Quebec has set ambitious energy transition and industrial decarbonization targets. The shift to greener practices has to be taken in a context where our energy consumption could rapidly grow under the combined effect of a number of factors, such as the reindustrialization of our economy, population growth, transport electrification and the potential for artificial intelligence to consume vast amounts of energy. Investing in the development of energy infrastructure is therefore critically important, as an abundance of energy is key to economic prosperity. The problem is that public finances are already stretched to the limit with the need to renovate our aging infrastructure, among other things. Encouraging private equity investment is thus vital, and tax incentives can be very effective in this respect. The American example In 2022, the United States passed its Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), with the goal of stimulating investment in the renewable energy sector, in particular. More specifically, the IRA altered or created a number of tax credits to encourage private investment.1 Over the past two years, US businesses have announced a total of almost US$276 billion in new investments in clean energy generation and the capturing or elimination of carbon dioxide and other forms of industrial decarbonization, an increase of 34% on the two years previous.2 The IRA is effective in that it takes the respective situations of various energy sector stakeholders into account in a creative, flexible and pragmatic way, especially where taxation is involved. Energy project promoters often have to wait many years for their projects to generate income and profits, even though the banks and other investment funds they solicit financing from can be presumed to be operating profitable businesses. The tax losses that occur in the years during which such projects are designed and built are therefore of little interest to developers, but of immediate interest to investors. And so, a tax equity market has emerged, in which businesses subject to taxes can invest in the shares of entities set up to develop such projects so as to benefit from tax credits and faster depreciation. Typically, the entity that cashes in the investment and develops the project distributes 99% of income, losses and tax credits to investors until a predetermined return is achieved. Once that return is achieved, the investor’s share of the benefits decreases, and the developer has the option of buying out the investor’s residual share. The IRA has transformed how federal clean energy tax credits are monetized, and it is now possible to buy and sell such credits without having to make a long-term investment. For businesses, this new way of doing things is an additional and attractive way to participate in the growing tax credit market.3 In 2023, the volume of the tax equity market for American projects was around US$20 to 21 billion, up about US$18 billion from the previous year.4 It appears that the trend will continue. It is estimated that the value of the current market, which is particularly attractive to banks, is set to double to US$50 billion a year by 2025.5 The equivalent of flow-through shares The Quebec and Canadian tax deductions mechanism that most closely resembles the US tax equity market is probably flow-through shares. Through these, businesses in the mining and renewable energy sectors can transfer their mining exploration expenses and other expenses—specifically designated as eligible—to investors, who can then deduct them from their own taxable incomes.6 These businesses can thus issue shares at a higher price than they would receive for common shares to finance their exploration and development operations. Investors are willing to pay a higher price in return for the tax deductions afforded by the eligible expenses incurred by the issuing businesses, which can amount to a maximum of 120% of the equity invested in the shares.7 Investors can also claim a 15% or 30% federal tax credit. However, because tax incentives cannot be transferred, our mechanism is more rigid than the American one, and it can only be applied to mineral exploration and development expenses and certain specific expenditures related to renewable energy and energy conservation projects, such as electricity generation using renewable sources like wind, solar energy and geothermal energy.8 With ambition and innovation comes the need to take action Quebec could draw inspiration from the IRA to increase the attractiveness of flow-through shares and broaden their scope of application, thereby creating a new tool to finance the energy transition. The renewable energy sector is similar to the mining sector in many respects, not least in terms of the considerable amount of capital required to build the infrastructure needed to operate a mine or energy generation facility. The flow-through share mechanism, which is well-established and popular with investors,9 could be just as successful in our energy transition context. Making such incentives easier to transfer would also drive the emergence of a market similar to the US tax equity market. A number of Québec flagship companies, such as Hydro-Québec,10 Innergex11 and Boralex,12 are also very ambitious when it comes to developing large-scale energy projects. They face major financing challenges, as do those in the industrial decarbonization and infrastructure renewal sectors. Innovation is necessary to meet these challenges and make the transition to a more sustainable, but just as prosperous, world, and to do so in good time. Link Rhodium Group and MIT’s Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research (CEEPR), Clean Investment Monitor, link Brandon Hill, How to take advantage of tax credit transferability though the Inflation Reduction Act, Thomson Reuters Institute, April 16, 2024, link Allison Good, Renewables project finance to keep pace in 2024, but tax equity rule looms, S&P Global, January 12, 2024, link Lesley Hunter and Mason Vliet, The Risk Profile of Renewable Energy Tax Equity Investments, American Council on Renewable Energy, December 2023, link Link, page in French only Link Link Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada, Flow-through shares & the mineral exploration tax credit explained, link Link Link Link

On March 28, 2024, the Department of Finance Canada announced a one-year extension to the 15% Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (“METC”) available to investors in flow-through shares. The extension means that the METC will be effective until March 31, 2025. This announcement came at a time when uncertainty loomed over the industry and some stakeholders feared that the government would not renew the METC. Over time, this tax credit has become a key component of flow-through share financings. It is intended to enhance the tax deductions already available to flow-through share holders and ultimately help companies raise capital for mineral exploration. The METC was last renewed in 2019 for a five-year period, indicating the government’s long-term commitment to the sector at that time. And while this renewal is welcome news for exploration companies, it should be noted that the shorter one-year horizon of the extension does not provide the same assurance regarding the incentive’s future. It is possible that this one-year renewal reflects the government’s intention to promote the new 30% Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (“CMETC”) instead, on which more information can be found here: Federal Budget 2022: Good News for Mining Exploration Companies! In closing, it is important to note that the one-year extension to the 15% METC will not affect the period during which the 30% CMETC is available for critical mineral exploration, which will end on March 31, 2027, and is subject to renewal. If you were planning on financing non-critical mineral exploration, you may want to complete this transaction in the coming year in order to benefit from the 15% METC. Our team of professionals specializing in securities, mining law and taxation is available to answer any questions you may have concerning this new measure and to guide you in arranging a successful flow-through financing.

