Propulsion Québec, the electric and intelligent transportation cluster, welcomes the investments announced by the Minister of Finance of Canada, Ms. Chrystia Freeland, to promote the energy transition and ensure the competitiveness of Canadian companies in the face of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed last August by the United States

A strong signal for the green economy, but concrete initiatives are still expected

The measures announced to support clean technology manufacturing, including the zero-emission vehicle industry and critical mineral exploration, are a step in the right direction to meet the U.S. strategy of unprecedented investments in transitioning to the green economy and bringing production back to American soil. However, Propulsion Québec would have liked to see investments to support the acquisition of zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure in order to accelerate the transition of vehicle fleets. The cluster also notes a lack of concrete measures dedicated to innovation in the transportation sector and workforce training.

“The federal government is on target with a targeted response to the ERI. It is essential that Canada synchronizes with its trading partners, particularly the United States and Europe, to ensure the competitiveness of businesses in the context of the energy transition. We hope that the Canadian government will commit to a concerted green industrial policy that would implement concrete measures for our ecosystem,” said Sarah Houde, CEO of Propulsion Québec.

Better coordination of efforts

We recognize that in recent years, the federal government has made significant investments in clean technologies and the various links in the electric and intelligent transportation supply chain. We are convinced that better coordination of efforts between the various partners and departments, and continuous monitoring of the achievement of clear targets would be our greatest allies.

Electric and intelligent transport: accessible and concrete solutions to decarbonize the economy

Given the urgency to act for the climate, Propulsion Québec has been proactive and has proposed a sectoral industrial policy for the electric and intelligent transportation sector – TEI Ambition 2030 – which has identified 225 concrete initiatives led by over 60 partners.

We offer our full cooperation to the Government of Canada in identifying and implementing concrete measures for the TEI sector.

Budget Highlights

Among the announcements related to transportation, it is relevant to highlight the 5-year investments that can have a positive impact on the ecosystem:

• 6.3 billion to introduce an investment tax credit for clean electricity,
• 1.08 billion to support clean electricity projects,
• 4.5 billion to introduce a clean technology manufacturing investment tax credit,
• 5.5 billion to introduce a clean hydrogen investment tax credit,
• 294 million to support clean technology projects,
• 20 million to enhance reduced tax rates for manufacturers of zero-emission technologies,
• 52 million to strengthen Canada’s trade corridors,
• 14 million by 2028 to extend flow-through share deductions and the critical mineral exploration tax credit to lithium brine mining activities.