OTTAWA — The Canadian government has renewed the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) for two years as part of Budget 2025, marking a significant commitment to the country’s mining sector amid increasing global competition for critical minerals and exploration capital.The announcement, welcomed by the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), also includes an expansion of the Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (CMETC) to cover 12 additional minerals and the establishment of a $2 billion critical minerals sovereign fund.The METC, created in 2000, provides a 15% tax credit to individuals who invest in flow-through shares for grassroots mineral exploration. The mechanism has been credited with mobilizing hundreds of millions of dollars in private investment annually without requiring direct government expenditure.“Today’s renewal of the METC is the right move at the right moment,” said Karen Rees, PDAC President. “It restores confidence, signals that Canada intends to compete for exploration capital, and will help drive the discoveries that feed our supply chains.”The two-year renewal comes as Canada’s mineral exploration sector faces mounting challenges. Throughout 2025, industry stakeholders have raised concerns about declining investment, with exploration capital increasingly flowing to competing jurisdictions. The sector has also struggled to maintain the pipeline of discoveries needed to feed future mine development.The METC works in conjunction with Canada’s flow-through share system, channeling high-risk capital to early-stage exploration projects across the country. The program particularly benefits rural, remote, and Indigenous communities where exploration activities create employment and economic opportunities. (ICE TORONTO)

Fonte notizia: https://www.cpecn.com/