His Excellency Mr. Chris Cooter, High Commissioner of Canada to India, visited the CSIR–Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (CSIR-IMMT), accompanied by Ms. Karen Joan Blumenschein, spouse of the High Commissioner; Mr. Arjun Kumar Dutta, Trade Commissioner from the High Commission of Canada; and Mr. Rohit Shukla, Political, Economic and Public Affairs Officer.

The Canadian delegation interacted with Dr. Ramanuj Narayan, Director, CSIR-IMMT, along with senior scientists and researchers, to explore avenues for scientific and technological collaboration in the areas of critical minerals, sustainable resource processing, and advanced metallurgical technologies. Dr. Narayan highlighted the institute’s growing international engagement initiatives, including the Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) signed with the University of Saskatchewan for collaborative research and academic exchange. Dr. Kali Sanjay, Head of the Centre of Excellence on Critical Minerals established at CSIR-IMMT by the Ministry of Mines, Government of India, presented the ongoing research, technology development, and human resource capacity-building activities related to critical minerals.

India and Canada are increasingly emerging as strategic partners in the critical minerals sector, driven by the rapidly growing global demand for minerals essential to clean energy technologies, electric mobility, advanced manufacturing, and strategic industries. While Canada possesses significant reserves of critical minerals and advanced mining expertise, India offers expanding capabilities in mineral processing, downstream technologies, and manufacturing. Enhanced Indo-Canadian collaboration is expected to support resilient and diversified critical mineral supply chains, promote technological innovation, strengthen research partnerships, and contribute significantly to the global energy transition.

As part of the visit, the Canadian delegation toured several advanced research facilities at CSIR-IMMT, including the Platinum Group Elements (PGE) pilot plant, recycling pilot plant, seabed minerals pilot plant, and molten salt electrolysis pilot facility.

The interaction underscored the importance of deeper scientific and technological cooperation between India and Canada in addressing future critical mineral challenges through innovation, sustainability, and knowledge sharing. Opportunities related to joint research programmes, capacity building, technical training, and technology transfer were also deliberated during the meeting.

The visit concluded with a tree plantation drive at the CSIR-IMMT campus, symbolising the shared commitment of both countries towards sustainable development and long-term scientific collaboration.

Bikash/Swadhin/Mahendra/Manoj

 

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