B.C. must accelerate mining permitting to remain competitive and retain investment amid a tense political landscape.
That was one of the key messages Michael Goehring delivered at the Mining Association of BC’s (MABC) annual Greater Vancouver Board of Trade address last week.
The CEO of MABC said he was pleased to see the creation of the Ministry of Mining and Critical Minerals last November, and the introduction of legislation earlier this month aimed at speeding up approvals for major projects.
These are important steps, he said, and perhaps indications that the current government is choosing to focus more on economic growth.
Still, promises will need to be followed by action, he said, adding that serious challenges still face B.C.’s resource sector.
“The No. 1 barrier holding back our industry is permitting timelines,” he said. “More urgency is needed.… The system is too slow, too complex and risks driving needed investment elsewhere.”
According to Goehring, the province’s mining potential can be unlocked by adopting an efficient framework to reduce timelines, support First Nations capacity and partnerships, and expand B.C.’s electricity grid.
“I would say both the federal and provincial governments deserve an A for taking steps in this direction,” he said. “However, at this point, I have to give them a grade of incomplete when it comes to actually shortening those approval timelines.”
The annual address follows the release of an MABC economic impact study, which projects $90 billion in short-term economic activity will be generated by 27 mines currently under development across the province.
Representing a collective short-term investment of over $41 billion, these critical mineral, precious metal and steelmaking coal projects could generate upwards of $984 billion in economic activity over several decades, according to the study.
“I think the numbers are reasonable, particularly in the regional areas of British Columbia,” said John Steen, director of the University of British Columbia’s Bradshaw Research Initiative in Minerals and Mining.
He said those 27 projects will also have a significant impact on supply chains across B.C., which, according to the MABC report, will contribute $20 billion in spending on goods and services from mining suppliers over a three-year construction period.
Steen also pointed to the substantial amount of gold projects currently under development, highlighting that one of the criticisms for advancing these projects is that gold isn’t necessarily a critical mineral.
In some of these cases, however, these mines will also produce copper, molybdenum and other resources that do fall on the critical minerals list, he said.
The Eskay Creek mine operated by Vancouver-based Skeena Resources Ltd. in B.C.’s Golden Triangle region produces gold and silver — which aren’t on Canada’s critical minerals list. But it is particularly sophisticated in its collaboration with and benefits to the Tahltan First Nation, Steen said.
The former underground mine owned by Barrick Gold Corp. is being redeveloped into an open-pit operation with an anticipated production date of 2027, according to Skeena. In 2022, the Tahltan signed a consent agreement giving the First Nation a say in the mine’s environmental review process.
The MABC study said the ongoing operation of 27 new mines or mine extensions could enable $1.4 billion in annual spending on goods and services from First Nations-affiliated businesses throughout B.C.
During his annual address, Goehring said industry and the Crown need to make sure that First Nations have the administrative capacity to be involved in permitting processes.
Labour, market uncertainties amid tariffs
The MABC projections come at a time of uncertainty for many industries amid trade tensions, and for Goehring, regulatory reforms taking place south of the border could drive talent and investment away from Canada.
“Capital and talent go where the climate is most favourable,” he said. “So [if] we don’t change, we risk falling behind, and we risk losing the investment that we need to grow our sector.”
He said U.S. tariffs have been a wakeup call for the industry, adding the instability could be around for another four to 10 years.
With the majority of B.C.’s minerals and metals bound for Asia, Goehring said that despite the risk of falling behind, critical minerals are also an essential component of economic and national security, particularly in North America.
B.C. is home to 16 of the 50 minerals the U.S. deems critical to its national security, he said, noting that the U.S. is 100-per-cent reliant on Canada for 12 of those critical minerals.
In 2024, coal (primarily metallurgic) was the province’s most-exported commodity at a value of $8.6 billion, making up 15.9 per cent of total exports by value, according to a BC Stats trade overview.
Just two per cent of those coal exports went to the U.S.
The third most-exported B.C. commodity was copper, which made up 8.1 per cent of exports at a value of $4.4 billion, according to BC Stats.
No copper went to the U.S. market last year.
In addition to ongoing trade disputes, an aging workforce is also creating uncertainty for B.C.’s mining industry.
The industry expects to lose 25 per cent of its workforce to retirement in the next 10 years, according to a 2020 report by MABC.
Goehring said the industry isn’t very attractive to people in their 20s and 30s for now, adding the sector is working on engaging and identifying its future workforce.
Part of the challenge may relate to trust.
While B.C. and Canada have some of the most stringent mining regulations of any jurisdiction in the world, accidents do still occur.
“In the last 10 years, we had two significant disasters in mining in British Columbia,” said Steen.
This includes the Mount Polley failure in 2014, operated by Imperial Metals Corp., where the waste tailings dam broke. Ten years later, in 2024, the Eagle Gold Mine operated by Victoria Gold Corp. in the Yukon suffered a collapse in the heap leach pad, which is used to process the gold and leaked cyanide.
“The industry finds itself struggling to get trust with the public, and the industry is pretty frustrated with these failures as well,” said Steen.
There are currently 11 metal mines, five steelmaking coal mines and two smelters operating in B.C., according to MABC. The association also says the sector supports 35,000 jobs and accounts for $18 billion in annual economic activity.
