Auditor General: PQ calls for investigation of lithium sale in North America

Parti Québécois (PQ) is calling for a formal investigation by the Auditor General of Quebec into the controversial file of the sale of a lithium mine in North America to foreign interests.

Also read: North America lithium: Quebec investors in court to block a mine sale

In a message posted on Twitter, Representative PQ and economic critic Megan Perry Melanson demanded that Auditor General Guylaine Leclerc open an investigation into the matter. “What has been raised is a serious matter, and contradicts the statements of Minister Fitzgibbon and CEO of Investissement Québec while examining the appropriations,” the member said in a tweet. It should shed light on a dubious process that disqualified Quebec candidates. Request an investigation from the Auditor General’s office in Quebec. ”

Resorting to the courts

The day before, Quebec announced in a press release that it had reached an agreement with Australian company Sayona Mining to acquire the assets of this Abitibian mine, under court protection since 2019. Four other mining companies, including two in Quebec.

In an official notification sent to Prime Minister Francois Legault on Thursday, the Central American mining companies Nickel and SRG Mining in Montreal jointly demanded an end to the mine liquidation procedures completely, citing a series of “serious irregularities”.

Quebec Economy and Investment Minister Raymond Shabott Grant Thornton are also involved in this case that may end up in court.

Unanswered questions

“Why have I turned down Quebec’s offers? What guarantees us that the second transformation will actually happen here?” Asks the member. After trying Nemaska ​​Lithium, I find it difficult to understand that it is still possible to escape from it at this point. This is serious. To be clear, it requires The matter is auditor-general’s impartiality. “

In an interview, his liberal counterpart, Moncef Darraji, added more by directing his questions directly to the prime minister.

“How can buyers in Quebec who offered the Sayona plate refuse? What happened to Kakista’s economic nationalism? Did Mr. Fitzgibbon become a discount seller of our important minerals?”

Yesterday, the Auditor General’s office was unable to confirm whether it intended to open an investigation into the matter. The organization is still free to “conduct or not conduct an audit on a specific topic,” as its spokesperson indicated, adding that the reviewer “took note of the information provided in this file.”