Fresh off an early March announcement of $5 million, the federal government has announced another $5 million for the Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator (MICA) Network to help bring advanced mining technologies online.
On March 13, the government announced MICA is one of five organizations to receive money from the Strategic Investment Fund.
A Sudbury-based initiative of the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation, MICA is a pan-Canadian network of mining companies, industrial suppliers, academic organizations and researchers, and industrial innovators from across Canada.
Its goal is to find technological solutions to contemporary mining problems, focusing on four key priorities:
- increase mine production capacity, at lower cost;
- reduce mining energy consumption and GHG emissions;
- implement smart, autonomous mining systems; and
- reduce environmental risk and long-term liabilities, with an emphasis on critical mineral and metals enabling technologies, circularity, and social license to operate.
Funds from MICA go toward helping mining tech startups bring their solutions to commercialization more quickly.
According to a government news release, since its launch in 2021, MICA has created and maintained more than 435 jobs and mobilized investments of roughly $170 million from the private sector.
The organization recently launched its fourth call for proposals. The deadline to apply is April 4.
