Quebec Courts Foreign Investors with Clean Energy and Critical Minerals

Quebec is making a strong pitch to foreign investors at the Canada Investment Summit in Toronto. Finance Minister Eric Girard says 'Quebec is at the centre of the transformation of the Canadian economy' due to its clean energy, manufacturing base, and critical minerals.

The summit has brought together hundreds of business leaders, financial institutions, governments, project proponents, and foreign investors. Girard notes that many of these projects require billions of dollars in investment and come with uncertainty about prices at the time they will be carried out.

Girard said the Quebec government is prepared to put public money into projects to help get them started but its involvement should remain limited. This makes private and foreign investment essential, so private capital bears most of the risk on projects that are important to Quebec's economy.

Major companies and institutions with a presence in Quebec, including Bombardier, Desjardins, and Rio Tinto, are represented at the summit. Hydro-Québec CEO Claudine Bouchard and La Caisse president and CEO Charles Emond are also participating.