Ukraine has formally started cooperation with Canada in geology and subsoil use: the State Geology and Subsoil Service of Ukraine and the Geological Survey of Canada signed a cooperation agreement based on the 2024 intergovernmental security deal. For the next two years, the countries will work in a joint program designed to “upgrade” Ukraine’s mineral sector to modern international standards.
What exactly is being created
The agreement provides for the creation of a Ukrainian-Canadian Coordinating Committee on Minerals. This will be a permanent working platform where experts from both countries will:
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plan joint projects;
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exchange methodologies and data formats;
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approve standards for geological information;
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help prepare deposits for investment.
In fact, it’s a steering center that should pull Ukraine’s subsoil system closer to Canadian practice — one of the most advanced in the world.
Key areas of cooperation
Deputy Minister Yehor Perelyhin said the partnership will focus on five things:
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Digitalization of geological data. Many Ukrainian materials are still stored in “analog” form or in incompatible databases. Canada will help create a modern system of access and management so that an investor can see what, where and in what volume is explored.
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Modern subsoil information management system. This is about structuring archives, metadata, coordinates, reports and sample descriptions so that they correspond to international standards and can be used in global supply chains.
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Joint laboratory research and modeling. Canadians will help with modern analytical methods, 3D models of deposits and assessments of critical minerals — this is what European and North American buyers need.
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Preparation of investment projects for extraction and processing. When geological data is digitized and confirmed, it is much easier to offer it to development banks, export credit agencies or funds.
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Transparency and competitiveness of the market. The ultimate goal is to make Ukrainian subsoil tenders understandable to foreign companies and to remove doubts about the quality of data.
Why Canada
Canada is one of the global leaders in geological survey, mining regulation and critical minerals policy. Cooperation with the Geological Survey of Canada gives Ukraine a direct “template” of how to:
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present deposits to foreign investors;
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certify and verify data;
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plug into the supply chains of NATO and G7 countries.
In addition, Canada is already bound to Ukraine by the 24 February 2024 security cooperation agreement — the geological track becomes a practical economic part of that document.
Link to critical minerals and DFC projects
The Ministry of Economy has already shown potential fields in Kirovohrad region to representatives of the US International Development Finance Corporation — these sites can become the first investment objects for the American-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund. Now, with Canadian help, Ukraine will be able to describe such deposits more professionally and faster, which raises their investment value.
What Ukraine gets in the end
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a digital geological base instead of scattered archives;
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projects ready for financing in titanium, rare earths and other critical minerals;
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a more transparent subsoil market, which Western partners have long demanded;
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and, as the ministry emphasized, an extra layer of economic and energy security — because critical minerals are now part of defense and green transition supply chains.
So this is not just about geology for geology’s sake — it’s about making Ukrainian subsoil understandable and investable for the West.
