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HOW DEFENCE SPENDING IS DRIVING OPPORTUNITIES FOR CRITICAL MINERALS 

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CONNECTING MINING, DEFENCE, GOVERNMENT AND FINANCE

Rising geopolitical risk, NATO commitments, and supply-chain vulnerability are accelerating defence-aligned demand for critical minerals with strategic applications, elevating their role as essential inputs to secure and resilient allied supply chains. This is a structural, long-term shift which is becoming a dominant driver of policy, capital and procurement for critical minerals.


Critical Minerals for Defence, June 9–10 at the Marriott Downtown CF Toronto Eaton Centre, will provide a unique Forum for mining leaders, investors, defence suppliers, and government to explore how defence demand is unlocking new opportunities for critical minerals and redefining Canada’s role in allied defence supply chains.



This two-day conference will deliver key policy updates and actionable insights on how projects can be financed, qualified, and connected to long-term offtake with defence and industrial buyers. It will also examine the strategic, commercial, and industrial forces reshaping demand for defence-critical minerals — from geopolitics and government policy to processing, financing, and procurement.




Key topics include:

🛡️ Defence Demand & Market Signals

  • Defence Driven Demand for Critical Minerals
  • Defence as a Market Maker
  • The Defence Shift: Opportunities & Challenges

💰 Capital & Investment

  • Financing Defence-Critical Minerals
  • Mobilizing Public-Private Capital
  • Allied Cooperation and Investment - EU, Korea, Germany, USA

⚙️ Supply Chain & Industrial Strategy

  • Defence Supply Chain Resilience & OEM Strategies
  • Processing Critical Minerals for Defence Supply Chains
  • Recycling, Refining & By-Product Recovery

🇨🇦 Policy, Strategy & Partnerships

  • Progressing Canada’s Defence-Critical Minerals Strategy
  • First Nations Partnerships & Defence-Aligned Projects
  • Provincial Support and Initiatives

🚀 Execution & Next Steps

  • Next Steps for Critical Minerals Miners
  • Risks of Aligning with Defence Strategy
  • Mine Strategy Case Studies

EXPERT SPEAKER LINE-UP INCLUDES:

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Christiane Fox

Deputy Minister

National Defence

Logo for Defence, Security & Resilience Bank Development Group, featuring a geometric icon and text.
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Kevin Reed

President and Chief Operations Officer,

Defence, Security & Resilience Bank (DSRB) Development Group

Blue
Man in a light purple dress shirt, smiling, against a white background.

Kendal Hembroff

Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Industry Sector

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED)

Logo of the European Commission, featuring a blue rectangle with twelve yellow stars in a circle above blue text.
A professional headshot of a person wearing a dark blue suit, white shirt, and a patterned tie against a white background.

Tomasz Husak

Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS)

 EU Commission

The blue logo of KfW, featuring the letters
Jan Klasen

Jan Klasen

First Vice President

KfW

The Natural Resources Canada logo featuring the Canadian flag and the word Canada.
A portrait of a person with dark hair, wearing a dark turtleneck and a textured jacket, against a white background.

Isabella Chan

 Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Lands and Minerals Sector

Natural Resources Canada

Talon Metals Corp logo featuring text in dark teal with a stylized bird silhouette flying across the letter O.
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Christine Burow

Chief Marketing Officer

Torngat Metals

The blue CAE company logo on a white background.
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Jeff Tasseron

Director Strategy & Innovation

CAE

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Hon. Arif Virani

former Minister of Justice and Attorney General,

current Senior Counsel

Torys LLP

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A person with light brown hair, wearing a black blazer over a light-colored turtleneck, poses against a white background.

