Quebec is in the hot-seat as North America awakens to the EV revolution, explains Canada General Manager Carl Caumartin

Quebec is a fantastic jurisdiction for a hard rock lithium project. It is a well-established mining region, close to established infrastructure and supply chains and a big supporter of mining development projects.

With more than 99 per cent of the world’s lithium reserves located in Australia, Argentina, Chile, and China, Quebec also offers jurisdictional diversity and is one of the lowest risk mining regions globally.

It is also part of a wider North American collaboration to develop the battery material supply chain, of which lithium plays a critical role.

Canada is quite rich in some of the key materials for EV battery production, including lithium, graphite, cobalt and nickel, putting it the among top five in the world when it comes to battery supply chain potential, according to pundits.

The North American market is quickly awakening to the new electric vehicle paradigm which has been spurred into action by Tesla and other research and development ventures gaining market recognition.

In recent news, General Motors and POSCO Chemical have announced plans to build a new facility in Quebec – estimated to be $400 million – to produce cathode active material (CAM) for batteries to power electric vehicles.

There is also greater acceptance of the imminent dangers of climate change and how America must commit to greener energy conversion in an increasingly environmentally aware world – which will boost demand for EV metals, as per most predictions.

In Quebec, 99.8 per cent of the electricity is produced by hydropower, making it an ideal location for the sustainable mining and production of lithium products. Hydro power lines run through our Winsome Resources’ claims, allowing us to tap into this clean energy source. 

The EV market in North America is rapidly changing

As a sign of things to come, Canadian mining company Snow Lake Lithium recently announced plans to open the first North American lithium mine run almost exclusively on renewable energy.

Currently, less than 10 percent of Canada’s vehicles are electric. However, commitments have been recently made for all light duty cars and passenger trucks to be zero emission by 2035 and medium/heavy duty vehicles by 2040. This will require an extensive public charging network, especially for long inter-city and regional travelling.

Infrastructure in more remote and rural areas of Canada is lagging and electrification of the network may prove particularly difficult. Longer lasting and faster charging batteries, and an extensive network, will in time ensure this transition.

The more Canadians convert to and drive EVs, the more it could attract investments to build EVs, the batteries and charging infrastructure in the country.

EVs are more expensive to buy, yet they are cheaper to own and maintain compared to combustion engine vehicles.

Financial incentives exist and have been promoted by the federal government which offers up to $5000 rebates to Canadian buying an EV, while additional incentives between $3000 and $8000 have been proposed by some provinces including Quebec.

EVs are a big part of our future – hopefully Australia will follow Quebec’s lead.