Canada advances the Canadian Digital Core Library with new funding and the start of core scanning

CALGARY, AB, Sept. 21, 2026 /CNW/ -- Canada's vast geological resources underpin our mission to build a strong, secure and competitive economy. Making high-quality geoscience data more accessible will help unlock this resource potential, attract investment and strengthen domestic critical mineral supply chains.

Central to this effort is the creation of the Canadian Digital Core Library (CDCL), which will use advanced scanning technologies to convert drill core held in repositories across the country into a common digital record made available through an AI-ready platform. Drill cores provide valuable information about mineral deposits and the size, quality and economic potential of a mineral resource. This information is what allows Canada to identify mining opportunities across the country and mine the resources that underpin national defence, advanced manufacturing and the energy transition.

On September 14, Canada scanned its first core for the CDCL in Calgary, beginning with core samples from the Northwest Territories. Other participating provinces and territories are identifying priority drill cores and preparing to begin scanning in the coming weeks. These first scans are the result of close collaboration between the federal government, provinces and territories, drawing on geoscience expertise from across the country.

To support Saskatchewan in developing a digital library of core scan data compatible with the national platform, Natural Resources Canada also announced an investment of $2.16 million for the province.

As core scanning ramps up across the country, the Government of Canada will continue to move with speed to gain better insight into Canada's mineral resources. These insights enable us to unlock our natural resource potential, grow our mining industry and natural resource economy and strengthen Canada's competitiveness in the race for secure critical minerals.

Quotes

"Canada has what the world wants, and better geoscience data will help us unlock our full potential -- and with today's announcement, our work is only just getting started. By making Canada's geological data easier to access and use, we are leveraging cutting-edge AI technology to reduce exploration risk, catalyze investment and accelerate the development of critical minerals projects."

The Honourable Tim Hodgson
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources

"As global demand for critical minerals grows, the Northwest Territories is ready to play a larger role in supplying the resources Canada and its allies need. The first core scanned through the Canadian Digital Core Library initiative came from the Northwest Territories, helping unlock geological data that supports investment, exploration and responsible resource development."

The Honourable Caitlin Cleveland
Northwest Territories Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment

"This investment will provide new data from mineral exploration cores stored in Regina and will make Saskatchewan's geological data more accessible and useful, supporting exploration, innovation and investment across the province. Saskatchewan will continue to work with partners to build a modern digital library that showcases Saskatchewan's resource potential to the world."

The Honourable Chris Beaudry
Saskatchewan's Minister of Energy and Resources

"Canada has generations of valuable geological information stored in drill core across the country. The Canadian Digital Core Library is about bringing that information above ground and into the digital age. By turning physical core into high-quality digital data, we can give geoscientists, explorers and investors new ways to understand Canada's mineral potential and identify opportunities that will drive our economy for years to come."

Claude Guay
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources

Quick Facts

• At the 2026 Energy and Mines Ministers' Conference, the Government of Canada announced the next steps in the development of the CDCL, including agreements with ten provinces and territories and up to $15 million for Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) to develop the national digital platform in collaboration with the jurisdictions and industry. The Government of Canada also announced that core scanning would begin by September 2026.
• The CDL is a global nonprofit organization founded in Canada that delivers an objectives-based program for massively scalable, seed-stage, science- and technology-based companies. The CDL is developing the CDCL platform and shared data standards, which will allow core scan data to be found and used across jurisdictions and industry. It also has invited established core-scanning providers to contribute scanning services and the resulting data in kind.

Associated Links

• Minister Hodgson advances Canadian Digital Core Library at EMMC 2026
• Canadian Digital Core Library
• Creative Destruction Lab

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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

Contacts : Natural Resources Canada, Media Relations, 343-292-6096, [email protected]; Charlotte Power, Office of the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, [email protected]