By The Canadian Press

MONTREAL - Investments in Quebec's mining sector are expected to fall sharply this year after hitting a record of more than $2 billion in 2008, the province's statistics agency said Tuesday.

Investments should decrease by 25 per cent to $1.5 billion. Exploration spending is expected to fall in half to $244 million. Last year's record investments represented a 24 per cent increase over 2007, despite the financial crisis.

Exploration costs totalled $526 million, the highest level since 1987 and 10 per cent higher than the previous year.

Junior exploration companies accounted for 78 per cent of the investment and exploration expenditures.

Gold was the primary mined metal, representing more than half of the exploration spending. Copper, zinc and nickel followed at 23 per cent, uranium at 17 per cent, ferrous metals at four per cent and diamonds at two per cent.

About 95 per cent of expenditures were focused on three regions of Quebec: the North, Abitibi-Temiscamingue and the North Shore.

Despite the closure of several mines, the increased totals resulted from Agnico-Eagle's Lapa and Goldex gold mines, Xstrata Zinc Canada's Perseverance zinc-copper mine and the Bloom Lake iron mine belonging to Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines.