Mining exploration incentive leading to more drilling in Sask.

Mining companies are getting a boost from the province to help explore northern Saskatchewan for valuable minerals including copper, cobalt, gold and zinc.

The Targeted Mineral Exploration Incentive (TMEI) was announced in 2017 and provides a grant of up to $50,000 for eligible companies. Seven successful applications were received in 2018-19, representing 110 new drill holes and proposed expenditures of more than $6.5 million.

“Hats off to the Government of Saskatchewan for putting together a program that is focused on getting the drills out there to find these new deposits,” Rick Mazur, president and CEO of Forum Energy Metals Corp., said Tuesday.

Finding investors to raise enough capital to start an exploration project has become a challenge in the industry as investors turn to other areas, including the recent legalization of cannabis in Canada.

“Investors are looking for something they’re going to get a quick return on their money on and that’s not necessarily the exploration industry right now,” said Pam Schwann, president of the Saskatchewan Mining Association.

David Tupper, vice-president of exploration for MAS Gold Corp., echoed those concerns.

“Times are kind of tough right now in the current market and so the government coming along with a little bit of extra help has been very welcome,” said Tupper.

Tupper explained the government grant is helping MAS Gold explore the La Ronge Greenstone Belt for potential mid-sized mines which could lead to jobs for locals in nearby communities.

“The La Ronge gold belt is a little bit of a forgotten and overlooked belt in Canada,” said Tupper.

The TMEI is also one of the main reasons why Forum Energy Metals was able to return to the Janice Lake copper project, which had been ignored for years.

Mazur said the company had dedicated $300,000 to its exploratory drilling budget and the $50,000 grant from the province was a very important factor in the decision to move forward.

The Janice Lake copper project was first drilled in the 1990s followed by more drilling in 2003 before it was ignored.

“It was something that’s been sitting out there in the middle of northern Saskatchewan and hadn’t been looked at in 15 years,” said Mazur.

Forum Energy Metals has been involved in uranium exploration since 2004 but has recently expanded into copper and cobalt. Mazur describes Saskatchewan as one of the best places in the world for mineral mining.

“The geology of Saskatchewan is so diverse and so rich, the potential for base metal deposits, we think, is enormous,” said Mazur.

“It just takes money to find these things but a big, new copper mine which we hope will unfold in our Janice Lake project will be absolutely huge for the economy of Saskatchewan.”