Canada is home to vast reserves of critical minerals, including copper, nickel, potash, and uranium. But, within the broader category of critical minerals, sits a subset of especially prized inputs, rare earth elements, that are indispensable to modern technologies. Rare earth minerals are at the center of an urgent global race to secure reliable supplies.

Australia and the United States have moved rapidly to shape the strategic and economic landscape of rare earth supply and reduce dependence on China. Canada, despite having abundant rare earth reserves and resources, has been slower out of the gate, risking significant economic opportunities tied to this sector.

“In the global race for rare earths, ambition and visibility matter. Canada needs a stand-alone, Canada-first rare earth strategy, separate from the broader Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy,” said Laura Paglia, President and CEO of the Canadian Forum for Financial Markets (CFFiM). “Such a strategy would recognize the extraordinary leverage and strategic influence these elements offer and the unique dynamics that set them apart from other critical minerals.”

The federal government has an important role in de-risking projects to attract private investment.

CFFiM Recommendations  to the Federal Government as follows:

• Develop a stand-alone rare earth strategy – Include a roadmap for mining, processing, refining, and downstream applications.
• Facilitate offtake agreements – Focus on a diverse range of strategic customers such as the U.S. Department of Defense, renewable energy developers, and key players in EV battery and motor supply chains, as well as broader commercial markets such as OEM manufacturers, consumer electronics brands, magnet producers, and industrial and automation companies.
• Implement price stabilization mechanisms – Consider price floors and contracts for difference for the most critical of rare earths.
• Provide upstream tax incentives.
• Prioritize permitting – Expedite rare earth projects deemed essential for national security, clean technology, or high-tech industries.
• Leverage the Critical Minerals Sovereign Fund (announced in the November 2025 federal budget) – Prioritize rare earth projects and explicitly outline eligible value chain stages (mining, separation, refining, recycling) to provide focused, strategic support.
• Invest in backbone infrastructure – Roads, ports, energy, water, and waste management infrastructure to improve project viability.
• Ensure early, meaningful, and sustained consultation with Indigenous communities, accompanied by equitable benefit-sharing agreements.

“Together, these measures would materially de-risk projects, accelerate supply chain development, and strengthen Canada’s competitive position in the global rare earth market,” said Paglia.

Read the CFFiM’s report, From Potential To Production: Attracting Capital To Canada’s Rare Earths Sector, online.

About CFFiM

The Canadian Forum for Financial Markets (CFFiM)/Forum Canadien des Marchés Financiers (FCMFi) is dedicated to advancing proposals that foster healthy, competitive financial markets and a stronger, more resilient Canadian economy for the benefit of all Canadians.

For more information about CFFiM, please visit https://cffim-fcmfi.ca/