REGINA — Saskatchewan continues to show increased exploration and spending in the province on critical minerals, according to the province.
Saskatchewan is seeing increased investments in exploration over 2022. The province's share of the national total is projected to increase to over 12 per cent in 2023 alone. More than 100 companies are actively advancing mineral projects in Saskatchewan, from early-phase exploration to larger scale projects such as BHP's $6.4 billion Jansen Stage 2 expansion.
The province has nearly 12.4 million hectares of land under mineral disposition, meaning the sector has secured 50 per cent more explorable area when compared to 2020. This increase is underpinned by the work of the Ministry of Energy and Resources' Saskatchewan Geological Survey (SGS), which works with the resource sector on mining and petroleum exploration and development activities, as well as compiling essential information on the province’s geology. This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the SGS.
According to the Fraser Institute's Annual Survey of Mining Companies: 2022, Saskatchewan ranked first in Canada for mining investment attractiveness. The province is home to occurrences of 23 of the 31 critical minerals on Canada’s list and the world’s largest deposits of potash and high-grade uranium.
The province’s mining industry also posted the highest sales value on record in 2022 – surpassing the previous record by more than double. Mineral sales for fiscal 2022 were over $19.4 billion with exploration expenditures of $291.6 million and the survey exploration spending intentions of more than $300 million for 2023.
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