Mining Innovation on the Hill Gathers to Advance Canada’s Mining Competitiveness

June 18, 2026 | Breaking News| Engineering and Mining Journal

The Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator (MICA) Network, managed by the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI), hosted ‘Mining Innovation on the Hill’, a landmark gathering held at the Fairmont Château Laurier in Ottawa. The event brought together government leaders, mine operators, innovators, investors, researchers, Indigenous partners, innovation networks and ecosystem organizations from across Canada to showcase the strength of Canada’s mining innovation ecosystem and chart the path forward for the industry.

Opening remarks from Claude Guay, parliamentary secretary to the minister of energy and natural resources, Viviane Lapointe, member of Parliament for Sudbury, and Paul Lefebvre, mayor of Greater Sudbury, set the tone for the day’s discussions. Each speaker underscored the growing importance of critical minerals to Canada’s economic prosperity, technological competitiveness, energy transition and national security.

The speakers emphasized Canada’s potential to become a global leader in the production of critical minerals, and in the commercialization of the technologies that will power the mines, supply chains and the mining industry of the future. Their remarks reinforced the need for continued investment in innovation, workforce transition, Indigenous partnerships and business initiatives such as MICA that help transform Canadian ingenuity into economic growth and global impact.

‘Mining Innovation on the Hill’ marked a step in building the national dialogue needed to ensure Canada captures the economic and strategic value of its mining innovation advantage.

“Canada has all the ingredients required to lead in the next era of mining—world-class mineral resources, exceptional talent, strong research capacity and innovative companies. The challenge before us is not innovation itself, but our ability to commercialize Canadian technologies, scale Canadian companies and accelerate the adoption of made-in-Canada solutions at home and around the world,” said Chamirai Nyabeze, EVP business development, CEMI, and network director, MICA.

The day revealed a consistent message: the challenge facing Canada’s mining sector is how it can transform itself to meet all the demands of the future – for critical greater mineral production, increased competitiveness and more sustainable outcomes. The country’s ability to accelerate commercialization, technology adoption and scale Canadian companies is essential for ensuring that made-in-Canada solutions are deployed on mines around the world.

Attendees heard from SMEs, mine operators, government representatives and national innovation network leaders, each underscoring the urgency of closing the commercialization gap and the critical role that coordinated ecosystem support plays in doing so. The event featured live presentations from eight Canadian SMEs delivering solutions across a wide range of domains, including artificial intelligence, automation, critical minerals recovery, climate technologies, digitalization, clean technologies, geological intelligence, workforce development and sustainable mining practices. Presenting companies included Rithmik Solutions, Destiny Copper, Korr AI, Symx.AI, ELEMISSION, Novamera, Arca Climate and RZOLV.

The afternoon featured two high-impact panel discussions. The “Mine Operator” panel brought together senior representatives from Canada Nickel, IAMGOLD and BHP to discuss the real-world deployment of innovation, productivity, operational impact and the importance of industry-led technology adoption. The panel “Closing Canada’s Innovation Commercialization Gap: The Role of National Networks” convened leaders from several SRF-supported innovation ecosystem organizations in ISED. It included Natural Products Canada, the Clean Resource Innovation Network (CRIN), Conscience Medicines Network, FABrIC, Strix (Aerospace) and the Digital Health & Discovery Platform. The discussion highlighted the shared challenges and collaborative approaches to advancing Canada’s national innovation agenda.

“Advancing technologies from concept to commercialization requires patient capital, access to demonstration sites, strong industry partnerships, and ongoing support for innovation adoption. These are precisely the challenges MICA was created to address,” said Douglas Morrison, president and CEO, CEMI consistent.

As CEMI continues to expand the reach of the MICA program, its focus is to support innovators, strengthen Canada’s mining innovation ecosystem and accelerate deployment of solutions that improve productivity, competitiveness, sustainability and supply chain resilience. ‘Mining Innovation on the Hill’ marked a step in building the national dialogue needed to ensure Canada captures the economic and strategic value of its mining innovation advantage.

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