NORTH BAY -- Nipissing MPP and Ontario Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Vic Fedeli is set to lead a mining, manufacturing and equipment-focused business mission to South America.
Fedeli will be travelling to Peru and Ecuador from April 13-17 in hopes of exposing Ontario businesses to new markets to help them expand and create more jobs.
In advance of the mission, Fedeli took part in the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention in Toronto where he met with government representatives and senior executives from the mining sector in South America.
Fedeli met with the heads of the Peruvian delegation, Susana Vilca Achata, Minister of Energy and Mines of Peru, and María Antonieta Alva, Minister of Economy and Finance of Peru, as well as heads of the Ecuadorian delegation, Enrique Gallegos, Vice Minister of Mines of Ecuador, and Freddy Villao, Undersecretary of Strategic Development in the Office of the Vice President of Ecuador.
"Peru and Ecuador represent an abundance of untapped potential, with their mining sectors offering high potential for Ontario suppliers to the mining industry," said Fedeli in a statement. "By diversifying Ontario's global trading partners, we are creating a climate for our province's businesses and economy to thrive."
During the mission, Fedeli is expected to meet with government officials and corporate executives in the mining industry. Businesses from Ontario's mining sector will attend market and industry meetings and meet with local businesses to develop new opportunities. Delegates will also attend Expominas, an international trade fair for heavy construction and mining machinery, held annually in Quito, Ecuador.
The province says with approximately 900 mining supply and service companies, Ontario's mining sector produces more than $10 billion worth of mineral production, supplies and services every year and that mining in Ontario supports 26,000 direct jobs and approximately 50,000 indirect jobs associated with mineral manufacturing and processing.
