Fall economic statement offers welcome support for clean energy and supply chains

dezembro 22, 2024

1

OTTAWA — Joanna Kyriazis, director of public affairs at Clean Energy Canada, made the following statement in response to the federal government’s Fall Economic Statement:

“Many of the commitments in today’s Fall Economic Statement set Canada up for success in a fast-moving energy transition, including steps forward on several key investment tax credits.

“Specifically, the EV supply chain tax credit will support Canada’s already impressive battery supply chain, and help it further scale up to compete in an expanding global marketplace.

“Similarly, it is good to see the final design details for the clean electricity investment tax credit. The federal government has a central role to play in the buildout of new clean electricity sources, which will help keep electricity rates affordable as provinces work to meet growing demand.

“We also welcome the additional $600 million in interest-free loans for the Greener Homes Loan Program to help Canadians make cost-saving clean energy home upgrades—after all, making a few clean energy upgrades can shave hundreds off monthly bills. However, we were also hoping to see more measures to help Canadians move off fossil fuels—particularly the extension of EV incentives (the program for which is set to run out in early 2025) and the speedy rollout of the promised new Greener Homes Affordability program.

“However, these developments were also accompanied by contradictory references to the importance of fossil fuels for Canada’s economy—LNG in particular. The winners and losers in the global clean economy are being decided now and a focus on growing fossil fuels will not set us up for success. In fact, a recent International Energy Agency report revealed that global investment in clean energy was almost double that of fossil fuels in 2024. Meanwhile, 60% of new energy jobs added globally last year were in clean energy.

“As we look to the new year with a new finance minister at the helm, Canada’s economic vision must position Canada to capture our share of this global opportunity.”