Resource World Magazine

10 www.resourceworld.com A U G U S T / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 8 M ost resource stock investors are aware of the long history and prolific output of the Québec mining industry. The Abitibi Gold Belt is one of the world's premier gold mining jurisdictions and the James Bay region is looking very good. However, not all mineral-rich jurisdic- tions are the same. Québec offers some unique benefits to explorers that result in those explorers feeling they are lucky to work in La Belle Province. Claude Lemasson, President and CEO of Eastmain Resources, which has two advanced and one early-stage project in northern Québec, pointed out some interesting facts on how the provincial government attracts mineral explorers and helps them to succeed. "Plan Nord is all about the government commitment to provide funds to invest in infrastructure to promote development of resources in the north," he said. "Part of that plan is for Plan Nord to have pro- grams where companies can get together and jointly approach the Plan Nord management group, which is part of the government, and request funds to expand roads or provide power." He noted that the 250-km road to Stornoway's Renard diamond mine was two-thirds subsidized with Stornoway paying one-third the cost. Plan Nord is also involved building an access road for Mason Graphite's Lac Guéret Project about 285 km north of Baie-Comeau. The Québec government also refunds some exploration costs and provides other benefits. "Some of them are related to investments, some to tax credits related to exploration and they also have flow- through share tax incentives. "The Québec government basically anchors in as major shareholders and sup- ports you throughout the development of a mine," said Lemasson. "There is also a clear permitting process whether they are hydro projects, mining development or any other type of project. What's unique is that they bring together three key parties to make it work – the federal government, the provin- cial government and the Cree government." Another example is Geomega Resources and Innord Inc., its private subsidiary, in collaboration with Centre d'études des proceeds chimiques du Québec (CÉPROCQ), obtaining a total of $288,000 in grants from several Federal and Provincial government programs to conduct research on selective metal extrac- tion and purification processes. Exploration and Mining in Québec by Ellsworth Dickson Midland Exploration's employee at the Willbob gold project in the Labrador Trough 66 km west-southwest of Kuujjuaq. Photo courtesy Midland Exploration Inc.

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