Advanced Biofuels Canada welcomes ‘Building Canada Strong Act’
Advanced Biofuels Canada Association welcomed Sept. 25 the introduction of Bill C-39, an act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy (the “Building Canada Strong Act”), tabled in the House of Commons Sept. 21.
The bill gives effect to the federal commitment to “one project, one decision, in one year,” moving federal assessments, permits and consultations from sequential to concurrent review.
These measures are designed to reduce duplication and give investors and project proponents greater certainty.
“Advanced Biofuels Canada welcomes the Building Canada Strong Act and its focus on speed, certainty and predictability,” said Fred Ghatala, the president of Advanced Biofuels Canada. “Emissions reductions are ultimately delivered by physical assets, including low-carbon fuel production facilities and the feedstock supply chains that serve them. Every liter of low-carbon fuel produced and used in Canada can reduce emissions on a lifecycle basis, so every year saved in the approval process is a year of earlier emissions reductions and earlier returns on investment.”
The association said it believes the legislation will be most beneficial if it is used to help Canada build the low-carbon energy assets needed to make Canada a clean-energy superpower.
“Canada has abundant sustainable feedstocks, world-class refining and agricultural expertise, and proven clean-fuel policies, including the federal Clean Fuel Regulations and British Columbia’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard,” Advanced Biofuels Canada stated. “A faster, coordinated federal process, together with the bill’s proposed ‘Regions of National Interest’ for energy corridors and industrial regions, can help turn those advantages into domestic production capacity. Domestically produced low-carbon fuels can help major projects themselves reduce their emissions footprint and serve hard-to-abate transportation sectors such as marine, rail and aviation.”
The association said it looks forward to working with the government of Canada and parliamentarians to ensure the new framework accelerates clean-fuel and low-carbon energy projects alongside other major infrastructure.
“Clean-fuel facilities are long-lived, capital-intensive assets, and investors price regulatory risk into every one of them,” Ghatala said. “A predictable, one-year federal decision lowers that risk premium and brings new low-carbon molecules to Canadian markets sooner. As clean energy responds to clear demand signals—setting 2040 carbon-intensity targets under the Clean Fuel Regulations would give investors the durable demand signal they need to build those projects here. The ‘Building Canada Strong Act’ can help turn Canada’s natural advantages into lasting economic strength, energy security and measurable emissions reductions.”
