Fréchette in Paris: Premier touts Quebec’s strengths in critical minerals

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault says a new lithium mine in northern Quebec can go ahead with more than 270 conditions to protect wildlife and respect Indigenous use of the lands of traditional purposes. A container of lithium carbonate sits in a shipping warehouse at a lithium facility, in Silver Peak, Nev., Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-John Locher

On a mission to Paris, Premier Christine Fréchette pitched Quebec as a “trusted partner” for France and Europe in the critical and strategic minerals sector.

Fréchette took part in a roundtable on Monday with representatives of the French government and business leaders. The event was held at the Quebec delegation in Paris, where the premier highlighted Quebec’s “major assets” in critical minerals.

“First, we have the resources in Quebec’s soil. So, a very important point: we have the largest share of Canadian critical and strategic minerals. A good portion of them. We have 28 in total,” she said.

The premier said she wants to develop the sector in a “sustainable” and “responsible” way, pointing to Quebec’s clean energy advantage.

With Europe planning to invest 800 billion euros in rearmament, the Quebec government is hoping the province can secure its share of defence contracts.

According to Fréchette, strategic minerals carry significant weight in “an era marked by geopolitical upheaval.”

“We are in a period where spending related to defence and critical and strategic minerals will continue to grow. That is the case here in Europe, and it is also the case in Canada, with a desire to raise the contribution to the NATO budget to five per cent. So enormous defence-related spending will follow,” the premier said.

Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie Christopher Skeete and Quebec’s Delegate General in Paris Henri-Paul Rousseau were also present at the roundtable.

Later Monday, Fréchette is scheduled to meet French President Emmanuel Macron and his counterpart, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu.

This is Fréchette’s second international mission. She travelled to Washington several weeks ago.

The premier is in Paris until May 20.

- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 18, 2026.