Alberta commits C$176mn for emission reductions

The government of Alberta said November 1 it would provide funding of C$176mn (US$142mn) to 16 emissions reduction projects under the Shovel-Ready Challenge launched in 2020 by Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA).

Alberta’s C$750mn Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) fund will provide C$126mn of the total, with the rest coming from the federal government’s Low Carbon Economy Leadership Fund.

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“Shovel-ready funding expands ground-breaking technologies that are helping industries cut emissions, employ more Albertans and grow our economy,” said Jason Nixon, Alberta’s minister of environment and parks. “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.”

The 16 projects, Alberta premier Jason Kenney said, will deliver cumulative GHG reductions of 6.8mn mt CO₂-equivalent by 2030 and average annual emissions reductions of about 1mn mt of CO₂-e, while creating about 5,600 jobs.

Among the major projects receiving funding under the Shovel-Ready Challenge is Air Products’ plan to develop a C$1.3bn blue hydrogen hub on Edmonton’s outskirts. Air Products will receive C$15mn from ERA.

Power utility Capital Power will also receive C$15mn for phase 1 of its Genesee Carbon Conversion Centre west of Edmonton, which will use CO₂ captured from its nearby gas-fired power generating facilities to produce carbon nanotubes.

Linde Canada will receive C$14.9mn for a C$37.5mn project to demonstrate the low-carbon advantages of using LNG as a transportation fuel and to replace diesel in remote power applications.

And Canadian Pacific Railway will receive C$15mn to help it develop three locomotives fueled by hydrogen fuel cells and to develop hydrogen production and fueling facilities.

The rest of the funding will be directed to various emission reduction projects in the oil sands, low-carbon energy and bioindustry and waste-to-value sectors.