Abigail Hunter

Executive Director, Center for Critical Minerals Strategy

SAFE

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Peter Suma

Senior Advisor, StrongNorth Fund

BDC Capital

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Nicolas Todd

Head of the Canadian Delegation

NATO Industrial Advisory Group

Vice-President, Government Relations and Communications

Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CADSI)

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Christopher Hernandez-Roy

Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Americas Program

Centre for Strategic & International Studies

Amaero logo featuring a green stylized star icon next to the company name in dark gray text on a white background.
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Istvan Zollei

Managing Partner, Chief Investment Officer

Orion Resource Partners

The GreenMet logo, featuring a circular emblem of green leaves next to the company name in dark green text.
Drew Horn - Geenmet

Drew Horn

CEO

GreenMet

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Scott Monteith

Scott Monteith

President and CEO

Avalon Advanced Materials

Logo for Lomiko Metals featuring a blue-green dotted circular icon next to the company name in grey and teal text.
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Gordana Slepcev

CEO and Director

Lomiko Metals

The Talon Metals Corp logo featuring a dark blue bird silhouette integrated into the letter O of the word TALON.
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Hon. Harjit Sajjan

Former Minister of National Defence and Chairman

Juno Industries 

The dark blue logo of the Savannah River National Laboratory featuring a stylized globe icon next to the letters SRNL.
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Dawn Wellman

Senior Fellow

Critical Minerals and Materials

Savannah River National Laboratory

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Robin Goad

CEO

Fortune Minerals

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Jeff Gaulin

Vice President of Corporate Affairs

Vale Base Metals

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Brian Gabriel

EVP, Partnerships and Market Strategy

Principal Mineral

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Eric Miller

CEO

Global Battery Materials

The dark blue Lockheed Martin company logo, featuring stylized lettering and a geometric star icon on a white background.
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Nathan Cardinell

Senior Staff Materials Engineer

Lockheed Martin

Logo of Vacuumschmelze featuring the letters VAC in bold dark blue, with the company name written underneath in black.
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Eric Eschen

CEO

VAC

A white abstract V-shaped logo and the text
Professional headshot of a man with a beard, wearing a dark suit and light blue collared shirt against a white background.

Jody Thomas

Former National Security and Intelligence Advisor and Senior Advisor

Counsel Public Affairs

Company logo for Principal Mineral featuring a geometric blue icon next to the bold dark blue text
A man with a short beard wearing a dark blazer and white collared shirt against a plain white background.

Jacqueline Murray

Partner, Head of Fund

Resource Capital Funds 

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John Passalacqua

CEO

First Phosphate

The dark blue Lockheed Martin company logo, featuring stylized lettering and a geometric star icon on a white background.
A person with a dark beard and glasses looking directly at the camera against a plain white background.

Bruce Achneepineskum

Chief

Marten Falls First Nation

Logo of Vacuumschmelze featuring the letters VAC in bold dark blue, with the company name written underneath in black.
A smiling person with a shaved head, wearing a dark blue suit and a tie against a plain white background.

Bruce Archibald

Chief

Taykwa Tagamou Nation

WHAT WILL THE FORUM COVER?

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SPONSORS

THOUGHT LEADER

Green Schneider Electric corporate logo on a white background.

SESSION LEADER

Torys LLP corporate logo in blue text on a white background with a horizontal line underneath.

SUPPORTING ORGANISATIONS

The CIM Magazine logo in black text on a white background.
Logo for the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI), featuring a gold geometric maple leaf icon above the text.
The word
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ArchTech
OMA logo
Logo for the Canadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce featuring a red maple leaf and the text AHK.
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Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation. Minister Responsible for Ring of Fire

Assistant Deputy Minister,

Policy-Industry,

The Seabridge Gold corporate logo with the word
Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation. Minister Responsible for Ring of Fire

President and COO

The Capstone Copper logo, featuring two stacked, abstract orange chevron shapes next to the text
Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation. Minister Responsible for Ring of Fire

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Thought Leadership Opportunities

Energy and Mines partners with organizations looking to build profile and thought leadership in the critical minerals sector. To explore opportunities and bespoke packages, contact events@energyandmines.com

Forum FAQs

  • When is the Forum?

    June 9th - 10th ,  2026

  • What is the venue?

    Marriott Downtown at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, 525 Bay St., Toronto, ON M5G 2L2

  • Who are the organizers?

    Energy and Mines is an Ottawa-based B2B conference company focused on driving opportunities for mining and energy through in-depth content and high-caliber events. This Forum is part of the Energy and Mines Critical Minerals event series which also includes the BC  Critical Minerals Forum, April 14-15, Vancouver and the Ontario Critical Minerals Forum November 24-25, Toronto

  • How do I register?

    Registration is available via the  REGISTER page. 

    For registration assistance, drop a message to events@energyandmines.com.