Saint-Michel-des-Saints/Montréal – May 13, 2026. On this day of the annual general meeting of shareholders of the mining company Nouveau Monde Graphite (NMG), a group of citizens from Saint-Michel-des-Saints wishes to express its support for Atikamekw family territory chief Émilien Dubé, who opposes the Matawinie mining project, which is located near his ancestral family territory on the territory of the Atikamekw Nation of Manawan.
What does the future hold for the Matawinie mining project?
The Coalition of Opponents to a Mining Project in Haute-Matawinie (COPH) points out that the financial challenges surrounding NMG’s Matawinie mining project persist despite its new status as a “project of national interest.” “The mining project, kept on life support since the beginning of this endeavour ten (10) years ago now, survives solely and exclusively because of taxpayer money, courtesy of millions of dollars poured in by Quebec and Ottawa”—Paul Comeau, COPH spokesperson
In addition to the federal government’s intention to guarantee the purchase of a fixed quantity of ore for several years, the repeated financial bailouts demonstrate that the project’s economic viability has still not been proven.
In light of the damning revelations by the Auditor General of Quebec (AGQ) regarding the provincial government’s mismanagement of critical minerals, published in her audit last week, COPH’s fears that this project is poorly managed have only been further amplified.
After being long promoted as a key link in the “battery supply chain,” the citizen group based in Saint-Michel-des-Saints denounces the diversion of NMG’s Matawinie mining project for military purposes. COPH urgently calls on the federal government to remove it from the list of major federal government projects.
For more information on the issue, COPH has produced a list of reminders regarding the potential long-term destruction associated with the NMG project, published on the Coalition Québec meilleure mine website.
Pour information :
Paul Comeau
Coalition des opposants à un projet minier en Haute-Matawinie (COPH)
pourlavraienaturedestmichel@gmail.com
Tél. : 514-776-0034
