It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Tuesday, July 07, 2026
Canada set to back Teck’s BC smelter to boost germanium output: report
Canada’s federal government is set to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Teck Resources’ (TSX: TECK.A, TECK.B)(NYSE: TECK) Trail metals facility in British Columbia to expand germanium output and strengthen North American supply of critical minerals, the Globe and Mail reported.
The funding is expected to come from Natural Resources Canada, the Canada Growth Fund and Export Development Canada (EDC), the Globesaid, citing unidentified sources familiar with the transaction.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson is scheduled to make a “critical minerals announcement” in Trail Tuesday at 3 p.m. Eastern time, according to a media advisory issued Friday by his ministry. A spokesperson for Natural Resources Canada declined to comment on the Globe story Tuesday morning, referring The Northern Miner to the media advisory.
Largest producer
Vancouver-based Teck is North America’s largest germanium producer, recovering the mineral as a byproduct of its zinc-mining operations in Alaska. The company is Canada’s only supplier of germanium dioxide to the United States.
Germanium is considered essential to defence, semi-conductors and chip manufacturing, but China controls more than 80% of global output. The UShas limited domestic production and processing capacity, highlighting the importance of securing new supply sources.
In May, Titan Mining (NYSE-A: TII) said it was evaluating potential germanium production from its US-based zinc mining in partnership with Teck.
Titan and Teck envision recovering 13,000 kg a year of germanium from Titan’s Empire State zinc mine in New York state, according to a cooperation agreement signed May 14. U.S. pricing for germanium now tops $6,000 (C$8,520) per kg, Titan CEO Rita Adiani said Tuesday in a statement.
Specialty metal
Germanium is one of the specialty metals that Teck’s Trail complex produces, along with indium and antimony, in addition to refined zinc and lead. The facility is one of the world’s largest integrated zinc and lead smelters.
Canada and the US are among the Western countries that have been seeking to diversify critical mineral supply chains following China’s 2024 decision to impose export restrictions on germanium and antimony sales to the US. Although China suspended the restrictions in late 2025, supply security remains a concern because the US has no domestic germanium production, the Globe said.
Funding the Trail facility would align with Ottawa’s broader push to support critical minerals processing and cut reliance on China. In March, EDC and the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) jointly committed $335 million (C$459 million) in senior debt to fund Nouveau Monde Graphite’s (NYSE: NMG, TSX: NOU) Matawinie project in Quebec through its construction.
Ottawa to invest up to $400 million in Teck critical minerals smelter in B.C.
Teck Mining Company's zinc and lead smelting and refining complex is pictured in Trail, B.C., on November 26, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
The federal government will invest up to $400 million into Teck Resources Ltd.’s critical minerals processing operations in southern B.C. as Ottawa looks to shore up supplies of metals used in the defence and green energy sectors.
“We are facing a trade war we did not ask for; the most volatile geopolitics since the end of World War II, which has led to the biggest energy crisis in modern history; technological change at a pace not seen in decades, mainly due to AI; and an accelerating clean energy transition,” Tim Hodgson, the federal natural resources minister, said in Trail, B.C., Monday.
“Anyone who tells you facing these challenges as a government, and as a nation, is not daunting is not telling the truth.”
But Hodgson said the crisis is creating an opportunity for Canada, and some of the country’s “best cards” are in its critical minerals.
“In 2026, these minerals are no longer just commodities. They are strategic assets — essential to the world’s manufacturing of defence technologies, semiconductors, telecommunications, clean energy, electric vehicles, batteries, solar panels, as well as the next generation of advanced manufacturing.”
The announcement on Monday is the first under the Canada Critical Mineral Accelerator, a Natural Resources Canada program set up last year to speed up development of minerals it says are needed for economic sovereignty, national security and the energy transition. Export Development Canada manages the accelerator.
The agreement could see the Canada Growth Fund, a federal arm’s-length cleantech investment vehicle, make an “equity-like investment” of up to $400 million directly into Teck’s facility in Trail, Natural Resources Canada said in a release.
The smelting and refining complex currently produces 19 products and employs more than 1,400 people. Teck is planning an up to $850-million expansion to its Trail operations that could double production of germanium and antimony and add new capacity for gallium.
Germanium is used in fibre optic, infrared and semiconductor technology, while antimony is crucial for flame retardants, batteries and alloys. Gallium is key for semiconductors used in telecommunications, radar and electronics.
The agreement could also see Ottawa obtain rights to a portion of the future production of those minerals.
Jonathan Price, Teck’s chief executive, said the agreement will help the company quickly and significantly increase production of key strategic metals.
“By leveraging Trail’s existing infrastructure and expertise, this initiative has the potential to deliver new supply of strategic metals while providing strong returns for Teck shareholders,” he said.
Teck and London-based Anglo American PLC announced a deal last year to join forces and create a $70-billion copper-focused mining powerhouse. The combined company is to be called Anglo Teck and keep its headquarters in Vancouver.
When the deal was announced last September, Anglo American said it expected the transaction to close within 12 to 18 months.
This report by Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press, was first published July 7, 2026.
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