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Canadian Mint to Focus on World Market
 | By Doug Andrews, World Coin News
June 16, 2008 |
Remaining competitive internationally, leveraging off technology and exploiting opportunities as world metal prices continue to rise will be the objectives of the Royal Canadian Mint, says its president and chief executive officer, Ian Bennett.
The Mint recently announced a record C$30.1 million profit for 2007.
"Our target had been growth, now it is growth and profit," Bennett said. "We doubled our profit last year, which was a great achievement," Bennett noted in an exclusive interview with World Coin News.
The mint's use of its multi-ply plating process for circulating coinage is essential to attracting contracts from foreign governments.
"This allows us to produce coins at much lower cost than other mints, and it is part of our medium term plan, to exploit our competitive advantage as much as we can. Our goals are tough to achieve in this economy and with the rising Canadian dollar, but it's something that we have to strive to do," Bennett said.
Part of the RCM strategy is to invest in replacement of all the presses in its Winnipeg production facility with higher speed equipment, and to expand plating capacity. Since 2005 the plant has doubled its plating volume and has licensed its patented technology to leading suppliers, including Jarden Zinc Products Inc. of Greeneville, Tenn. The Canadian Mint is aggressively pursuing other partnerships in its quest for more foreign business.
Domestically the future of the Canadian one-cent coin figures prominently in its day-to-day operations. "In terms of the foreseeable future, I think that it is true that Canadians will see one-cent coins in their pockets and purses, but I am not sure how long that is," he said.
Bennett, who had a long career with the Canadian department of finance and served as its deputy minister before joining the mint in 2005, says the future of the cent is a government rather than a Mint decision.
While he says governments may not decide the issue based on polls, Bennett notes that public opinion is almost evenly split on whether to keep or drop the cent.
"Those 50 percent of Canadians who want to retain the cent think that it offers them some protection."
Bennett observes that the matter is controversial and that concerns center on the question of rounding prices to the nearest five-cent increment and whether this would be inflationary. "All those sorts of things are out there in the minds of Canadians," he said.
If the Canadian one-cent coin were to be discontinued, Bennett acknowledges that the RCM would have additional productive capacity to devote to contracts with other countries. "We would see some benefits associated with not producing the cent," he says.
The Royal Canadian Mint does not have a major expansion of existing facilities in its immediate plans but Bennett will not rule it out, noting that, "We are the only Mint in the world whose legislation says we are to operate in anticipation of profit."
He also states that the Mint must achieve its financial goals without any appropriations from the Canadian government.
Profit objectives are not the only priorities on Bennett's mind as the mint reaches its 100th anniversary in 2008. Its multi-year program for circulating and numismatic coins marking the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver is being extensively marketed in television and radio advertising.
"I would really like to stimulate the interest of new collectors and younger people. We are going to make a greater effort at doing that." Bennett emphasizes, "We want to be the best mint in the world. That is our vision. I hope that Canadians will be able to see us on that track in our centennial year."
The Royal Canadian Mint won top honors with the Coin of the Year award in 2008 from Krause Publications earlier this year, and Bennett says mint employees take pride in that accomplishment. "We see the numismatic community as being part of what we are."
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