The Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator (MICA) Network announces over $11.5M of investment in 16 projects with a total project value of over $39M as part of its program to accelerate green innovations that will position Canada’s mining sector to benefit from, and contribute to, Canada’s economic recovery.
MICA is also please to announce the upcoming launch of the 2nd Call for Proposals which will see an additional amount of up to $18M of investment distributed to applicants.
Canada’s mining sector is a crucial part of our economy, and the global demand for minerals is only adding to its importance. The Government of Canada supports the sector’s continued success by investing in innovative solutions to strengthen Canada’s international leadership in sustainable, efficient, and safe mining.
Today, the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation Inc. (CEMI) has announced funding of strategic investments in innovations for mining through its MICA Network, a pan-Canadian initiative bringing together stakeholders from a wide range of fields to accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative technologies to make the mining sector more productive and sustainable.
A call for proposal process invited applicants to submit project proposals that will position Canada as a global leader in mining innovation by accelerating the commercialization of made-in-Canada technologies.
MICA received 106 initial projects for its first intake from 81 MICA members. These projects requested more than $100M from the available $30M MICA fund.
The applicants are from across Canada and the projects span the four (4) technical themes of MICA:
- Increase Mine Production Capacity, at Lower Cost
- Reduce Mining Energy Consumption and GHG Emissions
- Implement Smart, Autonomous Mining Systems
- Reduce Environmental Risk and Long-Term Liabilities
The complete list of successful recipients and their projects are:
| Applicant | Project Name | Total Eligible Project Costs | Approved MICA Funding |
|---|---|---|---|
| PYTHEAS AI INC. | Underground Positioning System and its Application for Autonomous, Automation and Mining Safety | $1,946,650.00 | $648,883.00 |
| Extract Energy | Capture and conversion of Mining Low-Grade Waste Heat | $6,075,478.00 | $1,099,348.00 |
| Mira Geoscience Ltd. | 4D Data Integration for Mining | $1,444,368.00 | $476,643.00 |
| Ambra Solution Inc | Intelligent Positioning System | $1,634,944.00 | $521,544.00 |
| ABCDust Technologies Corp | Smart Customized Dust Control & Soil Stabilization Solutions Pilot Plant and Industrialization facility | $2,302,281.00 | $726,948.00 |
| H2nanO Incorporated | Passive Sunlight Treatment for Managing Mining Process Water Risks | $945,780.00 | $315,780.00 |
| waterStrider Treatment Inc. | Amprey Removal of Dissolved Metals from Mine Water | $3,791,600.00 | $1,263,861.00 |
| Copperstone Technologies Ltd | HELIX Saturn: Amphibious Rover for Geotechnical Surveying of Tailings Storage Facilities | $3,583,700.00 | $1,194,568.00 |
| Cheetah Networks Inc | Visualization of Network Analytics in a Mine | $1,376,914.00 | $456,914.00 |
| NTWIST Inc | Smart Comminution in Mineral Processing | $1,476,125.00 | $487,123.00 |
| Destiny Copper Inc | Destiny Code Green | $2,883,370.00 | $835,579.00 |
| Rithmik Solutions Ltd. | Equipment Doctor | $2,183,438.00 | $577,834.00 |
| EnviroMetal Technologies Inc. | Gold Recovery Circuit Pilot | $5,769,950.00 | $1,743,000.00 |
| Goldspot Discoveries Corp | Machine Vision for Geological Knowledge Extraction | $2,632,670.04 | $862,670.04 |
| Centre for Innovation in Mineral Resource Engineering | Multimodal Sensing System for Improved Productivity and Safety in Cave Mines | $324,475.00 | $108,158.00 |
| Linnovative Solutions | Linnovative Solutions | $860,820.00 | $279,940.00 |
| $11,598,793.04 |
Quotes
“The funding announced today will offer critical support to Canadian innovators and contribute to the commercialization of ground-breaking mining technologies. I would like to congratulate all recipients of the MICA program support; their work will help Canada to position itself as a world leader in the production of minerals essentials for sustainability and renewable energy.”
The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry
“The first group of successful candidates for some $12M of MICA funding is a major step forward for MICA. It establishes MICA as an SME Network for ‘Innovation in Mining’ across Canada, that includes innovators from other sectors and will soon include solution providers from other countries who want to collaborate with Canadian SMEs. We know that these businesses, working in concert, will be able to make significant contributions to the effort to supply the economy with the strategic metals and critical minerals needed to help arrest Climate Change, and will create high-tech jobs in mining and other sectors, increasing economic activity in Canada and globally.”
Douglas Morrison, President, Mining Innovation Commercialization Accelerator Network
At the recent 1st Annual Conference and Innovation Showcase held on November 15-16 at the Radisson Blu, Toronto, the Network also announced the launch of its second Call for Proposals where up to $18M in funding will be distributed to the next round of successful applicants.
Quick facts
- The MICA Network has six main partners across Canada. These main partners include the Bradshaw Research Initiative for Minerals and Mining (BC), InnoTech Alberta( AB), Saskatchewan Polytechnic (SK), MaRS (ON), Groupe MISA (PQ) and the College of the North Atlantic (NL).
- MICA intends to connect Canada’s regional mining clusters and bring together mining companies, mining suppliers, academic and research institutions, innovators from all walks of life, and others to foster knowledge sharing and collaboration and to create technical and business synergies among its members.
- According to the Mining Association of Canada, the mining sector contributed $109 billion, or 5%, to Canada’s GDP in 2019. It directly and indirectly employs 719,000 Canadians, which represents approximately 1 in every 26 jobs in Canada.
- The contribution is being made through the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), a program designed to attract and support high-quality business investments across all sectors of the economy. The investment is under Stream 5: SIF support for national innovation ecosystems and their pan-Canadian network-led projects that involve a high degree of collaboration and aim to stimulate innovation and commercialization in areas of Canadian advantage and enhance linkages between businesses and academic/research institutions.
- CEMI has signed on to the Government of Canada’s 50 – 30 Challenge, pledging to increase the representation and inclusion of diverse groups within the workplace and attain gender parity and significant representation of under-represented groups within its senior leadership.
Associated links
- Strategic Innovation Fund
- Innovation and Skills Plan
- Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation Inc.
- MICA Network
Contacts
Charles Nyabeze
Vice President, Business Development and Commercialization