Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Catherine McKenna announced the Canadian government’s $500 million Low Carbon Economy Challenge March 14 at the GLOBE Forum in Vancouver.
The Challenge is the second part of the broader Low Carbon Economy Fund, which was originally announced in June 2017. The first part was the $1.4 billion Low Carbon Economy Leadership Fund, which provided funds directly to provinces and territories that have adopted the Pan-Canadian Framework on Climate Change.
Per the announcement’s details, the Low Carbon Economy Challenge will have two streams aimed at supporting projects that will reduce greenhouse gases:
• Champions: Valued at over $450 million, the Champions stream is open to applicants of any size. Eligible applicants include all provinces and territories, municipalities, Indigenous communities and organizations, businesses, and not-for-profit organizations. This stream is open for applications now with a deadline of May 14, 2018.
• Partnerships: Valued at $50 million, the Partnerships stream is limited to Indigenous communities and organizations, small and medium-sized businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and small municipalities. Government literature says, “The Partnerships stream will help ensure a broad range of Canadians are able to participate in the Challenge.” This stream will open later in 2018.
The main consideration will be the project’s ability to reduce emissions in a cost-effective manner, but will also factor in potential for energy savings and job creation.
Potential applicants are to submit an Expression of Interest to ECCC online.
For each stream there is a two-step application process:
1. Expression of Interest
Applicants need to submit an initial Expression of Interest (EOI) using the online application tool. The EOI will be used to screen projects for eligibility based on the program parameters described in the Applicant Guide (see below). Projects may also be screened out due to concerns around cost-effectiveness (for example, high costs per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions reductions achieved) and/or significant concerns about project feasibility and risk.
2. Formal Proposal
Successful applicants will be invited to submit a more detailed Formal Proposal. Environment and Climate Change Canada will undertake a complete review and assessment of the Formal Proposal, including project work plan, costing, and projected greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
Other key details include:
• The minimum contribution to any project through the Low Carbon Economy Challenge is $1 million; the maximum individual contribution for the Champions stream is $50 million, and $10 million for the Partnerships stream.
• Final decisions on funding proposals will be made in late 2018/early 2019, and spending must be done by March 21, 2022.
• The project must be incremental to any existing or already planned projects; that is, applicants will need to demonstrate they had not already made a decision to implement the project and it cannot go forward without the funding.
Under Electricity and/or energy production, eligible projects are:
• District heating systems
• Combined heat and power for own use
• Renewable energy systems (e.g., solar photovoltaic (PV), solar hot water systems, wind, micro-hydro) for own-use.
Other eligible sectors are:
• Building energy efficiency and fuel switching
• Industrial, including energy efficiency
• Forestry, including carbon sinks
• Waste
• Transportation
• Low-emissions fuel production.
For further details, including the applicant guide, visit https://www.canada.ca > Environment and natural resources > Weather, climate and hazards > Climate change > Canada’s action on climate change > The Low Carbon Economy Fund.