Uncertain future

NEWS

Fall Economic Statement brings climate progress and political uncertainty

What happened: The federal government introduced their Fall Economic Statement this week with few climate measures and a strong emphasis on affordability. Whether the new measures actually get implemented is up in the air after the last-minute resignation of Deputy PM and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, putting more pressure on JT to step aside. 

Here are the main climate measures included in this year’s “mini budget”:

• A $600M top-up for the Canada Greener Homes Loan Program

• Expanding SR&ED to allow businesses to claim capital expenses like machinery and lab equipment, a win for hardtech startups

• Finalized conditions for the Clean Electricity Tax Credit, the EV Supply Chain credit, and adding methane pyrolysis to the Clean Hydrogen credit

• New tariffs on solar and critical minerals from China (with more products to be added in 2026)

The statement also included a commitment for $45 billion in loans and equity to develop AI data centres alongside pension funds. Originally, the data centres would need to be powered by green energy, but those requirements aren’t included in the final announcement. 

What’s the context: This statement looks very different from last year's version, as Canadians are feeling squeezed by inflation and housing costs, pushing climate concerns down the priority list. 

The feds are also dealing with a challenging foreign policy picture, with the incoming U.S. president threatening 25% tariffs and trade conflicts with China.

Why it matters: The shift in priorities could slow down Canada’s climate efforts, prioritizing near-term pressures over long-term efforts like the energy transition, retrofitting buildings, or cutting carbon emissions.

The bottom line: A key theme for climate tech in the year ahead will be marrying immediate economic value with climate impact. The good news is there’s a great story to tell here, from reducing energy costs or improving industrial efficiency. But climate solutions will need to double-down on their economic impact and tell that story effectively. 

CLIMATE CAPITAL

🔋 Nano One Materials (Burnaby, BC) received $18 million from the Government of Quebec to support piloting and commercializing Nano One’s lithium-ion battery cathode materials. The funding includes a $15 million loan and $3 million grant. Nano One is developing a low-cost, low-carbon method for producing lithium-iron-phosphate battery materials. 

🥩 The Better Butcher (Vancouver, BC) was acquired by CULT Food Science, a venture builder and investment firm. The Better Butcher develops mycelium-based meat alternatives using biomass fermentation.

MILESTONES & PRODUCT

♻️ Cyclic Materials secured a multi-year deal to supply recycled copper from electronics scrap to Glencore. Copper is critical to the energy transition and is used in everything from EVs to wind turbines.

🍄 MycoFutures secured a pre-purchase agreement from Montreal materials company SRTX. Their first mycelium leather product is now available for pre-order here (already got mine)

🛫 Parkland delivered the first Canadian-made low-carbon aviation fuels to Air Canada.  

🧱 CarbiCrete secured a carbon financing agreement with Meta to deploy their low-carbon concrete technology at a concrete block maker in Ontario and expand capacity with a partner in Quebec. 

⛽️ Braya Renewable Fuels is considering an “economic shutdown” of its biofuels refinery in Newfoundland and Labrador, citing short-term disruptions from expiring tax credits in the U.S.

🚌 Nova Bus, a Quebec-based subsidiary of Volvo, will supply 62 new electric buses for BC Transit, while Ballard will supply Stadler with 8 MW of fuel cell engines for trains. 

☀️ Solar developer Recurrent Energy landed a 10-year power purchase agreement with a U.S. tech company to build 300 MW of solar in Spain.

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IN THE NEWS

💨 B.C. will fast-track nine wind projects to meet energy demand. The projects will provide about 5,000 GW of energy annually, or an 8% increase in BC Hydro’s supply. The BC government said the projects will be exempt from environmental assessments.

🔌 Zero-emissions vehicle sales hit a new high in Q3, making up 15.7% of new registrations. That’s a 20% jump vs Q2 with Quebec, Ontario and B.C. leading the way.

🌊 The first 100% Indigenous-owned hydro plant will be built in B.C. Gitga’at First Nation is breaking ground on a 900 KW hydro facility that will meet 95% of the community’s electricity needs and replace current diesel generators. 

🤝 Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador reached a new deal on Churchill Falls. The tentative agreement resolves a decades-long dispute over the hydro plant in Labrador and will increase payments from Quebec, netting an extra $1 per year for NFLD. 

🎯 New emissions targets walk the line between ambition and humility. Canada will cut its emissions between 45-50% from 2005 levels by 2035, up from 40-45%. Emissions have dropped just 8% as of last year.

BIG PICTURE

A corporate-led financing group wants to develop $9B of renewables across the U.S.

Google teamed up with Intersect Power and TPG to build energy parks around new data centres

Battery pack prices dropped to their lowest price since 2017 while a new study shows EV batteries could last 40% longer than we thought

Germany is scrapping €350 in hydrogen subsidies

An inside look at the Trump transition team’s plan to roll back EV supports while Biden plans to double tariffs on cleantech imports from China

Japan launched new plans to expand nuclear energy alongside renewables

CATL and Stellantis are teaming up on a $6.1B EV battery plant in Spain