Emissions Reduction Alberta announces $176m in project funding

Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA) has selected sixteen ‘shovel-ready’ projects to share $176 million in funding to accelerate Alberta’s economy and sustainability agenda.

The projects, selected by the organization through its Shovel-Ready Challenge, represent $2 billion in funds from public and private investors.

According to ERA, the innovation behind the projects have the potential to deliver cumulative greenhouse gas reductions of 6.8 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions by 2030— equal to eliminating emissions from the electricity used by 4.5 million homes.

The projects are also expected to boost the region’s economy and provide approximately 5,600 new jobs.

In total, $126 million of stimulus funding is being sourced from Alberta’s industry-funded Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) fund, while the remaining $50 million will be sourced by the federal Low Carbon Economy Leadership Fund (LCELF).

“Alberta continues to show leadership by using technology in practical ways to reduce emissions and combat climate change. These investments will help us grow our economy and pave the way to an even brighter future for all Albertans by building on Alberta’s strong foundation as a responsible and innovative energy leader,” said Jason Kenney, Premier of Alberta.

Work is anticipated to commence within 60 days of funding approval. Projects were split amongst three categories: five projects from oil and gas, six representing low carbon energy, and five in bioindustry and waste-to-value add.

“Shovel-Ready funding expands ground-breaking technologies that are helping industries cut emissions, employ more Albertans, and grow our economy. The TIER program continues to demonstrate Alberta’s global leadership on innovation and technology, which are the key pathways to protecting our shared environment while getting Alberta’s economy back on track,” added Jason Nixon, minister of environment and parks for Alberta.

Canada has been scaling its sustainable investment this year with the launch of its Sustainable Finance Group back in May.

Leading financial market players rallied earlier in the year to develop a sustainable finance market infrastructure for the nation.

According to research from GSI Alliance, Canada and the US have been leading the way on global growth of sustainable investment.

Canada was responsible for 48% of sustainable assets at the start of the year, according to the study.