Eric M. Levy
Jul 19, 2016
The adoption of Bill 70 — An Act to Amend the Mining Act is one of several factors that has triggered the “positive evolution” of Québec’s mining industry over the last several years, as outlined in an article authored by Razvan Isac and Ty Jeevaratnam in Engineering and Mining Journal. According to the Fraser Institute’s annual mining companies survey, the province rose to eighth in the world in 2015 in terms of its attractiveness to potential investors – up from 24th in 2013. In the article, Eric Levy, a partner in Osler’s Mining Practice Group, suggests part of the reason for the province’s emergence as a global player in the industry is the passing of the Bill.
“With Bill 70 finally being passed in December 2013, the whole legislative uncertainty is now gone,” Eric explains. “The actual amendments are quite subtle, so there were little changes to the daily operations of mining companies.”
The article outlines several more reasons for the transformation, including a change in government from the Parti Québecois to the Liberals in 2014.
“The election of a new provincial government has had a good impact,” Eric says. “The dialogue between the industry and the authorities has improved, there is a better general mood within the sector and investors now view Québec as once again being open for business.”
You can find out more about mining in Quebec by reading Razvan Isac and Ty Jeevaratnam’s article “Québec’s political improvements and legislative stabilization.” [PDF]