Greater Sudbury and Moquegua, Peru, sign letter of intent to foster international cooperation

Mar 17, 2023

GREATER SUDBURY – Greater Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre and the regional government of Moquegua, represented by vice governor Luis Trigoso, signed a letter of intent signaling cooperation among the two mining capitals, during PDAC 2023. 

The purpose of this letter of intent is to strengthen the relationship between Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, and Moquegua, Peru.  This cooperation will foster innovation and give both regions a competitive edge in the global market.  It will stimulate economic development, workforce development, battery and microchips development, research and remediation technology, and curricula transfer, helping people and businesses on both sides of the Americas thrive.

“This is an important step as we continue to foster international municipal cooperation between Greater Sudbury and Moquegua,” said Greater Sudbury Mayor, Paul Lefebvre.  “With a range of interests, including mining research, education and innovation, I am confident this agreement will serve both regions. Greater Sudbury is a global leader in the mining sector, with decades-long experience in regreening and rehabilitation, and this agreement will provide new opportunities for collaboration with our Peruvian partners.”

This story began with the first visit of Moquegua’s Governor Zenon Cuevas Pare to the 2019 PDAC conference as a guest of the Canada-Peru Chamber of Commerce.  Since then, the Governor made other visits to Canada and learned about Sudbury’s remediation story. With the support of the Core Foundation Corporation, Moquegua established a series of connections with the government and academia in Northern Ontario, such as Laurentian University, CEMI/MICA, and MIRARCO. At PDAC 2020, Governor Cuevas signed an MOU with the Core Foundation Corporation for the creation of CIMERA – an international mining cluster specialized in environmental remediation, uniting the mining ecosystem of Canada and Moquegua.

The first initiative of this alliance is an innovative remediation project in the Coralaque-Tambo watershed.  This project takes the lessons of the Sudbury environmental remediation miracle to Peru, with the team of scientists and companies that made the remediation of Sudbury possible.  It is estimated that this project will impact 2 million people in the regions of Moquegua and Arequipa. 

The alliance was made possible by Core Foundation Corporation, which was recently appointed Moquegua's international liaison.  The president of Core Foundation, Ricardo Torreblanca, said, “Sudbury and Moquegua want to explore new opportunities to collaborate, to drive more growth and innovation in a period of economic change.   We hope Peruvian companies will join this great effort developing in southern Peru through the UCSM- CORE Institute."

 

About Core Foundation Corporation

Core Foundation Corporation is an organization that works with academia, industry, and government to support innovation and economic growth.

We connect regional, national, and international partners through various means. 

Core Foundation has agreements with 11 universities and ten regional governments in Peru. Core Foundation has contributed towards the creation of Peru's first Technological and Research Park, the Arequipa - Nexus Institute for sustainable food, energy, water, and environment, and the implementation of 21 research projects involving 130 faculty from Peru and the United States.

 

About GORE Moquegua

The regional government of Moquegua essential purpose is to promote comprehensive sustainable regional development, promote regional competitiveness, public and private investment, and employment, as well as guarantee the full exercise of rights and equal opportunities for the inhabitants of the Department of Moquegua.  Moquegua is a concerting, integrated, modern and safe region, with quality of life and strengthened identity, tradition, and history, which has achieved a balanced and sustainable development, based on a competitive, articulated, and diversified economy with added value.

 

About the City of Greater Sudbury

The City of Greater Sudbury is home to the world’s largest integrated mining complex with nine operating mines, two mills, two smelters and one refinery. The Sudbury Basin contains the desired class 1 nickel and copper needed to ensure the transition to a battery electric economy, and more than 300 mining supply and services companies are at the forefront of mining innovation throughout the world.  More recently, Sudbury has become the global leader in mine electrification and battery electric vehicles in mining.

In 2024, Greater Sudbury will host the OECD Mining Regions and Cities conference, providing a unique opportunity to share the incredible ‘Sudbury regreening’ success story with a global audience as well as explore best practices in economic diversification and indigenous well-being in mining regions.