2026-01-07, 5:09:59 a.m.
SAGUENAY, QC — January 7, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Arianne Phosphate has received approval from the Government of Canada for contribution funding of up to $735,000. The funding will support the company’s work on processing phosphate rock and optimizing the purified phosphoric acid (“PPA”) process.
The funding is provided through Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Critical Minerals Research, Development and Demonstration (CMRDD) program. This is part of an $80.3 million investment announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney at the 2025 G7 Leaders’ Summit to help build secure and resilient critical minerals supply chains in Canada. The announcement was made by the Honourable Tim Hodgson, Canada’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, during a visit to Arianne’s offices last year.
Phosphate was added to the Canadian critical mineral list in 2024 and was recently added to the American critical mineral list. Arianne’s Lac à Paul is the only fully permitted phosphate mine in these jurisdictions. The company has invested $100 million towards the mine’s advancement and is pursuing opportunities for the downstream production of PPA, a necessary ingredient for the lithium-iron-phosphate (“LFP”) battery.
Lac à Paul hosts one of the world’s largest greenfield phosphate deposits, which is igneous, allowing its phosphate concentrate to be easily processed into PPA.
Arianne’s decision to pursue downstream opportunities will allow the Company to be a supplier as the West looks to move away from China, which controls over 90% of the LFP market. LFPs are used in energy storage systems (“ESS”), a market growing rapidly both for home usage and their use in data centers and AI applications.
The Honourable Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, said that investing in initiatives like Arianne Phosphate’s Technology Centre reinforces Canada’s position as a global leader in critical minerals and creates jobs for Canadians.
Claude Guay, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, said Canada’s support for Arianne Phosphate’s project demonstrates a commitment to building a supply of critical minerals and strengthens the ability to source essential resources in Quebec.
Marco Gagnon, Arianne Phosphate’s Executive Chairman of the Board, said that this investment helps Arianne to move the Lac à Paul project forward in a way that benefits the country and all of its stakeholders. He added that phosphate is essential to LFP battery technology, global food and agricultural supply, pharmaceuticals and semiconductor production, and that their progress aligns closely with Canada’s vision of becoming a leader in critical minerals.
Arianne Phosphate Inc. is developing the Lac à Paul phosphate deposits located approximately 200 km north of the Saguenay/Lac St. Jean area of Quebec, Canada. The deposits will produce a high-quality igneous apatite concentrate grading 39% P2O5. The Company has 213,714,811 shares outstanding.
Raphael Gaudreault, eng., Qualified Person by Regulation 43-101, has approved the technical information in this release. Mr. Gaudreault is also the Company’s Chief Operating Officer.
Contact:
Marco Gagnon, Arianne Phosphate’s Executive Chairman of the Board
Source: Arianne Phosphate
