Thank you very much.
I am joined by my colleague Simon Thibault, who is our battery expert. As president and chief executive officer of Propulsion Québec, Quebec's electric and intelligent transportation industry cluster, and on behalf of our 220 or so members, I would like to thank you, members of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources, for this invitation to present to you our vision for, on the one hand, positioning Canada as a responsible source of strategic and critical minerals, or SCMs, and, on the other hand, the development of Canada's electric vehicle battery industry.
As you know, Canada is in a unique position globally. Indeed, our country not only has vast SCM resources, especially those in high demand in the context of an energy transition, deployment of clean technologies and a sustainable economic recovery after COVID-19, but it also has recognized expertise in responsible industrial development. I'm thinking of the mining and chemical sectors, for example.
We also have an energy mix that is dominated, in some parts of the country, by low-carbon renewable energy that is available at low cost. We have one of the most demanding environmental regulatory frameworks in the world, a skilled workforce, and most importantly, a stable and predictable geopolitical environment.
These strengths consolidate, in our view, Canada's positioning as a safe, stable and responsible supplier of SCMs and battery components, three terms that must be at the heart of any sustainable Canada-wide strategy for the development of the SCM and battery industries.
If Canada wishes to make the development of these value chains a success, a fourth dimension must be added to these key factors, namely the pan-Canadian approach to this strategy. Indeed—as other major international players active in these same sectors have already demonstrated—there is no regional entity capable, on its own, of bringing together both the natural mining resources, the technical and technological capacities required to develop these resources, as well as the indispensable financial resources to develop these sectors on its territory alone without an interstate synergy.
That is why it is of the utmost importance that the Canadian government play a role in coordinating the actions of each of the provinces and territories through the creation of a broad Canadian alliance dedicated to the development of the SCM and battery industries, building on the strengths and assets of each of these provinces and territories.
In addition, Canada must leverage its historical position as an ally of the United States to work towards the creation of a North American coalition that will enable Canada's SCM and battery industry ecosystem to define itself as a secure, stable and responsible supplier of value-added materials and components, not just a supplier of raw materials that are not processed, for high-growth markets such as electric vehicles and the energy transition.
This same continental positioning not only appears to us to be highly strategic on a North American scale, but it is equally strategic with our European partners. The latter have also decided, in the wake of the recent adoption of the battery directive by the European Commission, to focus on consolidating, on European soil, competitive, green and circular supply chains for battery materials and components for their own electric vehicle and energy storage markets.
Canada today faces an economic opportunity that it cannot and should not ignore. Moreover, this is a unique chance to rebuild our economy on a new and promising foundation for the future by integrating best practices in circular environmental and social responsibility, particularly with respect to the recycling of these batteries and the development of industrial residues; we can also increase transparency, for example, by integrating the traceability of battery supply chains.
To do this, Canada must work to build a Canada-wide alliance to leverage the strengths of each of the provinces and territories, with the goal of defining itself as a global leader in the responsible production of value-added components for western industrial supply chains that are dependent on a secure and stable supply of SCMs. In our view, if we do not, Canada will miss the opportunity to take full advantage of this unprecedented opportunity for our country.
I will turn the floor over to my colleague Simon Thibault for the remaining few minutes.