Mining R & D centre of excellence vital.

If Sudbury intends to entrench itself as a world mining capital, building a leading-edge centre of excellence for research and technology transfer appears to be the next likely step.

Sudbury MP Diane Marleau confirms that an International Centre for Mining Innovation is under discussion, but she characterizes talks between Laurentian University and FedNor as very preliminary.

"We're still at the stage of bouncing the ball back and forth," Marleau says. "We have to firm up where we're going and work with the province. We think it's do-able, but there's a lot more work that needs to be done."

Brining NRC into the fold

Bringing the National Research Council to the table is high on the agenda, she adds.

As the recently appointed parliamentary secretary to Treasury Board president Reg Alcock, Marleau maintains she is an active booster of establishing a world-class research centre on the campus of Laurentian University.

"That's certainly my aim. I'm really behind it and I've had lot of conversations with (Prime Minister) Paul Martin and different people on this issue."

During the spring election campaign, the Liberal Party's economic strategy promised to set aside funding for the commercialization of new technology and to support efforts of Canadian universities to transform research into commercialization opportunities.

The Liberals also promised to underwrite development by the National Research Council (NRC) of a network of commercialization centres across Canada. Co-located with NRC-specialized institutes near university campuses, these centres would provide an incubation environment for startup businesses.

Marleau says Sudbury has many things working in its favour, besides Laurentian's mining engineering department and various mining research institutes.

CANMET, the research and development arm of Natural Resources Canada, maintains a Sudbury office, Cambrian College's NORCAT prototype development centre operates an underground test mine in nearby Onaping, and Sudbury mining suppliers have formed their own association aimed at marketing their goods and services to a larger, more diversified, international market.

Laurentian University's Mining Exploration Research Centre (MERC) and the Ontario Mineral Industry Cluster Council have emerged as the two leading organizations involved in mapping out the concept of a mining research centre for excellence.

Geological Survey may move

Widespread rumours persist that the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Laurentian University and various community partners are attempting to relocate the headquarters of the Geological Survey of Canada from Ottawa to Sudbury as a major tenant of the research centre.

"Those are rumours I'm not in a position to confirm or deny," says John Gammon, Assistant Deputy Minister of Northern Development and Mines, "but there is a lot of discussion about the possibility of those two things happening.

"I'm doing what I can to make them become a reality. I would be really excited to see that happen.

"If that happens on my watch, I would regard that as a real achievement," Gammon says.

RELATED ARTICLE: The Sudbury Mining Cluster, a sketch by Oryst Sawchuk

The rich ore body of the Sudbury Basin attracted two major international mining companies. Their successful operation over the years spawned a circle of mining supply and service companies, and a research base consisting of the city's post-secondary institutions. The cluster also includes the city's Willet Green Miller Centre, the Sudbury Neutrino Laboratory and possibly, one day, underground agricultural operations. The sketch suggests a pattern of "shatter cones," which are evidence of a massive meteorite that created the Sudbury Basin eons ago. Metaphorically, each of the elements of the cluster's circle is a shatter cone that may also effect significant change to the area's economy.

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By IAN ROSS

Northern Ontario Business