Earlier this year the federal budget made a significant commitment to clean electricity. The 2023 Fall Economic Statement offers a number of additional announcements that will help electricity companies build a cleaner, more reliable and affordable electricity system.
- The announcement of an Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program, which will help increase the access to affordable capital needed to support Indigenous equity ownership in major electricity projects. Electricity Canada looks forward to working with the government in the coming months to develop the program.
- The inclusion of waste biomass as an eligible investment under the Clean Technology and Clean Electricity investment tax credits will help support the deployment of additional clean and renewable electricity technologies.
- Changes to the Income Tax Act to ensure that repayable concessional government loans, such as from the Canada Infrastructure Bank, will not be considered government assistance. This is an important change that ensures that electricity investments benefit fully from federal programs to help expand our electricity grid to meet the needs of net zero.
- Revising Canada’s Green Bond Framework to include investments in nuclear energy. This change reflects the important role that nuclear power will play in providing emissions-free and affordable electricity now and into the future.
Electricity Canada looks forward to the release of additional details on the implementation of Investment Tax Credits in the coming weeks. It is important to ensure that these tools are available as soon as possible and are properly designed to support investment.