Canada’s finance minister unveiled a series of legislative proposals on August 4, 2023 aimed at making significant changes to the flow-through share regime, particularly as regards lithium exploration. Although a number of these changes had already been announced in the 2023 federal budget, e.g. the inclusion of lithium brine in the “mineral resources” definition, they had not really affected junior exploration companies in Quebec since this type of lithium is virtually non-existent in the province. More targeted change However, the recent proposals include a more targeted change for mining companies exploring for traditional “hard rock” lithium, which is much more common in Quebec. These proposals include amending the definition of “mineral resources” to systematically includetraditional hard-rock lithium in the list set out in section 248 of the Income Tax Act (the “Act”). The consequences As a consequence of this change, the requirement for mining companies to obtain a certificate issued by Natural Resources Canada will be eliminated. The application process for this certificate represented a heavy administrative burden for exploration companies. Moreover, lengthy processing times often delayed the conclusion of flow-through share subscription agreements. This change is a timely one: growing numbers of companies are refocusing on exploring for lithium rather than for more traditional metals such as gold. This reflects not only the market’s infatuation with lithium, but also the recent 30% tax credit potentially available to investors incurring mining exploration expenses involving critical metals. Proceed with caution For the time being, however, these legislative proposals only apply to lithium; they do not cover all critical minerals. Mining exploration companies should proceed with caution if they plan to explore for other types of critical minerals such as graphite and rare earth elements, for example. This is because a mineral resources certificate issued by Natural Resources Canada may still required in those cases. Our team of professionals specializing in securities, mining law and taxation is available to answer any questions you may have concerning this new measure and to guide you in arranging a successful flow-through financing.

On March 21, 2023, Quebec’s Minister of Finance tabled his budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. One of the budget’s key measures is the introduction of a new tax holiday in connection with major investment projects. At first glance, the new measure does not appear to be specifically aimed at the mining industry, but some mining companies involved in the extraction of critical and strategic minerals and planning substantial investments in the near future could greatly benefit from it. Under the new tax exemption, a corporation or partnership that carries out an investment project of more than $100 million in Quebec will be eligible, under certain conditions, for an income tax holiday and a holiday from the employer contribution to the Health Services Fund. As far as income tax is concerned, this new 10-year tax holiday consists of a deduction in the calculation of the company’s taxable income. The deduction is calculated by applying a rate of 15%, 20% or 25% to the cumulative total of eligible project expenditures. Since this tax measure is intended to promote investment outside major urban centres, the rate will vary according to the project’s location, ranging from 15% for projects in areas with high economic vitality, to 20% for projects in areas with intermediate economic vitality and up to 25% for those in areas with low economic vitality. The higher rates of 20% and 25% are more likely to apply to mining projects, which are generally located in remote areas with lower economic vitality. The critical and strategic minerals identified in the context of this measure are the following: antimony, bismuth, cadmium, caesium, copper, tin, gallium, indium, tellurium, zinc, cobalt, rare-earth elements, platinum-group elements, graphite (natural), lithium, magnesium, nickel, niobium, scandium, tantalum, titanium and vanadium. Let’s briefly consider the example of a mining company carrying out a major investment project for lithium mining in the Nord-du-Québec administrative region, designated by the Quebec government as a territory with intermediate economic vitality. During the investment phase, while the mine is being developed and built, the company incurs $200 million worth of eligible expenditures, which are capital expenditures for new mining equipment and heavy machinery for lithium extraction and processing. Evidently, the company will probably sustain a loss during the investment phase, and, because it has no taxable income, it will not be able to immediately benefit from the tax holiday. However, should the company have taxable income of $50 million in year 5, after four years of investment and mine development, it will be able to deduct $40 million of this taxable income under the new tax holiday, reducing its taxable income to $10 million for that year. This $40 million deduction is based on the application of the 20% rate for territories with intermediate economic vitality to the $200 million of eligible expenditures for the mining project. Another point relevant to the mining industry is that the income tax holiday will apply only to tax payable under the provisions of the Taxation Act. In other words, this tax holiday will not reduce the amounts payable under the Mining Tax Act. With respect to the Health Services Fund, companies will generally be eligible for an employer contribution holiday on wages paid to employees for pay periods falling within the exemption period for major investment projects. In order to benefit from this new tax holiday, companies will have to obtain an initial certificate, as well as annual attestations issued by the Quebec Minister of Finance. Our team of professionals specializing in mining and tax law is available to answer all your questions regarding this new measure and to assist you in your mining investment projects in Quebec.