PDAC 2015: Michael Gravelle beats the drum for Ontario

Ontario's Minister of Northern Development and Mines, Michael Gravelle, and Greg Rickford, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, kicked off PDAC with an announcement of a joint investment of more than $785,000 to support economic development and community access in northwestern Ontario.

The Northern Miner caught up with Gravelle on the sidelines of the conference.

TNM: The Fraser Institute recently ranked Ontario 23rd internationally in terms of its Attractiveness Index, a drop of nine spots from a year ago, and in the same category the province ranked ninth in Canada, after British Columbia, Nunavut and Nova Scotia. How do you explain Ontario's drop in the rankings of the survey, and what should the province be doing to improve before the survey next year?

Gravelle: We understand that the Fraser Institute is an opinion survey, and I appreciate that, but what I have been saying and will continue to say, is that we need to look at the facts in terms of Ontario being an extremely attractive jurisdiction in terms of mineral investment, and the facts are, that in 2014, our mineral exploration dollars were over $500 million.

Read the complete interview at NortherMiner.com/news/pdac-michael-gravelle