Thank you very much.
Thank you to all our presenters who are here this afternoon for this really important testimony.
As I alluded to, I ran out of time a bit. I wanted to stick with steel, of course, but not just steel. I wanted to talk about the whole up-and-down supply chain as it relates to the auto industry. For our friend from the auto industry who is online, could you describe this?
We really were ahead of the Americans, quite frankly, from 2015 on, in our efforts to decarbonize the economy. You've seen recently the investments of the steel industry in Sault Ste. Marie at Algoma. That is really going to make a huge difference. It's going to anchor Algoma Steel in Sault Ste. Marie for generations. We're calling it “generational funding”. The steelworkers are going around and saying, “Hey, if my grandkid wants to be a steelworker, he or she, if they choose it, they can.”
It's also taking a million cars off the road, or the equivalent thereof. It's pretty significant, but then we're seeing a lot of things happening with the recent announcement with the Volkswagen EV batteries. We're seeing a lot of focus on the unlocking of even more of the minerals needed for the industry.
Through you, Madam Chair, to our presenter, could you talk about these non-trade barriers and how, if they target one area of that supply chain, that could upset the whole apple cart?
There are many pieces of that supply chain that I've been talking to. I talked a little bit about the transportation stuff. Please also speak a bit about unlocking even more critical minerals and that potential.