Businesses in the Canadian Province of Ontario Interested in Cooperation with the Regions of Kazakhstan

Toronto, December 6, 2024 – The Embassy of Kazakhstan together with the Ministry of Economic Development of the Province of Ontario held a business roundtable dedicated to the development of cooperation in strategically important sectors of the economy – energy, mining and agro-industrial complex.

The event was part of a large-scale advertising campaign “Kazakhstan: Born Bold” aimed at attracting investment in the domestic processing industry.

Representatives of the Government of Ontario and the City of Sudbury (the province’s mining centre), as well as Canadian companies interested in expanding their presence in Kazakhstan, attended the event.

In his presentation, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Canada Dauletbek Kussainov familiarised the participants with Kazakhstan’s investment, trade and economic agenda, focusing on promising areas of mutually beneficial cooperation with the Canadian province. In particular, the policy of our country in the field of mining and processing of mineral resources, rare-earth metals, as well as the plans of Kazakhstan on the possible construction of nuclear power plants aroused special interest.

As noted by Eyad Qudsi from the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, nuclear power covers more than half of the province’s electricity needs, and the processing of rare earth metals is one of the most important industries. In this regard, it was proposed to use Ontario’s advanced technologies in mining and geological prospecting in Kazakhstan, as well as to hold substantive talks with the Kazakh delegation at the upcoming PDAC conference in Toronto in March 2025.

At the end of the roundtable, the parties agreed to work on the possible organisation of a business mission of Ontario to Kazakhstan in 2025, which could be timed to coincide with the Astana International Forum in May next year.

Ontario is a key part of Canada’s economy. There are 18 nuclear reactors in the province, providing about 60 per cent of the electricity generated. Ontario companies mine about 25% of the country’s metals and minerals. The province is also a major producer of corn, wheat, dairy and meat products.