NOTE: A list of 2014 grant recipients and amounts follows at the end of this release.
Ten prospector grants totalling about $90,000 and 15 advanced project grants totalling $455,000 were announced today, July 16, to help find and develop mineral deposits across the province.

Forty-three applications were received, indicating there is a lot of promise in Nova Scotia’s mining sector.

“Ray Ivany challenged us to grab on to opportunities in our resource sectors and we are doing just that,” said Natural Resources Minister Zach Churchill. “One gold mine just poured its first gold ingot, a second gold mine is expected to begin production next year, and today, we are announcing investments that will grow our exploration industry even more.”

Applications were evaluated by a panel of three from the department’s Minerals Resources Branch. Evaluations were based on the quality and merit of the work proposal, the potential that the project could lead to a new mineral discovery or significantly advance a project. Applicants also had to show they were capable of completing the proposed project.

This is the third year of the Mineral Incentive Program. In total, 82 grants worth more than $1.7 million were awarded between 2012 and 2014.

“The Mineral Incentive Program is one way the province has supported exploration in Nova Scotia. We also provide training for prospectors, marketing support to attend national and international trade shows, and we host the annual provincial Geology Matters conference,” said Mr. Churchill.

Additional information about the program is available at http://novascotia.ca/natr/meb/ .

Source: Release