U of T wins federal mining innovation approval: Sudbury's mining research arm struggles to obtain federal recognition.

• Author: Low, Andrew
• Position: NEWS

A government funded $20-million mining innovation centre that will be built at the University of Toronto has key players in Sudbury's mining industry fuming.

"It was almost like a covert operation," said Richard DeStefano, executive director of the Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Service Association (SAMSSA). "There was no discussion, no revelations, no informal potential partnerships with Laurentian (University) during this entire process, which probably took close to six months to finalize.

"People are very upset."

The federal and provincial governments have each given $5.5 million for infrastructure funding to the Toronto mining innovation centre, which will be built at the University of Toronto's St. George Campus in the city's downtown core. Private donations of $9 million will bring the total cost of the project to $20 million.

Sudbury's Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI) wasn't eligible for the the infrastructure funding because no projects were ready to be built immediately, said Peter Kaiser, president and CEO.

"We were simply not ready for an infrastructure proposal at this stage."

The Innovation Centre for the Canadian Mining Industry, is so close to CEMI and its mandate. Kaiser understands what the name entails. It carries the industry's credibility, reputation and future funding prospects.

Sudbury's centre obtains funding from the private and public sectors for research and development projects that are directly related to mining operations all over the world with state-of-the-art technologies. The centre was established to hail some of the great works coming out of the area, the province and the country.

The University of Toronto's new centre will be in the Lassonde Institute, a facility named after Pierre Lassonde, president of Newmont Mining Corporation, who is said to be the private sector contributor for the new mine centre.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Kaiser's job now, as he sees it, is to gather many private sector mining companies and establish collaboration with other cluster projects in and outside the province for research and development. This way, the federal government cannot deny CEMI's worldwide impact.

"Federal government will then have to play a role because mining research is important to Canada. It is strategically important part of the future of Canada."

Mining research was never on the federal government's agenda, Kaiser said.

To have such an announcement means, at least, the federal government...