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WINNIPEG — The Manitoba government is investing $3.4 million to accelerate new mining projects.

It is providing $2 million to support the first phase of development for a first-of-its-kind low-emission magnesium processing facility in Canada.

Owned by Norway House Cree Nation, Minago is the first 100 per cent First Nation-owned critical minerals project in the country, a release reads.

The investment also includes $1.4 million for eight new exploration projects through the Manitoba Mineral Development Fund (MMDF).

Through a partnership with the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, the MMDF’s February intake will leverage $16.8 million in private-sector investment and create 102 jobs across the province, the release adds.

Since its launch in 2020, the MMDF program has approved 139 projects and invested more than $24 million, supporting mining and Indigenous enterprise initiatives that have created 787 short-term jobs, 543 long-term jobs, 288 partnerships and leveraged $157 million in private capital.