.S. leads. CCI is focused on ensuring that market structure legislation passes and is enacted as soon as possible. We remain committed to working constructively on a path forward on stablecoin rewards.’

The White House has framed the GENIUS Act as the first major step toward establishing federal rules for stablecoins, while the Clarity Act would define oversight responsibilities across US crypto markets.

US–UK regulators diverge on path toward tokenized finance

Efforts to coordinate digital-asset rules between the US and Britain are facing friction as regulators disagree on how quickly to test blockchain-based securities, Reuters reported.

The two countries formed a transatlantic task force last year to improve crypto cooperation and reduce barriers for firms operating across both markets. While both sides support closer alignment on stablecoins and digital-asset frameworks, officials differ on how tokenized securities should be introduced.

British regulators favor testing the technology through a regulatory sandbox, which would allow companies to trial products under supervision before wider adoption.

Some US officials, however, have raised concerns that the sandbox approach could slow innovation and limit commercial viability. Instead, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly exploring “exemptive relief,” a model that would allow certain projects to proceed with fewer restrictions.

Bitcoin climbs past US$71,000

Bitcoin rallied past $71,000 this week—its highest level in roughly three weeks— a gain of nearly 9 percent over the week.

The surge triggered more than US$430 million in liquidations across crypto derivatives markets, with Bitcoin and Ether positions accounting for roughly two-thirds of the total.

Analysts say the move appears linked to macro instability rather than purely crypto-specific catalysts.

ETF flows have also shown signs of improvement, suggesting some institutional investors are stepping back into the market after weeks of redemptions.

Still, sentiment remains fragile with the Crypto Fear and Greed Index hovering near 10, a level associated with “extreme fear.”

China’s role in copper markets

There are few parts of the economy that copper doesn’t touch. It’s used in construction, manufacturing, the transmission of electricity and in many high-tech products like mobile phones and electric vehicles.

Copper is a fundamental commodity for the global economy, and demand for it is only going to grow in the coming years on a variety of factors.

The red metal is essential for changing dynamics in the global south, where a greater share of the population is moving to urban centers and upward economic mobility is driving demand for household appliances like air conditioners, refrigerators and washing machines.

Adding to this demand are emerging sectors like the energy transition, where wind and solar require greater copper inputs, as well as AI and the data centers that support it.

Hamilton told the PDAC audience that China, the world’s largest consumer of the red metal, sits at a confluence of demand generation.

The country is often considered the world’s factory for its manufacturing glut, it has a growing middle class, and its tech sector is booming. These factors are also driving significant growth in its electricity grid.

“A decade ago, China was more or less in parallel with the rest of the world,” Hamilton said. “China has surged ahead in terms of that electricity share, and it’s going to continue in a world where artificial intelligence is arguably the next geopolitical battleground.”

He explained that because of its manufacturing base, China’s energy grid has benefited from significant investment, a trend that is set to continue.

“China is planning to increase grid investment by 40 percent over the next five years. This is huge spending that is continuing to come through, and that will be copper-intensive spend,” Hamilton said.

China isn’t the only country that needs to expand its electrical grid. Hamilton also noted that Europe has an energy problem that it is solving, in the short term, by buying Chinese-produced solar technology, adding further copper demand to already constrained Chinese supply.

Smelting supply shortfalls

The biggest issue impacting copper markets and causing increased prices is a lack of supply.

This has led to a shortfall of copper concentrate supply for smelters to refine.

“To keep it in simple terms, we see a situation where smelting demand over 2025 is going to be 600,000 to 650,000 metric tons more than the available concentrate in the custom market,” Hamilton said. “That’s really what sets that raw material constraint. There’s just not enough copper supply to go around.”

The lack of supply in concentrates has pushed treatment and refining charges, which are typically paid by mining companies to smelters, down to zero. Hamilton said these historically low charges outline how acutely tight the market really is. He explained that it’s a trend that won’t moderate in the short term, as supply growth is failing to keep pace with refining capacity.

Hamilton noted that 10 years ago the expectation was that copper supply would be in the 20 million to 30 million metric ton per year range by 2026. In reality, supply is expected to be 23 million metric tons this year, closer to the lower end of the range.

“Not to say projects haven’t come online, but we have seen depletion of existing assets,” he said.

China’s copper supply strategy

In addition to being the leading consumer of copper, China is also leading in adding new supply to the market.

“Who has been successful at growing copper supply is China, not necessarily in the country, but a lot through investments, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” Hamilton said.

Those investments have contributed to the DRC adding 2.5 million metric tons of annual supply over the last decade, as well as increases in Peruvian production from the Las Bambas and Toromocho operations, owned by China-based MMG and Chinalco, respectively.

This dominance by China has led the rest of the world to play catch-up. Hamilton pointed to Chile, the world’s top copper producer, noting that Chilean production has been flat for 20 years. While there is growth planned, he said it’s going to take some time and a change in mindset within the industry.

In the long term, Hamilton suggests China will take what is available from the concentrate market; however, he pointed out that fallout from the copper tariffs last year led US traders to buy up significant quantities of copper cathode.

“Now that material is not available for price formation yet,” he said. “It is locked in economically to the US. It will come back to the market at some point. So we have to be aware that is a little bit of an inventory overhang, but I do believe trading houses will slowly bleed this out into the market in a managed form.”

What comes next?

The market needs to adapt to changing times, Hamilton emphasized, in much the way copper smelters have in the face of difficult copper market conditions.

“Smelters have really pulled the levers they can pull as the whole economics of the value chain changes to maintain profitability. That’s good, that’s what we like to see, that healthy change in business model to changing market conditions,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton suggested that there needs to be some evolving perspectives within the industry, in which every part of the value chain works together, and they should be able to make money.

China, he points out, has focused on a commodity-first business model, in which it imports raw materials from wherever they are available and uses its domestic processing capacity to upgrade them.

Although growth in its domestic processing capacity has stalled, he suggested that its funding of processors outside the country is likely to increase.

“China started to dominate the copper exports of (semirefined products) and cable into the world. I do think that’s a trend that will continue, though it does mean there will probably be some trade barriers,” Hamilton said, noting the trend could also extend to finished products.

He went on to say that copper has delivered consistent premiums, spending nearly 50 percent of the time since 2000 in the 90th percentile of the cost curve.

“The industry has just been using the money, the free cash flow, to do dividends and buybacks and servicing debt, but we haven’t actually seen that capital allocation back towards growth,” Hamilton said.

While keeping shareholders happy is important, so too is growth of the business.

“Capital intensity is hugely important. Where companies have got mining projects wrong, in many cases, over the past decade has been blowing out in terms of capital intensity, so you have to look for smart solutions,” he said.

Hamilton noted that the easiest copper resources have already been developed, and the next ones will become increasingly more challenging. With prices reaching record highs, it should unlock some projects.

“At these copper price levels, if you’ve got a shovel-ready project, you can bring it to market pretty quickly. Those big greenfield projects are much harder,” he said.

Using capital efficiently will be critical as companies look to open these new assets. However, Hamilton believes that copper’s solid fundamentals, and new energy sectors, will drive industry growth.